Iran war: What is happening on day 19 of US-Israel attacks?

Iran has pledged “revenge” after Israeli strikes killed security chief Ali Larijani and commander of Basij paramilitary forces Gholamreza Soleimani, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying Tehran’s political system remains strong as the war entered its 19th day.

Iran launched more attacks on Israel, causing extensive property damage, after an earlier strike killed two people in Ramat Gan.

The conflict is increasingly spilling across the region as Iran and allied groups have launched missiles and drones targeting Gulf countries, with attacks reported in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Jordan.

Political tensions are also rising in the United States, as senior counterterrorism official Joe Kent resigned, saying “we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby”.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump criticised NATO allies and partners for failing to provide stronger military support in efforts to end Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.

In Israel

•  Israel strikes Basij: The Israeli military said it was striking positions of Iran’s Basij force around Tehran, after announcing it had killed the volunteer top commander.
• The Israeli army claimed to have struck Iranian command centres, missile sites and other infrastructure in Tehran on Tuesday.
• Direct attacks and casualties: In response to these escalations, Israel is facing retaliatory bombardments. Two people were killed by severe shrapnel injuries in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, following a rocket attack that heavily damaged an apartment building.

In Lebanon

• The Israeli military on Wednesday ordered residents of four Lebanese villages in the country’s south to leave their “homes immediately and move north of the Zahrani River”.
• Mass evacuation orders: The Israeli military issued its widest forced evacuation order in southern Lebanon since the 2006 war. Earlier, the military told residents of the city of Tyre, including three Palestinian refugee camps, to evacuate their homes.
• Deadly air raids in Bekaa Valley: At least four people have been killed in an Israeli attack that targeted four houses in the town of Sahmar in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley.
• Hezbollah denial: The group denied it had any members in Kuwait after the Gulf country announced the arrest of 14 Kuwaitis and two Lebanese nationals allegedly affiliated with the group over a “sabotage plot”.

In Iraq

• US embassy struck: An Iraqi security source told Al Jazeera that air defences intercepted a drone in the vicinity of the logistics support centre near Baghdad airport. Explosions rocked Baghdad as there were more attacks on the US embassy. There was also an attack on an armed group’s base in the northeastern city of Kirkuk.
• Saraya Awliya al-Dam: Iraqi armed group Saraya Awliya al-Dam claimed responsibility for a multi-front wave of attacks against US targets.
• Iraq rerouting oil exports: With the Strait of Hormuz disrupted and output sharply reduced, Baghdad and Erbil have moved to restart exports via the pipeline through the Kurdish region to Turkiye’s Ceyhan port.