The Iranian power closed ranks this Monday around the appointment of the Ayatollah as the new supreme leader, in defiance of the United States, while the conflict continues and the price of oil exceeds 100 dollars per barrel.
The Israeli Army announced new waves of attacks against central Iran and the Shiite group’s infrastructure in Beirut, and Bahrain reported 32 injuries from an Iranian drone, amid attacks on Persian Gulf countries.
This is the latest from the conflict in the Middle East.
“New era of honor and authority” in Iran
- The Iranian president, on Monday, congratulated the new supreme leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mokhtaba Khamenei, and affirmed that his appointment marks “a new era of honor and authority” for the country.
- The Assembly of Experts, made up of 88 members, elected the Ayatollah as successor to his father, the Ayatollah, who died during the war with the US and Israel.
- This Monday, the Revolutionary Guard expressed its obedience to Mojtaba Khamenei, as well as other political, parliamentary and military authorities, in defiance of the United States, whose president, , stated on Sunday that the new supreme leader “will not last long” in office if he does not have the approval of his Administration.
Israeli attacks on Iran and Lebanon
- The Israeli Army said this Monday that it has launched a new wave of attacks against infrastructure controlled by the Shiite group Hezbollah in Beirut and against the Iranian regime in the central region of the Persian country.
- Israeli forces announced the offensive hours after a round of attacks in which the Army claimed to have bombed the headquarters of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Air Force, from which ballistic missiles and drone fleets are operated.
32 injured in Bahrain
- The Bahrain Ministry of Health reported this Monday 32 injuries, four of them seriously, after the attack by an Iranian drone in Sitra, reports the state news agency BNA. All of the injured, including a two-month-old baby and two children aged 7 and 8, are Bahraini citizens, according to the media.
- Bahrain’s Interior Ministry reported Sunday of Iranian attacks targeting a facility near Mina Salman, a port that hosts a U.S. military base near Sitra.
- Since the US and Israel launched a joint offensive against Iran on February 28, Iran has responded with drone and missile attacks on several Gulf countries.
The Chinese special envoy, in Saudi Arabia
- Zhai Jun, special envoy for Middle East affairs, condemned from Saudi Arabia, affected by the Iranian counteroffensive, “any attack against innocent civilians and non-military targets,” as reported this Monday by the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
- This is the first information published from China about the tour of its special envoy, after it was announced without further details last week. China, Iran’s main allied power, mediated the reestablishment of diplomatic ties between Tehran and Riyadh in 2023.
Another US soldier dies
- The US Central Command () reported this Sunday (US time) of the death of a soldier in Kuwait, bringing the total to eight US military deaths since the war began.
- Meanwhile, at least 1,332 people have died in Iran, according to the Iranian ambassador to the UN, and 394 in Lebanon, according to the Ministry of Public Health. Ten deaths have been reported in Israeli territory due to impacts from Iranian missiles to date.
Oil exceeds $100 per barrel
- The price of Texas intermediate oil (WTI) exceeded this Sunday (again, six hours less than in Spain, in North American east coast time), for the first time since 2022, while President Trump acknowledged that “it is a small price” to pay.
- Brent, the global benchmark for crude oil, exceeded $105, which analysts consider a sign of concern about the growing conflict in the , through which a fifth of global crude oil passes and which is under threat from Iran.
Stock market crash in Asia
- The main Asian markets woke up this Monday in red, in the continent most affected by the energy crisis derived from Hormuz. The main index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the Nikkei, sank almost 7% at the mid-session break, the same as the South Korean Kospi.
- The main stock markets of China and Hong Kong were also down about 3%, in line with the stock markets of Southeast Asia, which is highly dependent on crude oil shipments from the Middle East. Likewise, India’s main stock indices fell more than 2%.
