Dubai: The death toll from a US-Israeli strike on a girls’ school in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province has climbed to at least 40, with reports varying up to 57 killed and 45 wounded, according to state-run IRNA and international media.
The attack targeted Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab, where young students aged 7-12 were present near a Revolutionary Guard base, drawing widespread condemnation.
Initial strikes targetted the compound of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in central Tehran. While Khamenei’s whereabouts remain unconfirmed amid unverified rumours, US President Donald Trump urged Iranians to “take over your government,” signaling potential aims to dismantle the nation’s decades-old theocracy.
Iran’s retaliation was swift and fast, with the Revolutionary Guard unleashing a “first wave” of drone and missile attacks on Israel, triggering nationwide sirens and successful intercepts.
The counter-offensive spread across the Gulf: a missile struck the US Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters in Bahrain, explosions echoed in Kuwait and Qatar. In the UAE, shrapnel from an assault on Abu Dhabi killed one civilian, the first confirmed fatality in Iran’s response. Iraq and the UAE shuttered airspace, while sirens wailed in Jordan.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Ministry struck a defiant tone on X, declaring: “The time has come to defend the homeland and confront the enemy’s military assault.”
