US citizens urged to leave Saudi Arabia immediately, Isfahan hit, sirens in Israel

The United States Embassy in Riyadh has issued an urgent advisory directing American citizens in Saudi Arabia to leave the country immediately amid the ongoing situation in the Middle East.

In an emergency security alert, the embassy stated that it is closely monitoring developments in the region.

It emphasised that the safety of US citizens is now the highest priority for President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the US State Department.

Meanwhile, the US and Israel continue their attacks on Iran, with missiles striking multiple sites across the central Isfahan province. At least 15 people have been killed. Iran launches multiple barrages of missiles at Israel and claims attacks on US bases in Iraq and Kuwait.

Iran’s army says in a statement carried by the country’s media outlets that its forces carried out “powerful drone attacks” this morning targeting Israel’s “Lahav 433” special police unit headquarters and the Gilat defence satellite communications centre.

It did not specify the locations of the targeted sites or the results of the attacks.

Bahrain says its air defences have intercepted 125 missiles and 211 drones since the Iran war began. At least one person has been killed in the attacks.

Israel claims to have destroyed Hezbollah command centres in Beirut

The Israeli military has claimed that it destroyed “command centres” of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force in the Lebanese capital on Saturday.

In a statement, it also said that it attacked “several Hezbollah launch sites in the Al-Qatrani area” in southern Lebanon.

Israeli attacks have killed at least 826 people in Lebanon since the US-Israeli war on Iran began on 28 February.

The Qatar Grand ⁠Prix, which was scheduled to be held next month, has ⁠been postponed due to the war ⁠in the Middle East, the sport’s governing body says.

“MotoGP confirms that the Qatar Grand Prix, originally ⁠scheduled for April, has been ⁠postponed to November ⁠8 due to the ongoing geopolitical situation in the Middle East,” ‌MotoGP said.

The Lusail International Circuit was ‌scheduled to host the fourth round of the 2026 championship on April 10-12, but it has now been rescheduled for ⁠November 8, organisers said ⁠in a statement.

Formula One and its governing body, FIA, also said the Grands Prix races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia will not happen in April.

Iran ready to help investigate civilian strikes, welcomes initiatives to end war

Iranian Foreign ⁠Minister Abbas Araghchi insists that Iran has not targeted civilian or residential areas ⁠in the Middle East, adding that Tehran ⁠is ready to form a committee with its neighbours to investigate who is responsibile for such strikes.

Araghchi’s Telegram channel quoted him as ⁠saying in an interview with the Al-Araby al-Jadeed ⁠website that Tehran ⁠was in communication with Gulf countries and would welcome any initiative that ‌could guarantee an end to the US-Israeli war ‌on ‌Iran.

Gulf ‌countries have called on Iran to cease its attacks on their territories, which they say have not only hit US military forces ⁠but have also damaged energy facilities and residential areas.

The UK is “intensively looking” at what it can do to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively blocked by Iran and has led to energy price spikes, according to British Energy Secretary Ed Miliband.

“We are talking to our allies. There’s different ways in which we can make maritime shipping possible. We are intensively looking with our allies at what can be done, because it’s so important that we get the strait reopened,” Miliband said this morning in an interview with the Sky News broadcaster, when asked if Britain was looking at sending mine sweepers or mine hunting drones to the strait.

Miliband had earlier said there are a range of things the UK can do, including the use of autonomous mine hunting equipment, but refused to speculate on how far along these proposals were.

He also denied suggestions that Britain did not have a large enough military to meet all its commitments, as well as respond to the crisis.

Trump’s comment shatters US image as reliable security partner

Trump has said the US might continue to bomb Iran’s Kharg Island “just for fun”. Al Jazeera asked analyst Samir Puri if comments like this could shatter the image of the US as a reliable security partner to the Gulf countries.

“When a major or superpower offers security guarantees, it’s not just about the hardware” and the army capabilities, “it’s also about the sense of strategic common sense that comes with it, that this is a responsible actor”, said Puri, a war studies visiting lecturer at King’s College London.

Other members of the Trump administration have also acted in ways that may make Gulf states question whether the US is a stable long-term partner, said Puri.

“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appears to be taking an enormous delight for destruction’s sake in terms of the way the US is approaching the war” in Iran, he added.

While there has been a long-term rivalry between Iran and Arab states, “there’s also an intense desire for stability”, and the question among Gulf states will be whether the US can continue to maintain stability in the region, said Puri.

This is a valid question, “given that it’s arguably radicalising further an already radicalised Iranian theocratic regime, which already has apocalyptic visions about its own destiny, its own sense of martyrdom, many of which” they feel have been validated given that the US and Israel launched strikes on their country during negotiations, said Puri.

Trump’s push to send warships to Hormuz risks ‘dangerous’, ‘difficult’ mission

It’s unlikely that countries will agree to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz despite Trump’s call, says Mohamad Elmasry, a professor of media studies at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies.

He said this is “a really difficult task” that Trump is underestimating.

“These are slow-moving ships. They travel about 25km [15.5 miles] per hour. They are massive targets in a very narrow waterway,” said Elmasry.

“Iran can strike the ships in the strait from anywhere on Iranian territory because those Shahed drones have a range of up to 2,500km [1,600 miles], and the strait is very close to the Iranian mainland. So Iran can really wreak havoc on the strait if it wants to.”

It’s a very “dangerous proposition”, and this is why insurance companies are not willing to insure ships or their crews, he added.