Middle East crisis live: Trump claims war will end in ‘two or three weeks’; Rubio says US should ‘re-examine’ Nato relationship
Key events
Israel’s military said early on Wednesday it had carried out a “wide-scale wave of strikes” on Tehran.
Separately, it said an Israeli military drone had been downed by a surface-to-air missile during operational activity in southern Lebanon overnight on Tuesday.
Australian PM to address nation as support measures announced to cushion soaring fuel prices
Patrick Commins
Australia’s Treasurer Jim Chalmers has unveiled a suite of Covid-era support measures for businesses struggling with soaring fuel prices, while Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese is set to address the nation in the latest sign the government is preparing for a more severe economic downturn from the war.
“The war in the Middle East is having an extreme impact on the global economy. Australians and Australian small businesses are paying the price for that,” the treasurer told reporters on Wednesday.
The support package will include more generous Australian Taxation Office payment plans, doing away with penalties and interest on unpaid tax debts, and offering support to defer PAYG payments where the business has suffered a hit to their revenue “due to fuel supply issues”.
The ATO will also hold off on chasing unpaid tax debts.
Anthony Albanese will deliver an address to the nation on Wednesday night at 7pm AEDT, where he’s expected to encourage Australians to play their part in the fuel crisis, including helping to save fuel for areas that need it.
Opening summary
Hello and welcome to our continuing coverage of the US-Israel war on Iran and the wider repercussions throughout the Middle East and globally.
Donald Trump said on Tuesday that US forces would end operations in Iran “very soon,” suggesting a timeline of two to three weeks. The US president also told reporters that the responsibility for keeping the strait of Hormuz open will rest with countries that rely on it. “That’s not for us … That’ll be for whoever’s using the strait,” he said.
Later, US secretary of state Marco Rubio told Fox News the US would need to reevaluate the Nato relationship after the conflict in Iran concludes, saying: “I do think, unfortunately, we are going to have to re-examine whether or not this alliance that has served this country well for a while is still serving that purpose.
“If now we have reached a point where the Nato alliance means that we can’t use [US military bases in Europe]… then Nato is a one-way street.”
Here is a summary of the latest developments:
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Two-thirds of Americans believe that the US should work to end its involvement in the Iran war quickly, even if that means not achieving the goals set out by the Trump administration, a Reuters/Ipsos poll has found.
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Asian markets rose sharply early on Wednesday after US stocks soared to their best day in almost a year on renewed hopes that the Iran war could soon end. South Korea’s Kospi surged 6.4% in early trading, while Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 4%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 1.9%, while the Shanghai Composite index was trading 1.4% higher.
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Thousands of additional US troops are heading to the Middle East. The aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush deployed on Tuesday and is slated to travel to the region along with three destroyers, two US officials said. The carrier strike group consists of more than 6,000 personnel.
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The Israeli military said on Wednesday it had identified the launch of a missile from Yemen towards Israel. It said defence systems were operating to intercept the missile.
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Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB said areas in northern, eastern and central Tehran were under attack on Wednesday morning. The broadcaster said on Telegram that explosions were heard in the capital’s north, east and centre, reporting “attacks on Tehran” without immediately providing more details.
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A drone attack has sparked a large fire at Kuwait international airport, according to its state news agency, which said no casualties had been reported, while in the last few hours Saudi Arabia has said it intercepted and destroyed two drones. Bahrain also said early on Wednesday that it was working to extinguish a fire at a business facility that resulted from an Iranian attack. A tanker also came under attack off the coast of Qatar early on Wednesday, according to the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre.
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Israeli strikes in southern Beirut and a nearby area have killed seven people, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.
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An American journalist has been kidnapped in Baghdad by a suspected Iranian-backed Iraqi armed group, the US said. The journalist was identified as Shelly Kittleson, a freelancer, by media advocacy groups as well as Al-Monitor, one of the news outlets for which she worked.
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The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the United Arab Emirates is preparing to help the US open the strait of Hormuz by force. Citing Arab officials, the newspaper reported the UAE is lobbying for a UN security council resolution that would authorise such action.
