Strikes, counterstrikes as war spirals

The war in the Middle East spiralled further on Monday as Israel and the US pounded Iran.

- Agencies

A burning F-15 aircraft falls from the sky in Al Jahra, Kuwait, on Monday.

(REUTERS)

Tehran and its allies hit back against Israel, neighbouring Gulf states, and targets critical to the world’s production of oil and natural gas.The intensity of the attacks, the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and the lack of any apparent exit plan set the stage for a prolonged conflict with far-reaching consequences.

Safe havens in the Mideast like Dubai have seen incoming fire; hundreds of thousands of airline passengers are stranded around the globe; oil prices shot up; and US allies pledged to help stop Iranian missiles and drones.

Iran has long threatened, if attacked, to drag the region into total war, including targeting Israel, the Gulf Arab states and the flow of crude oil crucial for global energy markets. All of these came under attack on Monday, AP reported.

The Gulf state of Qatar said its air force had shot down two Iranian Sukhoi Su-24 bombers.

Israel and the US bombed Iranian missile sites and targeted its navy, claiming to have destroyed its headquarters and multiple warships. As several airstrikes hit Iran’s capital of Tehran, the top security official Ali Larijani vowed on X: “We will not negotiate with the United States.”