Iran Israel attack – latest: Tehran to be hit with new sanctions as Israeli war cabinet vows response to strikes

The US options for further sanctions include targeting the flow of Iranian oil and playing a more aggressive game of “Whac-A-Mole” to go after Iran‘s front companies and financiers, said Peter Harrell, a former National Security Council official.

One of the most significant moves would be for Washington to get the European Union and other western allies to impose multilateral sanctions on Tehran, he said, as most of the sanctions in place against Iran currently are US measures.

Former president Donald Trump reinstated US sanctions that were eased under an international deal on Tehran’s nuclear program when he withdrew in 2018. “We have to be realistic that from a US perspective, while there are always more sanctions you can impose, we are in a world of diminishing actual economic pressure because we have so many sanctions already in place,” Mr Harrell said.

Washington’s sanctions on Iran already ban nearly all US trade with the country, block the government’s assets in the US and prohibit US foreign assistance and arms sales, according to the Congressional Research Service (CRS).

Thousands of people and companies, both Iranian and foreign, have been targeted under the sanctions program as Washington has sought to constrain Iran’s government and change its behavior, the CRS said in a report last year.

The US concerns have included Iran’s nuclear program, human rights abuses and its support for groups the US sees as terrorists.

“US sanctions on Iran are arguably the most extensive and comprehensive set of sanctions that the United States maintains on any country,” the CRS said.

Israel’s successful air defense on Saturday night – conducted in tandem with the US, Britain, France and Jordan – bought the country a brief moment of international support and sympathy after months of mounting international isolation over the Gaza war. The six-month offensive has killed nearly 34,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, and unleashed a humanitarian catastrophe.

This coalition worked under the leadership of the US Central Command, which oversees American forces in the region. It works closely with Israel and moderate Arab countries to form a unified front against Iran.

Jordan, a country whose population is predominantly pro-Palestinian, joined the effort, despite being at odds with Israel over the war in Gaza, calling its participation self-defense.

It also appears likely that help may have come from regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia, which does not have official relations with Israel. A map released by Israel shows many of the Iranian missiles flying through Saudi airspace.

Israel has been careful not to identify its Arab partners, but an Israeli air force official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the mission, said Israeli warplanes needed to fly “east of Israel” to shoot down missiles.

Yoel Guzansky, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies, a Tel Aviv think tank, said Israel would be risking this goodwill if it acts alone.“Israel can take advantage of this and buy itself a lot of credit right now, if it does not launch a massive retaliatory attack,” he said. “But if it does attack, a lot of credit is lost.

”The tacit support of Arab states does not mean they would assist Israel in a counterattack on Iran. Any air or missile response other than ballistic missiles — which would arc over neighboring countries’ airspace rather than through it — would require overflights of surrounding countries, which technically would require Israel obtain permission from those Arab neighbors, said Daniel Byman, a senior fellow with the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“With Saudi Arabia and Jordan, there’s kind of a route and access questions,” in terms of whether they would grant Israel overflight clearance.“From Iran’s point of view, that would be seen as a hostile act,” Mr Byman said. “And even though these countries don’t like Iran, they’re not terribly eager to be seen on the side of Israel doing that.”

US Democrats yesterday said they would wait to decide how to respond to a proposal from the Republican-led House of Representatives to consider national security assistance for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan separately, rather than as one bill.

More than two months after the Senate approved a $95bn package of security assistance for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan and other US partners in the Indo-Pacific, House speaker Mike Johnson said on Monday that the House would consider the aid this week, but would do so as separate pieces of legislation.

The proposal fueled uncertainty about the long-awaited aid package, particularly for Ukraine, given fierce opposition toward from some far-right Republicans, who have threatened to oust Mr Johnson if he allows a House vote on assistance for Kyiv.

The text of the bills was not released – it was expected as soon as late yesterday – but there would be separate measures providing assistance to Ukraine as it fights a Russian invasion, Israel after the 7 October attack by Hamas and a weekend air assault by Iran, and partners in the Indo-Pacific as they face an increasingly aggressive China.

It also was not clear which country’s assistance the House would consider first. Republicans have tried repeatedly to push through aid for Israel without anything for Ukraine, an approach Democrats have rejected.

The White House has also opposed standalone aid for Israel.

A Hezbollah commander and two others were killed while travelling in a car in an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon, according to security sources.

Ismail Baz, who was involved in planning rocket and anti-tank missile attacks on Israel, was killed near the southern town of Ain Ebel, the Israeli military said.

Hezbollah issued a statement mourning Baz’s death but did not elaborate on his role in the organisation.

The US is planning to impose new sanctions targeting Iran’s missile and drone program in the coming days and expects its allies will be following suit, national security advisor Jake Sullivan said in a statement yesterday.

The US Central Command (Centcom) today said its forces successfully engaged two unmanned aerial (UAV) vehicles in areas controlled by Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen on 16 April.

“There were no injuries or damage reported by US coalition, or commercial ships,” Centcom said in a statement.

More than 10,000 women have been killed in Gaza since the start of the war, according to a new report by UN Women.

The UN agency says that, as the war reached its six-month mark, “it continues to be a war on women”.

Of the 10,000 women killed, the aid agency says, 6,000 women have left an estimated 19,000 orphan children behind.