Earlier, another state media outlet showed a display of part of the IRGC's drone arsenal inside a large tunnel. Coinciding with the release of these visuals, the IRGC confirmed the launch of the 48th phase of its retaliatory campaign.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that the country believes that dialogue and negotiation are the only viable solutions to resolving disputes and that the continued escalation of the conflict serves no one's interests.
It may now be time to question the price India is paying for Israel's disregard of the serious undermining of India's energy security, asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
This threat comes as the assembly of experts in Iran has reportedly reached a majority consensus regarding the successor to the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to the Tehran-based Mehr News Agency (MNA).
West Asia conflict triggers sharp sell-off in Indian markets, with realty, banking and auto stocks leading losses amid energy shock fears.
Amid an escalating regional war, questions deepen over whether Iran's soccer team will compete at this year's FIFA World Cup to be jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
Amid the ongoing conflict in West Asia, Israeli Ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, stated that Israel is willing to cease hostilities if Iran changes its course, emphasising that Tel Aviv has consulted diplomatic channels, including the US and regional partners.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE are actively pushing Trump to take the war to its bitter finish and 'erase' Iran's presence in the geopolitics of the region. Simply put, the two most powerful Sunni Arab oligarchies are on the same page as Israel. Such interference increases the risk of a breakdown in dialogue between the US and Iran, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired a high-level meeting to review regional and internal security in light of recent events in Iran and Afghanistan.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has called for a negotiated settlement with Iran and deployed additional fighter jets to West Asia to strengthen the UK's defensive operations.
Delhi should keep all its options open in what is essentially a transitional period in the geopolitics of energy rather than remain a gatekeeper serving Trump's 'America First', suggests Ambasssador M K Bhadrakumar.
The cost of the war is being counted not in the corridors of power in Washington or Tehran, but in Firozabad's darkened furnace rooms, Howrah's idle casting sheds, and a barbershop in Kochi where the wait is suddenly, inexplicably, an hour long, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
India has issued an advisory for its citizens in Israel to exercise utmost caution and remain vigilant at all times, following a joint attack by Israel and the US against Iran.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel and the US struck Iran because Tehran had restarted its nuclear programme and it would have gone 'immune within months'. He claimed Iran was building new underground sites to shield its missile and nuclear programmes from attacks.
Indian parents express growing anxiety and fear for the safety of their children studying in Iran, as the conflict between Iran and Israel escalates. They are appealing to the Indian government for immediate evacuation.
Will rising tensions between US-Israel and Iran threaten crude oil supply through the Strait of Hormuz, putting India's fuel prices, imports, and economic stability at risk?
'In such a scenario, Iran could proclaim itself victor, rebuild, re-enforce its diminished regional proxies to further destabilise neighbouring nations and take control of the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz.'
For weeks, the war skirted the edge of catastrophe without tipping over. Missiles flew, there was much destruction, commanders were assassinated, cities across the Gulf and even in Israel struggled to absorb the shock. But one line held: Energy infrastructure, the arteries of the global economy, remained largely untouched. That is no longer true. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
The Indian embassy in Tehran has earlier stated that it is facilitating the safe movement of nationals who wish to leave Iran.
'Strikes into the Gulf countries are proof that the security guarantees offered by the US are ineffective and that the Gulf countries cannot rely on American security assurances for their safety.'
The delegations from the US and Iran head to Islamabad on Friday, carrying a ceasefire that is already fraying, a Strait that is technically open and practically closed, and a negotiating agenda that would challenge even parties actually negotiating in good faith, which these groups are not. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
India-based Iranian actresses Mandana Karimi and Elnaz Norouzi share their deep concerns and anxieties about the escalating crisis in Iran, and reveal the personal toll on their lives and the Iranian diaspora.
Airports across the country have been placed on operational alert to manage potential flight diversions, unscheduled landings and passenger facilitation requirements.
The US-Israeli military campaign, dubbed "Operation Epic Fury" by Washington, has entered its third day, with US President Donald Trump stating that operations would continue "until all of our objectives are achieved."
If the Iranian regime needs to be punished for promoting quasi-terrorist outfits like Hezbollah and Hamas, then what about Pakistan which has spent decades exporting terror around the world, killing thousands, particularly in Afghanistan and India? asks M R Narayan Swamy.
India's handling of the Iran crisis reflects a growing strain between strategic autonomy and geopolitical alignment, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The escalating conflict involving the U.S. and Israel with Iran has led to widespread disruption in the world of sports, with events postponed, travel plans thrown into chaos, and athletes seeking asylum.
Israel and the United States had a plan. Iran punched back. And now the Gulf is reeling, the world is beginning to feel the pain and, as on date, no one in Washington or Tel Aviv appears willing to admit that the punch has landed, notes Prem Panicker, continuing his must-read blog on the war in the Middle East.
Iran launched retaliatory military strikes targeting Israel and American military bases across the region, including in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan.
By appearing to privilege ideological affinity over strategic balance, India risks eroding the trust painstakingly built across West Asia. Once the perception takes hold that India's friendship is conditional and transactional, rebuilding credibility will be difficult, warns Amberish K Diwanji.
'The next two to three weeks will not be decided in Washington.' 'They will be decided in Tehran, in whatever calculation Iran makes about the costs of continued resistance against the costs of appearing to have yielded.'
'Was the five-day pause ever meant to hold, or was it simply another instrument of signaling, of positioning, of buying time in a war where even the pauses are tactical?' asks Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
The threat of wars hovers over the negotiations in Oman, but the good part is that Trump called the talks to be 'very good' and Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian responded that they 'constitute a step forward', points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
United States and Israeli officials are assessing potential policy options in response to ongoing unrest in Iran, according to multiple indications received by Israeli media reports The Jerusalem Post.
'Despite the large number of missiles and drones we have already launched, we still possess reserves and missile cities whose doors have not yet been opened,' says Iran's Consul-General Saeid Reza Mosayeb Motlagh.
When everyone has footage and no one can verify it, the loudest voice wins, notes Prem Panicker who begins a daily blog on the War in the Middle East.
People in Iran have taken to the streets as daily life has become increasingly difficult. Rising prices of food, fuel and basic necessities, job scarcity, and the falling value of money have fuelled wider anger and anti-government unrest in the capital Tehran and other Iranian cities.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has publicly acknowledged for the first time that thousands of people were killed during recent nationwide protests, marking an unusual admission from the clerical leadership amid a fierce crackdown that has drawn international attention, reports Fox News.
Alliances fight wars effectively only when they share an endgame. If Israel acted without US knowledge, then the military alliance is operating without real coordination at the level of strategic targeting. Neither picture is reassuring in a war that is no longer regional in its consequences. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
'The entire US ecosystem built over decades at the bases in the Gulf region, especially the UAE, costing trillions of dollars have been decimated, dealing a mortal blow to the US Central Command's war capability,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
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