Middle East Tensions Surge as Iran Threatens US, Israeli Strikes Hit Lebanon, and Regional Conflicts Expand

Iran's top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf threatened on Sunday to launch swifter and more forceful responses to US attacks, after Tehran targeted American warships in retaliation for US attacks on tankers.

"The Americans must have understood that the era of proportionate responses has come to an end," said Ghalibaf in a speech carried by state media, adding that "any aggression against Iran's interests and security will receive a faster, more intense and more painful response".

Lebanon's health ministry said Israeli strikes on Sunday killed four people in the south, while Israel said it carried out raids after Hezbollah launched drones at its soldiers.

The ministry reported two people killed in south Lebanon's Nabatieh al-Fawqa and two women killed in Arab Salim nearby. Twenty people were also wounded in several locations, including women and three children.

Iranian authorities have arrested a number of people accused of appearing in a rare video waving the flag of an outlawed opposition group, state television said Sunday.

Videos circulating online in recent days showed individuals riding motorbikes on empty streets in Iran while waving the white-and-red banner of the banned People's Mujahedin Organisation of Iran (MEK).

On Sunday, state television said authorities had identified and arrested "all the individuals who appeared in this clip" and that they were "associated" with MEK, without specifying how many.

It said the motorcade had been travelling near the city of Karaj, west of Tehran, but it was not clear when the footage was recorded.

Founded in the 1960s in opposition to Iran's then Western-backed shah, the MEK was outlawed after the 1979 Islamic revolution and later fought alongside Saddam Hussein's forces during the Iran-Iraq war.

The group has for decades advocated regime change in Iran from abroad, while Tehran has accused its members of cooperating with its arch-enemy, Israel.

Iran has been at war with the United States since February 28, when US-Israeli strikes killed the Islamic republic's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei along with senior military officials.

Iran retaliated with attacks across the region as the conflict spread.

UAE travellers are facing a mixed picture on Sunday, with Emirates, Etihad and flydubai operating key regional services while delays and cancellations continue across Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports.

Air Arabia has cancelled several Kuwait and Bahrain flights, while a number of international airlines continue to suspend UAE services amid the evolving security situation.

Air France has also suspended flights to and from Dubai through September 8, while disruptions are also being reported on some routes because of operational issues and volcanic activity in Indonesia.

Thousands of US sailors aboard an aircraft carrier departed from Thailand on Sunday, AFP journalists said, concluding its first port call following reports of deteriorating living conditions on board after nine months at sea.

The 5,000-strong crew of the USS Abraham Lincoln docked just north of the resort town of Pattaya, near Bangkok, on Wednesday for five days of rest and recreation after a lengthy Middle East deployment.

Amid Thailand's tourism low season, their arrival raised hopes for businesses in Pattaya, a city known for its beaches and nightlife.

The Lincoln departed from the port of Laem Chabang, a half-hour drive from Pattaya, at around 11am (0400 GMT), AFP journalists saw.

Security was stepped up in Pattaya during the visit, with authorities cracking down on sex workers ahead of the sailors' arrival - although the mayor denied it was linked.

US President Donald Trump is working on what he has privately described as “something much bigger” for the Middle East after the Iran war — an ambitious strategy that could reshape Washington’s approach to the region by building a new alignment against Tehran and deepening ties between Israel and its neighbours.

The plan, according to Axios, is still being drafted and has been discussed by Trump in two meetings with senior advisers in recent weeks.

At least 11 people were killed and seven others wounded as a fuel tanker exploded in a traffic accident in western Iran on Saturday, state-run IRIB news agency reported.

The incident occurred on an intercity road between Sanandaj County in Kurdestan province and Hamedan County in Hamedan province, the IRIB cited Babak Hodaei, head of the emergency medical services of Kurdestan University of Medical Sciences, as saying.

The incident caused several nearby vehicles to catch fire, Hodaei said, adding that rescue teams have transferred the wounded to a hospital in Sanandaj, reports Xinhua news agency.

Rescue operations are continuing at the scene, he said.