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Trump readies more strikes
Kuwait’s army said on Thursday it was confronting hostile missile and drone attacks from Iran, a day after President Donald Trump said renewed hostilities between the U.S. and Iran would not last "too long." Trump told reporters on Wednesday that the U.S. was prepared for further military operations "any time we want," after describing the American strikes against Iran on Tuesday as a "very heavy attack." CNBC reported that the strikes were targeted at U.S. bases in Kuwait, with Iranian state media outlet IRIB saying the attacks were directed there.
“Kuwait advised residents to follow security and safety instructions”
Iran retaliated after the Tuesday strikes, targeting U.S. regional allies Jordan and Bahrain, Reuters reported, while Reuters also said top aides to Trump were pushing to keep the Iran war from escalating before November’s midterm elections.
In the same period, Al Jazeera reported that Trump threatened more attacks as the death toll from the latest U.S. strikes climbed to 18, with at least 108 others wounded.
Kuhestak wedding strike dispute
NBC News said Tehran attacked American bases across the Middle East after a U.S. strike was alleged to have hit a home hosting a wedding event in the city of Kuhestak, killing five and wounding dozens, and it noted that NBC News was not immediately able to independently confirm the details.
Al Jazeera reported that the U.S. and Iran exchanged their biggest barrage since July and that the U.S. military struck cities and areas along Iran’s southern coast, including a wedding party in Kuhestak.
Iran’s health minister Mohammad-Reza Zafarghandi said in a statement published on the website of the Iranian president’s office that 18 people were killed and 108 others wounded in overnight strikes by the United States.
NBC News said the Iranian Red Crescent later reported five people had been killed and nearly 70 injured after a U.S. strike hit what it called a "wedding celebration," and it added that at least one child was among those killed.
Al Jazeera quoted Esmaeil Baghaei, the spokesman for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, describing the Kuhestak attack as a "war crime" and saying "Sirik is not a story. The civilians are real. The victims are real".
Oil, elections, and escalation
Reuters reported on Sept 1 that Gulf stock markets ended mixed as renewed military action between the U.S. and Iran weighed on investor sentiment, while Qatar’s index bucked the trend supported by higher oil prices.
“GCC stock markets were mixed as U.S. President's threat of additional military operations against Iran fuelled caution”
In the same Reuters report, Daniel Takieddine, co-founder and chief executive of Sky Links Capital Group, said "GCC stock markets were mixed as U.S. President's threat of additional military operations against Iran fuelled caution".
Al Jazeera said the six-month war had led to a spike in oil prices, roiled the global economy, and posed increasing political problems for Trump’s Republican Party ahead of November midterm elections, adding that only 31 percent of Americans approve of the war while some 63 percent disapprove.
Al Jazeera also reported that Brent crude climbed to about $95, up more than 30 percent from the start of the war, and that Trump’s approval rating fell from 40 percent to 33 percent since the conflict began, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling.
Xinhua’s Sept. 3 briefing said Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned the latest U.S. "acts of aggression" and highlighted Iran’s determination to "decisively" defend its independence, national sovereignty and territorial integrity.