Iran fires missiles at Israel and Kuwait

2026-03-24 19:29:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Iran carried out attacks against Israel and Kuwait on Tuesday, about a day after United States President Donald Trump announced "very good and fruitful" talks towards an agreement to end the war with Tehran, which has now entered its fourth week.

At least six people were injured in attacks at four locations in the city of Tel Aviv on Tuesday. Local officials said the damage was caused by debris from downed Iranian missiles and drones.

Meanwhile, Kuwait said its air defenses responded to "missile and drone attacks" and that the reported explosion noises were caused by intercepting and neutralizing these threats.

Tehran launched missiles and drones at targets across the Middle East, amid conflicting reports about whether talks were underway to reach a ceasefire in the fighting that began with US and Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28.

Trump said Monday that weekend talks with a "senior" Iranian official were significant enough to delay by five days the possibility of attacks on Iranian power plants if the latter did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has repeatedly denied that there have been direct talks, although some media reports, citing anonymous sources, said that intermediaries had been involved in passing messages between the two sides.

Kenneth Pollack, a former White House and CIA analyst now at the Middle East Institute (MEI), said there is little evidence to support claims of imminent diplomatic progress, despite efforts by several countries to broker talks.

"As I understand it, the Iranians have responded with very strong preconditions: that the US pay reparations and withdraw all forces from the region, things that are unacceptable to Trump," Pollack told Radio Free Europe in Washington.

At least 175 people injured in Iranian attacks on Israel

"Trump's statements seem to have more to do with calming the markets than with real and imminent progress," he stressed.

The outbreak of the conflict has caused oil prices to rise sharply, especially since shipping has almost completely stopped in the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route through which about a fifth of the world's oil and gas passes.

The conflict has shaken energy and financial markets, raised fuel costs, fueled fears of global inflation and destabilized the Middle East and the West, raising concerns that the fighting could spread to encompass the entire region.

The threat of attacks on power grids in the Persian Gulf has raised fears of massive disruptions to drinking water desalination and further rattled oil markets.

Trump's comments about the talks helped send Brent crude prices down about 10 percent on Monday, although attacks across the Middle East on Tuesday sent them back up about 3 percent to more than $102.84 a barrel. /REL