Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
The US military helped Israel to intercept a barrage of Iranian ballistic missiles on Tuesday, while Washington reaffirmed support for its ally as fears grew of a wider regional war.
The Pentagon said Iran had fired about 200 ballistic missiles at Israel, about double the number it launched during a similar attack on April 13.
President Joe Biden “directed the US military to aid Israel’s defence against Iranian attacks and shoot down missiles that are targeting Israel", the White House said.
"Make no mistake, the United States is fully, fully, fully supportive of Israel," Mr Biden told reporters. He said that a response to Iran "remains to be seen".
Pentagon Press Secretary Maj Gen Pat Ryder said Israel had been able to intercept most of the missiles and that there was "minimal damage".
Two US destroyers launched about a dozen interceptors to help Israel, Maj Gen Ryder said. He did not say if other countries had been involved in defending against the Iranian attack.
Israel has previously said it would not tolerate an attack by Iran.
Israel has begun its ground invasion of Lebanon after weeks of escalation that has included a wave of pager and walkie-talkie attacks, and the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. In August, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Iran, with the killing widely blamed on Israel.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters that Tuesday's attack was “a significant escalation by Iran”.
Mr Sullivan said the US would look at what “the appropriate next steps are” to secure American interests and promote stability in the Middle East.
“We have made clear that there will be consequences, serious consequences, for this attack and we will work with Israel to make that the case,” he said.
Vice President Kamala Harris said Iran is a "destabilising, dangerous force in the Middle East, and today's attack on Israel only further demonstrates that fact".
"We will continue to work with our allies and partners to disrupt Iran's aggressive behaviour and hold them accountable," Ms Harris said.
A US defence official said: “In accordance with our ironclad commitment to Israel’s security", US forces were defending against missiles launched by Iran at Israel.
“Our forces remain postured to provide additional defensive support and to protect US forces operating in the region.”
The State Department said “there must be consequences” for the attack.
“There are things on which we will be co-ordinating with our Israeli counterparts,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters. Mr Miller said that Israel has a right to defend itself.
“And I think in the immediate aftermath of this attack, we were going to co-ordinate with them on what any response might be,” he said.
Mr Miller said there is a difference in the recent action both countries have taken in the region.
“What you saw was Iran launching a state-on-state attack to protect and defend the terrorist groups that it has built, nurtured and that it controls. So there is a difference between the actions that we have seen Israel take and what we’ve seen Iran take.”
On Capitol Hill, hawkish pro-Israel members of Congress called on the Biden administration to take further action against Iran.
“This missile attack against Israel should be the breaking point and I would urge the Biden administration to co-ordinate an overwhelming response with Israel, starting with Iran’s ability to refine oil,” Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said in a post on X. He said he had spoken to former president Donald Trump, who was “determined and resolved to protect Israel from the threats of terrorism emanating from Iran”.
Senator Roger Wicker, a Republican who sits on the Senate armed services committee, said in a statement that: “Iran and its terrorist proxies – Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis – will never stop their campaign to eliminate Israel from the map. The Ayatollah [Ali Khamenei's] regime must be eliminated.”
The Iranian UN mission in New York defended Tehran's ballistic missile attack on Israel as “legal, rational and legitimate”, and warned against any response.
The mission said in a post on X that the attack was a response “to the terrorist acts of the Zionist regime, which involved targeting Iranian nationals and interests and infringing upon the national sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran”.
“No notice was given to the United States prior to our response; however, a serious warning was issued afterwards,” the mission told The National.
Iran previously launched a drone and missile barrage against Israel in April, after Israel's bombing of Tehran's embassy in Damascus, which killed seven members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, including two generals.
Patrick deHahn contributed to this report from New York
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
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Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
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RESULTS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
Winner: JAP Almahfuz, Fernando Jara (jockey), Irfan Ellahi (trainer).
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh90,000 1,400m
Winner: AF Momtaz, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi.
6pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 1,400m
Winner: Yaalail, Fernando Jara, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Championship Listed (PA) Dh180,000 1,600m
Winner: Ihtesham, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami.
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m
Winner: Dahess D’Arabie, Fernando Jara, Helal Al Alawi.
7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 2.200m
Winner: Ezz Al Rawasi, Connor Beasley, Helal Al Alawi.
McLaren GT specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh875,000
On sale: now
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
UAE SQUAD
Khalid Essa (Al Ain), Ali Khaseif (Al Jazira), Adel Al Hosani (Sharjah), Mahmoud Khamis (Al Nasr), Yousef Jaber (Shabab Al Ahli Dubai), Khalifa Al Hammadi (Jazira), Salem Rashid (Jazira), Shaheen Abdelrahman (Sharjah), Faris Juma (Al Wahda), Mohammed Shaker (Al Ain), Mohammed Barghash (Wahda), Abdulaziz Haikal (Shabab Al Ahli), Ahmed Barman (Al Ain), Khamis Esmail (Wahda), Khaled Bawazir (Sharjah), Majed Surour (Sharjah), Abdullah Ramadan (Jazira), Mohammed Al Attas (Jazira), Fabio De Lima (Al Wasl), Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Khalfan Mubarak (Jazira), Habib Fardan (Nasr), Khalil Ibrahim (Wahda), Ali Mabkhout (Jazira), Ali Saleh (Wasl), Caio (Al Ain), Sebastian Tagliabue (Nasr).
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
The biog
Favourite food: Fish and seafood
Favourite hobby: Socialising with friends
Favourite quote: You only get out what you put in!
Favourite country to visit: Italy
Favourite film: Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.
Family: We all have one!
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Astra%20Tech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMarch%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAbdallah%20Abu%20Sheikh%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20technology%20investment%20and%20development%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%20size%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24500m%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
When Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi
Known as The Lady of Arabic Song, Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi on November 28, 1971, as part of celebrations for the fifth anniversary of the accession of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan as Ruler of Abu Dhabi. A concert hall was constructed for the event on land that is now Al Nahyan Stadium, behind Al Wahda Mall. The audience were treated to many of Kulthum's most well-known songs as part of the sold-out show, including Aghadan Alqak and Enta Omri.
War
Director: Siddharth Anand
Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff, Ashutosh Rana, Vaani Kapoor
Rating: Two out of five stars
History's medical milestones
1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
