The geography of the strikes is expanding, the fighting has begun in Lebanon, and the shelling has even touched Cyprus.
The military conflict in the Middle East is expanding — Hezbollah launched a missile attack on Israel, and the IDF launched an operation in southern Lebanon in response. Iran has attacked American and British military bases, including in Cyprus, large oil and gas facilities in Saudi Arabia and Qatar. At least three oil tankers were damaged in the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman. There were also reports of strikes on the headquarters of the Commander of the Israeli Air Force. Nevertheless, experts are confident that the conflict will not last long — the United States and its allies simply do not have enough precision-guided munitions for both attacks and air defense systems that protect their numerous facilities in the region.
What targets did Iran attack?
More and more new countries and cities in the Middle East and even in the Mediterranean are experiencing the consequences of the military conflict between the United States and Israel against Iran. According to a statement from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), as a result of "targeted and sudden attacks by Kheibar missiles" on March 2, the location of the commander of the IDF air force was also hit.
The Khorramshahr fourth-generation ballistic missile called Khaybar
Image source: Photo: Global Look Press/Iranian Defense Ministry
According to media reports, the headquarters of the Central Intelligence Agency of the CIA, located in Dubai, was the target of another strike.
—Iranian missiles periodically hit hotels and other civilian facilities, and for a reason: it is there that the headquarters of the special services are based, engaged in intelligence, planning and conducting combat operations," military expert Vasily Dandykin explained to Izvestia.
According to him, Tehran has an effective agency and is able to open such places.
The fighting has also affected the region's energy sector. At least three tankers were damaged in the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman. According to the Iranian side, the IRGC carried out the attacks. Fire was reported on the ships.
Iranian drones also attacked the Saudi Aramco oil refinery in Ras Tannur (Saudi Arabia). As a result, a fire broke out, and some of the production facilities were shut down. At the same time, the Qatari state corporation QatarEnergy suspended the production of liquefied natural gas due to a UAV attack on an enterprise in Ras Laffan.
What role does Hezbollah play?
Iran was supported by the Lebanese Hezbollah movement, whose formations attacked Israeli territory on the night of March 2, using rockets and drones.
In response, the IDF Air Force attacked targets in Beirut and southern Lebanon. According to the Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, Eyal Zamir, the operation is aimed at suppressing the infrastructure of Hezbollah, which has close ties with Iran.
— We have launched an offensive operation against Hezbollah. We are not only on the defensive, but also on the offensive. We need to prepare for long days of fighting," he stressed.
To strengthen the army, the Israeli authorities decided to attract about 100,000 reservists.
On Monday night, the IDF attacked several areas of Lebanon. The first wave targeted high-ranking Hezbollah members, headquarters and the movement's infrastructure, said Major General Rafi Milo, commander of the northern district of the Israeli army.
The IDF also reported a targeted strike on a senior member of the movement in Beirut, killing the head of Hezbollah's political wing and a member of the Lebanese parliament, Mohammed Raad.
According to Lebanese authorities, dozens of civilians were killed and hundreds injured as a result of the strikes.
A test of strength
After the 2024 campaign against Hezbollah, during which the movement's military potential was significantly weakened, the IDF did not stop attacks on its infrastructure, military expert Yuri Lyamin told Izvestia.
— Despite the losses, Hezbollah categorically refused to lay down its arms. Until the last moment, she avoided direct escalation in order not to aggravate relations with the Lebanese government and other political forces," he said.
The Lebanese government has decided to ban any military activities of Hezbollah, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said.
"A decision has been taken to ban all military and security activities of Hezbollah as going beyond the law, with an obligation to transfer weapons and limit its activities exclusively to the political sphere," the government's press service quoted Salam as saying.
Despite this, serious hostilities may unfold in Lebanon, experts say.
"Hezbollah has several thousand professional military personnel with combat experience, and several tens of thousands of militia fighters," Yuri Lyamin explained. — The organization's underground arsenals contain long-range drones and even tactical missiles that can shoot through large areas of Israel. They are the main threat to the Jewish state.
How long will the conflict in Iran last
Operations on the northern front will be of secondary importance — Tehran will remain the main opponent for Tel Aviv, military experts say. However, the United States and Israel may have resource constraints.
It is probably hardly possible to say that Trump and Netanyahu have achieved anything, Kirill Semenov, an expert at the Russian International Affairs Council, told Izvestia.
— Of course, a blow to the leadership of Iran is a very serious challenge for the Islamic Republic. But in Iran, unlike Venezuela, Libya, Syria, etc., there is a deep state, and the loss of leaders does not lead to anything, they will be replaced by other leaders," he explained.
Iran holds the blow with dignity, military expert Vasily Dandykin believes. It is still difficult to say how much Iran's military potential has been weakened, Kirill Semenov added: retaliatory attacks from Iran are continuing, and it is not necessary to say that it has reduced activity yet.
Donald Trump's statement about the readiness of the United States to conduct military operations within a month looks optimistic, but in practice it all comes down to "shell starvation," according to military expert Dmitry Kornev.
— If Iran continues to fire at the same frequency, the air defense systems of Israel and the United States may be "empty" in a week. Interceptors are expensive and piece—by-piece goods. Even if Washington uses all the transport planes for the air bridge, it will be extremely difficult to deliver new missiles faster than the enemy consumes them," he said.
According to The Washington Post, citing informed sources, the current situation at the Pentagon can be described as "tense and paranoid," as the prolonged conflict will deal a critical blow to the reserves of air defense systems in the United States — and without them it will be impossible to repel Iranian attacks.
According to Dmitry Kornev, the United States will have a chance for a "long distance" (the same four weeks) only in one case: if they manage to gain complete air supremacy in the next two or three days. Then the American aircraft will destroy Iran's launch pads and reduce the intensity of their attacks.
Other military experts also believe that it will become clear within a few days how real American and Israeli ambitions are in this confrontation.
Bogdan Stepovoy
Roman Kretsul
Julia Leonova
