Iran US war Highlights: US F-15 fighter jet shot down in Iran; rescue ops launched

Amid the war in the Gaza Strip and two conflicts with Iran within a year, Israel has turned to artificial intelligence to improve the accuracy of its missile early warning systems, according to AFP.

During last year’s 12-day conflict with Iran, incoming missiles would trigger citywide air raid sirens, forcing residents to seek shelter, often multiple times a day.

However, these warning systems have since become more advanced, delivering alerts that are increasingly precise and targeted to specific areas.

A drone strike in southern Iran targeted a warehouse storing aid supplies and emergency vehicles, a spokesperson for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said on Friday.

According to the spokesperson, the early Friday attack in Bushehr province destroyed two containers, two buses, and several emergency vehicles. She did not assign responsibility for the strike, and Reuters said it was unable to immediately verify who was behind the attack.

The family of a 25-year-old seafarer who was killed in a suspected drone boat attack off the Oman coast during last month’s West Asia conflict has approached the Bombay High Court, seeking directions to the Union government to bring back his mortal remains, according to PTI.

The petition, filed by his father Amratlal Solanki and sister Mitali, is scheduled to be heard on April 6 by a bench led by Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar. Filed through advocates S B Talekar and Madhvi Ayyappan, the plea alleges a lack of clear communication from the authorities.

After US forces carried out strikes on the B1 Bridge in Karaj, Alborz Province, widely described as one of Iran’s tallest bridges, causing significant destruction and leaving eight dead and 95 injured on Thursday, Iran issued a list of eight key bridges across the Gulf region and Jordan, signalling possible targets for retaliation.

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Iran US war LIVE Updates: A US-sanctioned tanker transporting Iranian crude oil has changed course mid-journey, abandoning its earlier plan to head to India – a move that would have marked the first such delivery in nearly seven years – and is now bound for China.

The Aframax tanker Ping Shun, built in 2002 and sanctioned by the US in 2025, is currently signaling Dongying, China, as its new destination instead of Vadinar in Gujarat, which it had listed earlier this week, according to ship-tracking firm Kpler.

As the war between the United States-Israel and Iran continues with Strait of Hormuz closed for business, Pakistan has announced an unprecedented increase of 43 per cent and 55 per cent in the prices of petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD), respectively.

The prices were increased in response to spiking global oil prices.

How does the new prices look:

Petrol price has been increased by ₹137.23 per litre to ₹458.41 from ₹321.17

HSD price has been raised by ₹184.49 per litre to ₹520.35 from ₹335.86.

The price of kerosene was also increased by ₹34.08 per litre to ₹457.80.

Note: The prices have been increased with immediate effect

Even as the United States has threatened Tehran with more attacks on its territory, Iran has targeted more sites in Arab Gulf states overnight and into Friday.

Iran hir Kuwait’s Mina Al Ahmadi oil refinery which caused a fire. While no casualty was reported in the oil refinery, teams were working to put out the blaze.

Authorities also said a power and water desalination plant was attacked early on Friday, causing damages to some components.

The Israeli military has informed the media that it identified and intercepted missiles that were launched from Tehran towards Tel Aviv.

Iran should make a deal with the United States to end the war by offering to curb its nuclear programme and reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for sanctions relief, a former Iranian foreign minister said.

Mohammad Javad Zarif, who served as foreign minister from 2013-2021, claimed in an op-ed for American journal Foreign Affairs that Tehran had the "upper hand" in the conflict against the US and Israel, but argued Iran needed to stop the war to prevent the loss of more civilian lives and damage to infrastructure.

"Iran should use its upper hand not to keep fighting but to declare victory and make a deal that both ends this conflict and prevents the next one," Zarif said in the piece published late Thursday.

A container ship signaling French ownership has exited the Strait of Hormuz, in what appears to be the first known transit by a vessel linked to Western Europe since the war all but shuttered the vital waterway, a Bloomberg report said.

The CMA CGM Kribi sailed from waters off Dubai toward Iran on Thursday afternoon local time, signaling that its owner was French, according to ship-tracking data. It stuck close to the Iranian coast, moving through a channel between the islands of Qeshm and Larak, openly broadcasting its journey. On Friday morning, it signaled that it was off Muscat. Two people familiar with the situation also said the ship had crossed.

Iran claims it has shot down a second US fifth-generation F-35 fighter jet by a modern air-defence system of the Islamic Republic's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Iranian state media reported on Friday.

The report also said, the pilot is unlikely to have ejected

According to state media Press TV, citing a statement attributed to the Spokesman of Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters, it was claimed the jet was downed by a new IRGC Aerospace Force air-defence system.

It further stated that the impact and crash generated a "massive explosion" that made pilot survival unlikely.

Pakistan has announced steep increases in fuel prices, raising petrol by 43% and high-speed diesel (HSD) by 55%, as global oil rates surge amid the US-Israel conflict with Iran.

The government made the announcement on Thursday. The price of petrol has been increased by ₹137.23 per litre (42.7 per cent) to ₹458.41 from ₹321.17, while HSD by ₹184.49 per litre (55 per cent) to ₹520.35 from ₹335.86, with immediate effect.

The price of kerosene was also increased by ₹34.08 per litre to ₹457.80.

Stocks pared earlier losses and oil prices retreated from their highs, following a report that Iran is drafting a protocol with Oman to monitor traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

The S&P 500 Index was down nearly 0.2% after falling more than 1.5% earlier in the session. The Nasdaq 100 was off 0.3%, also rebounding from a deep loss. West Texas Intermediate was up 11% at around $111 per barrel, after rising to nearly $114 earlier in the session, a Bloomberg report says

Iran is drafting a protocol with Oman to monitor traffic through the strait, having effectively shut it down since the start of the war, state-run IRNA reported.

Three tankers broadcasting Omani ownership appeared to enter the Strait of Hormuz by hugging their home country’s coastline, indicating a different route to a northerly path through Iranian waters

Two oil supertankers and a liquefied natural gas vessel headed east into the strait on Thursday, based on the satellite signals they were broadcasting. All three vessels are managed by Oman Ship Management Company, according to the Equasis marine database. The company couldn’t be reached for comment.

UAE defense ministry says its defense system is currently dealing with missiles and drone from Iran

Iran on Friday warned the UN Security Council against any "provocative action" ahead of a vote on a draft resolution mandating a force to protect shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

"Any provocative action by the aggressors and their supporters, including in the UN Security Council regarding the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, will only complicate the situation," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said.

Kuwait's Mina al-Ahmadi oil refinery said that it has been hit by Iranian drones on Friday, sparking fires at the facility.

The state-run Kuwait Petroleum Corp. issued a statement on the attack and said firefighters were working to control the blazes.

There were no injuries reported, the company said.

Kuwait operates three oil refineries. Mina al-Ahmadi has come under attack multiple times in the war.

Israel's military said Friday that its air defences were operating to down missiles fired from Iran, as Tehran keeps up its retaliatory fire on the country. There were no immediate reports of any casualties.

The military said in a statement it had "identified missiles launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel".

Iran fires missiles at Israel and some Gulf nations while explosions could be heard around Tehran and the central Iranian city of Isfahan on Friday, as the United States prepared to further reinforce its already significant military forces in the Middle East.

Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said its Mina al-Ahmadi refinery was hit by drones early on Friday, setting off fires at operating units, according to the state news agency, but no injuries were reported.