Israeli forces intensified strikes and expanded operations across multiple fronts on the fifth day of the conflict. Israel ordered thousands of residents south of the Litani River in southern Lebanon to evacuate northward, saying it had struck alleged Hezbollah sites across southern Lebanon and in Beirut and that troops had crossed the border. The Israeli military named specific buildings in Beirut’s southern suburbs it said were affiliated with Hezbollah and warned residents nearby to evacuate; local reports and video showed airstrikes in Hezbollah strongholds, with some local authorities reporting at least 11 dead in certain raids.
At sea, Sri Lanka’s navy recovered “a few bodies” from the Iranian frigate IRIS Dena, which sank off Sri Lanka’s southern coast after an apparent explosion. Sri Lankan officials said about 180 people had been aboard and that the search for more survivors continued. If the ship had been struck by U.S. or Israeli forces more than 1,000 miles from Iran, analysts said it would be among the most distant naval hits since the war began. Separately, commercial shipping remained under threat: the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Center reported a merchant vessel was struck by a projectile seven nautical miles east of Fujairah, UAE, leaving damage to steel plating but no reported crew injuries. Fujairah, near the Strait of Hormuz, has seen multiple attacks since the war began.
Israeli officials said intelligence indicated Iran could have reached weapons-grade (90%) uranium enrichment within roughly two weeks if it had chosen to do so before U.S. and Israeli strikes began, though they added Iran’s weaponization group remained “far from producing a classic nuclear bomb.” U.S. and Israeli leaders defended the timing of their strikes; Iranian officials have repeatedly denied seeking nuclear weapons and the IAEA reported no evidence of weaponization shortly before the attacks.
Across the Gulf, Iran and its proxies have targeted regional sites. Kuwait’s health ministry said an 11-year-old girl died from shrapnel wounds in a residential area and four family members were hospitalized after strikes; Gulf states, including Kuwait, have reported damage and civilian casualties amid Iranian missile and drone retaliations. Earlier reports said six U.S. troops were killed in an Iranian strike on a base in Kuwait.
Iranian state media announced that a planned three-day state funeral for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was postponed “until further notice,” citing expected unprecedented attendance — an item state outlets tied to heightened security and the intensifying campaign. Iran’s Assembly of Experts was reported to be close to selecting a new supreme leader; some international outlets have named Mojtaba Khamenei, the supreme leader’s son, as a possible successor. Israeli officials warned that any successor who continued policies hostile to Israel or the U.S. would be targeted. Media and intelligence reporting indicated Mojtaba Khamenei survived recent attacks on Tehran.
Inside Iran, reporters, human rights groups and state agencies described significant domestic impacts. The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported at least 1,097 civilian deaths since the strikes began, including children, with thousands more injured; those figures were being verified. Iranian outlets and sources reported strikes on civilian areas, including claims of damage to an elementary school in Minab; Israeli officials urged caution about reports from Iranian state media and said they had found no link to IDF operations in that instance.
Tehran has itself been a major target: Israeli authorities announced a “broad wave of strikes” on dozens of military sites across the city, naming Basij paramilitary headquarters, missile launchers, air-defense systems and logistics facilities among the targets. Iran’s media and residents reported loud explosions in eastern Tehran. Israel also said an F-35I Adir shot down an Iranian YAK‑130 fighter jet over Tehran, calling it the first shootdown of a manned fighter by an F-35; Iranian accounts were limited.
Regional actors and proxies have reacted variably. The Iran-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen has expressed solidarity, ordered “general mobilization” and said any decision to enter direct combat would depend on regional developments and stability assessments. Qatari officials said Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar — the largest U.S. base in the Middle East — was struck by an Iranian ballistic missile; Qatar reported two missiles were launched, one intercepted, and no casualties were reported.
International diplomacy and pressure have also surfaced. Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, reportedly rejected U.S. pressure to allow Spanish bases to be used for strikes on Iran, telling U.S. leadership “no to war.”
Maritime security concerns have grown as naval assets and commercial vessels have been targeted and attacked in several theaters. The sinking of the Dena off Sri Lanka underscored the extended reach of recent naval action and heightened worry about shipping through key chokepoints.
On the information front, X (formerly Twitter) said it will penalize participants in its revenue-sharing program who post AI-generated videos of armed conflict without disclosure, suspending violators for 90 days and escalating to permanent removal for repeat offenders. The platform said the policy aims to curb misleading AI content during wartime.
The situation remains fluid. Strikes and counterstrikes have spread across multiple countries and fronts, evacuations continue in Lebanon, heavy targeting has been reported inside Tehran, regional missile strikes have hit bases hosting U.S. forces and leadership questions are unfolding inside Iran. Humanitarian tolls and maritime disruptions continue to grow as the conflict expands.