Three tankers damaged in Gulf as US-Iran conflict escalates

Story by Yousef Saba, Jaidaa Taha and Jonathan Saul

DUBAI/LONDON, March 1 (Reuters) - At least three tankers were damaged off the Gulf coast after U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran triggered Iranian retaliation that put merchant ships at risk of collateral damage, shipping sources and officials said on Sunday.

Risks to commercial shipping have surged in the past 24 hours, with more than 200 vessels including oil and liquefied gas tankers dropping anchor around the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters, shipping data showed on Sunday.

Iran has said it has closed navigation through the critical waterway.

"The U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran dramatically increases the security risk to ships operating in the Persian Gulf and adjacent waters," said Jakob Larsen, chief safety and security officer at shipping association BIMCO.

'SHIPS MAY BE TARGETED DELIBERATELY OR IN ERROR'

"Ships with business connections to U.S. or Israeli interests are more likely to be targeted, but other ships may also be targeted deliberately or in error."

US intel did not suggest a preemptive strike from Iran before US-Israeli attacks, AP sources say

Story by MICHELLE L. PRICE, MARY CLARE JALONICK, BEN FINLEY, JOSEF FEDERMAN and DAVID KLEPPER

WASHINGTON (AP) — Trump administration officials told congressional staff in private briefings Sunday that U.S. intelligence did not suggest Iran was preparing to launch a preemptive strike against the U.S., three people familiar with the briefings said.

The administration officials instead acknowledged there was a more general threat in the region from Iran’s missiles and proxy forces, two of the people said. The third person, however, said the administration emphasized that Iran’s missiles and proxy forces posed an imminent threat to U.S. personnel and allies in the region.

The officials did not provide any clarity about what would happen next in Iran after the joint U.S.-Israeli operation, the two people said. All three people insisted on anonymity to discuss details that have not been made public.

The information conveyed to the congressional staff contrasts with the message from President Donald Trump. “Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime. A vicious group of very hard, terrible people," he said in a video message after launching strikes on Iran.

Several killed in Israel after Iran launches retaliatory strikes; Trump gives update on war

At least 11 people have been killed in Israel as Iran launches retaliatory strikes against countries across the Persian Gulf. CBS News chief correspondent Matt Gutman reports from Tel Aviv and CBS News chief White House correspondent Nancy Cordes has the latest on what President Trump is saying about the war.

Trump's Iran war rebuked by Blackwater founder Erik Prince: 'Chaos'

Story by Joshua Rhett Miller

The founder of Blackwater has criticized the U.S.-Israeli strikes in Iran, saying the conflict isn’t in “America’s interests” and will lead to more death and destruction across the Middle East.

Erik Prince—a former Navy SEAL who founded Blackwater, the private military contractor later rebranded as Constellis—provided a blunt assessment to conservative influencer Steve Bannon on Sunday, a day after the killing of Iran’s 86-year-old supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and more than 40 top Iranian security and regime officials.

“Look, Steve, I’m not happy about the whole thing,” Prince said on Bannon’s War Room podcast. “I don’t think this was in America’s interests. It’s going to uncork a significant can of worms and chaos and destruction in Iran now.”

Prince said Khamenei’s assassination on Saturday would likely lead to tens of thousands of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps vying to replace the former leader.

Voices: As terror rains down on Israel, Netanyahu and Trump are already split

Story by Donald Macintyre

The sirens were blaring in the morning as we approached the site of Iran’s deadliest attack on Israel so far. They must have done the same less than 24 hours earlier, minutes before the ballistic missile razed a synagogue and the neighbouring housing, killing 11 and wounding dozens. This time, the residents were able to emerge from the shelters soon afterwards, three audible, but relatively distant booms, indicating that the incoming fire had been blocked by missile defences.

Yesterday had been a very different story. Looking across the tottering slabs of dislocated concrete and mangled masonry that had once been the heart of this close community in the central Israeli city of Beit Shemesh, you could see the large, shallow depression in the ground that marked what had been the public shelter under the synagogue.

The missile somehow evaded Israel’s formidable air defences. For all their precision, they cannot stop everything.

Among the dead – including three teenage siblings as well as a mother and son – there were several who had sought safety there. The sheer force of Iran’s half-ton ballistic missile meant they did so in vain.

European ally turns back on US for China over Iran war

Story by Ireland Owens

As the conflict in Iran intensifies, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot spoke on the phone Monday with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi about working towards “de-escalation” together.

The phone call came days after the U.S. and Israel launched military strikes against the Islamic regime early Saturday, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In a statement released Tuesday, the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs said both ministers agreed to “work towards de-escalation, in conjunction with the Gulf countries” and to “find a path to a political resolution guaranteeing collective security interests and provision for the Iranian people’s aspirations.”

Barrot also stated “the Iranian regime’s responsibility in the ongoing escalation, after it unjustifiably struck several countries in the region,” according to the statement.

The French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs referred the Daily Caller News Foundation to its statement from Tuesday when reached for comment.

Barrot noted that the ongoing U.S.-Israel military operations in Iran were begun “without France participating or being informed,” per the statement. He also emphasized that each of the aforementioned countries were responsible for prioritizing “international institutions to resolve disagreement” and to use force “if necessary.”

“Who takes over?” Prince asked on the podcast. He added: “I don’t see how this is in keeping with the president’s MAGA commitment. I’m disappointed.”

Prince then questioned the preparation of U.S.-Israeli forces following Khamenei’s death and suggested ground troops would eventually need to partake in Operation Epic Fury.