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Why Iran is attacking its Gulf neighbours - and when they’ll fire back · The Front

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  Speaker 1: Today's biggest News From The Australian. I'm Claire Harvey with
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  Speaker 1: the Front's afternoon headlines. The Iran War is widening, with
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  Speaker 1: the British, French and German governments saying they're mobilizing military
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  Speaker 1: assets to defend their people in the Middle East as
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  Speaker 1: the crumbling Iranian regime fires on Western allies and partners
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  Speaker 1: in the region. A Royal Air Force fighter jet shot
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  Speaker 1: down an Iranian drone heading towards Katar As France and
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  Speaker 1: Germany both say they're working with the American and Israeli
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  Speaker 1: governments to halt Iran's attacks. Now it seems increasingly likely
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  Speaker 1: the Gulf States, separated from Iran by a few hundred kilometers,
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  Speaker 1: will respond militarily to Iran's weekend volley of assaults on
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  Speaker 1: its own neighborhood. In the lead up to the American
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  Speaker 1: and Israeli attack that took out Iran's Ayatola and its
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  Speaker 1: senior military and civilian leadership, it was not just Benjamin Netanyahu,
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  Speaker 1: but also reportedly Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Sulman,
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  Speaker 1: who was urging Donald Trump to attack Iran. Increasingly concerned
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  Speaker 1: by the growth in Iran's nuclear program and its repression
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  Speaker 1: of its own people. Directly across the Gulf from Iran
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  Speaker 1: are Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan,
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  Speaker 1: and Oman, all of which have been targeted by Iranian
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  Speaker 1: ballistic missiles and drones since Operation Epic Fury began over
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  Speaker 1: the weekend. That includes some of the world's busiest airports
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  Speaker 1: and expatriate cities, including Dubai, Doha, Kuwait City, and Riad,
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  Speaker 1: and it's meant an almost complete freeze on aviation traffic
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  Speaker 1: through the region and the closure of Dubai Airport. There
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  Speaker 1: are hundreds of thousands of foreigners in the region at
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  Speaker 1: any time, with estimates of one hundred and fifty thousand
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  Speaker 1: Australians presently in the Middle East. All the countries under
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  Speaker 1: attack by Iran have deep relationships with the Trump administration
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  Speaker 1: and the American military, including hosting American personnel and assets.
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  Speaker 1: The Iranians say they're not attacking these countries, only the
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  Speaker 1: American assets, but the Gulf states aren't buying it, expressing
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  Speaker 1: their outrage that Iran is endangering their people and economies.
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  Speaker 1: In Bahrain, there was a spectacular explosion at the US
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  Speaker 1: Navy's Fifth Fleet's base in Qatar, which hosts US Central
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  Speaker 1: Commands Forward headquarters at the Al Udaid base. The Defense
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  Speaker 1: Ministry says it's been able to intercept all Iran's incoming missiles.
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  Speaker 1: Just south of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates,
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  Speaker 1: the giant Al Dafra Airbase hosts the US Air Force
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  Speaker 1: and the port of jabel Ali is a critical staging
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  Speaker 1: post for American warships in the Gulf. At least one
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  Speaker 1: person's been killed in the attacks on the UAE, and
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  Speaker 1: the government has joined its neighbors in condemning the Iranian attacks. Iraq,
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  Speaker 1: a Shiaite nation just like Iran, has also been targeted,
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  Speaker 1: including around them busy northern city of air Bill, where
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  Speaker 1: American air assets and troops have been operating with the
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  Speaker 1: cooperation of this semi autonomous Kurdistan Regional government. America's base
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  Speaker 1: in the region has been attacked by Iran and also
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  Speaker 1: by an Iraqi based arm of Hebala, the Iranian backed
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  Speaker 1: militia that's centered in Lebanon. On Monday morning, Donald Trump
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  Speaker 1: released a video that's a powerful indication of his strategy.
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  Speaker 1: He wants Iranians to rise up and take over their
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  Speaker 1: own government rather than inserting an American administration.
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  Speaker 2: Last night, all over around the voices of the Iranian
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  Speaker 2: people could be heard cheering and celebrating in the streets
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  Speaker 2: when his death was announced. The entire military command is
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  Speaker 2: gone as well, and many of them want to surrender
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  Speaker 2: into saving their lives. They want immunity, They're calling by
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  Speaker 2: the thousands.
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  Speaker 1: Trump is now back at the White House after spending
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  Speaker 1: the weekend in Florida. This marks a change in the
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  Speaker 1: way American presidents conduct war. We're used to the photographs
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  Speaker 1: from the White House's Situation Room, an underground bunker where
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  Speaker 1: wars have been conducted for decades. But Trump monitored the
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  Speaker 1: strikes on Iran from his Mara A Lago resort in Florida,
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  Speaker 1: along with his Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Secretary
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  Speaker 1: of State Marco Rubio. Back at the White House in Washington,
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  Speaker 1: DC was Vice President J. D. Vance, along with Director
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  Speaker 1: of National Intelligence Telsey Gabbard and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant.
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  Speaker 1: Vance and Rubio are rivals for the Republican crown, and
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  Speaker 1: the setup has led to speculation about how those men
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  Speaker 1: are positioned in proximity to the throne. We've got a
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  Speaker 1: close look at that story live now at the Australian
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  Speaker 1: dot com dot Au.
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  Speaker 2: I call upon all Iranian patriots who yearn for freedom
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  Speaker 2: to seize this moment to be brave, be bold, be
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  Speaker 2: heroic and take back your country. America is with you.
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  Speaker 2: I made a promise to you, and I fulfilled that promise.
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  Speaker 2: The rest will be up to you, but we'll be
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  Speaker 2: there to help.
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  Speaker 1: The Australian is the only website in the world covering
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  Speaker 1: this story from abroad and right here, tailored for Australians
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  Speaker 1: who need to know what's going on, from what happens
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  Speaker 1: to your canceled flights to what it all means for
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  Speaker 1: Australia's own security outlook. Come and check us out at
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  Speaker 1: the Australian dot com dot Au