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Iran Warns US Against Ground Invasion

Fire in Israeli factory is upgraded to hazardous incident

Israel’s Fire and Rescue Services warned that a missile or missile fragment that hit a factory near the southern Israeli city of Beersheba had set a massive blaze and was upgraded to a hazardous materials incident.

Authorities evacuated people in the immediate area, but there were no injuries.

Israel’s fire and rescue services said the fragment set a pesticide tank on fire, sending plumes of smoke high over the entire city of Beersheba, the largest city in Israel’s Negev desert. Additional waves of launches of missiles from Iran hit over 20 sites in Beersheba but did not create major damage nor injuries, according to Israel’s emergency rescue service Magen David Adom.  — AP

Iran 30 days into internet blackout, isolating millions amid war

PARIS, France: Iran's nationwide internet blackout was on its 30th consecutive day Sunday, leaving millions cut off from information and communication since the war with the United States and Israel erupted.

"Iran's internet blackout has now entered day 30 as the nationwide censorship measure continues into its fifth week after 696 hours," internet monitoring group NetBlocks said on X on Sunday.

While the domestic intranet remains operational -- supporting local messaging apps, banking platforms and other services -- access to the global internet has been severely restricted.

Many Iranians have been left with little choice but to rely on state-controlled platforms and costly alternatives to stay in touch with loved ones.

Maryam, a 33-year-old private sector employee, said the first weeks of the shutdown were especially difficult.

"It was very hard at the beginning of the war. I had no connection with my family in another city except phone calls," she said.

"Now we use an Iranian messaging app and can make video calls. It's not great, but we are managing in these terrible times."

AFP journalists in Paris have been able to contact residents in Iran primarily via WhatsApp or Telegram during short bursts of connectivity, through virtual private networks.

For many, particularly those with loved ones outside Iran, communication has become both limited and expensive.

Milad, a 27-year-old clothes salesman, said he has struggled to stay in touch with relatives abroad.

"My family lives in Turkey, and I have no way of communicating with them online," he said.

"I have to make direct phone calls, which are very expensive, so I rarely hear from them."

Restrictions have also narrowed access to information, with users largely confined to domestic platforms and local media, offering only a partial picture of events.

Iran has previously imposed internet blackouts during periods of unrest, including for several weeks during nationwide protests in January and during a 12-day war with Israel in June.

Following the January unrest, access had partially resumed, though it remained heavily filtered and restricted, before being largely cut off again after the outbreak of the current war on February 28.

Some users have managed limited workarounds, though connectivity remains highly unstable.

Hanieh, a 31-year-old ceramist in Tehran, said she regained partial access after nearly two weeks.

"I managed to find a workaround with so much difficulty," she said, adding that the connection remained unreliable.  — AFP

Iran warns US ground troops would be 'set on fire' as regional diplomats meet on the war

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: A top Iranian official warned the U.S. against a ground invasion, saying its troops would be set “on fire,” as regional diplomats met Sunday in Pakistan in hopes of opening direct U.S.-Iran talks and ending the monthlong war .

Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, said Iranian forces were “waiting for the arrival of American troops on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional partners forever,” according to Iranian state media. He also dismissed the talks as a cover after some 2,500 U.S. Marines trained in amphibious landings arrived in the Middle East.

The war has threatened global supplies of oil, natural gas and fertilizer and disrupted air travel. Iran’s grip on the strategic Strait of Hormuz has shaken markets and prices, and now the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels ' entry into the war could threaten shipping on another crucial waterway, the Bab el-Mandeb strait to the Red Sea.

“We don’t know at what moment our homes could be targeted,” said Razzak Saghir al-Mousawi, 71, describing relentless airstrikes as Iranians crossing into Iraq urged the United States to end the war. “I am definitely afraid.”

More than 3,000 people have been killed in the war that began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran that triggered Iranian attacks on Israel and neighboring Gulf Arab states. Meanwhile, Israel has invaded Lebanon while targeting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah. The war continues on the digital front as well.

Pakistan hosts ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt Pakistan said the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt met in Islamabad without U.S. or Israeli participation, days after the U.S. offered Iran a 15-point “action list” as a framework for a possible peace deal. The ministers are expected to meet again Monday.

Egypt’s Badr Abdelatty said the meetings are aimed at opening a “direct dialogue” between the U.S. and Iran, which have largely communicated through mediators. Both this war and last year's 12-day war began during rounds of indirect talks.

Iranian officials have rejected the U.S. framework and publicly dismissed the idea of negotiating under pressure. But Press TV, the English-language arm of Iran’s state broadcaster, reported last week that Tehran had drafted its own five-point proposal that reportedly called for a halt to killing Iranian officials, guarantees against future attacks, reparations and Iran’s “exercise of sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.”

Iran has eased some restrictions on commercial ships in the strait, agreeing late Saturday to allow 20 more Pakistani-flagged vessels to pass through. It "sends a clear signal that Iran remains open for business with the world, provided the United States abandons coercion,” said Asif Durrani, Pakistan’s former ambassador to Iran.

An adviser to the United Arab Emirates, Anwar Gargash, called for any settlement to the war to include “clear guarantees” that Iranian attacks on neighbors will not be repeated.

Gargash said Iran's government has become “the main threat” to Persian Gulf security and called for compensation for attacks on civilian infrastructure.

Iran threatens retaliatory strikes on Israeli and US universities Iran on Sunday warned of escalation after Israeli airstrikes hit several universities, including ones that Israel claimed were used for nuclear research and development. Concerns over Iran's nuclear program are at the heart of tensions.

The paramilitary Revolutionary Guard warned that Iran would consider Israeli universities and branches of U.S. universities in the region “legitimate targets” unless offered safety assurances for Iranian universities, state media reported.

U.S. colleges have campuses in Qatar and the UAE, including Georgetown, New York and Northwestern universities.

“If the U.S. government wants its universities in the region spared, it should condemn the bombardment" of Iranian universities by midday Monday, the Guard said in a statement.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said Saturday that dozens of universities and research centers have been hit, among them the Iran University of Science and Technology and Isfahan University of Technology.

Both sides in the war have threatened to attack civilian facilities, which critics have warned could be a war crime.

Death toll continues to climb Iranian authorities say more than 1,900 people have been killed in the Islamic Republic, while 19 have been reported dead in Israel.   — AP

Iran accuses US of preparing a land assault

Iran's parliament speaker said the U.S. was sending messages about possible negotiations while secretly planning to send in its forces, and that Iran was ready to respond. — Reuters

West Asia conflict: Praying for Iran to emerge victorious, war to end, says Mehbooba Mufti

Kathua/Jammu: PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday said she is praying to Allah for Iran to emerge victorious in the West Asia conflict, and for the war to come to an immediate end, calling it essential to restore stability and curb the "escalating" inflation.She also accused the National Conference government in Jammu and Kashmir and the BJP-led Centre of "completely failing" to resolve people's problems.

"Iran has had very deep relations with India. It was unfortunate that the prime minister (Narendra Modi) visited Israel just before the war began, which did not send a good message," Mufti told reporters on the sidelines of a PDP rally at Hiranagar in Kathua district.

"Jammu and Kashmir used to be called 'Iran-e-Sagheer' (Little Iran), which shows how close our ties have been. Islam came to us through Iran, and we share many similarities.

"The way the people of J-K have come out on the streets for Iran – collecting money, offering help, donating gold jewellery and household items – shows a great spirit," she said.

The former J-K chief minister said they are praying to Allah for Iran to emerge victorious, and for the war to come to an end.

"The war is having a very negative impact on India as well. The whole world is affected, and things are becoming more expensive," Mufti said.

Stating that a large number of people from India, including Jammu and Kashmir, work in the Gulf countries, the PDP chief said, "They will naturally return if conditions worsen, and unemployment will increase. Therefore, the war should stop as soon as possible, so that peace can be restored and inflation can also be brought under control."

The war in West Asia, which began after the US-Israel combine attacked Iran on February 28, prompting retaliatory strikes by Tehran across the Gulf region, has now stretched into its fifth week, with no immediate end in sight.

It has impacted the global economy, including oil and gas prices, which have had repercussions on the lives of citizens across the region.  — PTI

Iranians cross into southern Iraq for cheaper groceries and internet, hours after air strike disrupts commercial trade

Iranians crossed into Iraq via the Shalamcha border on Sunday, hours after an airstrike hit near the Iranian side, cutting power and halting trade for several hours, said Haider Abdul Samad, the crossing’s deputy director.

The strike occurred around 3 a.m. and was not the first since the war began, he said, without providing details on casualties or the strike. Electricity was restored and trade resumed by mid-morning, but Abdul Samad said such disruptions have become routine amid the ongoing war.

Cross-border movement has significantly declined, though dozens of Iranians continue to enter Iraq seeking cheaper goods, internet access and brief family visits before returning to nearby cities such as Abadan and Ahvaz.

Many described the U.S. and Israeli strikes as relentless and frightening but said they would not leave.

Iran says to target USS Abraham Lincoln carrier if it moves within range

Iran's navy chief Shahram Irani said Sunday that the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier would be targeted by the Islamic republic if it comes within range.

"As soon as the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group comes within firing range, we will avenge the blood of the martyrs of the Dena warship by launching various types of sea-to-sea missiles," Irani was quoted as saying by state TV, referring to an Iranian frigate sunk by the US on March 4.

UAE reports fresh missile and drone attacks

The United Arab Emirates said its air defense systems are responding to more missile and drone attacks. Its defense ministry said that sounds heard across the country on Sunday were from interception efforts.

Iran parliament speaker says US plots ground attack despite diplomatic efforts

ran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Sunday that the United States was plotting a ground attack despite publicly engaging in diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the war.

"The enemy publicly sends messages of negotiation and dialogue while secretly planning a ground attack," Ghalibaf said in a statement carried by the official IRNA news agency. 

A Qatari television station says Israeli missiles damaged its office in Tehran

Al Araby Television Network said an Israeli missile slammed into its office building in Iran’s capital, Tehran, forcing its live broadcast to stop, and left “extensive damage” to the office.

In a video posted on the channel’s social media accounts, one of its reporters showed the damage to the office. Equipment, furniture, and debris could be seen scattered on the ground.