Tehran/ Tel Aviv/ Washington/ Colombo/ Doha, 05 March (H.S.): The Middle East has erupted into a full-scale battlefield following joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran, with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's death and his family's confirmed, forcing the indefinite postponement of his funeral rites amid chaotic security threats.
In a dramatic escalation, a US submarine torpedoed an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean off Sri Lanka's coast, sinking the vessel en route from India's International Fleet Review and killing 87 sailors aboard; Sri Lanka's navy rescued 32 injured crew members from the approximate 180 on board.
Iran's retaliatory ballistic missiles triggered overnight air raid sirens across central Israel, prompting IDF evacuation orders and strikes on Hezbollah strongholds in Beirut; Tehran has vowed to target Israel's Dimona nuclear site if attacks persist.
Evacuations Surge as Casualties Mount
Over 17,500 US citizens have evacuated the region since February 28, with a US-chartered flight departing the Middle East—the first since hostilities began—and more planned; citizens in UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Israel are urged to complete crisis intake forms or call +1-202-501-4444.
Israel struck Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut alongside Tehran targets, while Iran claimed a drone attack on a Bahrain Amazon data center; US Republicans blocked a resolution requiring congressional approval for further strikes on Tehran.
A US human rights agency reports over 1,000 Iranian deaths from the assaults, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth vowing deeper incursions targeting Iranian assets from Turkey to Sri Lanka.
Kurdish fighters in northern Iraq, backed by US officials, prepare cross-border operations into Iran; Iran's internet blackout has lasted nearly 100 hours, the second this year.
Iraq's Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani appealed for de-escalation, Britain summoned Iran's ambassador over Tehran's role in tensions, and the US Joint Chiefs chair warned of intensified strikes ahead.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
