Russia’s Rosatom evacuates more staff from Iran, 450 remain at Bushehr

Iran held a mass funeral in Tehran for senior military and defense officials killed in the war with the United States and Israel, state media reported.

Israel’s military said Iran was launching missiles and drones from densely populated residential areas and warned Iranian civilians to stay away from launchers.

The Israeli military said the launches put civilians at risk both during the firing of the weapons and when Israeli forces strike the launch sites.

In a statement posted on X, the Israel Defense Forces said one strike hit a launcher while a nearby bridge remained standing, which it said showed the precision of its air force attacks.

The military again urged Iranian citizens to distance themselves from missile launchers for their safety.

A Thai ship was hit by unidentified projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz, causing and an explosion at the stern and fire in the engine room, Thailand’s transport ministry said on Wednesday.

The Thai-flagged bulk carrier Mayuree Naree was struck off the northern coast of Oman amid the Iran war.

The ministry said 20 crew members were rescued after abandoning the vessel in a lifeboat and were picked up by the Omani navy and three were still missing.

Families of staff at Iran’s embassy in Beirut have temporarily left the city due to the security situation in Lebanon after Israeli attacks, Iran’s embassy said on Wednesday.

Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, Mohammad-Reza Raouf Sheibani, said the move was made to protect the safety of Iranian nationals.

He said families of embassy employees, along with teachers and students from an Iranian school and some Iranian residents, had temporarily departed Beirut following coordination by the embassy.

Iran cannot be allowed to possess nuclear weapons alongside missile capabilities that could reach Europe, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Wednesday.

“We cannot allow the Ayatollah regime to possess nuclear weapons, combined with a missile capability that could soon be able to strike Italy and Europe directly,” Meloni told the Italian Senate.

She warned such a development could trigger a nuclear arms race.