BY Rosemary
Explosions echoed across Tehran at dawn Wednesday as the widening war between Iran, Israel and the United States entered its fifth day, underscoring the rapid escalation of a conflict that is reverberating far beyond the region.
Iranian state television reported blasts in multiple parts of the capital in the early morning hours. At nearly the same time, the Israeli military said its air defense systems had been activated to intercept incoming Iranian missiles, with explosions heard in and around Jerusalem as interceptors streaked across the sky.
The exchange marked another intense round in a campaign that has expanded steadily since it began, with Israeli forces targeting Iran’s leadership structures and security apparatus, and the Islamic Republic responding with waves of ballistic missiles and drones aimed at Israel and at U.S. and allied positions across the Middle East.
The fighting has also rattled global energy markets. With Iran exerting pressure over tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow passage at the mouth of the Persian Gulf through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply flows — Brent crude prices climbed above $82 a barrel. That represents a rise of more than 13% since the conflict began and the highest level since July 2024. Equity markets around the world have slid sharply amid concerns that sustained energy price spikes could slow economic growth and erode corporate earnings.
The conflict has increasingly drawn in neighboring states. Drone attacks on Tuesday targeted the American Embassy in Saudi Arabia and the U.S. Consulate in the United Arab Emirates, according to U.S. officials. On Wednesday, the State Department authorized the departure of non-emergency government personnel from Saudi Arabia, citing heightened security risks.
U.S. military officials say the scale of Iran’s response has been substantial. Adm. Brad Cooper, head of U.S. Central Command, said Tehran has launched more than 500 ballistic missiles and approximately 2,000 drones since the campaign began. He described the initial American strikes as nearly double the scale of the opening salvo in the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
“We’ve already struck nearly 2,000 targets, with more than 2,000 munitions,” Cooper said in a prerecorded message released online. “We have severely degraded Iran’s air defenses and destroyed hundreds of ballistic missiles, launchers and drones.” He summarized the strategy in blunt terms: “We are focused on shooting all the things that can shoot at us.”
Nearly 800 people have been killed inside Iran since hostilities began, according to Iranian relief authorities. Among those killed were senior officials and figures seen by some as potential future leaders, U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier in the week. Trump has suggested the war could last a month or longer, though the administration’s precise endgame remains fluid.
Israeli officials said Wednesday that they were conducting coordinated strikes across Tehran targeting security forces and facilities tied to Iran’s internal enforcement structures. A day earlier, Israeli aircraft struck a building in the city of Qom associated with the clerical body responsible for selecting Iran’s next supreme leader.
Air raid sirens also sounded across Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet. Qatar’s Ministry of Defense said Iran fired two ballistic missiles at its territory, one of which struck Al-Udeid Air Base without causing casualties. In Lebanon, Israeli strikes targeted areas where Hezbollah operates after the Iran-backed group launched rockets toward Israel. Lebanon’s state media reported at least five people killed in Baalbek when a residential complex was hit, bringing the toll there to more than 50 dead and over 300 wounded since the fighting intensified.
Militant groups aligned with Tehran have also joined the fray. In Iraq, the Shiite militia Saraya Awliya al-Dam claimed responsibility for a drone strike on Jordan, where air raid sirens sounded nationwide. The group has also asserted responsibility for recent attacks on U.S. targets in Baghdad and Irbil.
Despite Iran’s regular missile and drone barrages, Israeli authorities say most projectiles have been intercepted by layered air defense systems. Eleven people have been killed in Israel since the start of the conflict, according to officials.
As the military exchanges intensify, uncertainty is growing over how and when the war might end. U.S. officials have cited a range of objectives, including dismantling Iran’s missile arsenal, neutralizing its naval capabilities, preventing it from obtaining a nuclear weapon and curbing its support for allied armed groups across the region.
The initial U.S.-Israeli strikes reportedly killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a seismic event in a political system where ultimate authority rests with the supreme leader. In the immediate aftermath, Trump publicly urged Iranians to overthrow their government, though senior administration officials later said regime change was not an explicit objective of the campaign. On Tuesday, Trump suggested that “someone from within” Iran’s existing power structure might ultimately emerge as a successor.
Israel’s defense minister, Israel Katz, said that whoever is chosen to lead Iran next would face the same risks if they continue policies hostile to Israel and the United States. The Israeli military also reported strikes on facilities in Tehran associated with the Basij, a volunteer paramilitary force under the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that has played a central role in suppressing domestic protests.
Iranian authorities are now grappling with the question of succession. It is only the second time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that the country has faced the selection of a new supreme leader. Potential candidates reportedly range from hard-line clerics committed to confrontation with the West to figures who favor a more pragmatic approach to diplomacy.
Israeli military spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said a strike in Qom targeted a building where clerics were expected to convene to discuss succession, though it remains unclear whether any senior figures were present at the time. Iranian news agencies close to the Revolutionary Guard said the clerical body was meeting remotely and that no session was underway at the targeted site.
Civilian casualties have mounted across the region. The Iranian Red Crescent Society reported at least 787 deaths in Iran, including women and children. Kuwait said an 11-year-old girl was killed by falling shrapnel as its air defenses intercepted aerial threats. Authorities in the United Arab Emirates reported three fatalities, while Bahrain confirmed one death.
Six U.S. Army Reserve soldiers were killed Sunday in a drone strike on a command center in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, marking one of the deadliest single incidents involving American forces since the conflict erupted.
With missile fire crossing borders, oil prices surging and regional militias engaging on multiple fronts, the confrontation has evolved into a broad and volatile struggle with consequences extending well beyond the immediate battlefield. Diplomats have so far failed to secure even a temporary halt in the fighting, and each new round of strikes deepens fears that the conflict could become protracted and reshape the balance of power across the Middle East.
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