LEILA FADEL, HOST:
It was supposed to be the first day of a ceasefire in the Middle East.
STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
And in the first 24 hours, an oil refinery in Iran was hit, and five Gulf Arab states reported attacks from Iranian drones and missiles. Also, a blitz of Israeli airstrikes killed more than 250 people across Lebanon. That's according to authorities there. In a moment, we'll ask Iran analyst Vali Nasr who really gained from this war.
FADEL: We begin with NPR international correspondent Aya Batrawy in Dubai.
AYA BATRAWY, BYLINE: Good morning, Leila.
FADEL: So tell us what's been happening across the region.
BATRAWY: You know, news of a ceasefire had come here overnight. But instead of waking up to that, missile alerts sounded across people's phones in the Gulf, including where I am. Iran says an oil refinery on its Lavan Island was hit in what they described as an enemy attack. They also said Tehran and other cities in Iran were targeted by small attack drones, the origin of which they said was unknown.
And then we saw attacks across the Gulf again yesterday. Kuwait says a wave of hostile drones from Iran caused significant damage to oil facilities, power stations and water desalination plants. People were wounded here in the United Arab Emirates and in Bahrain, and even a main gas complex in Abu Dhabi caught fire. Saudi Arabia's critical East-West oil pipeline was also attacked, according to reports. Even Qatar said it intercepted drones and missiles - again, Leila, on what was supposed to be Day 1 of a ceasefire. Now, all of this was happening as Israel launched its largest bombing of Lebanon since this war began. It said it was targeting Hezbollah, but the attack shook Beirut and tore through high-rise civilian neighborhoods there.
FADEL: OK. A lot of fire in the first day of a ceasefire. And in President Trump's latest post on Truth Social, he says U.S. aircraft and the tens of thousands of armed forces in the region will remain in place until a real agreement is reached. What's Iran saying?
BATRAWY: Iran made clear that any ceasefire deal must include Lebanon. And Pakistan, which brokered this ceasefire, also said Lebanon was included in that two-week deal reached Tuesday night between the U.S. and Iran. But the White House says it's not. Now, Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said on X that the U.S. must choose - ceasefire or continued war via Israel. He said it cannot have both. And the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps warned it could strike at Israel again and that a U.S.-Iran meeting planned for tomorrow in Pakistan could be called off. But as I speak to you this morning, Amadi fighter jets are patrolling the skies here. The region is on edge, and this ceasefire is hardly holding.
FADEL: Aya, the foundation of this shaky ceasefire hinges on Iran opening that key waterway - right? - the Strait of Hormuz for ships, and the U.S. and Israel holding their fire. Is that strait open?
BATRAWY: You know, when this ceasefire was announced, Iran's foreign minister said the safe passage of ships through the strait would be possible in coordination with Iran's armed forces. But yesterday, after Israel attacked some 100 areas of Lebanon, the Revolutionary Guard of Iran threatened it wouldn't be. Now, what we know from maritime intelligence firm Windward was that five ships transited through the strait yesterday. That's less than half of what transited the day before.
And if these talks actually do take place in Pakistan, each side is coming with high demands, Leila. The U.S., Israel and Gulf partners want Iran to stop nuclear enrichment, pause its ballistic missile production and support to groups like Hezbollah and open that strait fully. Iran, on its part, wants compensation for the war, sanctions lifted, says its missiles are a red line and maintains that it has a right to enrichment. So if these talks take place tomorrow in Pakistan, it's as Israel and Iran each say they, quote, have their "finger on the trigger" and with each side, including President Trump, claiming victory going into these talks.
FADEL: High, high stakes. That's NPR's Aya Batrawy in Dubai. Thank you for your reporting.
BATRAWY: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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