US-Iran war as it happened: Israel advances into Lebanon; Baghdad’s green zone hit; UAE temporarily closes its airspace

The speaker of Iran’s parliament has told Iranian state television that the Strait of Hormuz cannot be “as it was before” as Iranian fire keeps nearly all traffic out of the strategic waterway.

Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf made the comment in an interview aired on Tuesday as Iranian fire continued to target shipping in the region.

“They are flying, launching missiles. Should we just sit back and do nothing in response, or not?” Qalibaf said. “Naturally, it is our undeniable right. We must do this.

“Certainly, from now on, with the interventions that have taken place, the strait can no longer be, from a legal standpoint and in terms of transit, as it was before. It no longer has the necessary security.”

Typically, 20 per cent of all oil and natural gas traded passes through the strait.

AP

An official statement from the Australian and New Zealand defence and foreign ministers on the war in Iran does not go quite as far as NZ Foreign Minister Winston Peters went in a press conference in Canberra this afternoon.

“We want this crisis to end as quickly as possible and move to a negotiated solution,” the outspoken Peters had said earlier.

The Australia-New Zealand joint statement reads: “Ministers urged the protection of civilian life, resumption of dialogue and diplomacy and adherence to international law.”

The call for dialogue and a return to diplomacy reflects a growing sense of unease within the Albanese government about how long the US-Israeli war against Iran will last, after it initially strongly backed the operation against Iran. However, Australia has not yet explicitly called for a ceasefire in the conflict.

Ten foreign people have been accused of collecting information on sensitive sites and preparing field operations in Iran’s north-east.

The 10 were arrested by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ intelligence organisation, Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported on Tuesday.

The news report did not provide details on the people’s nationalities.

Reuters

Defence Minister Richard Marles and Foreign Minister Penny Wong earlier spoke to the media in Canberra alongside their New Zealand counterparts.

Watch the press conference below.

There have been reports of explosions heard in Doha on Tuesday morning, along with missile alerts issued in Dubai.

An Associated Press journalist in Qatar heard explosions as air defences near Doha worked to intercept incoming Iranian fire.

Qatar’s Defence Ministry said it intercepted a missile attack on the country a short time later.

In the United Arab Emirates, Dubai residents received a missile alert around the same time.

AP

An “unknown projectile” has struck a tanker 23 nautical miles (42 kilometres) east of Fujairah, Oman.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations confirmed on Tuesday the tanker was hit
“whilst at anchor”.

There have been no reported injuries, with minor structural damage reported, according to the UKMTO.

“Authorities are investigating,” it confirmed. “Vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO.”