Australia has ordered non-essential diplomatic staff to leave Lebanon amid escalating regional tensions, Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced Friday. The move comes as strikes and counter-strikes continue across the Middle East, with reports of attacks in Iran, Lebanon, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Wong stated that a limited number of officials would remain in Lebanon to provide consular support to Australian citizens. The decision reflects a “deteriorating security situation,” according to the Foreign Minister’s statement.
The escalation follows a wave of strikes targeting infrastructure in Tehran, with the Israeli military claiming to have hit more than 200 targets in western and central Iran in the past day, including ballistic missile launchers and weapon production sites. AFP journalists in Tehran reported a series of powerful explosions shook the Iranian capital Friday morning.
Simultaneously, an Israeli strike reportedly hit a member of Hezbollah in Beirut, according to the Israeli military. Israel has widened its bombing campaign in Lebanon to target both the north and central areas of the country, focusing on infrastructure used by Hezbollah, including the Zrarieh Bridge over the Litani River. This marks the first acknowledged targeting of civilian infrastructure by the Israeli military in the current campaign.
Elsewhere in the region, Saudi forces intercepted drones targeting Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter, while debris from intercepted attacks struck a building in central Dubai. Sirens were similarly heard at Incirlik air base, a key NATO facility in southern Turkey, though no official comment has been released.
The conflict has prompted warnings from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, who vowed a “stronger” response to any modern protests than that seen in January. A pro-Iranian group in Iraq, Ashab Alkahf, warned that French interests in Iraq and the region would be targeted following the arrival of a French aircraft carrier and the death of a French soldier in Iraqi Kurdistan.
U.S. President Donald Trump issued a statement online claiming Iranian military capabilities had been decimated, and referencing the death of Iran’s former Supreme Leader. Trump also stated that the new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was alive but “damaged,” though this claim remains unconfirmed.
The ongoing conflict is also impacting global trade routes, with the Panama Canal Administrator suggesting rising fuel costs and the war could ultimately benefit the waterway as shippers seek alternative routes. Moscow has also stated that the global energy market cannot remain stable without Russian oil, increasing pressure on Washington to lift sanctions.
