Iran had earlier qualified for the tournament and is scheduled to face New Zealand national football team, Belgium national football team and Egypt national football team during the group stage. However, Iran’s football federation president, Mehdi Taj, recently suggested that the current security situation could affect the country’s plans to participate. “What is certain is that after this attack, we cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope,” Taj told the Iranian sports outlet Varzesh3 following the strikes. The tournament, scheduled for 2026, will be the first World Cup hosted by three countries and is expected to attract millions of fans from around the world.

 

Israel says it has launched its latest round of attacks on Tehran, with the country’s defense minister vowing to “crush” the Iranian regime’s capabilities.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez described the ongoing U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran as a “disaster.”

Iranians are preparing a three-day funeral ceremony to mark the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who was killed in the opening salvos of U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

Iran continued its drone and missile strikes on neighboring countries for a fifth day. Gulf nations have sought to stress that their weapon stockpiles remain sufficient.

Executives from U.S. defense contractors Lockheed Martin and RTX, the parent company of Raytheon, are expected to meet White House officials Friday to discuss accelerating weapons production.

The meeting comes against the backdrop of President Donald Trump’s remarks Tuesday that the U.S. had a “virtually unlimited supply” of “medium and upper medium grade” weapons. The United Arab Emirates and Qatar also denied reports that their inventories of Patriot interceptor missiles were running low.

As Tehran continues its attacks in the region, Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has reportedly emerged as a leading candidate in the race to become Iran’s next supreme leader, after his father was killed in U.S.-Israeli strikes over the weekend.

Meanwhile, air travel across the Middle East remains severely disrupted, with Qatar Airways, Emirates and Etihad all saying their operations continue to be suspended due to safety concerns.