The Middle East war entered a second week yesterday, while Tehran made an unusual apology to neighbouring states for its ‘actions’, apparently seeking to calm regional anger at Iranian strikes on Gulf civilian targets, it continued to shower its neighbours with missiles and drones.
“I personally apologise to neighbouring countries that were affected by Iran’s actions,” Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said, urging them not to join US-Israeli attacks on Iran.
Shortly after his announcement, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards clarified the promising overtones with subsequent reports suggesting that any country with a US base remained fair game.
Bahrain, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Iraq all reported drone or missile attacks over the past week.
Yesterday, Bahrain said that it destroyed 92 ballistic missiles and intercepted 151 drones from Iran. This includes 14 missiles and eight drones which were destroyed yesterday.
Iran’s apparent strategy of maximum chaos has driven up the costs of the conflict by raising energy prices, hurting global business and logistics links and shaking trust in the stability of a critical region for the world’s economy.
Pezeshkian’s remarks come as diplomatic prospects for an end to hostilities appear bleak, with US President Donald Trump demanding Tehran’s ‘unconditional surrender’.
“There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Friday.
Pezeshkian dismissed the demand as ‘a dream’, but said its temporary leadership council had agreed to ‘suspend attacks on nearby states’ unless strikes on Iran originated from their territory. No-one appeared to have told the missile and drone launching crews.
Trump nonetheless cast Iran’s apology as a surrender, while saying the country would be ‘hit very hard’.
And, Pezeshkian’s comments caused a political stir in Iran, prompting his office to reiterate Iran’s military would respond firmly to attacks from US bases in the region.
Hamid Rasai, a hardline cleric and legislator, wrote on X ‘Mr Pezeshkian, your stance was unprofessional, weak and unacceptable’.
The US-Israeli attacks have killed at least 1,332 Iranian civilians and wounded thousands, according to Iran’s UN ambassador, Amir Saeid Iravani.
Iranian attacks have killed 10 people in Israel, and at least six US service members.
In Bahrain, a Bangladeshi shipyard worker was killed last week from falling missile debris in Salman Industrial City and two others were injured. Additionally, residential buildings in Juffair, Seef District, Manama and Hidd were targeted by the Iranian aggression.
Two hotels, including the Crowne Plaza Bahrain, were also damaged.
Bapco Energies was also hit by an Iranian missile strike that led to a blaze which was contained by firefighters.
The US Navy’s Fifth Fleet base in Juffair has suffered damage due to multiple drones and missile strikes too.
The General Command of the Bahrain Defence Force said that the use of ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles to target civilian infrastructure and private property constitutes a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and the United Nations Charter, and that these indiscriminate attacks represent a direct threat to regional peace and security.
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