Israel launched extensive strikes against infrastructure in Tehran, with explosions reported throughout the Iranian capital and power outages occurring in the city and surrounding areas, according to reports from Al-Jazeera. The Israeli military also targeted the city of Karaj, west of Tehran. Six people were killed Monday in the city of Tabriz, in northwestern Iran, during what reports indicate were joint Israeli-American airstrikes, the Fars news agency reported. Iran has responded with retaliatory attacks in the region.
An additional airstrike leveled residential buildings in the northwestern city of Urmia, with rescue workers searching for people trapped under the rubble, according to the state-run Nour News agency.
At least six people were killed in two Israeli-American airstrikes targeting Tabriz, in East Azerbaijan province, northwestern Iran. The first strike on a residential building killed four people and injured six others. Two people died in a second strike at Rabe Rashidi Park.
A nationwide internet outage in Iran has been ongoing since the start of the Israeli-American attacks, which began on February 28. “International connectivity remains unavailable to the general public, while authorities continue to maintain a selective whitelist of sites for global access,” Netblocks, a non-governmental organization that monitors cyber security, reported on X.
Iran Retaliates
Iran continues to launch counterattacks. Sirens sounded in the area of Jerusalem and in parts of southern and central Israel after Iran struck Israeli territory for the third time Monday with ballistic missiles. According to the Times of Israel, no casualties have been reported.
The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Defense announced, according to Al-Jazeera, that a drone was intercepted. Riyadh had earlier reported being targeted by two ballistic missiles, according to AFP.
The United Arab Emirates responded to the threat of missile attacks from Iran by urging citizens to remain in safe places.
Israel Attacked Iran Overnight Monday
The Israeli military had already been attacking Tehran overnight Monday. The military announced a large-scale wave of attacks against “the regime’s infrastructure,” AFP reported. Explosions were reported in Tehran, according to Fars. One person was killed in an attack on the southern Iranian city of Bandar-Abbas, Tasnim reported.
One person was injured in an attack on a transmitter, state broadcaster Irib reported, attributing the attack to Israel. The port city is located on the southern coast of Iran near the Strait of Hormuz.
Prior to the conflict, roughly 20 percent of global oil and natural gas shipments passed through the key Strait of Hormuz. Traffic has decreased by approximately ninety percent due to threats from Iran, leading to a significant increase in oil prices.
Trump Ordered Conditional Delay of Attacks
U.S. President Donald Trump gave Iran a 48-hour ultimatum Saturday evening (Sunday night EST) to fully open the Strait of Hormuz, or the United States would begin destroying Iranian power plants. On Monday, he announced that the U.S. Had very good conversations with Iran in the last two days and conditionally ordered a delay of attacks on Iranian power plants for five days. The Iranian Fars news agency, citing a source, reported that Iran is not negotiating directly or indirectly with the United States.
According to the website Axios, President Trump cannot end the war with Iran as he envisions it until he breaks Iran’s control over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. President had previously threatened a possible U.S. Ground invasion. According to the Associated Press, U.S. Troops could land on the Iranian coast and occupy some islands or parts of the territory to ensure smooth shipping through the strait. Washington mentioned occupying or blockading the Iranian island of Charg.
Tehran Threatens Further Attacks
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard previously stated that if the U.S. Attacks Iranian power plants, Tehran will retaliate by attacking Israeli power plants and power plants supplying electricity to U.S. Bases in the region.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard had earlier stated, according to news agencies, that if the U.S. Actually attacks power plants, Tehran will also completely close the Strait of Hormuz, destroy companies with American stakes, and energy facilities in countries where U.S. Bases are located, which would be legitimate targets.
The Iranian Fars news agency published a list of threatened facilities in the Persian Gulf, including a nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates.
“Any attempt by the enemy to attack the Iranian coast or islands will lead, naturally and in accordance with established military practice, to the mining of all access routes in the Persian Gulf and along the coast,” warned the Iranian Defense Council.
The threat from Tehran endangers both electricity and water supplies in Arab states in the Persian Gulf, especially because these desert countries operate their power plants together with desalination plants, which are essential for supplying drinking water in the region.
Civilian Death Toll Rises
The Iranian human rights organization HRANA, based in the United States, said Sunday that the number of civilian casualties in the Israeli-American attacks in Iran is 1,407, including at least 214 children. More than ten thousand civilians have been injured, according to the Iranian Ministry of Health.
Since the beginning of this war, at least two thousand people have been killed in the Arab region, Reuters reported, which noted that it could not independently verify the toll. Most of the casualties are reported from Iran. Over a thousand killed, including 118 children, are reported from Lebanon, with dozens from Iraq and units from the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Syria, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
Oil Reacts to Trump’s Delay of Ultimatum with Declining Prices
Oil prices fell sharply Monday, erasing earlier gains in response to Trump’s announcement of a delay in attacks on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure.
Brent crude oil prices plummeted nearly 11 percent and closed just below $100 a barrel. Brent closed Friday at its highest level since July 2022, Reuters reported. The price of American light crude West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell by more than 10 percent Monday to around $88 a barrel.
