Iran threatens to target world tourism sites, says it's still building missiles

DUBAI: Iran threatened to target recreational and tourist sites worldwide and insisted it was still building missiles.

Friday's show of defiance came nearly three weeks into US-Israeli strikes that have killed a slew of Tehran's top leaders and hammered its weapons and energy industries.




Iran's top military spokesman warned on Friday that "parks, recreational areas and tourist destinations" worldwide won't be safe for Tehran's enemies. The threat from Gen Abolfazl Shekarchi renewed concerns that Iran may revert to using militant attacks beyond West Asia as a pressure tactic.

Iran also continued to fire on Israel and energy sites in neighbouring Gulf Arab states as many in the region marked Eid al-Fitr. Iranians were also celebrating the Persian New Year, known as Nowruz.

IRGC spokesperson killed

The spokesman for Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard insisted Friday that Tehran was still building missiles, seeking to counter a claim by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu that it no longer could. Gen Ali Mohammad Naeini also said the Iran war would go on. "We are producing missiles even during war conditions, which is amazing, and there is no particular problem in stockpiling," Gen Naeini was quoted as saying in Iran's state-run IRAN newspaper. A short time after the statement was released, Iranian state television said Naeini was killed in an airstrike.

Drone attack causes fire at Kuwait oil refinery

Drone attacks hit Kuwait's Mina Al-Ahmadi oil refinery on Friday, causing several fires but no casualties, state media said, citing the national oil company. "The Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery... was subjected early today to several hostile drone attacks, causing fires in some of its units," the official Kuwait News Agency said, adding that "several refinery units were shut down". The Kuwaiti army later said that the fire was brought under control without any casualties. The Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery, which can process some 730,000 barrels of oil per day, is one of the largest in West Asia. It was damaged Thursday in another Iranian attack. Heavy explosions also shook Dubai as air defences intercepted incoming fire over the city. agencies