Israeli missile strikes metres from TV journalist
A British journalist has miraculously survived an Israeli missile that landed only metres behind him during a television broadcast.
Source: XÂ
Steve Sweeney, a reporter with Russiaâs RT program, was reporting live from Lebanon, where Israel has launched multiple strikes.
Sweeney was filming a piece to camera when suddenly he paused and dramatically lunged for cover as a missile landed just behind him.
The moment the Israeli weapon slammed into the ground and exploded was captured on camera and has been verified. Amazingly, Sweeney and his cameraman both survived and are being treated in hospital for minor injuries.
Sweeney is reportedly the Lebanon bureau chief with RT (formerly Russia Today).
Moscow angrily accused Israel of targeting the Russian media. But Israel said the pair was filming in an area of southern Lebanon that was under an evacuation order.
Israel has stepped up airstrikes in Lebanon, targeting Hezbollah on the sidelines of the war in Iran.
In the latest attack, at least 10 people were killed when a missile destroyed a 10-storey building near the city centre.
Israeli warplanes have also struck bridges over the Litani River that link southern Lebanon to the rest of the country, destroying at least two, Lebanese state media said.
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Fears are growing in Lebanon that cutting off the countryâs south could pave the way for a large-scale Israeli military âoperation into Lebanese territory.
Hegseth: War objectives unchanged
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the warâs objectives had not changed since strikes started on February â28.
The US has carried out strikes against 7000 targets inside Iran and hit more than 40 Iranian mine-laying vessels and 11 submarines, âaccording to the Pentagon.
âOur âobjectives, â given directly from our America-first President [Donald Trump], remain âexactly what they were on day one,â Hegseth said on Thursday (US time).
âThese are not the mediaâs objectives, not Iranâs objectives, not new objectives. Our objectives â unchanged, on target and â on plan.â
He said the objectives remained to destroy Iranâs âmissile launchers as well as its defence industrial base and navy, and to never allow âIran âto get a nuclear âweapon.
In the same briefing, General âDan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the US military remained on track to achieve the objectives and the US âwas striking deeper into Iranian territory every day.
Director of National âIntelligence Tulsi Gabbard said on Thursday during a âhearing in front of âthe House intelligence committee that the US and Israeli objectives during the military campaign in Iran âwere not â the same.
âThe objectives that have âbeen laid out by the President are different from the objectives that have been laid â out âby the Israeli âgovernment,â Gabbard said.
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âWe can âsee through âthe operations that the âIsraeli government has been focused on disabling the Iranian âleadership. The âPresident has âstated that his âobjectives are to destroy Iranâs ballistic missiles launching capability, their ballistic missile production capability and âtheir navy.â
European gas prices surged 25 per cent and oil gained 10 per cent on Thursday âafter Iran attacked energy infrastructure in the Middle East in retaliation against Israeli attacks on its gas facilities, marking the biggest escalation of the nearly three-week war.
The Iranian aerial attacks caused extensive damage to the worldâs largest gas plant in Qatar, âtargeted a refinery in Saudi Arabia, forced the United Arab Emirates to shut gas facilities and started fires at two Kuwaiti refineries.
The price of benchmark Brent crude rose above $US119 a barrel on Thursday while gas prices in Europe were double the level âin late February before the US and Israel launched their war on Iran.
The leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan issued a joint statement on Thursday urging âan immediate comprehensive moratorium on attacks on civilian infrastructure, including oil and gas installationsâ.
They said they would act to stabilise energy markets and join âappropriate effortsâ to open the âStrait of Hormuz â the Gulfâs oil chokepoint.
âWe will take other steps to stabilise energy markets, including working with certain producing nations to increase output.â
Major economies have been scrambling to cushion the effects of soaring oil prices after state oil giant QatarEnergy reported âextensive damageâ from Iranian missile strikes on the Ras Laffan Industrial City in response âto Israelâs bombing of Iranâs major gas field.
Ras Laffan processes about a fifth of the worldâs liquefied natural gas.
Saudi Arabiaâs main port on the Red Sea, where it has been able to divert some exports to avoid Iranâs closure of the Gulfâs Strait of Hormuz, was also attacked.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signalled a possible easing of sanctions on Iranian oil already at sea on Thursday.
âIn the coming days, we may unsanction the Iranian oil thatâs on the water,â Bessent told Fox Business.
âItâs about 140 million barrels.
âIn essence, we will be using the Iranian barrels against the Iranians to keep the price down for the next 10 or 14 days as we continue this campaign.â
-with AAP/DPA
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