They have learned a good lesson: Iran FM Abbas Araghchi on US, Israel

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi

• Iran vows to take Middle East war "as far as necessary"
• Iran launches strikes at US and Israeli targets across region
• Saudi Arabia intercepts 60 drones; attacks disrupt UAE airports

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Iran said it was ready to take the Middle East war “as far as necessary” as it launched strikes across the region on Monday, while Donald Trump pressed world powers to help reopen a key shipping lane that has been choked off by the Islamic Republic.

Abbas Araghchi said that Iran had shown it was ready to take the war with Israel and the United States as far as necessary.

“I think by now they have learned a good lesson and understood what kind of nation they are dealing with, one that does not hesitate to defend itself and is ready to continue the war wherever it may lead, and take it as far as necessary,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters in Tehran.

The war has engulfed much of the region, with Iran responding to strikes by Israel and the United States with attacks against at least 10 countries hosting US forces.

Saudi Arabia intercepted more than 60 drones overnight, its defence ministry said Monday. In Iraq, authorities said rockets wounded five people at Baghdad International Airport, which houses a US diplomatic facility.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Mohamed bin Zayed expressed solidarity against “the continued and blatant Iranian attacks” during a call on Monday, according to a statement carried by Emirati media. The statement did not make explicit reference to US and Israeli strikes in Iran.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said about 700 missiles and 3,600 drones had been fired at US and Israeli targets so far.

The Revolutionary Guards also said they had targeted Tel Aviv and Ben Gurion Airport, along with military bases used by US forces in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

A drone sparked a fuel tank fire near Dubai International Airport, disrupting travel, while a missile killed a civilian in a car in Abu Dhabi. Another drone sparked a blaze in an area housing oil infrastructure in the eastern emirate of Fujairah.

“It has been a difficult few weeks hearing explosions regularly, but the Iranian attacks followed me in my last hours before I could fly back home,” a witness at Dubai airport told AFP, adding that passengers had been evacuated to a lower floor after the attack.

Explosions were also heard in Tehran on Monday as air defence systems were activated, according to an AFP journalist. Israel said it had targeted the Iranian cities of Shiraz and Tabriz.

More than two weeks into the Middle East war, Israeli military spokesman Effie Defrin said they still had “thousands of targets in Iran, and we are identifying new targets every day”.