IRGC member dies in Iran after being wounded in Israeli air strike in Syria
The commander-in-chief of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has confirmed that a member of the elite force who was wounded in an Israeli air strike in Syria has died.
Hossein Salami said in a statement carried by state media that Colonel Ahmadreza Afshari, a member of the IRGC’s aerospace division, succumbed to his wounds.
According to the commander, Afshari died today after being transferred to Iran for medical treatment after being targeted in an air raid in the first half of the Iranian month of Mordad, which will end on Wednesday.
Red Sea attacks contribute to profits fall for Dubai-based port operator
Dubai-based port operator DP World reports its half-year profits fell by nearly 60 percent, in part over the continuing attacks by Yemen’s Houthis over the war on Gaza that have affected shipping through the Red Sea.
DP World reported profits of $265m this year, down from $651m at the same time last year. DP World Group’s chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, acknowledged that the Red Sea disruptions affected the firm’s revenues.
“The year 2024 has been marked by a deteriorating geopolitical environment and disruptions to global supply chains due to the Red Sea crisis,” he said in a statement, according to AP news agency.
“While the near-term trading outlook remains uncertain due to macroeconomic and geopolitical headwinds, the resilient financial performance of the first half … positions us well to deliver stable full-year adjusted” profits, the head of the government-owned shipper said, without commenting on any specific Houthi attacks.
The Houthis in Yemen have promised to continue their attacks in the Red Sea and expand operations to other waterways for as long as Israel’s war on Gaza persists
Rocket, drone sirens in Israel, occupied Golan after Hezbollah attacks
Rocket fire and drone infiltration sirens have been activated across northern Israel and the occupied Golan Heights as a result of Hezbollah attacks. Sirens activated in Kiryat Shmona – which was also hit yesterday – and other areas in the Upper Galilee, with drone warnings alerting people in the occupied Golan Heights.
Hezbollah has claimed four attacks on Israeli positions along the border so far today, with the latest saying it used a volley of Katyusha rockets to “bombarded for the first time” the Shamir settlement in northern Israel.
The group said it launched “a squadron of suicide drones” to hit soldiers. Another attack was directed at soldiers at al-Malikiya, with a third attack used artillery shells to hit a military position along the border.
Red Alert [14:29:22] - 1 Alert:
• Confrontation Line — Shamir
Population in the area: 922#Israel #RocketAlert #RedAlert pic.twitter.com/NqqBKSryO3
— ILRedAlert (@ILRedAlert) August 15, 2024
Fire, no casualties after Hezbollah launches drone, more than 25 rockets
The Israeli military says at least 25 rockets and a drone entered from Lebanese territory, affecting both the Upper Galilee and the occupied Golan Heights.
It says 20 rockets were fired at Upper Galilee, five at the area of Shamir, with the drone targeting the occupied territory. It says most rockets and the drone were intercepted, and there were no casualties.
Images and reports from Israeli media indicated firefighters were battling a blaze near the Shamir kibbutz that was sparked by a rocket. Hezbollah said its rocket attacks were aimed at retaliating for the Israeli air raids on al-Abbassieh that wounded civilians.
