By The Associated Press<\/p>\n
Israel\u2019s defense minister threatened on Saturday that \u201cthe intensity of the attacks\u201d by Israel and the United States against Iran\u2019s ruling theocracy will \u201cincrease significantly\u201d as the war in the Middle East<\/a> entered its fourth week.<\/p>\n Britain condemned Iran for targeting Diego Garcia, a joint U.K.-U.S. base in the Indian Ocean. The distance of Saturday\u2019s attack suggests Tehran is able to send missiles much farther than Iran had acknowledged.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s Natanz nuclear enrichment facility<\/a> was hit in an airstrike, an official Iranian news agency reported Saturday, saying there was no radiation leakage. Israel denied responsibility.<\/p>\n The U.S. and Israel have offered shifting rationales for the war, from hoping to foment an uprising<\/a> that topples Iran\u2019s leadership to eliminating its nuclear and missile programs<\/a>. There have been no public signs of any such uprising, and the war shows no sign of abating. <\/p>\n The death toll has risen to more than 1,300 people in Iran, more than 1,000 people in Lebanon, 15 in Israel and 13 U.S. military members in the region. Millions of people in Lebanon and Iran have been displaced.<\/p>\n Here is the latest:<\/p>\n Iran may have used space launch vehicle to aim ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia<\/p>\n The joint British-U.S. base in the Indian Ocean is almost 4,000 miles (2,500 kilometers) away. Iran previously limited the range of its ballistic missile program to 1,240 miles (2,000 kilometers), but U.S. officials have said Iran\u2019s system for satellite launches could extend their range.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s Simorgh space launch vehicle could offer greater range \u201cat the likely cost of terminal accuracy,\u201d said Justin Bronk, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, a defense think-tank.<\/p>\n \u201cBallistic missiles are space rockets. They launch, they go really high up and they come down really fast,\u201d said Steve Prest, a retired Royal Navy commodore. \u201cIf you\u2019ve got a space program, you\u2019ve got a ballistic missile program.\u201d<\/p>\n Prest said the launches were likely a message of defiance, to say \u201clook what we can do,\u201d in response to Trump\u2019s claims that Iran\u2019s military has been obliterated.<\/p>\n Egypt, Saudi Arabia say Iranian attacks on Gulf states endanger regional stability<\/p>\n Egypt\u2019s president Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman stressed Saturday that the Iranian escalation against Gulf states endangers the safety and the stability of the region.<\/p>\n The state-run Saudi Press Agency reported that el-Sissi reiterated his country\u2019s rejection of the Iranian attacks on the Gulf states, adding the the Egyptian president expressed solidarity with the Kingdom against threats.<\/p>\n Also Saturday, Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit welcomed the visits of el-Sissi and his Jordanian counterpart King Abdullah II to multiple Gulf states over the past few days, saying that these visits \u201creflect full Arab solidarity.\u201d<\/p>\n US House speaker said mission is \u2018all but done\u2019<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s fellow Republicans appear unlikely to directly challenge him, even as the conflict drags on. House Speaker Mike Johnson<\/a> has said the military operation will be over quickly.<\/p>\n \u201cI do think the original mission is virtually accomplished now,\u201d Johnson, R-La., told the AP and others at the Capitol this week. \u201cWe were trying to take out the ballistic missiles, and their means of production, and neuter the navy, and those objectives have been met.\u201d<\/p>\n Johnson acknowledged that Iran\u2019s ability to threaten ships in the Strait of Hormuz is \u201cdragging it out a little bit,\u201d especially as U.S. allies have largely rebuffed the president\u2019s request for help, but said \u201cAs soon as we bring some calm to the situation, I think it\u2019s all but done.\u201d<\/p>\n Republicans have backed the commander in chief, so far<\/p>\n The Republican president\u2019s decision to launch the U.S.-Israel-led war with Iran is testing the resolve of the Congress, which is controlled by his party.<\/p>\n Under the War Powers Act<\/a>, the president can conduct military operations for 60 days without approval from Congress. So far, Republicans have easily voted down<\/a> several resolutions<\/a> from Democrats designed to halt the military campaign.<\/p>\n But the administration will need to show a more comprehensive strategy ahead or risk blowback from Congress, lawmakers said, especially as they are simultaneously being asked to approve billions in new spending.<\/p>\n Israel says its not responsible for Natanz nuclear site attack<\/p>\n The Israeli military denied that Israel was responsible for a strike that hit Iran\u2019s Natanz nuclear enrichment facility<\/a>. An official Iranian news agency reported on Saturday that the site was damaged in an airstrike but there was no radiation leakage. The Israeli military said it wasn\u2019t aware of Israeli strikes in that region.<\/p>\n The denial came as Israel\u2019s Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a video statement that next week, \u201cthe intensity of the attacks\u201d by Israel and the United States against Iran\u2019s ruling theocracy will \u201cincrease significantly.\u201d<\/p>\n Iranian hospital and tourist site damaged in strikes<\/p>\n A hospital and tourist site in southwestern Iran have been damaged from U.S. or Israeli strikes, killing at least one child, according to Iranian news agencies.<\/p>\n Strikes killed a child at the Ritaj entertainment complex in Ahvaz, according to Iran\u2019s state news agency, and damaged the Andimeshk\u2019s Imam Ali Hospital hospital, according to the semi-official Mehr and Fars news agencies. Both are in the Khuzestan province on the border with Iraq. The hospital said the blast created significant damage and it is no longer accepting patients, but did not give any other information.<\/p>\n The death toll has risen to more than 1,300 people in Iran, more than 1,000 people in Lebanon, 15 in Israel and 13 U.S. military members in the region as the war enters its fourth week.<\/p>\n Congress looks for Trump\u2019s exit plan as the Iran war drags on<\/p>\n Trump<\/a> took the United States to war without a vote of support from Congress, but lawmakers are increasingly questioning when, how and at what cost the war with Iran<\/a> will come to an end.<\/p>\n Three weeks into the conflict<\/a>, the toll is increasing: At least 13 U.S. military personnel have died, and more than 230 wounded<\/a>. A $200 billion Pentagon request<\/a> for war funds is pending at the White House. Allies are under attack, oil prices are spiking<\/a> and thousands of U.S. troops<\/a> are deploying to the Middle East with no endgame in sight.<\/p>\n \u201cThe real question is: What ultimately are we trying to accomplish?\u201d Sen. Thom Tillis<\/a>, R-N.C., told The Associated Press. \u201cI generally support anything that takes out the mullahs,\u201d he said. \u201cBut at the end of the day, there has to be a kind of strategic articulation of the strategy, what our objectives are.\u201d<\/p>\n Russia condemns attacks on Iran\u2019s nuclear facility<\/p>\n Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova called strikes on the Natanz nuclear enrichment facility \u201ca brazen violation of international law.\u201d<\/p>\n In a statement posted on the ministry\u2019s website Saturday, Zakharova said such \u201cirresponsible actions\u201d posed a \u201creal risk of catastrophic disaster throughout the Middle East\u201d and were \u201cclearly aimed at further undermining peace, stability, and security in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n Sirens sound in Bahrain<\/p>\n Authorities in Bahrain say sirens have sounded Saturday, signaling a potential attack.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s ability to threaten navigation in Strait of Hormuz is degraded, US military leader says<\/p>\n The head of U.S. Central Command says in his latest video update on the war that U.S. forces \u201cremain on plan to eliminate Iran\u2019s ability to project meaningful power outside its borders.\u201d<\/p>\n Adm. Brad Cooper also detailed steps taken to undermine Iran\u2019s control of the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway vital to international commerce such as oil shipments.<\/p>\n He says in a post on X that earlier in the week, multiple 5,000-pound bombs were dropped on an underground facility along Iran\u2019s coastline that was used to store anti-ship cruise missiles, mobile missile launchers and other equipment \u201cthat presented a dangerous risk to international shipping.\u201d<\/p>\n Cooper says intelligence support sites and missile radar relays used to monitor ship movements were destroyed.<\/p>\n \u201cIran\u2019s ability to threaten freedom of navigation in and around the Strait of Hormuz is degraded as a result and we will not stop pursuing these targets,\u201d he says in the video.<\/p>\n Cooper also said that \u201cwe have built the most extensive air defense umbrella in the world over the Middle East right now.\u201d<\/p>\n 22 countries urge Iran to cease attacks, reopen the Strait of Hormuz<\/p>\n Countries including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, the U.K., Germany, France, Japan, South Korea and Australia have also condemned Iran\u2019s attacks on commercial vessels as well as oil and gas facilities in the region.<\/p>\n \u201cThe effects of Iran\u2019s actions will be felt by people in all parts of the world, especially the most vulnerable,\u201d they said in a joint statement Saturday.<\/p>\n Iranians hold Eid al-Fitr prayers in Tehran\u2019s grand mosque<\/p>\n Thousands of Iranian worshipers on Saturday converged on Tehran\u2019s grand mosque for Eid al-Fitr prayers marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.<\/p>\n Associated Press footage showed worshippers lining up at Imam Khomeini Mosalla and in its vast courtyard for the prayers as Israel and the United States continued launch massive airstrikes against Iran.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s really a painful feeling,\u201d Masoud Alibenam, 50 said its \u201creally a painful feeling\u201d that the Eid prayers are being offered without Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who was killed in the first days of the war. \u201cThe leader (Khamenei) is no longer here, and we are offering the prayers in his absence.\u201d<\/p>\n Worshippers also held funeral services for Gen. Ali Mohammad Naeini, spokesperson for the Revolutionary Guard, who was killed in an Israeli strike Friday. The funeral procession of Amir Hossein Bidi, a pro-government cultural activist also was held after Eid prayers.<\/p>\n 36 Iranian drones and missiles launched at Jordan in war\u2019s third week<\/p>\n Jordan\u2019s military said on Saturday this week\u2019s attacks, which involved at least 14 missiles, left a child injured.<\/p>\n That brought the total number of wounded to 24 since war\u2019s Feb. 28 start.<\/p>\n Over the last three weeks, a total of 240 missiles and drones have been fired at Jordan, the military said.<\/p>\n What is the Diego Garcia air base? <\/p>\n The Diego Garcia air base is home to about 2,500 mostly American personnel and has supported U.S. military operations from Vietnam to Iraq, Afghanistan and strikes on Yemen\u2019s Houthi rebels.<\/p>\n Diego Garcia is part of the Chagos Islands, a remote archipelago in the middle of the Indian Ocean off the tip of India. The islands have been under British control since 1814.<\/p>\n They are at the center of a U.K. spat with President Donald Trump over Britain\u2019s plans to hand sovereignty of the Chagos archipelago to Mauritius. Britain would then lease back the Diego Garcia base.<\/p>\n Prime Minister Keir Starmer says that will safeguard the future of the base, which is currently vulnerable to legal challenge. The Trump administration initially welcomed the deal, but in January Trump called it \u201can act of GREAT STUPIDITY.\u201d<\/p>\n Attack on Diego Garcia raises questions about range of Iran\u2019s missiles <\/p>\n Iran currently has a self-imposed limit on its ballistic missile program, limiting their range to 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles). <\/p>\n That puts all of the Mideast and some of Eastern Europe in range, but Diego Garcia would be far beyond it. <\/p>\n However, U.S. officials long have alleged Iran\u2019s space program could allow it to build intercontinental ballistic missiles.<\/p>\n Britain condemns Iran\u2019s \u201creckless attacks\u201d on Diego Garcia air base <\/p>\n Britain has condemned \u201cIran\u2019s reckless attacks\u201d after its military fired missiles at the U.K.-U.S. air base on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.<\/p>\n U.K. officials have not given details of the attempted strike, which was unsuccessful. It\u2019s unclear how close the missiles came to the base, which is about 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) from Iran.<\/p>\n The Ministry of Defense said Saturday that Iran\u2019s \u201clashing out across the region and holding hostage the Strait of Hormuz, are a threat to British interests and British allies.\u201d<\/p>\n Britain has not participated in U.S-Israeli attacks on Iran, but has allowed American bombers to use U.K. bases to attack Iran\u2019s missile sites.<\/p>\n On Friday, the British government said U.S. bombers can also use U.K. bases, including Diego Garcia, in operations to prevent Iran attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n Iran targeted the base before that U.K. statement.<\/p>\n Israel says attacks on Iran will be ramped up, war will continue<\/p>\n Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said attacks against Iran will \u201cincrease significantly\u201d in the coming week.<\/p>\n Katz spoke Saturday, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump said he was considering \u201cwinding down\u201d military operations in the Mideast.<\/p>\n \u201cThis week, the intensity of the attacks that the IDF and the U.S. military will carry out against the Iranian terrorist regime and against the infrastructures on which it relies will increase significantly,\u201d Katz said in a video statement.<\/p>\n UN Atomic agency says no reported increase in radiation levels at Natanz nuclear facility<\/p>\n The International Atomic Energy Agency said in a social media post Saturday that Iran has informed it of the attack on its Natanz nuclear facility. <\/p>\n The IAEA said it was looking into the report, adding that \u201cno increase in off-site radiation levels reported.\u201d<\/p>\n Russia says it remains Iran\u2019s loyal friend and reliable partner<\/p>\n Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a message Saturday congratulating Iranians on the new year festival Nowruz that he wished them to \u201covercome these severe trials with dignity.\u201d The Kremlin press service also quoted Putin as sayin that \u201cMoscow remains Tehran\u2019s loyal friend and reliable partner.\u201d<\/p>\n UAE reports missile and drone attacks <\/p>\n The United Arab Emirates\u2019 Defense Ministry said Saturday that it has responded to three ballistic missiles and eight drones.<\/p>\n Iran says airstrike targets its Natanz nuclear facility<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s official news agency Mizan said Saturday\u2019s airstrike on the country\u2019s Natanz nuclear facility<\/a> did not result in any radiation leakage.<\/p>\n Natanz, Iran\u2019s main enrichment site, was hit in the first week of the war and several buildings appeared damaged, according to satellite images. <\/p>\n The United Nations\u2019 nuclear watchdog said that \u201cno radiological consequence\u201d was expected from that earlier strike.<\/p>\n