International Desk, Mar 15 (EFE).- Iran’s Revolutionary Guard vowed on Sunday to “relentlessly pursue” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while Israeli strikes in Lebanon killed at least 14 people, including four minors, according to Lebanese health authorities, as the regional war entered its 16th day.
Earlier, the US Department of Defense identified the six service members who died last Thursday when their KC-135 aircraft crashed in western Iraq during support operations linked to the American and Israel’s war against Iran, which continues to expand across the region.
Here are the latest developments at the start of the sixteenth day of the conflict:
Iran vows to target Netanyahu
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said Sunday that it will “relentlessly pursue” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in order to end his life, according to a statement issued by its public relations office and reported by the Sepah News website, which is affiliated with the force.
The threat coincided with the launch of what the Iranian military described as the 52nd wave of attacks targeting industrial sectors in Israel and US forces in the Middle East. The statement did not specify the locations involved.
Trump says US could bomb Kharg island again
US President Donald Trump said that the United States could bomb the Iranian island of Kharg again, describing it as the center of the Islamic Republic’s oil industry and the target of “one of the most powerful bombings” in the history of the Middle East.
Speaking in a telephone interview with NBC, Trump said the US might bomb the island “maybe a few more times, just for fun.”
He had previously referred to the operation in a post on his social network Truth on Friday.
At least 14 dead, including four minors, in Lebanon
At least 14 people, including four minors, were killed in a series of Israeli attacks on several locations in Lebanon, the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) reported Sunday, citing health authorities.
According to the agency, seven people were killed in an Israeli strike on a neighborhood in the southern town of Nabatieh, including the four minors. Four others died in an attack in the city of Sidon, while three more were killed in another strike in the town of Al-Qatrani, also in southern Lebanon.
Two people injured in central Israel
During the early hours of Sunday, two people were injured in the town of Holon, near Tel Aviv, following one of several missile attacks launched from Iran overnight.
The Israeli emergency service Magen David Adom (MDA) said in a statement that the injuries were minor.
Tokyo does not rule out sending ships to Hormuz
A senior official from Japan’s ruling party said Sunday that Tokyo does not rule out sending warships to protect the Strait of Hormuz, as requested by U.S. President Donald Trump, but stressed that the move must be considered cautiously.
“Legally, we do not rule out issuing a maritime security order under Article 82 of the Self-Defense Forces Law, but given the ongoing conflict, we must make a decision with caution,” said Takayuki Kobayashi, head of the policy council of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), during a program on public broadcaster NHK.
Six slain US service members identified
On Saturday night, US authorities released the identities of the six service members who died Thursday in an incident that the Pentagon has described as an accident, although Iran and allied Iraqi militias claim it was caused by a missile strike.
The six fatalities were Major John A. Klinner, 33, from Auburn, Alabama; Captain Ariana G. Savino, 31, from Covington, Washington; Technical Sergeant Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, from Bardstown, Kentucky; Captain Seth R. Koval, 38, from Mooresville, Indiana; Captain Curtis J. Angst, 30, from Wilmington, Ohio; and Technical Sergeant Tyler H. Simmons, 28, from Columbus, Ohio.
With their deaths, the number of U.S. troops killed since the start of the war against Iran on February 28 has risen to fourteen. Seven were killed in direct Iranian attacks, one died from a “medical emergency” in Kuwait, and the remaining six died in the aircraft incident in Iraq. EFE
int-jdg-sk
