Middle East War Update: Fresh strikes, drone interceptions and rising global pressure

Paris – Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:

Saudi Arabia intercepts drones 

The Saudi defence ministry said it had “intercepted and destroyed” four drones over the kingdom’s east early Friday.

Rubio to join G7 meeting 

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio landed in France to join a meeting of G7 foreign ministers on Friday, an AFP correspondent said.

Rubio, who skipped the first day of the talks outside Paris, said before departing that it was in the “interest” of all G7 nations to push for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz currently blocked by Iran.

Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan – the other G7 members – on Thursday signalled their hope for a diplomatic solution to the conflict.

Guards claim missile, drone attacks 

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Friday they had carried out missile and drone strikes the previous day targeting sites in Israel and military facilities in the Gulf used by US forces.

A maintenance facility for US air defence system Patriot was targeted in Bahrain, the Guards said in a statement carried by Iranian news agencies.

Israel strike Tehran 

Israel’s military said its forces carried out “a wide-scale wave of strikes targeting infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime in the heart of Tehran” early Friday.

Australia defends efforts 

Australia’s leader said Friday it was not consulted over the war with Iran, responding to President Donald Trump’s swipe the US ally was not doing enough.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Australia was in close contact with Gulf states under attack from Iran, providing a surveillance aircraft to help defend the United Arab Emirates, where many Australians live.

“There is no request been made to Australia that has not been agreed to,” Albanese told reporters in Canberra.

Blasts in Beirut 

Lebanese media reported an Israeli strike hit Beirut’s southern suburbs early Friday, as AFP correspondents heard several explosions from the Hezbollah stronghold that Israel has repeatedly struck since war erupted.

AFPTV footage showed smoke billowing from the area after the raid.

Trump pushes back deadline 

US President Donald Trump said he would not yet strike Iranian power plants as previously threatened after a request from Tehran, adding that talks with the Islamic republic were “going very well.”

“I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 P.M., Eastern Time,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.

“Talks are ongoing and, despite erroneous statements to the contrary by the Fake News Media, and others, they are going very well.”

Israel army demands more soldiers 

The Israeli military said it needs more troops for deployment in southern Lebanon, where forces are engaged in fighting Hezbollah as part of efforts to establish a so-called “buffer zone”.

“On the Lebanese front, the forward defensive zone that we are creating requires additional (Israeli army) forces,” military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said, noting that the military is operating across multiple fronts, including the West Bank, Gaza and Syria.

Israel opposition leader attacks government 

Israel’s main opposition leader Yair Lapid accused the government of steering the country towards a “security disaster” by “sending the army into a multi-front war without a strategy, without the necessary means and with far too few soldiers”.

“The (Israeli army) is stretched to the limit and beyond. The government is leaving the army wounded out on the battlefield,” Lapid said.

Israeli soldier killed in Lebanon 

The Israeli army announced the death in combat of a soldier in south Lebanon, just hours after reporting another death from its ranks.

Four Israeli soldiers have now been killed in fighting in south Lebanon since Hezbollah began launching rocket attacks against Israel on March 2 to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader.

World Bank ready ‘at scale’ 

The World Bank said it was prepared to provide immediate financial assistance to countries in emerging markets dealing with the economic fallout of the conflict in the Middle East.

“We are ready to respond at scale – combining immediate financial relief with policy expertise and private sector support for the recovery of jobs and growth,” the World Bank Group said in its first statement on the crisis.