Jordan shuts airspace in fresh wave of Israel-Iran attacks
Jordan announced the closure of its airspace late Saturday for a second time since the start of the most intense direct confrontation between arch-foes Israel and Iran.
The civil aviation authority in Jordan, which borders Israel, announced in a statement the closure until further notice of the country's airspace, as well as the suspension of all takeoffs, landings and transit.
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Asharq Al-Awsat
32 minutes ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Israel and Iran Bombard Each Other; Trump Says He Can ‘Easily' End Conflict
Israel and Iran launched fresh attacks on each other overnight into Sunday, killing scores and raising fears of a wider conflict, as US President Donald Trump said it could be ended easily while warning Tehran not to strike any US targets. Israeli rescue teams combed through rubble of residential buildings destroyed by Iranian missiles, using sniffer dogs and heavy excavators to look for survivors after at least 10 people, including children, were killed, raising the two-day toll to 13. Sirens rang out across Israel after 4 pm on Sunday in the first such daylight alert, and fresh explosions could be heard in Tel Aviv. In Iran, images from the capital showed the night sky lit up by a huge blaze at a fuel depot after Israel began strikes against Iran's oil and gas sector, raising the stakes for the global economy and the functioning of the Iranian state. Iran has not given a full death toll but said 78 people were killed on Friday and scores more have died since, including in a single attack that killed 60 on Saturday, half of them children, in a 14-storey apartment block flattened in Tehran. Israel launched "Operation Rising Lion" with a surprise attack on Friday morning that wiped out the top echelon of Iran's military command and damaged its nuclear sites, and says the campaign will continue to escalate in coming days. Iran has vowed to "open the gates of hell" in retaliation. The Israeli military warned Iranians living near weapons facilities to evacuate. "Iran will pay a heavy price for the murder of civilians, women and children," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said from a balcony overlooking blown-out apartments in the town of Bat Yam where six people were killed. An official said Israel still had a long list of targets in Iran and declined to say how long the offensive would continue. Those attacked on Saturday evening included two "dual-use" fuel sites that supported military and nuclear operations, he said. President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran's responses will grow "more decisive and severe" if Israel's hostile actions continue. TRUMP WARNS IRAN NOT TO ATTACK Israeli skies have been streaked with barrages of Iranian missiles and Israeli interceptor rockets. Some 22 of Iran's 270 ballistic missiles fired over the past two nights breached Israel's anti-missile shield, Israeli authorities say. With worries growing of a regional conflagration and oil prices having shot up, Trump has lauded Israel's offensive while denying Iranian allegations that the US has taken part in it. He warned Tehran not to widen its retaliation to include US targets. "If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before," he said in a message on Truth Social. "However, we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict." Early on Sunday Trump said the sides will have peace "soon", adding many unspecified meetings were taking place. Trump has repeatedly said Iran could end the war by agreeing to tough restrictions on its nuclear program, which Iran says is for peaceful purposes, but Western countries say could be used to make a bomb. The latest round of nuclear negotiations between Iran and the United States, due to be held on Sunday, was scrapped after Tehran said it would not negotiate while under Israeli attack. OIL PRICE: TENSE WAIT FOR MARKETS TO OPEN Oil prices already shot up by 9% on Friday before Israel had struck any Iranian oil and gas targets. Financial markets are holding their breath to see whether prices surge further when trading resumes on Monday after the weekend, with potentially punishing consequences for the global economy, or settle down on hopes that Gulf exports will escape relatively unscathed. Since Saturday, Israel has hit the oil depot in Tehran and facilities at Iran's huge South Fars gas field, the world's largest, which produces gas for domestic consumption. But so far Israel has spared targets associated with Iran's oil exports. Traders say oil buyers have loaded up on long-term contracts for protection in case of supply disruption, but uncertainty could drive wild price swings. Iran said the situation at the burning Shahran oil depot in the capital was under control. It told citizens to seek shelter in mosques, schools and subways. Israel's military said its aircraft hit 80 targets overnight including the headquarters of Iran's defense ministry and also its nuclear project. Iranian media showed pictures of rescue workers combing through damaged buildings with flashlights. In Israel, the second night of Iranian attacks began shortly after 11 pm on Saturday (2000 GMT), when air raid sirens blared in Jerusalem and Haifa, sending around a million people into bomb shelters. Another barrage followed hours later, with explosions echoing through Tel Aviv and Jerusalem as missiles streaked across the skies and interceptors were deployed. At one time, Iran could have expected military support from proxy forces in Gaza, Lebanon and Iraq. However, 20 months of war against the Hamas group in Gaza and last year's conflict with Lebanon's Hezbollah have decimated Tehran's strongest regional proxies, reducing its options for retaliation. The Israeli military official said Israel had targeted the chief of staff of Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis, who fired a missile towards Israel. Israel has said its operation could last weeks. Netanyahu has openly urged Iran's people to rise up against their clerical rulers.
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
Pakistan forms committee to tackle possible economic fallout of Israel-Iran conflict — adviser
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has formed a high-level committee led by the finance minister to monitor any possible economic impact of the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, a senior government adviser said on Sunday, as rising oil prices threaten to add new pressure on the South Asian nation's fragile economy. Oil prices have climbed about 7 percent since Friday, with Brent crude closing at $74.23 a barrel after hitting a session high of $78.50, amid fears of supply disruptions if Middle East tensions escalate further. 'The prime minister has constituted a committee under the supervision of the finance minister, which will monitor the situation,' Khurram Schehzad, an adviser at the finance ministry, told Arab News. 'The committee will assess the impact of the changes and volatility in oil prices on fiscal and external sides, and devise a strategy to pacify the impacts on Pakistan's economy.' Pakistan relies heavily on imported oil, and any sustained spike in prices could widen its current account deficit and push inflation higher at a time when the country is struggling with low foreign reserves and slow growth. Israel and Iran launched fresh attacks on each other overnight into Sunday, killing scores. The conflict started on Friday when Israel launched a massive wave of attacks targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities but also hitting residential areas, sparking retaliation and fears of a broader regional conflict. A 909 kilometer (565 mile) long international boundary separates Iran's southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan province from Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province. 'Israel-Iran conflict presents complex challenges for Pakistan as rising oil prices may increase import costs and inflation, influencing monetary policy and growth, while disruptions to key routes like the Strait of Hormuz can affect energy supplies and critical projects,' said Khaqan Najeeb, an economist and former finance ministry adviser. 'It can potentially affect consumer purchasing power and production costs ... Possible disruptions to shipping routes and higher freight charges might result in delays to imports and exports, thereby exerting additional pressure on Pakistan's external sector.' DIPLOMATIC BALANCING As the crisis deepens, analysts widely believe Islamabad should maintain 'careful diplomatic balancing' between its ties with Iran and its other partners in the Gulf, as well as the United States. 'Diplomatically, Pakistan has to navigate a balanced and principled stance, honoring its historic ties with Iran alongside its strategic relationships with the US and Gulf partners, emphasizing dialogue and regional stability.' Former Defense Secretary Lt Gen (retired) Naeem Lodhi said Israel was unlikely to target Pakistan directly but an expanding conflict could complicate matters for Islamabad, adding that it should remain vigilant but avoid 'deeper' involvement. 'If the war expands to include more Middle Eastern countries, some of which are friendly to Pakistan, then it would be a difficult proposition for Islamabad... whose side it takes,' Lodhi added. Former Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry said Pakistan would respond 'forcefully' if directly targeted. 'Israel knows that Pakistan has the capacity to hit back hard,' Chaudhry said, referring to a May 2025 military confrontation with India in which Islamabad retaliated to New Delhi's strikes, taking down fighter jets and hitting airfields, air bases and other military facilities. Pakistan's former ambassador to Iran, Asif Durrani, warned that the crisis could spill over if not contained. 'Not only Pakistan, but the entire Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region can be engulfed if the ongoing spat between Israel and Iran turns into an all-out war,' Durrani said. However, he said the likelihood of a refugee crisis was limited unless the conflict escalated into a ground invasion. 'A refugee influx is possible if it becomes a full-fledged war, but Israel or the United States are unlikely to commit boots on the ground in Iran,' Durrani added. Qamar Cheema, executive director of the Sanober Institute think tank, said Pakistani security forces should increase patrols and surveillance in border districts as the conflict could impact militant groups operating along the Iran-Pakistan border region, such as Baloch separatists and other sectarian outfits. 'Whenever such a situation arises, separatist and sectarian outfits often try to take advantage of it, either by increasing their activities or by shifting them from their hideouts inside Iranian territories,' he said. 'Their movement is likely to intensify if the threat reaches the border region.'
Al Arabiya
2 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
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US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Iran and Israel should make a deal. Developing
