US-IRAN WAR: CEASEFIRE AMID HOPES FOR PEACE

Bahrain’s foreign ministry on Saturday decried attacks by Iran against its territory and neighbouring Kuwait, saying the two Gulf countries intercepted seven missiles fired by the Islamic republic.

"The ministry of foreign affairs strongly condemns the renewed attacks by the Islamic Republic of Iran against the Kingdom of Bahrain and the sisterly State of Kuwait," Bahrain, which hosts the US Fifth Fleet, said in a statement.

"This blatant aggression constitutes a flagrant violation of the sovereignty of both countries," it added.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has praised Iran's resilience, saying Western predictions of internal collapse had failed.

Putin commended Iran's strength and stated that Iranian society was becoming "increasingly consolidated".

The Pentagon is increasingly concerned about Israel ramping up its spying on the US, recently raising the counterintelligence threat level from America’s top ally to the highest level, NBC News reported, citing two US officials and one former US official.

The Pentagon’s Defence Intelligence Agency in recent weeks issued the new counterintelligence threat assessment amid rising tensions between Israel and the US over the way forward in the war with Iran, the officials said.

They said the DIA posted an internal message, viewed by one of the current officials, that raised the level for Israel to “critical.”

The designation stems from growing concerns within the Pentagon that Israel was making a targeted effort to surveil top US officials.

According to the sources, this surveillance was aimed at gathering intelligence on the Trump administration’s internal deliberations and decision-making regarding Middle East conflicts.

The DIA assessment included a seven-page document, which noted that Israel’s capabilities to conduct both human espionage and technical information collection had reached a “critical level”.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi on Saturday rejected remarks by Lebanese President Joseph Aoun that Lebanon was a bargaining chip for Tehran.

Aoun said on Friday that Iran was using Lebanon as a bargaining chip in its negotiations with the United States and that Lebanese people were paying the price for Iran's interests.

"Had Lebanon been bargaining chip for Iran, we'd have a deal long ago," Araqchi posted on X. "Save Lebanon from your real foe, Mr. President."

Explosions were heard early Saturday in Kuwait and Bahrain after US strikes against Iran, according to AFP correspondents.

Multiple explosions were heard in areas near Kuwait International Airport, reported AFP's correspondent in Kuwait, whose military announced it was responding to "hostile" missile and drone attacks.

In Bahrain's capital Manama, an AFP correspondent there reported hearing explosions and interceptions, as air raid alerts rang out.

Iran's football squad have been granted visas to enter the United Sates so they can play in the World Cup, US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack confirmed Friday.

A US administration official confirmed this separately in a statement issued by the State Department.

The visa issuance means Iran will compete in the world's top sporting event even as the Mideast war pitting it against the United States and Israel continues, albeit with a shaky truce in place.

"Proud of our outstanding team at the US Embassy in Ankara for their work processing visas for Iran's national football team on their road to the @FIFAWorldCup in the United States," Barrack said, commenting on a news report that Iran's World Cup players have been granted the visas to enter the United States.

"Sports transcends borders, and we look forward to welcoming competitors and fans from around the world," the ambassador said.

The unnamed administration official confirmed Iran's team has been issued visas, and added: "We will not allow the Iranian team to abuse this system to sneak terrorists into the United States under false pretences."

The United States announced Friday its approval of a $1.98 billion arms sale to Kuwait, one of the Gulf countries hit by Iranian strikes during the Middle East war.

In a statement, the US State Department said it would allow purchases of counter-drone technology from defence company Anduril, which was founded by a supporter of President Donald Trump.

"This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a major non-Nato ally that has been an important force for political stability and economic progress in the Middle East," the statement said.

US forces struck Iranian coastal radar sites after shooting down drones launched by Iran toward the Strait of Hormuz, the US military said, in the latest escalation complicating efforts to end the war between the two countries.

The US military believes the four Iranian drones were targeting regional maritime traffic, a US official told Reuters. US Central Command said on X that the US then struck Iran's surveillance sites in Goruk and Qeshm Island, which are both on the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had targeted US bases in the region with missiles in retaliation for US strikes and fired on four tankers attempting to cross the strait without its permission.