Iran claims small drones used in attacks

Thank you for reading. Here are the headlines:

• Israel has confirmed it launched a drone attack on Iran on Friday as retaliation for an attack on Iran.
• The stabbing of Sydney bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was clearly a terrorism event, says Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
• Planned surgery wait times in Australia’s public hospitals are the longest on record, according to a new report from the Australian Medical Association.
• A second straight budget surplus is becoming more difficult, but the government is still aiming to announce it later this month, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said in Washington.

Israel was downgraded by S&P Global Ratings, which joined Moody’s Investors Service in lowering the nation’s sovereign credit score as geopolitical risks in the Middle East escalated.

S&P cut the rating by one notch to A+, the fifth-highest level and on par with Bermuda and China. The outlook remains negative, and the rating will be reviewed again on May 10, S&P said in a statement.

The decision came hours before what two US officials said was a retaliatory strike by Israel on Iran. It followed less than a week after Tehran unleashed a rocket and drone barrage against Israel, raising fears of a widening conflict across the region.

“The recent increase in confrontation with Iran heightens already elevated geopolitical risks for Israel,” S&P said. A wider regional conflict will likely be avoided, but the Israel-Hamas war appears set to continue throughout 2024, versus a previous assumption that military activity wouldn’t last more than six months, it said.

Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke to his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, on Thursday afternoon (Friday AEST) about regional threats and Iran’s destablising actions in the Middle East, the Pentagon press secretary said.

The two leaders also spoke about the importance of increasing and sustaining the flow of humanitarian aid to Gazan civilians.

A senior US official declined to say whether Mr Gallant gave Mr Austin any advance warning of an impending strike.

However, Reuters reported that the US did receive notification before Israel’s attack, a source familiar with the situation told agency.

Australian government officials and their dependants posted in Iran have been directed not to travel outside the greater Tehran region, due to the deteriorating security situation, the Australian government’s Smart Traveller website is reporting.

Dependants of Australian officials in Iran have been offered voluntary departure to return to Australia, the site says.

“Australians, including dual nationals, should strongly consider leaving Iran as soon as possible,” the site warned.

“Foreigners, including Australians, are at a high risk of arbitrary detention or arrest.”

The Smart Traveller site is operated by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Travellers to Israel and Gaza have also been warned not to travel to the region.

“There’s a high threat of military reprisals and terrorist attacks against Israel and Israeli interests across the region.”

The site said there have been reports of explosions across some locations in Iran and the Middle East.

“Regional tensions are high, and the security situation could deteriorate quickly with little or no notice.”

“This may also result in airspace closures, flight cancellations and diversions, and other travel disruptions.

The site said Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran has closed, and flights to other locations in Iran have been suspended.

Travellers were advised the security situation could deteriorate quickly, with little or no notice.

“We continue to advise reconsider your need to travel to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and whether you need to remain in country.”

“We urge Australians in both Israel or the Occupied Palestinian Territories to depart if it’s safe to do so.

“Military attacks may result in airspace closures, flight cancellations and diversions and other travel disruptions.

“Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport may pause operations due to heightened security concerns at any time, and at short notice.

The reported Israeli attack appears to be limited and targeted, says Australian Strategic Policy Institute analyst Malcolm Davis.

“I think all indications are that this was an Israeli attack, but it was clearly directed against military facilities in Isfahan rather than against nuclear facilities,” Dr Davis tells ABC News 24.

“It’s a fairly limited strike from what I can see, just a small number of missiles.”

“I don’t think it was on in Israel’s interest to have a massive attack that caused a lot of casualties.

“But I do think that the Israel did have to respond after all, it was Iran that said 350 missiles, cruise missiles and drones against Israel.”

“They could not answer that sort of attack with a weak response.

Dr Davis said the risk of escalation depended on Iran’s reaction.

“The ball is now in Tehran’s court in terms of how they retaliate against this, the Iranian government have said that they are going to retaliate against any Israeli attacks,” Dr Davis said.

The Israeli military struck Iran early on Friday, according to two Israeli defence officials, in what appeared to be Israel’s first military response to Iran’s attack on Israel five days earlier, the New York Times is reporting

“Three Iranian officials confirmed that a strike had hit a military air base near the city of Isfahan, in central Iran, early on Friday, but did not say which country had mounted the attack,” the report said.

The report came after the Fars News, an Iranian news agency affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, said that explosions were heard near Isfahan’s civilian airport, adding that the cause of the blasts was not immediately clear.

The confirmation came after US television networks earlier reported the Israeli missile attacks, which were initially denied by Iranian authorities.

The global oil benchmark has surged, reversing an early drop, after reports of explosions in Iran, Syria and Iraq.

Israel told the US on Thursday it planned a response against Tehran in 24 to 48 hours, according to two US officials.

Traders have been girding all week for an Israeli response to the Islamic Republic’s unprecedented missile and drone attack last weekend, with the rhetoric between the two escalating as Iran warned against striking its nuclear facilities. Gold also spiked in Friday’s trading, nearing a record.

“Unconfirmed reports of strikes in the Middle East may suggest that worst fears have come true,” said Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy for ING Groep NV in Singapore.

“Depending on the nature of strikes, we are moving closer toward a scenario where supply risks become a reality, and so the market will likely have to start pricing in an even larger risk premium.”

Bloomberg

Dubai-based carriers Emirates and FlyDubai have begun diverting flights around western Iran, following US media reports of Israeli attacks.

The carriers offered no explanation, though local warnings to aviators suggested the airspace may have been closed.

Iran later announced it grounded commercial flights in Tehran and across areas of its western and central regions.

Loudspeakers informed customers of the incident at Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran, online videos purported to show.

Iranian state television began a scrolling, on-screen alert acknowledging a “loud noise” near Isfahan, without immediately elaborating.

Hossein Dalirian, a spokesman for Iran’s civilian space program, said on the X social media platform that several small “quadcopter” drones had been shot down.

AP

Iran has fired air defence batteries early Friday morning following US media reports of explosions near the city of Isfahan, the state-run IRNA news agency reported.

IRNA said the defences fired across several provinces. It did not elaborate on what caused the batteries to fire, though people across the area reported hearing the sounds.

The semi-official Fars and Tasnim news agencies reported the sound of blasts, without giving a cause. State television acknowledged “loud noise” in the area.

Isfahan is home to a major airbase for the Iranian military, as well as sites associated with its nuclear program.

AP