Image source, Reuters

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz says the conflict with Iran is entering a "decisive phase". He made the comments at a situational assessment this morning.

Katz also congratulated Donald Trump on delivering a "severe blow" to Iran's key oil island of Kharg last night, calling it an "appropriate response to the minefields of the Strait of Hormuz".

Earlier this week, the US said it had struck mine-laying vessels operating close to the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has denied it is laying explosives in the shipping channel.

In his comments this morning, Katz added that the Israeli Air Force was "continuing a powerful wave of attacks on Tehran and throughout Iran", but said only the Iranian people can put an end to the conflict by overthrowing the regime.

In the United Arab Emirates, smoke has been seen rising above the port of Fujairah, one of the largest oil storage facilities in the region, after it was targeted by a drone strike.

Elsewhere a fire raged through an apartment building in the Haret Saida area of Sidon, southern Lebanon, following an Israeli strike.

Residential areas of Israel have also been damaged in recent attacks.

The roof of a building in Shoham, central Israel, has been completely destroyed following a strike. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it detected Iranian missiles targeting Israel overnight.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Shutterstock

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said a new wave of Iranian missiles had been fired towards Israel at approximately 12:41 local time (10:41 GMT).

It was the first attack in 10 hours.

The IDF has since confirmed that people are allowed to leave protected spaces but is urging the public to continue following safety instructions.

Ghoncheh Habibiazad
Senior reporter, BBC Persian

Ehsan Jahanian, political deputy to the governor of the Bushehr province in southern Iran, acknowledges US attacks on Kharg Island but says that oil exports are “fully under way” and oil facilities “remain intact” following the strikes.

Jahanian says that “the process of exporting oil from the Kharg oil terminal is fully under way, and the activities of companies based on the island are continuing without interruption”, according to a report by the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps)-affiliated Tasnim News Agency.

He adds that “parts of the military facilities and Kharg Airport” were damaged, but that “no military personnel, oil company employees, or island residents suffered casualties in the attack, and all sectors are continuing their routine activities".

US strike on Kharg Island raises stakes in warpublished at 10:49 GMT

10:49 GMT

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent, reporting from Riyadh

In the battle of wills between Tehran on the one hand and the US and Israel on the other, the stakes have just been raised.

The US striking this small but vital island in the northern Gulf is like going for Iran’s economic jugular vein.

Kharg is the terminal for close to 90% of Iran’s oil exports because its waters are deep enough to load that oil onto tankers known as Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs).

If President Trump decides to go one step further and destroy its actual oil facilities – as opposed to just the Iranian troops guarding them – then that is likely to drive oil prices even higher.

More worrying is how hard Iran will hit back. Two weeks into this war it still has the capacity to launch large numbers of low-cost, high explosive drones at its Gulf Arab neighbours as well as at shipping.

It could, potentially, expand those targets to include vital infrastructure like desalination plants that provide drinking water to millions.

Nick Beake
Europe Correspondent, reporting from Dubai

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

The port of Fujairah, which was targeted by a drone strike earlier, is a very significant location for the United Arab Emirates and one of the largest oil storage facilities in the Middle East.

It’s also a key location for bunkering - the refuelling of ships.

Fujairah sits on the Gulf of Oman, rather than the Persian Gulf, and so vessels don’t need to navigate the Strait of Hormuz - which has been practically closed to marine traffic since this war began a fortnight ago.

Footage shared online today shows huge clouds of smoke rising across the complex on the UAE’s eastern coast.

It comes as Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps said US interests in the UAE, including ports, docks and military locations had become legitimate targets in light of American attacks on Kharg island, which is so crucial to Tehran’s oil industry and the wider economy.

• We'll bring you more on the strike on Kharg Island in our next few posts

Katie Williams
Live reporter

Image source, Reuters

Two weeks into the US-Israel war with Iran, the impact of the conflict has spread across the Middle East. The conflict has quickly escalated and Gulf countries have found themselves in the firing line.

As the war enters its third week, we've taken a brief look back:

Strikes, counter-strikes and Iranian leadership

• The war began on 28 February, when the US and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran. Trump said the aim was to eliminate "imminent threats"
• Iran launched counter-strikes, targeting Israel and Gulf states in response
• After mounting speculation, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was confirmed dead a day after the conflict began
• Tehran was then hit by an extensive bombing campaign - satellite imagery shows damage to nuclear and missile facilities. Oil depots and refineries are also struck, with photos showing black rain in the aftermath
• Israel launched strikes on Beirut and southern Lebanon, and conducted commando raids inside Lebanese territory - it has said the campaign will continue until the Shia militia group Hezbollah is disarmed
• The late supreme leader's son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was announced as Iran's next leader. He has not been seen in public. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said he is "wounded, and likely disfigured"

Wider repercussions

• The human cost of the war continues to grow, with thousands of deaths reported across the Middle East
• Thirteen US service members have been killed in operations against Iran - including all six members of the crew on board a military refuelling aircraft that crashed in western Iraq
• Oil prices have been taken on a rollercoaster ride, exceeding $100 (£75) a barrel, prompting inflation fears and economic uncertainty

• Travel chaos persists as a result of airspace closures and commercial jets being grounded - over 170,000 Britons register their presence in the region

For more on how the bombing of Iran sent shockwaves around the world, our diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams has taken a closer look.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has issued an update in the last few minutes, saying it hit Hezbollah command centres in Beirut in strikes carried out yesterday.

It says it has struck approximately 110 command centres since the start of the war.

"Prior to the strikes, measures were taken to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians," the IDF says.

It has issued sweeping evacuation orders in southern Lebanon in recent days, displacing hundreds of thousands of residents.

Image source, EPA

We're seeing some new images from Shoham, central Israel, where an overnight missile strike hit a residential area, taking the roof off a building.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it detected Iranian missiles targeting Israel overnight.

Home Front Command members and emergency services can be seen inspecting the damage at the scene.

Image source, EPA

Hamas has called for Iran to avoid targeting neighbouring countries and called for nations and international organisations to work towards halting the war immediately.

The Palestinian militant group says it is following the ongoing war in the Middle East with "deep concern" and adds that it "threatens peace and security in the region and the world".

Hamas adds that the US-Israeli aggression against Iran violates international law and international humanitarian law in a statement on Telegram, and urged all states in the region to co-operate and stop the aggression.

Hamas is considered a terrorist organisation by the US, UK, Israel and many other countries.

The media office of the government of Fujairah, in the northwest of the United Arab Emirates, says the local civil defense is working to contain a fire in the area.

Authorities say the blaze is the result of "falling debris following the successful interception of a drone by air defenses". "No injuries were reported," they add in a post on Facebook.

The statement comes after Bloomberg reported that some oil loading operations at the port of Fujairah, which is located just off the Strait of Hormuz, had been suspended after a drone attack and a fire.

Qatar's evacuation order focused on areas hosting US economic interestspublished at 09:15 GMT

09:15 GMT

Barbara Plett Usher
Reporting from Doha

Shortly after midnight in Doha, people living in the central Musheireb district got phone alerts to evacuate immediately to the "nearest safe place" as a "precautionary measure".

Some residents and hotel guests rushed into underground car parks for shelter.

Then around 01:30 (22:30 GMT) a thunderous boom echoed across the city. A member of the BBC's team here saw the explosion as the missile was intercepted, briefly lighting up the city skyline. That was followed by distant bangs in the opposite direction.

Later this morning, the Qataris shot down a second missile.

If you look at the areas receiving evacuation orders, it seems the aim was to protect places which host US economic interests. Iran said earlier this week these were legitimate targets.

Offices for Google and American Express are located in Musheireb, as are some Qatari government offices.

Parts of a 12-acre campus known as Education City were also evacuated, possibly because Microsoft has a presence there, as do branches of six American universities.

Ghoncheh Habibiazad
Senior reporter, BBC Persian

I’ve been hearing from residents in the north, east and west of Tehran who tell me that the Iranian capital was "hit hard" last night.

"Something exploded nearby and it shook the house to the core. It was never like this. My heart was pounding," said a woman in her 20s in Tehran last night.

"I was trying to sleep and woke up with the sound of explosion," added a man in his 20s.

"I didn’t go out at all. It seemed to be such a dangerous day," said a man in his 30s.

While a woman in her 40s told me:"“It’s like calm before the storm right now."

Jacob Phillips
Live reporter

Image source, Shutterstock

On Friday, Donald Trump announced that the US "totally obliterated" military targets in Iran's Kharg Island, which he called the country's "crown jewel".

The island, situated 22 miles (35km) off the coast of Iran, is a critical economic lifeline for Tehran as one analyst says around 90% of Iran's oil exports pass through the island.

Iranian state media says there were more than 15 explosions on the island but no damage to oil infrastructure has been reported.

On Saturday, the Israeli military issued evacuation warnings in western Iran while Tehran's state media says the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps have launched their 48th wave of attacks against Israeli targets.

Across the Middle East, strikes continued overnight.

Earlier the US embassy in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad was attacked, with flames and thick smoke filmed rising from the building.

The Lebanese health ministry says at least 12 medics were killed in the town of Burj Qalawiya when a healthcare centre was hit.

Meanwhile, residents in the heart of Doha have received phone alerts telling them to immediately evacuate.

We're seeing some new pictures from southern Lebanon, where an Israeli air strike has caused damage to a building in the Haret Saida area of Sidon.

It is not clear if there have been any casualties.

More than 770 people have been killed in Lebanon since the start of the war, according to the country's health ministry.

Image source, EPA

Image source, EPA

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) says it has struck a weapon storage facility in southern Lebanon.

The IDF says it spotted members of Iranian-backed armed groupHezbollah carrying rockets into the facility in the Al-Majadel area on Friday.

Minutes later the Israeli Air Force struck the warehouse and "eliminated" those Hezbollah members, it says in a post on social media.

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps says it has launched the 48th wave of attacks against Israel, Iranian state media reports.

The Islamic Republic News Agency says that the attacks have been launched simultaneously with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

The Israeli military has issued an evacuation warning to individuals in an industrial area of the western Iranian city of Tabriz.

The warning was accompanied by a map outlining the designated zone and says the Israeli army will be "active in this area in the coming hours".

It said the attack would be similar to recent actions in Tehran targeting Iranian regime military infrastructure.

It urged people to immediately evacuate the specified area for their safety and well-being, warning that remaining there would put lives at risk.

As we reported earlier, smoke has been rising above the US embassy in Baghdad following an attack on the building in the Iraqi capital.

Reuters and the Associated Press news agencies report that a missile struck the embassy, while the AFP news agency quotes sources saying damage was caused by a drone strike.

The attack took place shortly after two Iran-backed fighters were killed in strikes on Iraq's capital, AFP also reported, citing several sources.

Image source, Reuters

On Friday, US President Donald Trump said the US military had bombed Iran's Kharg Island.

He said that he did not target the oil infrastructure. The island is a critical economic lifeline for Tehran as one analyst says around 90% of Iran's oil exports pass through the island.

The Fars News Agency, which is linked to the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, says that more than 15 explosions were heard on the island during the US attacks.

The attacks targeted air defences, a naval base, airport control tower and a helicopter hangar, the agency says in a post on Telegram.

There was no damage to oil infrastructure on Kharg Island, Iranian state media reports.