Iran war ramps up as Mideast nations defend attacks, Western countries weigh involvement

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The U.S. And Israeli offensive in Iran shows no signs of abating. Here's what you need to know as the war enters Day 6:

5 days into the Iran war: Are we still at the beginning?

In an operational update provided by the U.S. Yesterday, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said shots fired by Iran's ballistic missiles were down 86 per cent from the first day of fighting. But experts say it's hard to know for sure what Iran's capabilities are — and whether they're being stretched thin.

"No one knows the answer for two reasons," said Janice Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs. "Some of the missile launchers — especially for the big important ballistic missiles — are hidden, and getting an accurate count is really hard." 

A second factor is that Iran may be storing a lot underground, she said. 

"The fact that the missiles being fired against the Gulf and against Israel are fewer doesn't tell us what the Iranian government is holding in reserve," Stein said. "This is a war of survival for them." 

When debris from an intercepted Iranian missile struck the Fairmont The Palm, a five-star hotel on Dubai's opulent manmade archipelago, on Feb. 28, it pierced not just the country's advanced missile defence system but also its carefully crafted image of security.

For decades, the United Arab Emirates has positioned itself as an economic and cultural hub, connecting European and Asian markets.

According to government statistics, the country had a population of about 11.3 million people as of 2024, the vast majority of whom are expats. 

But on Saturday, just hours after the U.S. And Israel launched massive strikes against Iran that killed the country's longtime Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the U.A.E. Came under fire like never before.

Three people have been killed and dozens of others are injured, mostly from falling debris. 

Alexander Debare, a 37-year-old entrepreneur who was born and raised in the capital of Abu Dhabi, said he heard two "very loud" bangs.

"It was two missiles which had been intercepted," he said. "But it's not a noise that we're used to."

Global Affairs Canada is urging Canadians to leave the Emirates as soon as possible, saying the threat of missiles and drones remains.

Read the full story here. 

The strike, which killed at least 165 people, mostly children, according to Iranian state TV, occurred on Saturday, during the first wave of U.S. And Israeli operations against Iran. 

"It was precise targeting of a military facility for the IRGC," said Yousef Riazi, a military researcher at Factnameh, an Iranian fact-checking group out of Toronto.

"According to satellite images, the impacts shows a pattern of precision-guided munitions … there shouldn't be any mistakes."

He says the fact a school was struck shows it was "either the fault of a weapons system or a huge mistake CENTCOM made with intelligence gathering."

Read the full report by Ivan Angelovski, Eric Szeto and Britnei Bilhete here.

The U.S. And Israeli offensive in Iran shows no signs of abating. Here's what you need to know as the war enters Day 6:

Here's what you need to know as ​the war enters its sixth day, many Western and European allies of the U.S. And Israel have been drawn in militarily even as some voice misgivings about the war's origins and potential for long-lasting repercussions. The decisions involved include allowing the U.S. Use of European airbases and protection of the continent's airspace.

While remarking that the alliance "is not itself involved," in the conflict, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte told Reuters that "without European allies, the U.S. Would have found it very difficult to launch this campaign against Iran."

Rutte also said the shooting down of a ballistic missile headed for Turkey on Wednesday by NATO air defences alone wouldn't trigger NATO's Article 5 mutual defence clause. Iran on Thursday denied it had fired the missiles, saying it respects the sovereignty of "friendly" Turkey.

Italy — together with Spain, France and the Netherlands — will send naval assets to protect Cyprus soon, Defence Minister Guido Crosetto told parliament in Rome Thursday. Those countries have not independently confirmed Crosetto's statement. A British airbase on Cyprus was targeted by an Iranian-made drone on Monday, and the U.K. Said it would deploy more military assets there.

In Australia, Foreign Minister Penny Wong refused to say whether members of its military were on a U.S. Submarine that torpedoed a Iranian ship, citing national security reasons. Australia's military partnership with the U.S. Sees dozens of its service members serve on American submarines.

I'm Crystal Goomansingh reporting from Jerusalem. The Home Front Command in Israel is easing emergency restrictions — switching from essential activity to limited. 

People are now allowed to return to work and have gatherings of 50 or more as long as there is a shelter nearby. 

Schools, however, will remain closed. 

With the changes, the Home Front Command — which falls under the Israel Defence Forces — says people should still adhere to all emergency alerts when incoming strikes are detected. 

The Associated Press

The Israeli military said Thursday it had hit 80 targets in Lebanon linked to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group over the past 24 hours.

Among the targets in Lebanon that the Israel military said it hit over the past 24 hours were "several command centres" used by Hezbollah in Beirut. It showed video footage of a building being hit, but provided no further details.

Eight people were killed in Lebanon, including two in a building struck by the Israeli military in the Beddawi refugee camp in the coastal city of Tripoli on Thursday and three on a coastal highway, authorities said. The Israeli military did not immediately say who it targeted in the strikes.

In two near-simultaneous Israeli drone strikes in Beirut's southern suburbs late Wednesday, two vehicles were hit, killing three people and wounding six, the health ministry said. The Israeli military said it targeted a Hezbollah member, adding that further details would follow.

Meanwhile, explosions sounded early Thursday in Israel, which said its defensive systems were moving to intercept at least three waves of Iranian missiles.

Israel announced multiple incoming missile attacks and air sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Iranian state television said its military was also targeting U.S. Bases in strikes.

Reuters

Azerbaijan accused Iran on Thursday of firing two ‌drones at its territory, injuring two people, ​and said it ​had summoned the Iranian ambassador in ​order to issue a ⁠strong ⁠protest.

The ‌Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said one drone fell on an airport ⁠in Nakhchivan, near the border with Iran, ‌and another landed near a school.

In a statement, it condemned ​the attacks, demanded ⁠an explanation from Iran, and ⁠said Azerbaijan reserved ⁠the ⁠right ​to take "appropriate response measures."

There was ​no ⁠immediate comment from Iran.

Reuters

Russia on Thursday accused the United States and Israel of trying ‌to drag Arab countries into a wider Middle East conflict by provoking ​Iran into striking at targets ​across the region.

"They deliberately provoked Iran into ​retaliatory strikes against targets in ⁠some Arab ⁠countries, ‌which led to human and material losses, which the Russian side deeply regrets," Russia's Foreign ⁠Ministry said in a statement.

"In doing so, they (Washington and Tel ‌Aviv) are trying to drag the Arabs into a war for someone else's ​interests."

The only way to prevent ⁠the Middle East from being ⁠further destabilized was to stop the "aggression" ⁠of ⁠the ​U.S. And Israel, the ministry added, saying ​there ⁠were no signs for now that the two "aggressors" would halt their strikes.

The Associated Press

Iranian state television aired a message Thursday from an ayatollah in Iran calling for the "shedding" of blood from Israelis and U.S. President Donald Trump.

The message came from Ayatollah Abdollah Javadi Amoli and represented one of the few clerical statements coming from Iran as it faces a combined airstrike campaign from Israel and the United States.

"We are now on the verge of a great test and we must be careful to fully preserve this unity, to fully preserve this alliance," he said in the statement.

He called for "the shedding of Zionist blood, the shedding of Trump's blood."

"The Imam of the time says, 'Fight the oppressive America, his blood is on my shoulders,"' the ayatollah added.

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