A plume of smoke rises after a strike on the Iranian capital of Tehran, March 5. AFP-Yonhap
TEHRAN — Israel on Thursday launched a fresh wave of strikes on Iran, which stepped up its attacks on Gulf nations Qatar and Bahrain, as the Middle East war spread throughout the region and beyond.
AFP reporters in Tehran and Doha heard huge explosions over the cities, with a thick column of black smoke billowing on the horizon of the Qatari capital.
A conflict sparked Saturday with US-Israeli attacks on Iran that killed supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has rapidly escalated, engulfing the region and drawing in global powers, while snarling shipping and energy markets.
The war has touched as far afield as the Sri Lankan coast, where a US submarine torpedoed an Iranian warship, and Azerbaijan, which threatened retaliation after a drone hit an airport.
Azerbaijan warned the attack "will not go unanswered" and vowed "necessary retaliatory measures," raising fears of another country entering the fray.
In Lebanon, AFPTV images showed buildings in rubble and plumes of black smoke over Beirut after Israeli strikes aimed at Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.
On another front, Tehran said it had hit Iraq-based Kurdish groups, as the United States reportedly seeks to arm Iranian Kurdish groups to infiltrate Iran.
Australia deployed two military aircraft to the theater while Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney said he could not rule out his armed forces taking part in hostilities.
The war has also dragged in NATO member Turkey after alliance air defenses destroyed a missile launched from Iran heading towards Turkish airspace.
Source: Korea Times News
