US Senator rejects reports Trump ruled out Iran strike

The security warning level at the US Al Udeid air base in Qatar has been lowered after a heightened alert on Wednesday, three sources briefed on the matter told Reuters on Thursday.

US aircraft that were moved out of the base on Wednesday are gradually returning, one of the sources said.

Two other sources, both diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity, said some personnel who had been advised to leave the base have also been allowed to return.

"KLM is currently avoiding Iranian airspace as a precaution—a route we already rarely ⁠use. Last night's closure of Iranian airspace therefore had no effect on our operations," a KLM spokesperson was quoted as saying.

Iran closed its airspace for nearly five hours on Wednesday before reopening it, but airlines continued to take alternative routes.

British Airways’ owner IAG said BA flights to Bahrain were canceled through January 16. Wizz Air said avoiding Iran and Iraq could force some westbound flights from Dubai and Abu Dhabi to make refueling and crew-change stops in Cyprus or Greece.

Germany issued new guidance on Wednesday cautioning its airlines against entering Iranian airspace, after Lufthansa adjusted Middle East operations.

Carriers diverted over Afghanistan and Central Asia or used longer routings to reduce operational risk, according to Reuters.

US President Donald Trump signaled on Tuesday that he was leaning toward a military strike on Iran when he said Iranian protesters should keep up the demonstrations and that “help is on its way.”

Trump said on Wednesday he had been informed that the killing in Iran has stopped and Tehran would not execute any of the protesters.

At least 12,000 people have been killed in Iran in the largest killing in the country's contemporary history, much of it carried out on January 8-9 during an ongoing internet shutdown, senior government and security sources told Iran International.

More than 6,000 people with eye injuries have sought treatment at a major eye clinic in Tehran over the past few days following recent protests, the head of the Munich Eye Center told Iran International.

Amir Mobarez Parasta said the figure reflected the scale of eye trauma cases linked to the unrest, based on information he said he had received from his colleagues.

He said the number pointed to widespread eye injuries in recent days.

Omid Nouripour, a vice president of the German parliament, said on Thursday that the European Union should place Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on its terrorism list, citing what he described as days of brutal repression and massacres in the country.

“For days there have been brutal repression and massacres in Iran,” Nouripour said in a post on X. “What is urgently needed now is financial pressure and putting the Revolutionary Guards on the EU terror list. Now or never.”

He said stronger economic measures were needed to increase pressure on Tehran.

A planned news conference by Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan in Islamabad was canceled on Thursday, Afghanistan International reported.

Reza Amiri Moghaddam, Iran’s ambassador, had been due to speak at the National Press Club about the current situation in Iran, the outlet said.

Some journalists said the event may have been called off because of objections from Pakistan’s foreign ministry and what were described as security considerations, although this has not been officially confirmed, according to the report.