ISTANBUL

Two people were killed and three others injured in a strike targeting the Jurf al-Nasr area in Iraq’s Babil province, the Iraqi army said Saturday.

Iraqi media reported that a missile strike hit a site belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces.

In the United Arab Emirates, the Defense Ministry said an Asian national was killed after debris fell during the interception of Iranian ballistic missiles targeting a US base south of Abu Dhabi.

The ministry said air defenses successfully intercepted a number of missiles, adding that fragments fell in a residential area, causing material damage and a fatality.

Earlier, Iraq’s Foreign Ministry said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi informed his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein that Tehran would continue defending itself and that its response would target US military bases in the region in line with Iran’s right to self-defense.

Israel launched a “preemptive” attack against Iran early Saturday under the name “Lion’s Roar,” declaring a “special and immediate” state of emergency across the country.

US President Donald Trump later said his forces launched “major combat operations” in Iran aimed at “protecting the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime.”

The attacks come as talks between Washington and Tehran over Iran’s nuclear program had been ongoing under Oman’s mediation. A new round of talks in Geneva ended on Thursday.

Last June, the US struck three Iranian nuclear sites during the 12-day Israel-Iran war.