On the sixth day of conflict, the war between the US and Iran extended beyond the limits of the Middle East. The affected area now ranges from Cyprus, an island in the Mediterranean, to Sri Lanka, an island in the Indian Ocean, south of India.
Sri Lanka had already entered the route on Wednesday (4), with the US submarine attack on an Iranian ship off the country’s coast. This Thursday (5), however, Turkey announced that NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) shot down a missile coming from Iran, Azerbaijan was hit by two Iranian drones and a British military base in Cyprus was the target of drones, also launched by Iran.
In the Middle East, attacks continue. This Thursday, the US and Israel intensified bombings in Iran, which retaliated by hitting an American military base in Iraq and a US-flagged oil tanker in the Persian Gulf.
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Israel also began bombing south of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard also claimed to have struck the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, which has not been confirmed by the US.
War numbers
This Thursday, there was no update on the total number of deaths in the conflict or on how many were victims of the day’s attacks.
Israel raises the tone
Israel promised this Thursday to further intensify its attacks. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the Beirut suburb will be razed “very soon” and compared the predicted destruction to what was done in Khan Younis, in the Gaza Strip.
Two Israeli sources interviewed by Reuters said that the country’s fighter jets must attack deeply buried ballistic missile sites, in raids that mark a .
Another statement that had repercussions on the sixth day of the conflict was that of Defense Minister Israel Katz, according to whom Israel decided to kill Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, in November and planned to carry out the operation approximately six months later.
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Trump wants to influence succession in Iran
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, once again spoke about a change of government in Iran. For him, it is “unacceptable” that Ali Khamenei’s son becomes the country’s new supreme leader. Mojtaba Khamenei is the favorite to take over the post.
In an interview with the website Axiosand compared the situation to what he describes as his actions in Venezuela.
In an interview with ReutersTrump stated that he would support a Kurdish offensive in Iran. “It’s great that they want to do that, I would be totally in favor,” he said.
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A conversation that took place on Tuesday between senior officers of the US Armed Forces and parliamentarians came to light this Thursday. At the meeting, the military reportedly said that the country may not have the capacity to intercept all Iranian drones launched against American bases.
Iranian authorities resist
On the Iranian side, the statements indicate a willingness to continue resisting. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that the country does not fear a land invasion: “We are confident that we can confront them, and that would be a great disaster for them.”
Abbas also ruled out any negotiations with the US and said Iran had not called for a ceasefire.
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Other countries become involved in the conflict
At war against Russia within its own territory, Ukraine was drawn into the conflict in the Middle East. According to President Volodimir Zelenski, the United States asked for help in dealing with Iranian drones. .
The move is in line with the American military’s concern about not being able to stop all drones launched by Iran and was announced two days after officials exposed the problem in a meeting with politicians in Washington.
The United Kingdom, in turn, gave in to pressure from Trump and announced the sending of four fighter jets to Qatar, in addition to reinforcing the air defense system at its base in Cyprus.
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In the opposite direction, French President Emmanuel Macron asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to expand the war to Lebanon. “The Lebanese authorities have committed to taking control of the positions occupied by Hezbollah and full responsibility for security throughout the national territory. I give them my full support,” Macron wrote in X.
NATO, despite having worked to intercept a missile that would hit Turkey, reiterated that it will not enter directly into the conflict. The organization’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, stated that he does not intend to invoke Article 5, which deals with the bloc’s collective defense, but reinforced support for the US and Israel and said that the alliance “is vigilant”.
“The most important thing is that our adversaries saw yesterday that NATO is very strong and very vigilant — and even more vigilant, if possible, since Saturday,” he said.
