Donald Trump’s war with Iran is rapidly becoming global, with more than a dozen other countries in the firing line, or mobilising their armed forces, as Tehran fights back.
The UK, France and Spain are among the nations sending warships, jets and troops to the region to bolster their defences and protect their allies, while states across the Middle East, as well as Cyprus, Turkey and Azerbaijan, have been affected by Iranian drones and missiles.
The US is also not restricting its strikes against the Islamic regime to any geographical boundary, with an American submarine sinking an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka.
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Warnings about World War Three have long been voiced ever since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than four years ago.
That was because of fears the conflict could spill over into neighbouring NATO states in Europe, drawing the nuclear-armed alliance into direct confrontation with Moscow, which also has a large arsenal of nuclear weapons.
This risk remains.
But the world has just become even more combustible because of the US president’s decision, along with Israel, to attack Iran with a ferocity of firepower that exceeded the opening days of the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Since the fighting began on 28 February, the US military says it has struck more than 3,000 targets. Israeli warplanes have also conducted hundreds of sorties. The onslaught claimed the life of Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, in the opening salvo.
In response, Iranian forces have fired multiple waves of missiles and drones against US forces in the region and Israel, but also against Gulf states, including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and even Oman, despite Muscat having played an important role in negotiating between Tehran and Washington in the past.
The Iranian president on Saturday issued an apology to his neighbours, and said there would be no more strikes against them, provided that no attacks targeting his country originate from US forces on their respective territories. However, Iranian munitions have continued to hit Gulf states, though perhaps not at the same intensity.
The US military has said it has already seriously degraded Iran’s ability to attack, with Mr Trump warning of even more devastating strikes to come
Yet the Iranian side is vowing to keep fighting rather than heed American demands to surrender.
Pete Hegseth, who describes himself as the US secretary of war, has said the American operation could last eight weeks – an indication of the sheer number of targets the US must have amassed.
Mr Trump has vowed to destroy all Iranian missile and naval capabilities, and to prevent the country from ever having a nuclear weapons programme.
However, the longer the attacks continue, the greater the risk of miscalculation that could ignite an even wider war.
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The battle lines in the Middle East already have crossovers with Russia’s war in Europe, though they have not really reached Asia, with China so far giving a muted response.
Moscow has for years received weapons from Tehran, while Kyiv is backed by a coalition of allies, including the UK, France, Germany, Australia and Canada. The US is also an important source of munitions for Ukraine.
Now reports are emerging of Russian forces providing intelligence to Iran that could help Tehran target American warships, troops and bases in the Gulf. At the same time, the US has asked Ukrainian soldiers for support in countering Iranian drones.
These alliances and allegiances underline the complexity of the chaos – and just how dangerous a moment this is.
