The Houthis are an armed political and religious group which champions Yemen's Shia Muslim minority, the Zaidis.

They declare themselves to be part of the Iranian-led "axis of resistance" against Israel, the US and the wider West - along with armed groups such as Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah movement.

Formally known as the Ansar Allah (Partisans of God), the group emerged in the 1990s and takes its name from the movement's late founder, Hussein al-Houthi. The current leader is his brother, Abdul Malik al-Houthi.

As we just reported, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) says it has identified a missile launched from Yemen, in what Reuters and Agence France-Presse report is the first fired from Yemen since the war began.

It comes after a spokesperson for Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis said they would enter the war in the Middle East if attacks continue in Iran.

Image source, Shutterstock

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) says that 1,464 civilians including at least 217 children have been killed in Iran in the first month of the conflict, which began on 28 February.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) says it has dropped more than 12,000 bombs across Iran and 3,600 bombs on Tehran alone, while US Central Command says it has struck more than 9,000 targets across Iran.

Many of these US and Israeli strikes have targeted police stations, Basij militia buildings, police headquarters, military and police universities, safe houses, IRGC homes, as well as potential ammunition stores and checkpoints.

Often, these targets are located within busy civilian neighbourhoods.

Residents told BBC Eye that strikes hitting residential areas risk deepening resentment, even among those who had previously been critical of the Iranian regime.

The BBC asked the IDF about the incidents in this report. It confirmed the strikes but made no further comment. The US Department of Defense did not respond.

Iran has also struck civilian infrastructure and residential buildings in nearby countries during the war, such as airports and hotels, notably in Gulf nations allied with Washington.

In Tehran, residents criticised the Iranian authorities for their response to the war, telling the BBC there had been little visible provision of basic safety measures, including public shelters, evacuation support or temporary accommodation for those displaced.

In the absence of clear communication, and amid an ongoing internet blackout, many described feeling exposed and uncertain, unsure when or where the next strike might hit.

The Iranian government has not publicly detailed any nationwide civil defence protocols in response to the attacks.

You can read more from inside Tehran here.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) says it has identified a missile launched from Yemen, in what Reuters and Agence France-Presse report is the first fired from Yemen since the war began.

"The IDF has identified the launch of a missile from Yemen toward Israeli territory, aerial defense systems are operating to intercept the threat," the Israeli military wrote on Telegram. Less than 15 minutes later, the IDF announced it was safe for people to leave protective spaces across the country.

It comes after a spokesperson for Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis said they would enter the war in the Middle East if attacks continue in Iran.

In a statement on Telegram, Yahya Saree, the spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces – the Houthi faction of Yemen's military – says "our fingers are on the trigger for direct military intervention" in the following cases:

• Any other nations join with the US and Israel against Iran
• The Red Sea is used "to carry out hostile operations by America and Israel against the Islamic Republic of Iran and against any Muslim country"
• The "continuation of the escalation" against Iran

The statement says this is in response to the "continued aggression by the American and Israeli enemy against the Islamic Republic of Iran, Palestine and Gaza, Iraq and Lebanon".

• Iran and Israel continue to exchange fire overnight, with fresh explosions seen over Tehran and one death in Tel Aviv reported

• In the past few hours, air defense systems have also been activated and drones intercepted in the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Bahrain
• Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Defence says it has intercepted a ballistic missile that was launched towards Riyadh, the nation's capital; earlier, we also reported that at least 12 US soldiers were injured in an attack on the Prince Sultan airbase on Friday

• State television in Syria says explosions have been heard over Damascus as Israeli air defences intercept Iranian missiles, according to Reuters

President Donald Trump, speaking at the Future Investment Initiative forum in Miami, claimed that the US's military operation against Iran was going successfully.

Trump claimed that the US was "crushing Iran". He claimed that Iran was "begging to make a deal" amid conflicting account about negotiations between the two countries to end the conflict.

The FII event, which is run by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, comes as Iran has targeted missiles and drones at the country, as well as other Middle Eastern countries as the region continues to be engulfed by the war.

Trump praised the support of Saudi Arabia while criticizing Nato countries for what he viewed as inadequate support for his operation against Iran.

“I was very disappointed with Nato but I was not disappointed with our allies in the Middle East," Trump said.

US media is now reporting that at least 12 American soldiers were injured in the Iranian strike on Saudi Arabia's Prince Sultan Airbase, an increase on the 10 we reported earlier, according to the BBC's news partner CBS.

At least two of the soldiers have been "very seriously injured", with the Wall Street Journal reporting that they were inside a building at the base when it was struck.

The attack included at least one missile and several drones, and several aerial refuelling planes have also suffered damage, unnamed sources told the New York Times and Wall Street Journal.

The Pentagon and US Central Command had not responded to media outlets' requests for comment at the time of reporting.

The United Arab Emirates is using air defences to respond to a drone and missile attack from Iran, according to a statement from the ministry of defence.

It says it is "intercepting cruise missiles and [unmanned aerial vehicles]" from Iran.

Overnight in Tehran, sources told the BBC of "heavy strikes" across the city, with Iranian outlets reporting that the capital city's air defences had been activated and explosions were being heard.

It is currently just after 05:30 local time in Tehran (01:30 GMT).

Image source, Anadolu via Getty Images

Image source, Anadolu via Getty Images

Earlier on Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused the US and Israel of "continued illegal attacks" on "civilian targets and centers", including schools, hospitals, historical and cultural buildings and residential areas, according to Iranian state media.

He added that the country will continue resolutely "defending the Iranian nation".

It comes less than 24 hours after US President Donald Trump said he would pause any attacks on Iranian energy infrastructure for a further 10 days.

Image source, Reuters

Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff said earlier that the US is hopeful for meetings with Iran "this week".

Speaking at the F11 Priority event in Miami, Witkoff said that the US are talking to Iran, and added: "We think there will be meetings this week, we're certainly hopeful for it.

"Ships are passing, that's a very very good sign."

He went to say that Trump wants a peace deal, and later added: "We have a 15-point deal on the table that the Iranians have had for a bit of time. We expect an answer from them."

It came following earlier comments from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who spoke to reporters outside a G7 meeting in France on Friday and said the US has clear objectives and "We are very confident we are on the verge of achieving them very soon".

He added that the US could achieve its goals "without any ground troops", and when asked how long the US operation is expected to last in Iran, said "we are talking weeks, not months".

Image source, X/mamlekate

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said that Israel "has hit 2 of Iran's largest steel factories, a power plant and civilian nuclear sites among other infrastructure".

In a message shared on X, he said that "Israel claims it acted in coordination with the U.S." and the attack "contradicts POTUS extended deadline for diplomacy".

Iran will "exact HEAVY price," he added.

The Israeli military has also struck the Arak heavy water plant in central Iran, and BBC Verify has authenticated images that show a ball of fire and smoke rising near the reactor within the facility.

Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation has confirmed that the Arak facility was targeted twice today, adding that no casualties or contamination has been reported.

Ten American soldiers have been injured in an Iranian strike on Saudi Arabia's Prince Sultan Airbase, sources have told the BBC's US media partner CBS News.

The attack involved missiles and drones, the source reportedly said.

Two of the Americans were "very seriously" injured while eight were "seriously" injured, they added, noting those mean two different things in the military's classification system.

Six drones have been shot down in Kuwait the past 24 hours in "areas of responsibility secured by the task force", says the Kuwait National Guard in a statement on X.

It follows an attack on Kuwait's main commercial port Shuwaikh this morning, where there was "material damage but no human casualties", according to the country's ports authority.

Image source, Getty Images

Ben Chu

The interruption of oil and gas supplied through the Strait of Hormuz due to the US-Israel war with Iran has dramatically pushed up global energy prices.

Petrol has gone up already and UK domestic heating bills are almost certain to follow.

But it's not just fuel that's been impacted by the conflict. A host of other vitally important chemicals, gases and other products normally enter international supply chains via the Hormuz Strait.

BBC Verify has found that the price of a host of goods - ranging from food, to smartphones, to medicines - could be affected, as the number of ships passing through the Hormuz Strait has dropped from well over 100 a day before the war to just a handful.

Read more about the exports affected by the strait's closure here.

Attacks continue across the Middle East, as Donald Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff says that the US is hopeful of having meetings with Iran "this week" and "expects" an answer the 15-point deal reported earlier this week.

In the past couple of hours, heavy strikes have been heard in Tehran, and Iran says that the Bushehr nuclear power plant has been attacked for the third time this month. Israel says it has also hit the Arak heavy water plant in central Iran.

Iranian state media reports that US-Israeli strikes are targeting civilian sites, according to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who has said his country will exact a heavy price.

Several Gulf nations report fresh strikes and interceptions, with the UAE saying its air defences engaged ballistic missiles and drones launched from Iran.

Ten American soldiers have been injured in an Iranian strike on Saudi Arabia's Prince Sultan Airbase, sources have told the BBC's US media partner CBS News.