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Iran targets Israeli embassy in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia intercepts missile


Iran targets Israeli embassy in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia intercepts missile

Multiple Gulf nations, Arab states, as well as Turkiye and Azerbaijan have been caught in the crosshairs of the war.

Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency has reported that overnight attacks on Bahrain’s capital, Manama, targeted the Financial Harbour Towers commercial complex, the location of the Israeli embassy in the city.

The first week of the United States-Israel war on Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes on nations hosting US forces and assets has engulfed the region and beyond into a broader conflict.

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The Reuters news agency reported Friday that an Iranian drone was intercepted and destroyed in the vicinity of the complex.

In a statement, the General Command of the Bahrain Defence Force said it had destroyed a total of 78 missiles and 143 drones targeting Bahraini territory in what it described as “treacherous” attacks by Iran.

The command said it “takes pride in the high level of combat readiness and vigilance shown by its personnel”. The military urged the public to shelter in their homes, only leaving “in cases of extreme necessity”.

Multiple Gulf nations, Arab states, as well as Turkiye and Azerbaijan have been caught in the crosshairs of the war.

In a statement, Kuwait’s army said its air defences are currently “dealing with hostile missile and drone attacks” that have breached its airspace.

Earlier, Iran’s army said its recent strikes in Kuwait targeted US bases and that more attacks will soon follow. “Over the past few hours, various types of destructive drones of the army’s ground forces have targeted American military bases in Kuwait in large numbers,” Iranian state TV cited the army as saying. “These attacks will continue in the coming hours.”

The Saudi Ministry of Defence on Friday said a cruise missile was intercepted and destroyed to the east of the country’s central al-Kharj governorate. The ministry provided no additional information.

The ministry also said later it had intercepted three drones to the east of the Riyadh region.

Additionally, the Qatari Ministry of Defence announced overnight that its air defence forces successfully intercepted a drone attack targeting the Al Udeid Air Base in Doha that hosts US assets.

Reporting from the Qatari capital, Doha, Al Jazeera’s Zein Basravi said, “At around 4am here in Doha (01:00 GMT), residents heard another barrage of loud explosions. Those were interceptions of drones coming in from Iran. The Interior Ministry confirmed that the Al Udeid Air Base was the target.

“On day five, we saw two ballistic missiles targeting the base, with one hitting and one intercepted. In terms of damage assessments, there’s no clear indication. Security is very tight around all these sensitive areas in Qatar at the moment,” he said.

“What we are seeing is a pattern of behaviour by Iran, not just in Doha but across the GCC, of trying to narrow in on soft US targets as well as US military bases. And what we see is that if they can’t hit, they continue to try daily. The concern is now in the coming hours and days that the strikes on Qatar will only continue, if not in the same frequency and volume, but consistently,” he added.

Earlier, authorities issued an alert warning that the security threat level had been elevated, requiring people to remain indoors and to stay away from windows and other exposed areas.

Several explosions rang out in Doha on Thursday.

European Union leaders expressed support for Arab countries in the Gulf as Iran continues to launch missile and drone attacks on targets across the region, in response to attacks by the US and Israel.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and other European leaders held talks with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) officials on Thursday in Brussels, denouncing what they described as “Iran’s inexcusable attacks against the GCC countries”.

Elsewhere on Friday, air defences shot down several drones in the Jordanian city of Irbid, according to an Al Jazeera correspondent on the ground.

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IDF strikes IRGC and Hezbollah sites in Beirut during air raids – VIDEO


The military states that the facility functioned as a headquarters for the IRGC’s air force operations, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
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The IDF also says the strikes hit three additional Hezbollah headquarters connected to the terrorist organization’s naval force, its executive council, and its financial division.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said Israel intends to continue targeting Hezbollah and will not abandon efforts to disarm the terrorist group.
“We are crushing the Iranian terror regime and will seize every opportunity to deepen our achievements. Hezbollah chose to join the campaign alongside Iran and is paying the price. We will seize every opportunity to strike Hezbollah, deepen the achievement, and remove the threat. We will not give up on disarming Hezbollah,” Zamir says to mayors and leaders of local councils on the northern border.
Addressing the officials, Zamir emphasized that the current moment presents a major strategic opening and warned that Israel is preparing for an extended campaign aimed at improving the security situation.
“This is a great opportunity. Significant work is being done here, and we are preparing for a prolonged campaign. We will do everything to seize the opportunity and bring about a change in the security situation,” he tells the local officials.

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Iranian Red Crescent facilities damaged in war: IRC head


“Communities on all sides are already paying a heavy price, with deaths and injuries, and damage to homes, schools, hospitals, and other vital civilian infrastructure,” he said in a post on X, News.Az reports, citing Aljazeera.
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“These and all Red Cross Red Crescent personnel and infrastructures must be protected during this challenging time.”

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Iranian Red Crescent facilities damaged in war: IRC head


“Communities on all sides are already paying a heavy price, with deaths and injuries, and damage to homes, schools, hospitals, and other vital civilian infrastructure,” he said in a post on X, News.Az reports, citing Aljazeera.
***
“These and all Red Cross Red Crescent personnel and infrastructures must be protected during this challenging time.”

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South Caucasus News

Iranian Red Crescent facilities damaged in war: IRC head


“Communities on all sides are already paying a heavy price, with deaths and injuries, and damage to homes, schools, hospitals, and other vital civilian infrastructure,” he said in a post on X, News.Az reports, citing Aljazeera.
***
“These and all Red Cross Red Crescent personnel and infrastructures must be protected during this challenging time.”

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Azerbaijan exposes Iran’s terror plans in Baku


News.Az present the video material released by the SSS regarding the incident:
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Saudi Arabia claims strong fiscal position amid Iran conflict


“Economic activity across Saudi Arabia continues to ⁠operate normally,” the Finance Ministry’s spokesperson said in a statement that referred to “recent developments” but did not directly mention the conflict, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
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“We continue to assess economic and fiscal indicators on an ongoing basis, and ‌current data confirm that our fiscal position and medium-term outlook remain solid”, the statement added.
Oil prices have surged ⁠20 percent since last Friday, and the war ⁠has slashed vital hydrocarbon exports via the Strait of Hormuz and halted output at facilities including Saudi Aramco’s biggest domestic oil refinery.

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Azerbaijan does not rule out military response to Iran; Baku reacts harshly to Iranian attack



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US launches $20B plan for Gulf maritime reinsurance​


In close coordination with CENTCOM, this plan will restore confidence in maritime trade, help stabilize international commerce, and support American and allied businesses operating in the Middle East during the conflict with Iran, News.Az reports, citing DFC.

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This announcement marks a key milestone toward the rapid implementation of President Trump’s directive to utilize DFC’s innovative financial toolkit to safeguard the continued flow of trade.

“I am grateful to President Trump and Secretary Bessent for their support and approval of DFC’s plan to restore confidence in maritime trade and stabilize international markets. Working alongside CENTCOM, DFC coverage will offer a level of security no other policy can provide. We are confident that our reinsurance plan will get oil, gasoline, LNG, jet fuel, and fertilizer through the Strait of Hormuz and flowing again to the world,” said DFC CEO Ben Black.”

Maritime Reinsurance details: 

  • DFC reinsurance facility will insure losses up to approximately $20 billion on a rolling basis. 
  • This revolving insurance offering will apply only to vessels that meet the criteria. 
  • Insurance will focus on Hull & Machinery and Cargo to start. 
  • DFC has identified best-in-class, preferred American insurance partners. 
  • DFC and Treasury are coordinating closely with CENTCOM on next steps in the implementation of this plan.

DFC will continue to provide additional information as it becomes available. Businesses and financial institutions seeking access to DFC’s Maritime Reinsurance product should contact DFC directly at maritime@dfc.gov.

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Google reassures users, like Microsoft, Anthropic is not limited to defense​


The announcements from two of the three leading cloud infrastructure vendors follow the Defense Department’s official designation of Anthropic as a supply chain risk, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

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“We understand that the Determination does not preclude us from working with Anthropic on non-defense related projects, and their products remain available through our platforms, like Google Cloud,” a Google spokesperson said Friday.

Amazon, the leader in public cloud, followed on Friday, saying it will continue offering Anthropic’s AI technology to its cloud customers, excluding work involving the DOD.

Anthropic’s Claude models are available through Google Cloud via the Vertex AI platform. The search giant is also a significant financial backer of Anthropic and, in January 2025, agreed to an additional $1 billion investment, adding to its previous $2 billion stake.

Anthropic uses Google Cloud’s AI infrastructure to train its models, and recently expanded the partnership by gaining access to up to 1 million of Google’s custom tensor processing units (TPUs).

After Anthropic refused to agree to the DOD’s requested terms of use last week, President Donald Trump instructed federal agencies to stop using the company’s technology, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said its work with Anthropic would wind down over six months. CNBC has confirmed that Anthropic models were used by the U.S. in its latest attack on Iran.

Some defense technology companies have told employees to stop using Anthropic’s Claude models and to switch to alternatives, including from rival OpenAI.
Microsoft was the first major partner to say it will keep working with Anthropic after the Pentagon’s actions.

“Our lawyers have studied the designation and have concluded that Anthropic products, including Claude, can remain available to our customers — other than the Department of War,” Microsoft said late Thursday.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said on Thursday that his company has “no choice” but to challenge the supply chain risk designation in court.

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