Iran LIVE: Emmanuel Macron boasts of French force on Iran's doorstep - while Britain struggles to send one ship to guard Cyprus
Emmanuel Macron has boasted of his country's forces building up a presence in the Middle East while Britain has struggled to send a single vessel to guard Cyprus after Iran's drone attack on RAF Akrotiri.
Despite declaring the US-Israeli strikes on Iran were "outside international law", the French President has now ordered a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to move into the Mediterranean Sea to defend allied assets.
On social media, Mr Macron wrote: "We stand alongside our friends and allies in the region for their security and territorial integrity.
"It is our responsibility. It is strictly defensive and aims to protect and restore peace as quickly as possible."
Alongside the Charles de Gaulle carrier, Paris has now deployed Rafale fighter jets, airborne radar systems and air defence systems to the region.
Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer has confirmed that the UK will send air defence destroyer HMS Dragon to protect British military personnel in Cyprus after the drone strike on RAF Akrotiri.
However, GB News understands the vessel will not set sail until early next week, and will take another seven days to arrive to the Mediterranean island.
The Type 45 destroyer has not been to sea since December - and will even have to undergo a "workup" en route to Cyprus, NavyLookout revealed.
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RECAP: Tehran 'names Ali Khamenei's hardliner son as new Ayatollah - but country now faces US-backed civil war'
Iran has appointed the son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as the next Supreme Leader, Iranian media has reported.
Mojtaba Khamenei was chosen by the country's Assembly of Experts under pressure from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), sources told Iran International.
Despite never holding a formal position within his father's regime, it is widely believed he holds significant influence within the Islamic Republic's political and security spheres.
He was also named by insiders as a potential target for a US strike in the days leading up to the war.
However, he could be faced with a bloody civil war within days after reports emerged that a CIA-backed fighting force within Iran could launch an armed uprising inside the country.
Weapons have allegedly been smuggled into the country since last year's 12-day war to arm thousands of Kurdish volunteers, with the Trump administration said to have engaged in talks with leaders to discuss military support.
The Kurdish people are one of Iran's largest ethnic minorities, with an estimated population between nine and 10 million.
Mullahs 'too afraid to announce new Iranian Ayatollah out of fear the US and Israel will attack him'
Iran's Mullahs are said to be too afraid to announce Mojtaba Khamenei as the country's new Supreme Leader over fears it may expose him as a target to the US and Israel.
The "Assembly of Experts", according to Iran International, held two virtual meetings to decide on succession plans - after Israel bombed their planned meeting site in the city of Qum.
US pulls almost all government staff from Saudi Arabia after embassy attack and cruise missile run-in
The US has authorised the evacuation of all non-emergency government staff from Saudi Arabia after the American embassy came under attack and two cruise missiles were intercepted near Riyadh.
Similar measures were also given the green light for non-essential workers living in Oman.
A statement from the State Department said it had "updated the Travel Advisory for [these countries] to reflect the authorized departure of non-emergency US government personnel and family members of government personnel."
The US embassies in Oman and Saudi Arabia have both urged citizens hoping to travel to the region to reconsider amid the ongoing conflict.
Donald Trump 'trying to jump-start' regime change with plot to arm Kurds
Donald Trump is "trying to jump-start" regime change in Iran with an alleged CIA plot to arm the US-allied Kurds.
Alex Plitsas. a former Pentagon official under Barack Obama, told CNN: "The Iranian people are generally unarmed as a whole and unless the security services collapse, it’ll be difficult for them to take over unless someone arms them.
"I believe the US is hopeful that this will inspire others on the ground in Iran to do the same."
Weapons have allegedly been smuggled into the country by US-backed gun-runners since last year's 12-day war to arm thousands of Kurdish volunteers - now poised to strike against the crumbling Islamic Republic.
Canadian PM appears to U-turn on backing US strikes
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has appeared to U-turn on backing "Operation Epic Fury".
He said the strikes now come with "regret because the current conflict is another example of the failure of the international order".
He said the Canadian government's official support was based on the threat posed by Iran's nuclear programme and its human rights record - but criticized the US and Israel, which he said "have acted without engaging the United Nations or consulting with allies, including Canada".
Mr Carney also stressed that Canada would not participate in any military action against Iran.
Iran's next Supreme Leader 'spent months in British hospitals undergoing impotency treatment'
The man set to become Iran's next Supreme Leader spent months in private British hospitals being treated for impotency, US intelligence documents have revealed.
The classified memo, sent by the State Department to the US Embassy in London in 2008, noted that Mojtaba Khamenei was under pressure from his family to have children.
It details that the widely rumoured new Supreme Leader visited London for treatment on four occasions, including a two-month stint.
He married later in life "reportedly due to an impotency problem treated and eventually resolved during three extended visits to the UK", US intelligence uncovered by WikiLeaks noted, according to the Mail.
The document reads: "Mojtaba was expected by his family to produce children quickly, but needed a fourth visit to the UK for medical treatment.
"After a stay of two months, his wife became pregnant. Back in Iran, a healthy boy was born, named Ali for his paternal grandfather."
Reform UK donor reveals: 'I still feel safer in Dubai than in Sadiq Khan's London' despite missile barrage
One of Reform UK's biggest backers has said he feels "safer in Dubai than in Sadiq Khan's London" - despite a barrage of rockets flying overhead.
Nick Candy, the party's treasurer, said he feels "completely safe" while enjoying dinner at a restaurant near the beach.
Writing in the Daily Mail, he attributed the relative peace in the United Arab Emirates to their version of the Iron Dome - and called for Britain to develop the same technology.
First Government evacuation flight to rescue Britons from Middle East to depart today
The first Government-chartered flight to evacuate Britons from the Middle East is due to depart Muscat International Airport at 7pm this evening.
The Foreign Office said vulnerable people will be prioritised and British nationals in Oman will be contacted directly to arrange seats.
Officials have warned Britons not to travel to the airport unless they have been contacted.
Girl, 11, dies in Kuwait after being hit by debris from 'hostile aerial targets'
An 11-year-old girl has died after being hit by shrapnel from intercepted "hostile aerial targets", Kuwait state media has reported.
According to Kuwait News Agency, the targets had been “detected and intercepted within Kuwaiti airspace early this morning".
The resulting debris rained down on a residential building, with the child later dying "from injuries sustained when shrapnel fell", with four of her family members now undergoing medical checks.
The Gulf state has intercepted hundreds of drones and missiles since the conflict began on Saturday.
Israel poised to strike Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon as evacuation warning issued
Israel is set to strike Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon after issuing an evacuation notice.
The IDF has told civilians to flee 16 villages in Israel's northern neighbour - while troops are advancing across the two countries' border in a land invasion similar to the one in 2024.
RAF uses missiles worth up to £2million to shoot down Iranian drones worth £25k
The RAF has come under fire after using air-to-air missiles worth up to £2million to shoot down Iranian drones worth just £25,000.
The approach has been slammed by military analysts who have compared it to “firing golden bullets at plastic targets”.
Iran has launched more than 2,000 suicide drones since the conflict erupted on Saturday morning - and the RAF has deployed Typhoon and F-35 fighter jets to intercept the barrage of aircraft.
More than 1,000 dead in Iran since conflict began, human rights group says
More than 1,000 people have been killed across Iran since the conflict began on Saturday morning, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has reported.
According to the group's preliminary report, at least 1,097 people, including 181 children, have died as of Tuesday afternoon.
It also said that over 5,400 civilians have been injured in the war so far.
White House convenes urgent meeting with defence firms - despite Donald Trump's claim of 'virtually unlimited supply' of weapons
The White House is set to convene an urgent meeting with executives from US defence firms in a bid to ramp up production and replenish American supplies.
"Operation Epic Fury" has so far drawn heavily on munitions, worsening American stockpiles depleted by aiding Ukraine and Israel against Russia and Hamas.
Billions of dollars of artillery systems, ammunition and anti-tank missiles have been used up - while the current conflict in Iran has consumed longer-range missiles than those given to Kyiv.
One source told Reuters the gathering will focus on pressing weapons makers to move faster to boost output.
But just days ago, the President said there was a "virtually unlimited supply" of US munitions - and that "wars can be fought 'forever,' and very successfully, using just these supplies".
REVEALED: Iran hit CIA complex at US embassy site in Saudi Arabia
A CIA complex was damaged in an Iranian attack on the US embassy in Saudi Arabia, US media reports.
Two drones struck the embassy compound in capital Riyadh - though it remains unclear whether the intelligence facility was the strike's intended target.
Parts of the building were damaged and smoke spread inside the complex, prompting staff to shelter in place.
Donald Trump 'does not care' if Iran plays at World Cup
President Donald Trump has declared he "does not care" whether or not Iran takes part in this summer's World Cup being held in North America.
The Islamic Republic's side is due to play against Belgium and New Zealand in Los Angeles, before wrapping up the group stage with a tie against Egypt in Seattle.
He told Politico: "I really don't care. I think Iran is a very badly defeated country. They're running on fumes."
On Monday, the president of the Iranian football federation threatened to pull out of the "inappropriate" competition being held in the US, Canada and Mexico after Washington's "vicious" wave of strikes.
No Iranian ships left in waters around country, US military says
American forces have destroyed 17 Iranian ships, including one submarine, in their bombing campaign so far, the US military has confirmed.
In a video posted to social media, US Central Command's Brad Cooper said: "Today, there is not a single Iranian ship underway in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, or Gulf of Oman."
He also revealed the US has hit almost 2,000 targets in Iran since the conflict broke out on Saturday morning.
The Islamic Republic has launched over 2,000 drones and 500 ballistic missiles in retaliatory attacks across the region.
Pentagon names and pictures four US troops killed in Iranian drone strike
The Pentagon has named and pictured four of six US troops who were killed in an Iranian drone strike.
- Captain Cody Khork, 35, from Florida;
- Sergeant First Class Noah Tietjens, 42, from Nebraska;
- Sergeant First Class Nicole Amor, 39, from Minnesota;
- Sergeant Declan Coady, 20, from Iowa.
The four all died in an Iranian attack on Port Shuaiba, in Kuwait, on Sunday.
CIA-backed Kurds 'set to launch ground invasion within days'
The CIA is said to be working closely with Kurdish forces to mount an armed uprising inside Iran, sources have told CNN.
Thousands of weapons have allegedly been smuggled into the Middle Eastern country since the end of the 12-day war last year and ground invasion could be underway within days.
The Trump administration is said to have engaged in talks with Kurdish rebels and opposition voices within Iran in recent days.
Thousands of Kurdish fighters have been operating in Western Iran and along the Iraq-Iran border.
Kurds are one of the largest minority groups within the country, with a population estimated between nine to 10 million.
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