36m ago
Saudis down drone targeting foreign embassies, defense ministry says
Saudi forces intercepted a drone targeting Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter housing foreign embassies, the defense ministry said Friday.
The “hostile drone” was downed “during an attempt to approach the Diplomatic Quarter”, the ministry posted on X.
Three more drones were intercepted elsewhere in Saudi Arabia around the same time, the ministry said.
1:27 AM
Trump: “Watch what happens” to Iran’s regime Friday
President Trump had more strong words for Iran’s leaders early Friday and took a swipe at The New York Times as well.
He posted on his Truth Social outlet that the U.S. is “totally destroying the terrorist regime of Iran, militarily, economically, and otherwise, yet, if you read the Failing New York Times, you would incorrectly think that we are not winning. Iran’s Navy is gone, their Air Force is no longer, missiles, drones and everything else are being decimated, and their leaders have been wiped from the face of the earth. We have unparalleled firepower, unlimited ammunition, and plenty of time – Watch what happens to these deranged sc–mb-gs today. They’ve been killing innocent people all over the world for 47 years, and now I, as the 47th President of the United States of America, am killing them. What a great honor it is to do so!”
11:48 PM
Explosions heard in central Dubai
Explosions rattled buildings in Dubai and a large cloud of smoke hung over a central area of the Middle East financial hub on Friday, Agence France-Presse reporters said.
An AFP correspondent felt the building shake and heard a huge explosion.
Sirens could be heard coming from the direction of Sheikh Zayed Road, the United Arab Emirates city’s main artery.
A drone fell on Thursday near Dubai’s financial district after Iran threatened to hit economic institutions, prompting some companies to evacuate staff.
The UAE has come under repeated Iranian fire during the Middle East war, with Dubai’s airport, one of the world’s biggest, repeatedly targeted as well as its port and luxury real estate including the Palm Jumeirah.
10:28 PM
French soldier killed in Iraq, Macron says
A member of the French army was killed in an attack in the Erbil region of northern Iraq, French President Emmanuel Macron said in a post on X.
Macron named the deceased soldier as Chief Warrant Officer Arnaud Frion. He said several others were wounded in an attack Macron called “unacceptable.”
Some French forces are present in Iraq as part of a yearslong anti-Islamic State mission.
Macron didn’t specify who is believed to have carried out the attack. But a U.S. base in Erbil has faced incoming fire in the past, likely part of Iran and its allied militant groups’ retaliatory strikes against American bases.
Earlier Thursday, a drone attack targeted an Italian base in Erbil,