01/04/2026

WEDNESDAY | APR 1, 2026

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Iran military installations hit installations hit

ITALY REFUSES USE OF SICILY AIR BASE ROME: Italy has denied permission for US military aircraft to land at the Sigonella air base in Sicily before flying to the Middle East. Daily Corriere della Sera reported “some US bombers” had been due to land at the base in eastern Sicily. A source did not specify how many aircraft were involved or when Rome declined to give permission. Corriere della Sera said permission was not granted as the US had not sought authorisation and Italy’s military leadership was not consulted, as required under treaties on the use of US military installations in the country. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government has said it would seek parliamentary authorisation should any such requests be made. – Reuters ARCHAEOLOGISTS CUT SHORT IRAQ DIGS BAGHDAD: Archaeologists in Iraq have been forced by drone and rocket attacks to cut short expeditions. They said some of the projects had been planned for years but their teams have had to evacuate ancient sites. Under normal circumstances, around 60 international teams would have been working on digs, a government official said, but “all of these missions have left Iraq”. State Board of Antiquities and Heritage head Ali Obeid Shalgham said security forces were the sites’ “true guarantors”. He said the country is installing “blue shields”, nicknamed “the Red Cross of heritage”, at the sites. The presence of foreign teams is “crucial”, said Aqeel al-Mansrawi, an Iraqi landscape archaeologist. “They work to protect heritage through conservation,” he said. He also emphasised the training Iraqi experts receive from foreigners. – AFP Pentagon denies trades story WASHINGTON: A broker for US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth attempted to make a big investment in major defence companies in the weeks leading up to the US-Israeli attack on Iran, the Financial Times reported, citing three people familiar with the matter. Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said on X the story was “entirely false and fabricated” and demanded a retraction. The FT report said Hegseth’s broker at Morgan Stanley contacted BlackRock in February, about making a multimillion dollar investment in the asset manager’s Defence Industrials Active ETF, shortly before the US launched military action. According to the report, the investment discussed by Hegseth’s broker did not go ahead as the fund, which launched in May last year, was not yet available for Morgan Stanley clients to buy. The report did not say how much discretion the broker had to make investments on Hegseth’s behalf, or whether Hegseth knew what the broker was doing. “Neither Hegseth nor any of his representatives approached BlackRock about any such investment,” Parnell said. BlackRock declined to comment on the report, while Morgan Stanley did not respond to a request for comment. The report comes amid a scrutiny of trades made in financial and prediction markets ahead of President Donald Trump’s policy decisions. – Reuters

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o Heritage sites damaged

Undated image shows smoke billowing near Yazd, in central Iran. – AFPPIC

BEIRUT: Three UN peacekeepers from Indonesia were killed in two separate incidents in southern Lebanon after a bloody weekend in which Lebanese journalists and medics were killed in Israeli strikes. Two peacekeepers were killed on Monday after an explosion from an unknown origin destroyed their vehicle near Bani Hayyan in south Lebanon, the UN peacekeeping force Unifil said in a statement. Two other soldiers were wounded in the blast. Another Indonesian soldier was killed on Sunday when a projectile exploded near one of the group’s positions close to the Lebanese village of Adchit al-Qusayr. Another peacekeeper was critically injured. The death on Sunday was the first among the UN’s peacekeeping force in the new war between Israel and Hezbollah. “We are investigating them as two separate incidents,” said Unifil spokesperson Kandice Ardiel. In response to the first death, Indonesia’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday the deceased peacekeeper was one of its citizens and three others were injured. Indonesia condemned the TEHRAN: Iranian media reported yesterday that initial investigations indicated strikes in central Iran had hit some “military sites”, without specifying the locations. “Initial investigations indicate that some military locations in Isfahan were targeted,” the Fars news agency quoted Akbar Salehi, a security official at the governor’s office in Isfahan province, as saying. The official also said the extent of the damage and any casualties were not immediately clear. Isfahan province is a key hub for Iran’s defence industry and hosts major nuclear facilities, including Natanz. The nuclear sites were targeted during a 12-day conflict with Israel last June, as well as in the current war that began on Feb 28, according to

Explosions were heard in Dubai and near Erbil airport in northern Iraq, and sirens sounded in Jerusalem and two people were wounded when air defence intervened to intercept a drone near the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh, civil defence said. Israeli emergency services said eight people received minor injuries from falling munitions fragments in Bnei Brak, near Tel Aviv. At least 10 blasts were heard in the Jerusalem area after missile launches from Iran were detected. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Donald Trump’s partner in attacking Iran, said more than half of the operation’s military aims had been achieved, but both leaders have refused to put a timeline. – AFP

Mobarakeh

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Company

incident and said any harm to peacekeepers is unacceptable, while reiterating its condemnation “of Israel’s attacks in southern Lebanon”. Foreign Minister Sugiono called yesterday for an emergency UN Security Council meeting and “for a swift, thorough and transparent investigation” into the “heinous attack” after speaking with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Israel’s military said yesterday it is aware of the reports and they are being reviewed thoroughly to determine whether they resulted from Hezbollah or the military’s activity. Guterres said attacks on peacekeepers are grave violations of international humanitarian law and may amount to war crimes. “We strongly condemn these unacceptable incidents, peacekeepers must never be a target,” the UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix said on Monday. Unifil is stationed in southern Lebanon to monitor hostilities along the demarcation line with Israel, an area that is at the heart of clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. – Reuters Iranian officials. The province is home to several major military bases, including the Badr airbase, the 8th Shekari airbase, and the 4th Air Force base. Strikes during the conflict have also hit civilian and historical infrastructure, including the Isfahan University of Technology. Several heritage sites listed by Unesco have been reported damaged in Isfahan’s Naqsh-e Jahan Square, including the Safavid-era Abbasi Jameh Mosque and Ali Qapu Palace. Hassan Fartousi, secretary general of the Iranian National Commission for Unesco, told a press conference yesterday that damage in the province was “huge”. Industrial facilities were also affected, with strikes hitting the

complex. Video footage verified by AFP showed at least two massive explosions and columns of smoke in Isfahan. State media reported the Grand Husseiniya, a Shia religious centre, was damaged in Zanjan in the northwest. Fars news agency reported explosions and power outages in parts of Tehran, where residents painted a picture of a city that is still clinging to some routine despite tight security. “When I make it to a cafe table, even for a few minutes, I can almost believe the world hasn’t ended,” said Fatemeh, a 27-year-old dental assistant. “And then I go back home, back to the reality of living through war, with all its darkness and weight.”

Three Indonesian peacekeepers killed

An Israeli helicopter firing towards Lebanon on Monday. – REUTERSPIC