The war in Iran is widening across the Middle East and beyond, with incidents stretching from the Persian Gulf to the South Caucasus and raising fears the conflict could escalate into a broader regional confrontation.
Saudi Arabia said it intercepted a ballistic missile fired toward a base housing US forces on March 7, while Azerbaijan accused Iran-linked operatives of plotting sabotage targeting a major oil pipeline and Jewish sites.
Heavy air strikes were reported in Iran overnight and early on March 7, with Tehran's Mehrabad Airport and the nearby town of Ekbatan both being hit, among other targets.
At the same time, cross-border strikes between Israel and Iranian-backed groups in Lebanon continued and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said it had attacked a Maltese-flagged oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz using an "explosive drone" as Tehran looks to broaden its response to the US-Israeli military campaign.
The string of developments underscores how a war that began with coordinated US-Israeli air strikes on Iran on February 28 is rippling across neighboring regions, threatening energy infrastructure and raising the possibility of new fronts as the war enters its second week.
Analysts say Tehran's strategy appears aimed at raising the cost of the conflict for Washington.
"The region is likely to experience an ongoing Iranian retaliation campaign for as long as there are missiles and launchers there," Sascha Bruchmann, a military and security affairs analyst at the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies, told RFE/RL.
But Iran also appears to be moving to quell any regional backlash. In a rare apology on March 7, Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian said in a video message that he would like to "personally apologize to neighboring countries that were affected by Iran’s actions" as he urged them not to join the US-Israeli attacks on Iran.
He said Iran's temporary leadership council had agreed to suspend attacks on nearby states unless strikes on Iran originated from their territory, but hours later the IRGC Navy launched a drone attack on the US al-Dhafra airbase in the UAE, according to the Tasnim news agency, a semiofficial news agency associated with the IRGC.
The report claims that a US satellite communications center and early-warning and fire-control radars were hit, but RFE/RL was unable to independently verify the attack. The UAE's Defense Ministry said it responded to incoming missile and drone threats from Iran but has not confirmed the attack on the US airbase.
Pezeshkian also rejected US President Donald Trump's demand for "unconditional surrender," saying that "the Americans can take their demand of a surrender of the Iranian people to their graves."
Shortly afterward, Trump announced in a message on his social media that the US military is considering expanding the range of targets inside Iran, including areas and individuals, or "complete destruction and death."
Alleged Iranian Plot To Target Oil Pipeline
Azerbaijan said it had thwarted a plot linked to the IRGC to attack several targets inside the country.
According to a statement from Azerbaijan’s State Security Service released late on March 6, the alleged plan included attacks on the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline, the Israeli Embassy in Baku, an Ashkenazi synagogue, and a prominent member of Azerbaijan's Mountain Jewish community.
Authorities said two Iranian citizens and one Azerbaijani national were involved in smuggling more than 7 kilograms of C-4 explosives into the country under instructions from the IRGC. Investigators said international arrest warrants had been issued for four suspects.
Iran hasn't publicly responded to the accusations but said earlier this week, after a drone incident, that it isn't seeking to target Azerbaijan.
Any disruption to the pipeline could tighten global energy supplies already rattled by the expanding war.
Tehran has threatened to "set ablaze" any Western tanker attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which provides a vital trade route for about a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas. At least nine vessels have been attacked since US-Israeli strikes began, according to Lloyd’s List, a maritime intelligence firm.
The BTC pipeline runs through Georgia and Turkey and transports Caspian crude to Mediterranean export terminals, supplying European markets. The route also accounts for roughly a third of Israel's oil imports.
The plot follows another incident earlier this week that heightened tensions between Baku and Tehran. Azerbaijani officials said Iranian drones struck infrastructure in the country’s Nakhchivan exclave on March 5, injuring civilians and damaging an airport.
As Tehran denied responsibility for the attack, the United States condemned it, describing the strikes as a "needless escalation" of aggression.
Attacks Ripple Across The Middle East
Saudi Arabia said on March 7 that it had intercepted a ballistic missile fired toward Prince Sultan Air Base southeast of Riyadh, which hosts US military personnel. The Saudi Defense Ministry said the missile was destroyed before reaching its target.
In a separate attack, Saudi air defenses shot down six drones targeting the Shaybah oil field near the border with the United Arab Emirates, according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency. Officials said the drones were intercepted over the Empty Quarter desert in the south of the country.
The attacks follow several earlier drone strikes on Saudi energy infrastructure this week, including attempted attacks on the Ras Tanura refinery on the kingdom’s eastern coast.
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman warned Iran against further “miscalculations,” saying such actions threatened regional security and stability.
The rising attacks have rattled global energy markets. Brent crude prices surged more than 8 percent in a single day this week and have climbed nearly 30 percent since the conflict intensified.
Elsewhere, Israel has continued to exchange fire with Iranian-backed groups in Lebanon as Tehran's network of regional allies -- often referred to as the "axis of resistance" -- weighs how far to escalate the confrontation.
Iran itself has responded to the US-Israeli strikes by launching waves of drones and missiles at Israeli targets and striking US military facilities across the region, including in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.
The UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia have all reported drone and missile attacks over the past week.
