Live: Iran says Hormuz strait will remain unsafe as Nato downs missile over Turkey

Israel’s far-right finance minister Bezalel Smotrich said his son was wounded in an attack near the Lebanese border that injured eight Israeli soldiers.

In a post on X, Smotrich said a mortar round was fired at troops on Friday and that his son, Benya Hebron, was among those hurt. He said shrapnel “penetrated his back and stomach” and that he was taken to hospital.

“By the grace of God, one of the shrapnel tore through his liver and lodged in the wall of the largest blood vessel in his stomach,” Smotrich wrote, adding that the injuries could have been far worse if the vessel had been hit.

French President Emmanuel Macron said he is discussing a French-led initiative to escort oil and gas tankers through the Strait of Hormuz once the most intense phase of the US-Israeli war on Iran ends, the Associated Press reported.

Speaking during a visit to Cyprus, Macron said the mission could involve European and non-European countries and would aim to gradually reopen the key shipping route.

He said the operation would be “strictly peaceful and defensive” and would only begin once major strikes have subsided.

The White House said President Donald Trump is reviewing “all credible options” to stabilise oil prices after a surge since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran. 

Spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said the administration had already prepared a strategy to keep energy markets stable before the launch of Operation Epic Fury and would continue assessing further measures.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran’s attacks across the region are defensive and aimed at preventing further US strikes.

He affirmed Iran is targeting the sources of attacks launched from US bases across the Middle East rather than neighbouring countries themselves.

The Israeli military issued a forced evacuation order for residents of the village of al-Ansariya in southern Lebanon.

In a statement, the army said it plans to carry out strikes targeting what it described as Hezbollah activity in the area and urged residents to move at least 1,000 metres away from the village.

Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said sent a message congratulating Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei.

In the message, the sultan offered his “best wishes for his success and good fortune in assuming his leadership responsibilities in his friendly country”.

Sultan Haitham is the first Arab leader to publicly congratulate Khamenei after he was selected to succeed his father, who was killed in a US-Israeli air strike last week.

A logistical support camp linked to the US embassy near Baghdad airport has been targeted, an Iraqi security source told Al Jazeera Arabic.

Air defence systems at the facility were activated following the attack. Further details were not immediately available.

Three students were killed during US and Israeli strikes on Iran’s Lorestan province, according to the Tasnim news agency.

The report said the victims included a fourth-grade student, a seventh-grade student and a second-grade student. One of the children was killed alongside her mother.

The head of the World Health Organisation has warned that the US-Israeli war on Iran is creating serious public health risks across the region.

WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said damage to petroleum facilities in Iran could contaminate food, water and air, posing particular dangers to children, older people and those with existing health conditions.

“Rain laden with oil has been reported falling in parts of the country,” Tedros said in a post.

He also said the violence is affecting healthcare services in Lebanon, where nine health workers have been killed since 28 February.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russian companies should “take advantage” of the current situation as the war disrupts global oil and energy markets.

Speaking at a meeting in the Kremlin, Putin said the US-Israeli war on Iran has triggered a worldwide energy crisis and warned that oil production relying on transport through the Strait of Hormuz could soon come to a halt.

He added that Russia would be ready to supply European buyers if they were willing to engage in “long-term work without politics”.

Putin also said Moscow would continue providing energy resources to what he called “reliable partners”.

In a post on X, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said: “Iran does not want to harm ordinary Americans who overwhelmingly voted to end involvement in costly foreign wars.”

He added that rising fuel prices and other economic pressures in the US should be blamed on Israel and its allies in Washington.

The Israeli military said its air force carried out another wave of strikes across Iran.

In a statement posted on X, the military said dozens of sites linked to the Iranian government were hit, including what it described as a headquarters used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for drone operations.

The military said drones had previously been launched from the site towards Israel and that additional drones stored there were preparing for launch. Several drone storage facilities and air defence systems were also targeted.

Hezbollah said it targeted a satellite communications station used by the Israeli army in the Ellah Valley, about 160km from the Lebanese border.

The group said the facility was struck with a barrage of what it described as sophisticated missiles.

In a separate statement, Hezbollah also said it launched rockets at Israeli soldiers near the border, targeting a gathering of troops near the Lebanese town of Mays al-Jabal at 17:00 local time.

US President Donald Trump said Iran “made a big mistake” by selecting Mojtaba Khamenei as the country’s new supreme leader after his father was killed in a US-Israeli attack.

Speaking to NBC News, he reiterated earlier remarks in which he described the son of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a “lightweight”.

Trump also said it was “too soon to talk about” seizing Iran’s oil, but added that he does not rule out the possibility.

Lebanon’s health ministry said at least 486 people have been killed and 1,313 wounded since Israeli attacks began on 2 March.

Al Jazeera reported that an Israeli drone targeted a car in the southern town of Burj Rahal, while another strike hit the town of Srifa.

Israeli air attacks also struck several other areas in southern Lebanon, including Arab Salim, Barghaz and Majdal Selm, according to Al Jazeera Arabic.

Meanwhile, projectiles were launched from southern Lebanon towards Israel