The mood in Iran, finally, is to make a deal with Trump
Arash Azizi is an author and historian, and an Iranian affairs columnist for The National
May 14, 2025
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7 minutes ago
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Iran strikes technology park in Israel, Microsoft building damaged
Iran on Friday directly struck targets in southern Israel, including a technology centre, a Microsoft office and military infrastructure, wounding at least seven Israelis. One of the main targets was the Gav-Yam Negev Advanced Technologies Park, which reportedly houses active military and cyber facilities. The latest attack from Iran consisted of just one to three missiles, according to Israeli media, with the military failing to intercept one that struck Beersheba. Circulating footage shows a small crater left amongst cars set ablaze in the car park of a residential building. The Iranian attack damaged several houses and sparked a large fire in the area. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters According to reports, the blaze reached a Microsoft office, while Israel Railways announced the temporary closure of the Beersheba North-University station due to damage sustained in the attack. The station, which is part of the intercity line from Tel Aviv to Beersheba-Dimona, has since been re-opened for operation. Iran's Revolutionary Guard said the Microsoft office was "attacked due to its close cooperation with the Israeli army and its being part of the system supporting aggression, and not just a civilian entity." "The cyber area that was attacked also includes the residences of people from the espionage and artificial intelligence fields, who operate in direct cooperation with the enemy army and its security apparatus," the statement added. Footage circulating online shows cars in front of a building in flames after what was reportedly an Iranian missile attack in Be'er Sheva, located in southern Israel, on Friday. — Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) June 20, 2025 Iran's state media confirmed that the latest missile launch targeted the technology park. Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared the attacks in a post on X, writing: "The Zionist enemy is being punished. It is being punished right now." Since last Friday, when Israel launched a military operation against Iran, hundreds of missiles have been fired from Iran. Despite Israel's advanced air defence system, it has not been able to intercept them all. As a matter of policy, Israel's military censor has prohibited local and international media from publishing details about the exact locations targeted. Earlier this week, the Israeli army acknowledged in a statement that the country's air defences are not fully capable of repelling all missile attacks. Israel strikes Tehran Iran's Revolutionary Guard announced early on Friday that three of its members were killed in an overnight Israeli assault on East Azerbaijan Province, northwest Iran. The air strikes targeted several military sites across Iran, with the Israeli military saying it struck a "research and development centre for Iran's nuclear weapons programme," including a production facility used to create missiles. "More than 50 fighter jets attacked selected targets of the nuclear weapons programme and industrial sites for the production of missile components in Tehran overnight," the army said in a post on X. Meanwhile, an Israeli drone attack on Friday afternoon reportedly targeted a nuclear scientist residing in an apartment in the Gisha area of central Tehran. According to Israeli media, the scientist was assassinated. Israeli attacks on Iran have so far killed 639 people, the Human Rights Activists News Agency said, wounding over 1,300 0thers.
Zawya
28 minutes ago
- Zawya
Oil tumbles, stocks rebound after Trump Middle East pause
Stock markets ticked higher on Friday while oil skirted close to its biggest daily drop since April after President Donald Trump pushed back a decision on U.S. military involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict. Rising risks from the Middle East have loomed large on the world's top indexes again this week. Europe's main bourses all rose between 0.5%-1% after similar gains across Asia, although it was touch and go whether it would be enough to prevent a second straight weekly loss for MSCI's main world index. Israel bombed targets in Iran, and Iran fired missiles at Israel overnight as the week-old war continued although Friday's markets moves, which also included a modest drop in the dollar, showed an element of relief. That was largely pinned on Thursday's statement from the White House that Trump will decide in the next two weeks - rather than right away - whether the U.S. will get involved in the war. European foreign ministers were to meet their Iranian counterpart in Geneva on Friday, seeking a path back to diplomacy over its contested nuclear programme. The relief the U.S. wasn't charging into the conflict sent oil prices down as low as $76.10 per barrel, although they were last at just over $77 and still up 4% for the week and 20% for the month. "Brent crude is down 2.5% today in the clearest sign that fears over an imminent escalation in the Israel/Iran conflict have eased," MUFG strategist Derek Halpenny said. Gold, another traditional safe-haven play for traders, was also lower on the day although Nasdaq, S&P 500 , and Dow futures were all in the red after U.S. markets had been closed on Thursday. Asian shares had gained 0.5% overnight thanks to a 1.2% jump in Hong Kong's Hang Seng and as newly elected President Lee Jae Myung's stimulus plans saw South Korea's Kospi top 3,000 points for the first time since early 2022. China's central bank held its benchmark lending rates steady as widely expected in Beijing, while data from Japan showed core inflation there hit a two-year high in May, keeping pressure on the Bank of Japan to resume interest rate hikes. That in turn lifted the yen and pushed down the export-heavy Nikkei in Tokyo. OIL RETREATS The dollar was ending an otherwise positive week lower on the day, with the euro up 0.3% against the U.S. currency at $1.1527 and the pound 0.2% higher at $1.3494. The U.S. bond market, which was also closed on Thursday, resumed trading with the key 10-year Treasury bond yield flat at 4.39%, while German 10-year yields , which serve as Europe's borrowing benchmark rate, fell 2.5 basis points to 2.49%. Gold prices eased 0.5% to $3,354 an ounce, but were set for a weekly loss of 2.3%. But the main commodity market focus remained oil. Brent crude futures were last down $1.60, or around 2.2%, at $77.28 a barrel in London although they were still on track to end the week 4% higher. PVM analyst John Evans said the big market risk of the Middle East troubles was "unintended action that escalates the conflict and touches upon oil infrastructure". "The world has more than adequate supply for 2025, but not if the nightmare scenario of 20 million (barrels per day) being blocked in the seas of Arabia, however briefly that might be," he said. (Additional reporting by Stella Qiu in Sydney Editing by Frances Kerry)
The National
an hour ago
- The National
Oil prices slip as Trump announces two-week pause on Iran action
Traders grasp at the hope of a diplomatic solution as Iran's Foreign Minister meets his European counterparts
