US-Iran war updates: Hegseth refuses to confirm war’s end as airstrikes hit oil refineries across Middle East

A Thai worker has been killed by cluster munitions in central Israel on Wednesday evening, accorfing to Thailand Labor Minister Treenuch Thienthong.

30-year-old Chaiwait Waewnil was registered as a worker on a potato farm in Adanim which is located in central Israel.

AP is reporting his body will go through an autopsy process conducted by authorities, before being returned to his family in Thailand.

AP is reporting a second oil refinery in Kuwait has been set alight after it was hit by airstrikes on Thursday.

The Mina Abdullah refinery, which is located on the country’s east coast, is just 11 kilometres away from the Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery which was struck earlier on Thursday.

The Mina Abdullah refinery is owned by the Kuwait National Petroleum Company.

“Emergency & rapid response teams were immediately deployed to contain and control the fire in accordance with the highest approved safety standards,” a report from the Kuwait News Agency said.

The Iranian Red Crescent Society has posted footage of a woman being pulled from the rubble of a residential building which had been hit by an airstrike in Tehran.

According to aid workers, the woman is heard asking if her child, a little girl, was still alive as she was uncovered from the building’s ruins.

“We saved them… (your daughter) was in that room in the corner. We brought everyone downstairs safely,” an aid worker is heard telling the woman.

“We’re going to get you out. Try to stand, and we’ll pull you out.”

Reuters is reporting the Samref refinery, owned by Saudi Aramco, was hit by Iranian aerial strikes on Thursday.

The refinery, which is located in the Yanbu port in the Red Sea, is the only outlet for Gulf Arab crude oil as the Strait of Hormuz remains untenable for a majority of shipping, according to The Guardian.

It is believed the refinery suffered “minimal impact” from the strikes.

The Tasnim news agency is reporting a US-Israeli drone has struck a residential area in Dorud county in Iran’s west, Al Jazeera is reporting.

12 people were killed by the attack, and 116 injured, according to reports from a local official.

The Kuwait News Agency is reporting an oil refinery owned by the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation has been struck by a drone attack, causing a fire at the facility on Thursday morning.

The Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery, which is located on the country’s east coast, was subject to a “limited” fire which has since been contained.

No injuries were reported from the drone attack or fire.

Arab nations have issued a joint statement in response to Iran’s attacks following a meeting of foreign affairs ministers in Riyadh.

Representatives included Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, Azerbaijan, Jordan, Turkiye, and other nations in the Gulf region.

The statement condemned Iran’s “deliberate attacks”, which the ministers say have targeted residential areas, civilian infrastructure and diplomatic

The nations have also stressed their right to self-defence in accordance with UN Article 51.

The statement called on Iran to “immediately halt its attacks” and respect international law and “the principles of good neighbourliness”.

Iran was also urged to refrain from “threats or measures” aimed at closing the Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf corridor responsible for global fuel transport.

The statement additionally took aim at Israel, with the ministers condemning Israel’s “aggression” against Lebanon and accusing the nation of “expansionist policies in the region”.

Iran has executed three men convicted of killing two police officers during nationwide anti-government protests earlier this year, Reuters reports.

The state judiciary said the men were found guilty of murder and ‘Moharebeh’ (waging war against God), including carrying out acts it said were in favour of Israel and the United States.

The anti-government actions started as protests against the economy and later grew into nationwide protests against the Iranian government.

Opposition leader Angus Taylor said it was imperative that fuel supplies got to critical sectors like trucking and agriculture as well as regional areas who were already reporting that local service stations had dried up.

He accused Mr Bowen of being too late to act on the issue after the war broke out on February 28 after the US and Israel led joint strikes on Iran.

The military action had led to the closure to Western vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, an about 30km stretch of water where more than 20 per cent of the world’s oil passes through.

“This is a minister who has been asleep at the wheel,” he said.

“We’re hearing about businesses, farmers and truckies. These businesses are the engine room of our economy. They’re deeply concerned about shortages.

“Farmers have got to get their plants off and plants in. Short windows, you can’t miss those windows.

“The government’s not on top of it.”

WA Premier Roger Cook announced Wheatbelt Development Commission chief executive Rob Cossart as a “Fuel Security State Controller” on Thursday.

Mr Cossart will lead a State Management Team made up of public sector leaders across key government agencies.

Mr Cook said he would be “laser focused” on addressing fuel security challenges and working closely with the Commonwealth in the State’s best interest.

“I thank the Prime Minister for convening the meeting of National Cabinet, which was an important step forward to drive national co-ordination between the Commonwealth and the states and territories on fuel security and fuel supply,” Mr Cook said.