Paris (France) (AFP) - Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:

- Iran missile unit -

The Israeli military said it had attacked overnight a key production facility in Tehran used by Iran’s defence ministry to manufacture components for ballistic missiles.

Since the US-Israel war on Iran began on February 28, Israel has attacked several weapons production facilities in the Islamic republic, as well as nuclear sites.

- France condemns Houthis -

France condemned two attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Israeli targets, accusing them of escalating tension in the Middle East by entering the regional war.

A Houthi spokesman said Saturday the Iranian-backed group had fired missiles and drones towards “several vital and military sites” in Israel.

- Israel industrial zone impact -

The Israeli military said an impact at an industrial zone may have been caused by missile shrapnel, shortly after it detected a new barrage fired from Iran.

“We understand that there is a missile shrapnel impact,” the military told AFP, as Israeli TV channels showed thick black smoke billowing into the sky from the Ramat Hovav industrial zone in the Negev desert in southern Israel.

- Pakistan talks -

Foreign ministers from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey started talks on the war, with Islamabad acting as a go-between between the United States and Iran.

The four-way meeting between the Muslim nations was convened “to review the evolving regional situation and discuss issues of mutual interest”, Pakistan’s foreign ministry said in a brief statement.

- US ‘planning ground attack’ -

Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the United States was “secretly planning a ground attack” despite publicly engaging in diplomatic efforts on ending the war.

The Washington Post reported Saturday that the US is preparing for weeks-long ground operations in Iran, potentially including raids on Kharg Island and coastal sites near the Strait of Hormuz. It said US President Donald Trump has yet to approve any deployment.

- Iran threatens aircraft carrier -

Iran’s navy chief Shahram Irani said the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier would be targeted by the Islamic republic if it comes within range.

- Journalists’ funeral -

Lebanon held a funeral for three journalists killed by an Israeli strike the previous day in the south of the country.

The Israeli military said it carried out the attack to assassinate Ali Shoeib, a veteran correspondent for Hezbollah’s Al Manar TV, whom it accused, without providing evidence, of working as a Hezbollah operative.

France’s foreign minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, told broadcaster France 3: “If it is indeed confirmed that the journalists in question were deliberately targeted by the Israeli army, then this is extremely serious and a blatant violation of international law.”

- Qatari TV office hit -

Qatari news channel Al Araby said an Israeli missile hit a Tehran building housing its office in Tehran, causing damage and, according to the Iranian Red Crescent, wounding 10 people.

In a statement to AFP, the channel condemned that attack “on a civilian commercial building and affirms that endangering journalists or considering them targets runs counter to international law”.

- Bahrain shipping curfew -

Bahrain ordered a maritime curfew, from 6:00 pm until 4:00 am local time, “to safeguard the safety of seafarers and sea-goers and to enhance the security of Bahrain’s coastlines amid the blatant Iranian aggression”.

- Latin Patriarch stopped -

Israeli police stopped the Vatican’s top man in the Holy Land, Jerusalem’s Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, from celebrating Palm Sunday in the city’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

The action drew condemnation from the leaders of Italy and France, with both saying it violated the religious right to worship.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later asserted on X there was “no malicious intent” and the Catholic cardinal was blocked from entering the church “out of special concern for his safety”.

- Attacks on Iran port -

US-Israeli strikes hit the Iranian port city of Bandar Khamir near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, killing five people, Iranian state media reported. The IRNA news agency said four people were wounded.

AFP was not able to verify the toll or the site of the strike.

A series of loud explosions was also heard across the Iranian capital. The blasts were heard in northern Tehran and smoke was seen rising from impacted areas.

- Iran targets aluminium plants -

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they launched missile and drone strikes on aluminium plants in Bahrain and the UAE over the weekend.

In a statement carried by Iranian state broadcaster IRIB, the Guards said they hit an aluminium facility in the UAE and Aluminium Bahrain’s main plant, calling both sites “industries affiliated with and connected to the US military and aerospace sectors in the region”.

- Fifth Israeli soldier killed -

The Israeli army announced the death in combat of a soldier in south Lebanon, the fifth in Lebanon since Hezbollah launched new rocket attacks on Israel on March 2 and Israel responded with an air and land campaign.

- Iran threatens US universities -

The Revolutionary Guards threatened US universities in the Middle East, while saying US-Israeli strikes had destroyed two Iranian universities.

The Guards demanded a US condemnation of the bombing of universities by noon (0830 GMT) Monday.

The American University of Beirut (AUB) in response said it was moving to online teaching for the next two days.

- Two tankers pass Hormuz -

Two more Indian-flagged tankers carrying LPG passed through the Strait of Hormuz – the chokepoint in the Gulf that Iran has closed to most maritime traffic – according to India’s shipping ministry.

Two LPG carriers, BW TYR and BW ELM, carrying a combined LPG cargo of about 94,000 tonnes were sailing towards India’s coast, the ministry said in a statement.

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