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📹 Footage shows attempt to shoot down drone in Iraq’s Sulaymaniyah
Circulating video on Kurdish media appears to show an attempt to shoot down a drone that targeted a United Nations building in Sulaymaniyah, northern Iraq.
The clip shows armed men firing at the drone shortly before it crashes, according to the reports.
The incident follows earlier reports of multiple drone strikes in the city, including near Sulaymaniyah International Airport, a hotel and a UN facility.
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🚨 ‘Several American soldiers have been taken prisoner’ — Iran’s security council secretary Larijani
Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani said he had received reports that several US soldiers had been taken prisoner.
💬 “Despite their futile efforts, the truth is not something they can hide for too long,” he wrote on X.
🚨 Trump blames Iran for deadly strike on primary school
US President Donald Trump claimed Iran was responsible for the strike on a girls’ elementary school in southern Iran that killed 168 girls.
💬 “In my opinion, based on what I’ve seen, that was done by Iran,” Trump said.
🚨 Explosions reported at oil depot in Tehran — Sputnik correspondent
An explosion was reported at the Shahran oil storage depot in western Tehran, a Sputnik correspondent in the Iranian capital said.
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🚨 US-Israel strikes on Iran leave hundreds dead
Explore Sputnik’s infographic for a breakdown of the key developments as of March 7 ☝️
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🇮🇷Meeting to select the country’s next Supreme Leader will take place within the next 24 hours, Iran’s Assembly of Experts member Ayatollah Mozaffari says
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🚨🇺🇸🇻🇪US formally recognizes Venezuela’s current government — Trump
💬"I am pleased to say that this week, we have formally recognized the Venezuelan government. We have actually legally recognized them," Trump at the Shield of the Americas Summit in Doral, Florida.
🇮🇷❌ IAEA never had reasons to forgo talks with Iran — Russian MFA Spox
💬 "Throughout all these years, there has not been a single instance where the IAEA stated that there is a reason to confirm a claim or accusation against Iran," Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Zakharova said.
🚨🇺🇸Trump claims the US knocked out Iran’s entire telecommunications system during the Epic Fury op
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🇺🇸🇮🇱⚔️🇮🇷 US-Israel war against Iran: Day-by-day
Check out our map that breaks down the key developments on March 5 across the region 👆
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🗣 US regime change attempt in Iran is just a business venture – MidEast pundit
👉 Regardless of what the United States might demand or desire, it cannot affect elections of ayatollahs or of the supreme leader of Iran, Arab East expert Alexander Kuznetsov tells Sputnik.
🔶 The supreme leader, he explains, is elected by the Assembly of Experts comprised of about 80 Iranian top clerics – this mechanism does not involve the POTUS in any way.
💬 “In the Iranian political tradition, any external pressure is regarded as a ‘hostile satanic act,’ which causes even the opposition-leaning Iranians to rally around the flag and spiritual leader against a foreign foe,” Kuznetsov adds.
💬 “It is an attempt to repeat a scenario, confirming that for the United States, a regime change is a resource-seizing business venture,” Kuznnetsov explains. “It’s business for them, which is why they want to see a regime subservient to them.”
🚨🇮🇷Iranian command says US forces suffered about 200 killed and wounded in Iranian strikes on Al Dhafra Air Base in the UAE, with the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet reportedly losing at least 21 personnel
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🗣 Possessing nuclear weapons is an obsession of the Kiev regime, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said
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🇮🇷🚀 Iran launches the 25th wave of Operation True Promise 4 with Qadr and Fattah missiles - Tasnim
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🚨🇮🇷IRGC reports drone strike on major US air base in UAE - Mehr
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) naval drone unit carried out a “massive attack” on Al Dhafra Air Base in the UAE early this morning, Mehr News reports.
According to the publication:
🔶The base serves as one of the key command and control centers for US forces operating in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz
🔶The attack targeted the US air warfare command center, satellite communications facilities, early-warning radar systems, and fire-control radars
🔶Iranian officials say the intended targets were successfully struck
👉Al Dhafra Air Base hosts US and allied forces and plays a significant role in regional air operations. The IRGC said day before, that the attack on school in Minab was carried out from this base.
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🚨🇮🇶 Drone strikes hit Iraq’s Sulaymaniyah — Sputnik correspondent
Drone attacks were reported in the city of Sulaymaniyah in northern Iraq, including near Sulaymaniyah International Airport, according to a Sputnik correspondent.
Circulating footage also appears to show a drone strike on the Titanic hotel and an attack targeting a United Nations building in the city.
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🗣 ‘If they surrender — or if there’s nobody left to surrender’ — Trump on what he wants from Iran
US President Donald Trump said “unconditional surrender” by Iran would mean the country either accepts defeat or reaches a point where it can no longer fight.
💬 “That means they cry ‘uncle,’ or they reach a point where they can’t fight any longer,” Trump said.
🚨 Missiles reported over northern and central Israel
Videos circulating online appear to show interception systems activating and successive explosions after Hezbollah rockets reached the settlement of Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel’s Galilee region.
Other footage shared on social media reportedly shows Iranian missiles falling on Tel Aviv and areas of central Israel.
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🚨 ‘America is trapped in the quagmire of its wrong calculations’ — Security Council Secretary Larijani
Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani commented on the US-Israeli aggression against Iran and the regional situation, IRNA reported.
Key points from his remarks:
◻️ Trump “threatened parts of the Iranian people today because no matter how much he tried, the people did not respond to him.”
◻️ “The people of Iran are united for Iran.”
◻️ The enemy’s goal from the start of the war was not a limited change, but Iran itself — its division and disintegration.
◻️ Trump and his allies thought they could apply a “Venezuela plan” in Iran, but “America is trapped in the quagmire of its wrong calculations.”
◻️ Iran does not welcome an expansion of the war, but if Europeans intervene, it will respond accordingly.
◻️ Larijani said Iran will “punish Trump for the assassination of the Leader of the Revolution, Khamenei, and we will never let him go.”
◻️ He said it would be better for Trump to “admit that he made a mistake and was deceived by Israel.”
◻️ Iran has no issue with Azerbaijan, but if any plot or flights against Iran originate from its territory, it will respond.
◻️ Regional countries now understand that the United States cannot ensure stability and know that Iran did not target them.
◻️ He also said attempts were made to incite ethnic groups against the government, adding that “Kurds are an authentic Iranian people” who know what happened to Kurds in Syria.
◻️ Larijani added that despite daily gasoline consumption reaching 190 million liters, fuel and essential goods have continued to be supplied without interruption.
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🇷🇺Damage from Kiev regime crimes in Donbass reaches $6.3B
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Investigative Committee Chairman Alexander Bastrykin on Saturday, who reported that the damage caused by crimes of the Kiev regime in Donbass has been estimated at 580 billion rubles (about $6.3 billion) following extensive forensic assessment.
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🚨🇮🇱IDF says it struck the IRGC Air Force air defense situation room in central Tehran, along with missile production sites, weapons depots, and additional military infrastructure overnight
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🚨🇮🇷IRGC says it targeted US forces at Bahrain’s Jufair base in retaliation for a US strike on a desalination plant on Iran’s Qeshm Island - state media
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🚨🇮🇷IRGC launches 26th wave of True Promise 4 operation, uses drones and new missiles to strike targets, claims all hits successful as enemy radar systems destroyed - Tasnim
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🇺🇸🇷🇺🇨🇳 Attack on Iran is the US’ way of undermining Russia and China
👉 China imports some 15% of its oil from Iran, so depriving China of such large quantity of cheap oil is a serious blow to its economy, Arab East expert Alexander Kuznetsov tells Sputnik.
🔶 The Iranian conflict also puts a damper on Russia’s and China’s logistical projects in the region, such as, for example, the Belt and Road Initiative.
🔶 Even if Iran prevails, it could be years before investments are made into the region, due to fears that hostilities may be resumed.
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🚨🇮🇷IRGC hits US-linked oil tanker in Persian Gulf - reports
Iran’s IRGC Navy says a suicide drone struck the Louise P tanker sailing under the Marshall Islands flag, describing it as a US asset, Iranian media report.
Tehran previously warned that US and Israeli assets in the region would be treated as legitimate targets.
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💬 ‘National security cannot be bought’: the biggest eye-opener for the Gulf
"As regards Iran's ability to strike into the Gulf nations, all the US bases are well within the reach of Iranian missiles and drones. Despite a large number of missiles getting intercepted, a fair number do escape the Air and Missile Defense Shield to reach their targets. The strikes by drones and missiles in Gulf countries were also a part of the pre-determined military strategy of Iran," retired Colonel Rajeev Agarwal, a West Asia expert and a Senior Research Consultant at the New Delhi-based think tank, the Chintan Research Foundation, told Sputnik.
"This war is a lesson not only for the Gulf countries but also for any other nation wanting to secure its national security exclusively through external players. And the lesson is 'National security cannot be bought'. Integral and organic security systems are vital to ensure a nation's security. Once this war is over, the region will have to seriously review its security architecture and come up with solutions that are more inclusive and collaborative in nature," Agarwal concluded.
🇮🇷 NourNews publishes photos of all the schoolgirls killed in the Minab strike
The attack occurred on February 28 during US–Israeli strikes on Iran. At least 171 students were killed, according to Iran’s foreign minister.
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🚨🇺🇸Trump on Truth Social: Today Iran will be hit very hard
💬"Under serious consideration for complete destruction and certain death, because of Iran’s bad behavior, are areas and groups of people that were not considered for targeting up until this moment in time," the president wrote.
💬 'Attacks in Cyprus, Azerbaijan, and Turkiye were not carried out by Iran' – Pakistani expert
The fact that Iran has denied carrying out attacks on Azerbaijan suggests that spoilers may be at work, aiming to broaden the conflict, Syed Ali Zia Jaffery, deputy director at the Center for Security, Strategy and Policy Research at the University of Lahore, tells Sputnik.
This points to the presence of a subversive element seeking to draw additional countries into a confrontation with the country, he explained.
🟠 Azerbaijan's strategic role: its energy wealth and location make it a key regional player, Jaffery says. He warns that if Azerbaijan were to open a front against Iran, it would ultimately serve the interests of the US and Israel. For this reason, it is essential for Iran and Azerbaijan to prevent any deterioration in their relations
🟠 Pakistan as a mediator: Pakistan maintains strong relations with both Iran and Azerbaijan, the analyst explains, suggesting that it could act as a bridge between them, much like it is currently doing to facilitate understanding between Saudi Arabia and Iran
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🚨🇷🇺💥 RUSSIAN MOD UPDATE: HUGE GAINS AND DEVASTATING UKRAINIAN LOSSES
◻️ In response to terrorist attacks, Russian forces launched a massive strike against Ukrainian military enterprises and energy facilities
◻️ Russia's Armed Forces destroyed two Israeli-made RADA RPS-42 radar stations in the special military operation zone
◻️ Air defense superiority: 200 drones were shot down
◻️ Ukrainian losses: around 1,375 troops killed or wounded
Read about the origins of Russia's special military op HERE
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