![\"Iran](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-128912131,imgsize-811528,width-400,resizemode-4\/128912131.jpg\" "\\"Iran")
<\/div>\nIran on Sunday expanded its response to US-Israeli strikes by targeting Gulf Arab states, including Oman and the United Arab Emirates, in what analysts say is an attempt to pressure Washington but one that risks driving the region closer to the United States.According to CNN, Iran launched missiles and drones at Israel and at civilian locations such as hotels and airports in several Middle Eastern countries that host US military bases. Oman said that its Duqm commercial port was targeted, despite Muscat having mediated talks between the US and Iran just last week. <\/p>\n Iran SMASHES American Patriot Defences; U.S. Bases Suffer Shock Attacks, Gulf Allies Under Fire<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The strikes suggest that, for Iran, \u201ceverything is on the table,\u201d Hasan Alhasan, senior fellow for Middle East policy at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, told CNN.\u201cThere\u2019s a very clear message\u2026 that no one is safe, that mediation doesn\u2019t offer protection, and that exchanges of mutual assurances or pledges not to allow airspaces or territories to be used militarily against Iran are ineffective either,\u201d Alhasan said.He added that Iran\u2019s approach appears aimed at increasing pressure on Gulf governments so they, in turn, push the US administration to bring the conflict to an early end.Iran\u2019s calculus, he said, is to \u201cratchet up the pain on the Gulf states, in order to compel them to apply pressure on the Trump administration to bring a quick end to the war.\u201dHowever, Alhasan cautioned that the strategy could prove counterproductive. It remains unclear how much leverage Gulf states hold over Washington.\u201cIt\u2019s quite clear that the US has a mind of its own, and it\u2019s acting in close concert with the Israelis. And I think what Iran\u2019s strategy may end up doing, in fact, is pushing the Gulf states into closer alignment with the US, rather than the other way around,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n He further noted that while Gulf countries favour de-escalation, large-scale civilian casualties could force them \u201cto start considering options up the escalation ladder.\u201d Meanwhile, Anwar Gargash, an adviser to the UAE president and former state minister for foreign affairs, said Iran had \u201cmissed its target\u201d with attacks on Arab Gulf states. \u201cYour war is not with your neighbors, and through this escalation,\u201d Gargash wrote Sunday on X.\u201cReturn to your senses, to your surroundings, and deal with your neighbors with reason and responsibility before the circle of isolation and escalation widens, ” he said.The UAE, which in recent years had sought to ease tensions with Iran, was among the countries hit, with Dubai, the country\u2019s commercial hub, particularly affected by missiles and drones, AP reported.The developments mark a widening of the conflict beyond US, Israel and Iran, placing Gulf states, many of which host US military facilities, in a more direct line of fire, even as they publicly call for restraint. <\/p>\n It comes as on early Saturday, US-Israel conducted joint raids in Iran, what was called Operation Epic Fury, which killed Iran\u2019s supreme leader Ali Khamenei and Iran\u2019s top military and security commanders.<\/div>\n\n![\"Iran](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-23456,msid-128912262\/iran-conflict-timeline.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
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