Deadly blasts rock Iran as its leaders attend rally in show of defiance

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TEHRAN – Deadly explosions rocked Tehran close to a pro-government rally attended by top officials on March 13, as Israel and Iran unleashed fresh strikes in a war that has ignited the Middle East and threatens to torpedo the world economy.

Since erupting on Feb 28 with US-Israeli attacks on Iran, the war has cascaded throughout the region, drawn in global powers and sparked a major oil shock.

AFP journalists in Tehran reported loud blasts over the city skies, as Israel’s military said it had hit more than 200 targets in western and central Iran in the past day.

Iran’s state media said at least one person was killed when blasts hit an area near a pro-government demonstration, where large crowds had gathered waving flags and brandishing banners reading “Death to America” and “Death to Israel”.

“These attacks are out of fear, out of desperation,” said Mr Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, who attended the rally to mark Quds Day, the last Friday of Ramadan.

“One who is strong wouldn’t bomb demonstrations at all. It’s clear that it (the enemy) has failed,” said Mr Larijani in a speech broadcast on state TV.

President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also attended the rally, while images shared by Iranian media showed the head of the judiciary being interviewed just as a blast occurred.

Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei vowed that Iran’s military would teach the US and Israel “an unforgettable lesson”.

Shortly afterwards, state television said Iran had launched a fresh salvo of missiles at Israel.

Bread rationed

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, the ideological arm of the country’s military, warned on March 13 that any new protests against the authorities would be met with a stronger response than in January, when several thousand people were killed.

Iranians speaking to AFP under cover of anonymity have painted a grim picture of life under the bombs, with cities in ruins and cash running short.

“People are desperately trying to withdraw their savings from the banks, as trust in them has vanished,” one 30-year-old woman in Kermanshah, western Iran, told AFP.

“Bread is now rationed. The population is extremely tense and outraged.”

The United Nations refugee agency has estimated that up to 3.2 million people have been displaced inside Iran since the Middle East war started.

Iran’s Health Ministry said on March 8 that more than 1,200 people have been killed in the war, a figure AFP has not been able to independently verify.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the US and Israel had struck more than 15,000 targets since the war started, warning that March 13 would mark the most intensive bombing yet.

“We have unparalleled firepower, unlimited ammunition, and plenty of time. Watch what happens to these deranged scumbags today,” wrote US President Donald Trump on social media.

‘We won’t leave’

Iran has launched waves of drone and missile strikes against neighbouring states hosting US military assets throughout the region.

Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry said on March 13 its forces had intercepted dozens of drones, including one targeting its capital’s Diplomatic Quarter.

AFP images showed black smoke hanging over the iconic skyline of Dubai after an attack on what was once considered a safe haven in a chaotic region.

Two people died from drone debris in Oman, according to state media there, while sirens rang out early on March 13 at Turkey’s Incirlik airbase, a key NATO facility housing US troops.

Later on March 13, Turkey’s Defence Ministry said NATO defences had intercepted a ballistic missile from Iran in Turkish airspace, the third such incident in just over a week.

In another sign of the war’s spread, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the death of France’s first soldier, in an attack in the Erbil region of Iraq.

The soldier, 42-year-old Arnaud Frion, was hit by an Iranian drone as the French military took part in counter-terrorism training, his commanding officer said on March 13.

Mr Macron did not give details on the attack, or who was behind it, but France’s military said earlier that drones hit a base where troops were taking part in counter-terrorism training with Iraqi counterparts.

Earlier, a pro-Iranian group in Iraq, Ashab al-Kahf, warned that French interests in the region were a target after the arrival of a French aircraft carrier, but there was no claim of responsibility for the attack.

Elsewhere in Iraq, a US refuelling aircraft crashed, though the US military said it was “not due to hostile fire or friendly fire”.

Iran’s military, however, said in a statement carried by state TV that an allied group in Iraq had downed the aircraft with a missile, killing all crew members. US Central Command later said all six crew members had died.

A strike on the Israeli town of Zarzir injured around 60 people, according to Israeli police, with AFP images showing burnt-out vehicles and craters in the ground.

The conflict has heavily impacted Lebanon, where the authorities reported 687 people killed by Israeli attacks, including at least 12 in a strike on March 12 on Beirut’s seafront, where displaced families are camping in tents.

Ms Dalal al-Sayed told AFP she had pitched her tent there after fleeing attacks in southern Lebanon. Her family cannot afford to rent an apartment, she said.

“We won’t leave, we will stay here even if we die.”

AFP images from central Beirut showed buildings reduced to husks of rubble and burnt-out shells of overturned vehicles as small fires flickered from the aftermath of strikes.

Israeli planes on March 13 also dropped propaganda leaflets over Beirut, causing a number of loud booms in the sky and terrifying residents.

‘Evil empire’

Crude oil stayed above the benchmark price of US$100 per barrel after Iran’s leader vowed to choke the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery for global energy transport.

Mr Mojtaba Khamenei, who was reportedly wounded in the strike that killed his father, has not appeared publicly since his nomination. His message calling for vengeance was read by an anchor on state television.

The statement said the “lever of blocking the Strait of Hormuz must definitely be used”, referring to Iran’s effective closure of the waterway.

Blocking the strait is a powerful weapon for Iran – massively outgunned by Israel and the US – by hitting a sensitive pinch point for the global economy.

The war, which has also seen energy infrastructure targeted in oil-rich Gulf states, is creating “the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market”, the International Energy Agency has said.

As prices at the pump soar around the world, Mr Trump has eased some oil sanctions on Russia, which has warned that the global energy market “cannot remain stable” without its supplies.

German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said the move was “further filling (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s war chest” in his campaign against Ukraine. AFP