A leaked classified report by the National Intelligence Council has shed an unfavorable light on Donald Trump’s decision to strike Iran, warning that military involvement could be disastrous. 

In just one week, tensions have dramatically risen in the region, starting with a joint military operation conducted by the US and Israel against Iran. 

The strikes took out Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Iran retaliated by targeting US military bases in the Gulf Cooperation Council. 

Trump has stood firm on the military attack, but a report completed by the NIC just a week before raised doubts about the US’s ability to overthrow the regime. 

The NIC is a federal government agency that reports to the Director of National Intelligence. NIC members bridge 18 intelligence agencies with policymakers to provide analytical assessments. 

Three people familiar with the findings told the Washington Post that Iran would likely respond to Khamenei’s death by following protocols to preserve the regime. Sources said it was ‘unlikely’ that Iran’s opposition would seize control.

Khamenei’s successor has yet to be named. Iran’s Assembly of Experts and high-ranking members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have been tasked with naming his replacement. 

The ayatollah’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, is rumored to be assuming the role, but Trump has previously called him ‘incompetent’ and a ‘lightweight.’ 

The Trump administration initially said the strikes were intended to take out Iran’s nuclear capabilities, but in recent days has demanded ‘unconditional surrender.’

The president has made it clear that he wants a say in Iran’s leadership, telling NBC News: ‘We want them to have a good leader. We have some people who I think would do a good job.’ 

Experts told the Washington Post that the NIC report coincides with how the Islamic Republic of Iran operates. 

Holly Dagres, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told the publication that bending the knee to Trump would go against ‘everything they stand for.’ 

Suzanne Maloney, an Iran scholar and vice president at the Brookings Institution, agreed with the assessment: ‘There’s no other force within Iran that can confront the remaining power that the regime has.’ 

‘Even if they’re not able to project that power very effectively against their neighbors, they can certainly dominate inside the country.’ 

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s Parliament speaker, defiantly denied that Iranian leadership would cooperate with Trump’s demands. 

‘The fate of dear Iran, which is more precious than life, will be determined solely by the proud Iranian nation, not by [Jeffrey] Epstein’s gang,’ he wrote on X. 

The White House maintained Trump’s position in a statement to the Washington Post, claiming that the Iranian regime is ‘being absolutely crushed.’ 

‘President Trump and the administration have clearly outlined their goals with regard to Operation Epic Fury: destroy Iran’s ballistic missiles and production capacity, demolish their navy, end their ability to arm proxies, and prevent them from ever obtaining a nuclear weapon,’ the statement said. 

Despite the recent assessment, Trump has remained confident in media interviews that the regime in Iran would soon fall. 

During an interview with Politico on Thursday, the president maintained that the US would have a hand in influencing Iranian leadership. 

‘I’m going to have a big impact, or they’re not going to have any settlement, because we’re not going to have to go do this again,’ he said. 

Trump said ‘people are loving what’s happening’ in Iran, adding: ‘We’re taking out a threat to the United States of America, major threat, … and doing it like nobody’s ever seen before.’ 

The president praised the operation in a post on Truth Social, boasting that Iran had been beaten ‘to hell’ and was forced to apologize to GCC countries for retaliatory strikes. 

Countries in the GCC, including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan were hit with a barrage of missiles this past week. 

Iranian leadership has said the strikes were intended for US military bases, and citizens of GCC countries were not the target of the operation. 

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian apologized to GCC countries in a video message on Saturday for the deadly drone and missile strikes.  

‘I should apologize to the neighboring countries that were attacked by Iran, on my own behalf,’ he said. 

‘From now on, they should not attack neighboring countries or fire missiles at them, unless we are attacked by those countries. I think we should solve this through diplomacy.’

Pezeshkian delivered the message next to a picture of Khamenei, but did not directly address the Supreme Leader’s slaying. 

Despite the apology, the video was in no way a surrender, as the Iranian president vowed that the country’s enemies ‘must take their wish for the unconditional surrender of the Iranian people to their graves.’

A statement issued by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) just hours after the video message claimed to have targeted bases in the UAE and Kuwait. 

Qatar also confirmed it had intercepted an Iranian missile and issued a ‘heightened’ security alert to citizens. 

As Trump and Pezeshkian issue defiant messages, hope for an end to military activity in the area has dwindled. 

Warfare has continued in the area over the last week, as Israel led a fleet of 80 fighter jets in the early hours of Saturday morning against Tehran’s Mehrabad International Airport, one of two that serve the capital.

Israel’s broad military operations did not end there. The Israel Defense Forces have intensified attacks in Lebanon against the Iran-backed Hezbollah. 

Israeli military forces launched a raid in eastern Lebanon, which resulted in at least 41 deaths, the New York Times reported, citing Lebanese officials and state media.  

Iran also hit back on Saturday, with air raid alerts and explosions heard above Jerusalem as well as Gulf cities Dubai, Manama and near Riyadh – where Saudi Arabia intercepted a ballistic missile fired at an air base housing US military personnel.

Video footage in Dubai revealed a potential drone strike near Dubai International Airport, a major hub for international travel. 

The ongoing air strikes temporarily closed airspace over the Middle East. Airports have gradually resumed flight operations, but travel remains a headache for international passengers. The State Department is continuing to coordinate travel for Americans abroad.  

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards also said they had targeted the oil tanker Prima in the Gulf as it attempted to cross the narrow Strait of Hormuz, a key chokepoint for global shipping that Iran has effectively closed.

It has been reported that at least 1,230 people have been killed in Iran, more than 200 in Lebanon and 11 in Israel. Six US troops have also been killed.

A predatory driver who pretended to be a cabbie attacked and raped a woman in her home after forcing his way in.

Shabir Sultani, 27, has been jailed for 13 years after the sickening attack in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, last year.

The woman had been out enjoying a night with friends in Sheffield in spring last year, when she decided to go home.

Outside a nightclub, she got into a car driven by Sultani, which she thought was a taxi.

Sultani then lied to her that he was a cab driver and he would take her home.

He offered the woman vodka during the journey, but she refused.

Once they reached her home in Chesterfield, Sultani crept behind the woman to her front door and forced his way in.

He continued to kiss her despite her telling him to stop repeatedly, and raped her.

The woman managed to kick him off her.

Sultani fled the scene, but he was later tracked down and arrested thanks to CCTV footage, and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology which spotted his car.

Sultani, of Sturton Road, Sheffield, denied the charges, but he was found guilty following a trial at Derby Crown Court in November.

The 27-year-old sentence included an extension of seven years due to dangerousness, and he was handed a Sexual Prevention Order designed to prevent him from contacting the woman, and he was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders’ Register.

The Detective Staff Investigator Beth Waite, who led the probe, commended the victim for her bravery and coming forward to report it.

She said: ‘Sultani clearly preyed on this woman on this occasion, pretending to be a taxi driver and offering to take her home.

‘Despite her repeatedly saying she wasn’t interested and asking him to leave her alone, he continued to force himself upon her, ultimately raping her.

‘I’d like to commend her bravery in coming forward and reporting this incident, and her support for the police investigation and subsequent prosecution.

‘This incident will undoubtedly have a long-lasting impact on her but her courage has ensured that we were able to bring the perpetrator to justice.

‘I hope that knowing he is now behind bars will allow her some form of peace.

‘I’d encourage anyone who has been a victim of rape or a sexual assault of any kind to please come forward and report it to us. We will listen without judgement and support you throughout.’

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For the first time since 1945, a regional war is threatening to engulf the entire world.

On every continent, governments are being forced to take a side: either with the Americans and Israel, or with Iran and its fellow autocracies.

The consequences for global trade, to say nothing of global security, are enormous. The world economy is far more complex than it was during the Second World War.

As the pandemic exposed, many countries, including Britain, operate a ‘just in time’ policy of importing energy and food as they become needed. When a crisis disrupts the supply chain, the impact is felt in empty shelves and soaring prices.

Donald Trump will be under pressure from many in the US and elsewhere to declare victory and end the attacks. But Iran, whose brutal Revolutionary Guard Corps show no sign of being ready to relinquish power, might not agree to a ceasefire.

They have already shown themselves capable of raining hell on the civilian populations of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and other Gulf states – and may well be planning terrorist atrocities in the West. As the war heads into its second week, the tremors seem set to shake the planet.

The U.S.

ANTI-IRAN: America’s technology, especially in partnership with Israel, is second to none. Its missiles are accurate and its power to wreak destruction colossal.

But Iran’s drones cost as little as £3,750 apiece and can be manufactured by the hundreds daily – while a single interceptor rocket to shoot one down can cost £15million.

Trump claimed this week that US stockpiles are limitless. This is false. Iran’s drone supply could ramp up faster than America’s defences – which could be pivotal for the outcome of the war. Importantly, US politicians – among them many Republicans – are far from uniformly behind Trump. Isolationist Vice-President JD Vance has, for one, been very quiet.

Voter reaction has also been mixed – and US losses are likely to mount. In the week since the US’s attack launched on February 28, six American soldiers have been killed in Iran, with almost $2billion worth of military equipment lost.

Brazil and Mexico

PRO-IRAN: Brazil, the most populous country in South America, is an economic powerhouse.

It has good relations with Iran and is suspicious of US influence, particularly since Trump gave vocal support to imprisoned hard-Right ex-president Jair Bolsonaro.

Meanwhile, many Mexicans retain longheld sympathies for Palestinians, and see Israel in the same light as the US – as a colonial oppressor. While officially neutral, the country will privately support Iran.

Argentina

ANTI-IRAN: South America – Donald Trump’s backyard – is not a disinterested observer of a war thousands of miles away.

Argentina has been ferociously anti-Iran since at least 1994, when a Tehran-sponsored suicide bomb killed 85 people at a Jewish community centre in Buenos Aires – an atrocity orchestrated by the regime as retribution for Argentina’s decision to stop sharing nuclear secrets.

Even though his economy is reliant on cheap energy, especially for the agricultural sector, Argentinian president Javier Milei is loudly pro‑Trump and pro-Israel.

Azerbaijan

ANTI-IRAN: Only about 60 per cent of Iranians (roughly 55million people) are ethnic Persians. A further 25million are Azeri – who form the majority in Azerbaijan. If the regime in Tehran crumbles and civil war breaks out, tribal conflict between the Azeris and the Persians could quickly spread across the border. War between Iran and Azerbaijan could then sever a crucial pipeline bringing oil from the Turkish coast – with BP one of the main beneficiaries – into the Mediterranean.

Since European airlines can’t fly over Russia or Iran, Azeri airspace is a vital corridor East to West. If a passenger jet is shot down here, the route will be closed.

Britain, France and Germany

ANTI-IRAN: In a joint statement, the three major European nations deplored Iran’s attacks on Gulf states and made a qualified offer to assist the US-Israeli efforts. However, Britain in particular failed to offer support fast enough to appease Trump, who called PM Keir Starmer ‘a loser’ and ‘no Churchill’. Germany claimed to have been warned in advance of the strikes (as was Poland, a firm US ally with a strong military) but Britain and France were not.

Spain

NEUTRAL…BUT: Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez is hardly an advocate for the ayatollahs, but he initially labelled the strikes an ‘unjustified, dangerous military intervention’ that contravened international law, refusing to let America use joint Spanish military bases. A furious Trump then threatened to suspend all trade.

On Thursday, a Spanish Patriot anti-aircraft missile battery helped to shoot down an Iranian missile. But Spain’s hostility to Israel – an ancient enmity worsened by modern politics – is unlikely to shift.

Ireland

NEUTRAL: Sinn Fein has denounced the US-Israeli action as ‘an act of aggression that threatens to set the entire Middle East ablaze’. Yet the government has stopped short of condemning strikes, with Taoiseach Micheal Martin – due to meet Trump later this month – saying: ‘We believe in immediate de-escalation.’

For all the friendliness between the two countries, Irish public opinion seems to stand firmly against President Trump.

Belgium, Bulgaria, Estonia, Greece and Portugal

NEUTRAL: Although Nato members, many European countries prefer to keep well out, wording their responses to the strikes carefully.

Estonia recommended ‘pressure through sanctions’, Greece and Belgium highlighted concerns for the safety of their citizens, Portugal regretted Iran’s ‘unacceptable’ violation of human rights, and Bulgaria worried about ‘dangerous military escalation’. But the longer war drags on, the more likely they’ll be forced to pick a side.

Russia

PRO-IRAN: The biggest winner from the conflict so far is Vladimir Putin. With Iran unable to export much of its oil, soaring global energy prices are again boosting Russia’s war chest for the quagmire in Ukraine.

Iran is a longstanding ‘strategic partner’ of the Kremlin, and has been supplying the Russian military with swarms of Shahed suicide drones. Russia, too, produces thousands of drones and sells them back to Iran, while supplying the mullahs with aircraft, missiles and anti-aircraft systems as well as satellite intelligence. Russia also opens its banks to Iran to dodge American and EU sanctions.

China

PRO-IRAN: This is the most dangerous flashpoint. China needs Iran’s oil for its military vehicles and warplanes, and buys it despite international sanctions. Beijing’s warships are sailing into the Arabian Gulf to escort Iranian tankers.

If, by accident or in an act of self-defence, a US missile hits a Chinese ship, or if China fires on a US plane, the world could be plunged into all-out war between East and West.

Even without that terrifying scenario, Beijing is helping Iran. Its satellites are tracking missile launches from Israeli bases and US carriers in the Indian Ocean – and feeding this crucial intelligence to Tehran. China is also believed to be smuggling aid and ordnance such as ammunition, drones and perhaps missiles to help the mullahs.

Egypt

NEUTRAL: In 1979 Egypt infuriated Iran by striking a peace deal with Israel and offering sanctuary to the ousted Shah.

Egypt has long been subsidised by Saudi Arabia and the UAE, who believe its large army would be useful in a future conflict. But if Iran’s proxies in Yemen, the Houthis, successfully blockade the Red Sea, energy revenues will collapse – and with them much Arab support. Egypt may find that its neutrality cannot hold, and it will be forced to side against Iran.

India

NEUTRAL…FOR NOW: India is successfully walking a tightrope. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has just signed trade and defence deals with Israel. But India is also a major oil importer from the Gulf region, and relies on buying natural gas for making fertiliser. (Delhi also retains strong links with Moscow and has refused to condemn Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.) Whatever its stance, India has much to lose if the war drags on.

South Africa

PRO-IRAN: Since the Nelson Mandela era, South Africa has been hostile to Israel, even bringing charges of ‘genocide’ against it at the International Court of Justice in the Hague, over the war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The current government, led by President Cyril Ramaphosa, also remembers Iranian support in the apartheid era, when Tehran refused to supply the white supremacist government with oil.

Australia

ANTI-IRAN: While Britain vacillated under Keir Starmer, Australia has publicly supported the US/Israeli action, though it has not sent any forces. Public opinion is widely supportive of America, especially in the aftermath of last December’s Bondi Beach massacre, carried out by Islamist extremists.

However, Australia draws about 30 per cent of its energy imports from the Gulf and exports a lot of mutton there, so the war’s economic impact – with trade from the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait and Iraq all blocked or sharply reduced – will be significant.

Japan and South Korea

ANTI-IRAN: Japan and South Korea are rock-solid US allies. But these big industrial economies – along with Singapore and Taiwan – are energy-hungry importers of oil and gas from the Gulf countries, including Iran. If producers of cars and consumer goods cannot get energy, production will stall. Getting goods to European markets will also be much more expensive if the route to the Suez Canal becomes too dangerous.

South Korea has one of the world’s largest armed forces with 3.5million personnel, should it be needed.

• Mark Almond is director of the Crisis Research Institute, Oxford 

Iran was hammered with more missiles overnight after the US carried out its ‘biggest’ bombing yet during the Middle East conflict.

The US military marked the seventh day of the Middle East war with more bombing in Iran last night.

Air sirens rang out in Tehran as explosions rocked the densely populated city of more than nine million people. Intense fire and smoke were also seen rising from Mehrabad International Airport in the early hours of the morning.

More than 1,200 people have been killed in Iran alone during the conflict, which has spilt into the neighbouring countries, the Gulf region and Lebanon.

Donald Trump’s administration’s senior official claimed last night’s offensive was America’s ‘biggest bombing campaign’ in Iran.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox Business: ‘We’ll do the most damage to the Iranian missile launchers, the factories that build the missiles. 

‘And we are substantially degrading them. And, you know, our campaign has been overwhelming.’

The US Central Command claimed it has hit over 3,000 targets during the first week of ‘Operation Epic Fury,’ adding that it is ‘not slowing down.’

Trump’s provocative comments have added fuel to the flames over the conflict, with the US president saying there will be ‘no deal with Iran except unconditional surrender.’

Trump also said the MAGA slogan – Make America Great Again – should be turned into ‘MIGA’, ‘Make Iran Great Again’ in a ranting post on Truth Social yesterday.

Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, responded by saying that the unconditional surrender is a ‘dream that they should take to their graves.’

He called for the conflict to be solved through diplomacy, and apologised to Iran’s neighbouring countries ‘that were attacked by Iran.’

‘From now on, they should not attack neighbouring countries or fire missiles at them, unnless we are attacked by those countries,’ Pezeshkian said in a pre-recorded address.

Across the Persian Gulf, flights were grounded in and out of Dubai airport, one of the busiest travel hubs in the world.

Emirates, the Kingdom’s flagship carrier, said it has halted all flights in the city until further notice.

Evacuation flights have been able to take off from neighbouring Oman and Saudi Arabia as other countries scramble to ferry off citizens.

Around 140,000 British nationals registered themselves with the Foreign Office, and the first evacuation flight landed at Stansted on Friday night.

The second chartered plane touched down at Gatwick overnight.

Around 300,000 British nationals are estimated to be stuck in the Middle East.

The White House has suggested the war could take up to six weeks.

Trump has previously hinted that the US could go on for ‘far longer.’

Fears are growing over the impact on the global economy and trade after the Strait of Hormuz has effectively been closed since the start of the conflict.

Very few ships dare to pass through the 24-mile passage after Iran threatened it would strike any US, Israel or European-linked vessels.

The Strait handles around 20% of the world’s oil supply.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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З початку відкриття ринку сільськогосподарських земель у липні 2021 року в Україні укладено понад 330 тисяч угод купівлі­продажу. Загальна площа земель, що перейшли у власність за цей час, сягнула 1 млн гектарів. Про це розповів заступник міністра економіки, довкілля та сільського господарства Денис Башлик. За його словами, попри повномасштабну війну ринок демонструє стабільний розвиток. Середня ціна гектара землі з моменту відкриття ринку зросла на 96% і на початок 2026 року становила понад 64 тис. грн за гектар.

«Ринок земель в Україні фактично новий, який працює вже п’ятий рік, і більшу частину цього часу — в умовах повномасштабної війни. Кількість угод і площа земель в обігу зростають, а ціна землі стабільно підвищується. Це підтверджує, що ринок розвивається і працює ефективно», — зазначив Денис Башлик.

Лідер за кількістю укладених угод — Сумська область, де продано понад 32 тисячі земельних ділянок. Також серед регіонів з найактивнішим ринком — Полтавська та Чернігівська області. Найменше угод зафіксовано у Волинській, Рівненській та Запорізькій областях.

У загальному обігу перебувають приблизно 3% всієї площі сільськогосподарських земель України, що свідчить про поступовий контрольований розвиток ринку.

За словами Дениса Башлика, поширені раніше побоювання щодо масового продажу землі або її купівлі іноземцями не справдилися. В Україні діють запобіжники, які не дозволяють іноземним громадянам чи компаніям купувати сільськогосподарські землі.

Нині на ринку землі присутні дві основні категорії покупців: агровиробники, які купують землю для обробітку, та інвестори, які розглядають землю як довгостроковий актив і передають її в оренду. Обидві категорії формують стабільний попит і підтримують зростання вартості земельних активів.

«Попри всі виклики війни українські аграрії продовжують працювати, гарантуючи продовольчу безпеку України і значної частини світу. Українська земля залишається одним з найцінніших ресурсів, а можливості, які відкриває ринок землі, роблять її привабливим активом для інвестування», — підсумував Денис Башлик, повідомляє Мінекономіки.

A woman is safer down a dark alley than she is in her own home.

It is a stark truth, long backed up by facts – but despite one in four women experiencing domestic abuse, new data from Refuge exposes wide gaps in the public’s understanding of this ‘national emergency’.

More than two million women suffered domestic abuse in the year to March 2025. In the same period, 75 women were killed by a current or former partner, with even more victims taking their own lives.

Additionly, more than seven times as many women are killed by a current or former partner than by a stranger.

However, the poll, conducted by YouGov on behalf of the charity, shows that most UK adults still believe home is where women feel safest.

While more than half of UK adults (57%) acknowledged that women are most at risk behind closed doors, 85% believe most people feel safe in their own home.

When asked where women are most commonly abused, 14% cited outdoor public spaces such as parks, 10% said in the street, 5% said on public transport, 4% suggested in the workplace, while 10% were unsure.

The most common form of domestic abuse experienced by victims in the last year was emotional abuse by a partner or ex-partner.

Most often taking the form of coercive control, it can include threats, humiliation, manipulation, ‘gaslighting’, intimidation, isolation and generally monitoring or controlling the victim’s day-to-day life.

Refuge’s survey also highlights gaps in awareness around how abuse is evolving inside the home.

Four in 10 adults (42%) say they have heard nothing about abusers monitoring, manipulating, or controlling someone through technology such as smart devices, while only a small minority (6%) report knowing a lot.

Refuge says domestic abuse is a crisis hiding in plain sight and is seeking to confront it head-on with a powerful new campaign.

Home is Where the Hurt is subverts the familiar ‘house tour’ content often seen from estate agent influencers, gradually revealing subtle but unsettling signs of abuse.

Gemma Sherrington, CEO of Refuge, said: ‘Too often we are taught to fear strangers, when the reality is that the most dangerous place for a woman is often her own home.

‘This survey shows a public belief in safety that masks a deadly truth. Abuse happens behind closed doors – and for too many women, it is fatal.

‘Our campaign is shining a light on these hidden harms, and the fact specialist services like ours need urgent, sustained funding to support survivors and, ultimately, save lives.’

Refuge Ambassador Sharon Gaffka said: ‘I hope this campaign helps people recognise the warning signs of abuse in their communities and empowers more women to seek help.

‘No woman should ever feel unsafe in her own home.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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Mount Royal University (MRU) is hoping to attract more women to the aviation industry, where they remain critically underrepresented, it says.

The post-secondary institution held a Women in Aviation Day at Calgary’s Springbank Airport on Friday to provide prospective pilots with an opportunity to network.

“We have a bunch of industry representatives,” said Kacy Cameron, an MRU second-year aviation student and one of the event organizers. “They have sent all their female pilots — as much as they could — just to show some inspiration for the younger generation, showing the different opportunities within the aviation industry.”

The open house style event allowed students to check out planes, speak with other students and connect with industry leaders. Cameron hopes it will give fellow students the chance to see themselves in their future careers.

“Having a mentor to look up to is definitely something I wish I had growing up,” explained the pilot hopeful.

Air Canada pilot Amy Cruickshank, an MRU grad, was on-hand answering questions about how she got her career off the ground.

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“I think it’s always important to see yourself represented,” said Cruickshank. “So, I’m here answering questions and showing young women that this is a great career choice. I love my job and I think it’s great for any woman who wants to try it.”

For 12-year-old Air Cadet Claire Gaida, it’s an opportunity to make connections and possibly find a volunteer opportunity to further a career that runs in her family.

“My uncle is a bush pilot,” said Gaida. “He flies off to the north, [to] Indigenous communities and rescues people there. Right now, the population of female aviators is growing a bunch, that’s a really good thing.”

 

By JAMIE BULLEN, LIVE COVERAGE EDITOR and ELIZABETH HAIGH, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER and RACHEL BOWMAN, US SENIOR NEWS REPORTER and SHANNON MCGUIGAN, NEWS REPORTER

Updated: 14:38 EST, 6 March 2026

US Air Force bombers capable of hitting enemies with up to 34 tonnes of explosives are on their way to the UK, suggesting that Donald Trump’s mega-attack on Iran that he dubbed the ‘big one’ is imminent.

Internet plane spotters noticed a fleet of B-1 aircraft travelling from the Dyess Air Force Base in Texas to RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, where they are expected to be joined by more stealth bombers including B-2s and B-52s.

The strategic bombers, costing up to $2billion each, can carry out long-range missions without detection while carrying the world’s most devastating missiles.

Sources have suggested that Saturday could be D-day for a new gigantic bombardment – exactly a week after America and Israel first attacked Iran as part of ‘Operation Epic Fury’.

The US President warned Iran this week that ‘the big one’ was coming, adding: ‘We haven’t even started hitting them hard. The big wave has not even happened.’

And US defence secretary Pete Hegseth said overnight that America will now use British RAF bases to ‘dramatically’ up its strikes on Iran after the Prime Minister allowed the Americans to launch defensive strikes from UK-US bases.

‘When we say more to come, it’s more fighter squadrons, it’s more capabilities, it’s more defensive capabilities, and it’s more bomber pulses more frequently,’ Mr Hegseth said. 

After a delay that saw Trump claim that Sir Keir Starmer was ‘unhelpful’ and is ‘no Winston Churchill’, the UK is now letting the US use British bases for ‘defensive’ strikes against missile facilities in Iran. 

Experts believe some American bombers could drop the ‘Mother of All Bombs’, a 10-tonne explosive that creates 1,000ft holes in the ground, taking out tunnels and bunkers while simultaneously pulling infrastructures such as bridges down into the giant crater. 

It comes as – 

• The conflict further escalated as the US and Israel bombed Tehran and Lebanon 
• Iranian missiles struck a hotel and two residential buildings in Bahrain; 
• Nearly 24,000 Americans were evacuated from Middle East to avoid attacks;
• Speculation grew that IRGC commander Qaani has been executed for spying;
• Gas prices continued to rise as the Iranians threaten the Strait of Hormuz; 
• Bombshell report claimed Russia is sharing intelligence with Iran aid attacks; 

Today central Tehran was hit with one of the biggest explosions of the war so far on Friday.

There were deafening bangs and multiple plumes of smoke and fireballs as a huge payload hit the Moqaddad base of the Revolutionary Guards. Tehran’s famous Azadi Tower can be seen in the centre of a video as the bombs rained down on the Iranian capital.

Debris was thrown across the city centre and some witnesses even claimed they  have seen bodies thrown up more than 100ft in the air.

B-1 bombers, which are based at Dyess in Texas, can carry out long-range missions without detection while carrying the world’s most devastating missiles. 

They are the backbone of America’s long-range bomber force and according to the US Air Force can ‘rapidly deliver massive quantities of precision and non-precision weapons against any adversary, anywhere in the world, at any time’.

‘The B-1 is a highly versatile, multi-mission weapon system,’ the force’s website boasts. 

‘The B-1B’s synthetic aperture radar is capable of tracking, targeting and engaging moving vehicles as well as self-targeting and terrain-following modes.’ 

In a further sign of air activity hotting up around Fairford, a temporary Transponder Mandatory Zone (TMZ) has been put in place today.

The move, which requires aircraft to switch their transponders on in that area for better safety by making them easier for air traffic control to spot, came into force at 3pm for the next month – indicating that the base will be busier than normal for at least the next few weeks. 

The Ministry of Defence declined to comment on the US aircraft’s movements when approached by the Daily Mail.   

Today, Trump said there would be no deal with Iran unless it is an ‘unconditional surrender’. 

He made the remarks on social media just hours after Iran’s president announced that unspecified countries had begun mediation efforts, one of the first signals of any diplomatic initiative to end the conflict.

Writing on Truth Social on Friday, the US President said: ‘There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!

‘After that, and the selection of a GREAT & ACCEPTABLE Leader(s), we, and many of our wonderful and very brave allies and partners, will work tirelessly to bring Iran back from the brink of destruction, making it economically bigger, better, and stronger than ever before.’

As Trump laid into Sir Keir Starmer for delaying access to UK military runways around the world, including in Diego Garcia, Mr Hegseth said last night: ‘We got there’.

‘The amount of firepower over Iran and over Tehran is about to surge dramatically,’ Mr Hegseth warned.

The MOAB, the US’s largest non-nuclear weapon, may be dropped in the coming days and weeks.

Nicknamed the ‘Mother Of All Bombs’ – a play on ‘MOAB,’ an acronym that stands for ‘Massive Ordnance Air Burst.’

A crater left by the blast is believed to be more than 100ft wide. Anyone at the blast site is vaporised.

It has not yet been deployed in Iran but was used in Afghanistan in 2017.

President Trump has long told reporters at the White House how ‘very proud’ he is of it.

American B-2 bombers did drop similarly destructive GBU-57 bunker-busters on Iranian uranium enrichment sites in June 2025.

The MOAB causes surface-level, wide-area destruction, while the GBU-57 burrows deep into the earth before exploding.

Military experts have said that the ‘big one’ Trump has warned Iran will use America’s most destructive arsenal – and appears imminent.

Sascha Bruchmann, a research fellow for defence at the office of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in Bahrain, told the Daily Telegraph: ‘The big one is a sustained bombing campaign via the strategic bomber fleet, so the B-1s, the B-2s and the B-52s.

‘Last night, Centcom [US Central Command] said there was one B-1 bomber, and the night before there were four B-2s, who dropped heavier payloads, so 1,000 to 2,000lb bombs with some bunker-busting capabilities against those missile cities.

‘Now that there’s air dominance achieved, and we’ve seen US Reaper drones over cities, which you wouldn’t have if there were some kind of air defences’.

Iain Ballantyne, editor of Warships International Fleet Review magazine, told the newspaper: ‘The most obvious thing that President Trump may mean by ‘the big one’ is some kind of MOAB – the ‘Mother of All Bombs’.’

He added that these terrifying air attacks would be ‘co-ordinated with the US navy unleashing not only the USS Gerald R. Ford but also the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike groups – both Tomahawk [missiles] from their destroyers and air wings – along with possible bombardments by submarines’.

Mr Starmer was branded delusional last night after insisting he has got a grip on the Middle East crisis.

At an emergency press conference in Downing Street, the Prime Minister claimed he was delivering ‘calm, level-headed leadership’.

But his relationship with Britain’s most important ally hit a new low as Donald Trump branded him a ‘loser’.

Sir Keir urged Mr Trump to ‘de-escalate’ the crisis and negotiate with what is left of Iran’s leadership. But the PM admitted that, despite the global crisis, he had not spoken to the US President for almost a week following their spectacular falling out.

He also faced a growing chorus of criticism from allies in the Middle East over the lack of preparations that has led to Cyprus looking for military support from France, Italy and Spain – rather than Britain – after an RAF base on the island was hit by an Iranian drone.

And, in further farcical scenes, the UK failed to get its first evacuation flight from Oman off the ground, despite other countries having no such issues ferrying their citizens to safety.

Shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel said Sir Keir was in denial, adding: ‘Never in the history of our great nation has a government been so feeble at a time when our people and allies are under assault’.

Sir Keir was stung into a public defence of his actions following days of criticism.

At a hastily arranged press conference, he accused President Trump of plunging the Middle East ‘into chaos’ with his attacks on Iran. He defended his decision to avoid taking any ‘offensive’ action against Tehran even after British bases were targeted.

Sir Keir suggested that the fallout from the conflict could go on for months, with potentially huge impacts on energy bills and the cost of living – and the possibility of a new refugee crisis.

He acknowledged that relatives of the tens of thousands of British citizens trapped in the war zone were ‘were ‘worried sick’ but said a mass evacuation ‘is not going to happen overnight’.

Kemi Badenoch said it was ‘shocking’ that party political considerations appeared to have played a part in determining the government’s response to the US.

Mrs Badenoch said the RAF should now join bombing raids aimed at taking out Iran’s ballistic missile launchers.

Nigel Farage said the government should have supported the US-Israeli attack on Iran ‘from day one’, adding: ‘If this war stops Iran from getting a nuclear bomb, it will have been worth it.’

The Reform UK leader said Sir Keir appeared to have been the victim of a ‘left-wing revolt’ by Mr Miliband which had left Britain ‘humiliated’ on the world stage.

President Trump stepped up his criticism of Sir Keir last night, telling the New York Post: ‘It was very disappointing – his performance, having to do with our tremendous attack on a hostile nation.

‘I was very surprised at Keir. Very disappointed.’

Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates are both said to have accused Sir Keir of doing too little to defend British interests and allies in the region. The Spectator magazine reported that senior figures in Jordan are ‘furious’ at the government. And Cyprus’s high commissioner publicly said he was ‘disappointed’ with the UK’s response.

Sir Keir announced that Britain is sending another four Typhoon jets to Qatar.

And defence secretary John Healey visited Cyprus in a bid to mend fences with a country that feels it has become a target for Iran because of the presence of the British base at RAF Akrotiri.

Downing Street rejected suggestions the government failed to have enough military assets in the Middle East after the base was hit. Sir Keir said air defence capabilities had been ‘pre-deployed’ before the US assault began.

Ministers faced more embarrassment after admitting the warship earmarked to defend Britain’s Cyprus base might not arrive for a fortnight.

Sir Keir  finally ordered the deployment of HMS Dragon on Tuesday, amid fury that the crucial site had been left vulnerable to Iranian reprisals.

Instead, Greek, Spanish, French and Italian vessels have been covering to intercept missiles and drones in what critics have decried as an ‘humiliation’ for the UK.   

HMS Dragon is still being prepared in dock at Portsmouth, and is not expected to leave until next week. 

And Defence Secretary John Healey, who is on Cyprus, suggested that the delay could be even longer. 

Donald Trump said a full-scale invasion of Iran would be ‘a waste of time’ on Thursday and called for the country to get a new leader who would ‘clean out everything.’

Trump spoke to NBC News as the Islamic Republic sought a new supreme leader after the death of Ayatollah Khamenei and their foreign minister said a ground invasion would be a ‘disaster’ for the US.

‘We want to go in and clean out everything. We don’t want someone who would rebuild over a 10-year period,’ Trump told NBC.  

‘We want them to have a good leader. We have some people who I think would do a good job,’ he said, though he did not offer any names. 

According to Al Jazeera, Iran’s interim council has discussed the gathering of the Assembly of Experts, which is tasked with selecting the new supreme leader. 

Trump said somewhat sarcastically that ‘at some point they’ll be calling me to ask who I’d like’ to replace Khamenei.

Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the deceased Ayatollah, has emerged as the favorite to succeed his father, though Israel has pledged to kill him, too.

Trump also responded to a warning from Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi that Iran was prepared for the US to launch ground attacks.

‘We are waiting for them because we are confident that we can confront them, and that would be a big disaster for them,’ Araghchi said.

Trump dismissed it, saying: ‘It’s a waste of time. They’ve lost everything. They’ve lost their navy. They’ve lost everything they can lose.’

He called Araghchi’s statement a ‘wasted comment’ and said that the US attacks on Iran are going to increase in the coming days. 

Earlier Thursday, Trump warned the regime’s besieged military force to surrender or face ‘guaranteed death’ as the US ramps up attacks on Tehran.

Iran unleashed its ‘most intense barrage’ yet on Thursday night with a series of bombardments on Israel and US allies in the Gulf as it threatened to drag even more countries into the conflict. 

The Islamic Republic had vowed the US would ‘bitterly regret’ torpedoing one of its warships as it sent hundreds of drones and missiles at its Arab neighbors.

Smoke was seen billowing in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh and above the world-famous Yas Marina in Abu Dhabi – where six people were injured.

But Iran’s threats were met with fury from Trump, who urged the Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to lay down their arms or face the same fate as Khamenei.

‘I’m once again calling on all members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, the military and the police to lay down their arms,’ Trump said from the White House.

‘Now is the time to stand up for the Iranian people and help take back your country.

‘You’re gonna have a chance after all these years to take back your country. Accept immunity, we’ll give you immunity.

‘You’ll be perfectly safe with total immunity or you’ll face absolutely guaranteed death, and I don’t want to see that.’

Trump also claimed Iran has reached out to ‘make a deal’ to end the US military operation.   

He said: ‘They’re calling, they’re saying, “How do we make a deal?”

‘I said, “You’re being a little bit late,” and we want to fight now more than they do.’   

He also claimed the Iranian navy ‘is gone’ and the US wiped out ’24 ships in three days’, adding: ‘They have no air force, they have no air defense.

‘The United States military, together with the wonderful Israeli partners, continues to totally demolish the enemy, far ahead of schedule and at levels that people have never seen before.’

Trump’s comments came as the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) claimed it was ‘moving to the next phase of the operation’ against Iran, insisting it will ‘further dismantle the regime and its military capabilities’.

IDF Chief of staff Lt Gen Eyal Zamir said Israel and the US had been ‘strategically isolating’ Iran and bringing it to a point of weakness ‘unlike any it has known’.

He said Israel has pounded Iran ‘without pause’ and the ‘operation is proceeding at the pace we planned it to advance at’.

Meanwhile, Pete Hegseth hit out at UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer for not allowing the US to launch attacks from British bases from day one. 

‘The amount of firepower over Iran and over Tehran is about to surge dramatically,’ he warned. 

Hegseth said it was ‘unfortunate’ access wasn’t granted ‘from day one’.

He added: ‘But we got there. We got there, and that’s now part of the way that we’re operationalizing bomber runs… It’s more fighter squadrons, it’s more capabilities, it’s more defensive capabilities, and it’s more bomber pulses more frequently.’   

Hegseth also said Trump would be ‘having a heck of a say in who runs Iran given the ongoing operation’.

Trump has said he would personally select a new leader and Khamenei’s son Mojtaba was ‘unlikely’.   

Mojtaba, 56, Ali Khamenei’s second oldest son, has strong links to the IRGC, and was chosen by Iran’s Assembly of Experts ‘under pressure from the Revolutionary Guards’, according to Iranian opposition outlet Iran International.

Mojtaba is not a high-ranking cleric, has never held office and does not have an official role in the regime.

But he served in the Iranian armed forces during the Iran-Iraq war and is believed to wield considerable influence behind the scenes. He has been touted as a possible successor to his father for years.

However, he was not included in a list of three senior clerics Ali Khamenei reportedly identified last year.

Iran continued to bombard Saudi Arabia with missiles on Thursday.

Plumes of smoke could be seen billowing across the capital Riyadh after a barrage of cruise missiles thumped into the city on the sixth day of the conflict.

And following a mass drone attack on the United Arab Emirates, smoke could be seen rising from the world-famous Yas Marina, home to Abu Dhabi’s F1 grand prix circuit and hugely popular with tourists.

A number of alerts rang out across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Fujairah, warning residents and visitors to stay safe after the UAE confirmed it was struck with a ballistic missile and six out of a barrage of 131 suicide drones.

Six people were injured in Abu Dhabi as a result of falling debris when drones were intercepted by air defense systems.

Explosions were also heard in Qatar and Kuwait while an Iranian missile struck Bahrain’s largest petroleum refinery, capable of producing 267,000 barrels of oil per day, sending a huge fireball into the sky.

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan became the latest country dragged into the escalating conflict as Iranian-made drones struck the country near the border with Iran and injured four civilians.

One hit the terminal building of an airport in Nakhchivan, sparking a fire, and the other came down beside a nearby school.

Azerbaijan president Ilham Aliyev accused Iran of ‘terrorism’ and threatened retaliation as he demanded an apology and explanation. 

However, Tehran denied the allegation and blamed Israel, Azerbaijan’s ally, of trying to stage a provocation.

The Iranians claimed a US oil tanker was on fire after being hit in the Strait of Hormuz, though images of the unconfirmed attack are yet to emerge.

Iranian military is targeting American sites and energy infrastructure in the region in retaliation for the US-Israeli air offensive which killed its Supreme Leader and several senior officials.

The American embassy in Riyadh issued a security threat after Saudi Arabia’s defense ministry said three Iranian cruise missiles were intercepted and destroyed outside nearby Al-Kharj.

But Iran denied attacking the US embassy in Saudi Arabia after it was struck with drones on Tuesday night.

‘We confirmed that Iran has no role in the attack on the US embassy in Riyadh,’ Iran’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia Alireza Enayati said.

Israel announced multiple incoming missile attacks and air sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem on Thursday.

It also continued to trade blows with Hezbollah, targeting the Iranian-backed terror group’s stronghold of Dahieh in the southern suburbs of Beirut.

The Israeli military also said it launched a ‘large-scale wave of strikes against infrastructure’ in Iran’s capital, without elaborating. 

The Israeli Air Force said it has dropped more than 5,000 munitions on Iran since the conflict started on Saturday. Pictures coming out of Tehran show the destruction levelled on the country with extensive damage to key buildings in the capital and the sports stadium severely damaged.

In one of the few clerical statements so far from Iran, Ayatollah Abdollah Javadi Amoli used state television to call for ‘the shedding of Zionist blood, the shedding of Trump’s blood’.

The latest exchanges came after a US submarine sank an Iranian warship, the Iris Dena, off the coast of Sri Lanka on Tuesday night, killing at least 87 Iranian sailors with a further 70 missing and presumed drowned.

Hegseth said the ship had been hit by a torpedo and had died a ‘quiet death’. It is the first time a US submarine has sunk an enemy warship by torpedo since the Second World War.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi decried it as ‘an atrocity at sea, 2,000 miles away from Iran’s shores’, and warned the US would ‘bitterly regret’ it.