Dubai, United Arab Emirates (AP) - The latest Middle East developments in tensions in the Persian Gulf region (local time):
12:25 am
Japanese leaders are visiting Iran to warn that tensions between Iran and US Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have intensified, and the news was issued a few hours after the Ethiopian-backed Hussein rebels attacked Saudi Arabian airports in Yemen, possibly triggering "accidental clashes." 26 people
Since Tehran seems to be expected to break the 2015 nuclear deal with the world's major powers, Abe's visit is the highest level of effort to reduce the crisis. The Trump administration withdrew from the agreement last year.
Abe’s success was difficult because of the Hussein rebels’ attack on the Saudi Arabia’s airport in Abkha. The attack was only the latest in the wave of rebel drones and missile attacks in the kingdom, which was in trouble for several years in Yemen.
9:40 PM
When meeting with Tehran’s most famous regional competitors, German Chancellor Merkel emphasized the common commitment to find a peaceful solution to the Iranian stalemate.
Germany was one of the signatories to a nuclear deal with Iran in 2015, which attempted to withdraw from the United States and save the agreement as Tehran became increasingly impatient. The German Foreign Minister visited Iran on Monday.
Merkel met with Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, on Wednesday. He is the de facto ruler of the Gulf Kingdom and a critic of Iran. She said that although their countries hold different opinions, "the willingness to reach a peaceful solution unites us."
In extensive negotiations with Berliner Merkel, the Crown Prince did not mention Iran in a brief statement from the reporter. The leader did not ask any questions.
9:25 PM
The Trump administration is imposing sanctions on the Iraqi branch of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
The US Treasury Department said it penalized the Southern Fortune Resources Company and two executives for Baghdad. The United States said the company and the two men are related to the Guard’s foreign wing or Quds Force.
Last month, the government designated the Guards as a foreign terrorist organization to provide illegal material support to the Guard under US law.
The new sanctions freeze any assets that the target company may have in US jurisdictions and prohibit Americans from doing business with them.
The Japanese Prime Minister’s visit to Iran is to ease the tension between Washington and Tehran.
9:05 PM
In tensions between Iran and the United States, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has called for "more patience"
During his visit to Tehran, Abe commented on President Hussein Rohani on Wednesday evening after a closed meeting.
Abe said that he and Rohani "straightforward" discussed the crisis.
The Japanese Prime Minister added: "There may be unexpected conflicts and prevent military conflicts at all costs."
Rohani said earlier that Japan hopes to continue buying Iranian oil, even though Tokyo has stopped sanctions against the United States. Abe did not acknowledge this in his remarks.
Rohani added: "Every time the economic war stops, we will see very positive developments in the region and the world."
8:40 pm
The Iranian president said that the Islamic Republic of Iran will not seek war from the United States, but if it is attacked, it will give a "tough reaction."
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stood by his side and Rohani commented on Wednesday night.
Rohani also said that Japan hopes to continue to buy Iranian oil, although Tokyo has stopped sanctions against the United States.
Rohani added: "Every time the economic war stops, we will see very positive developments in the region and the world."
The Japanese leader is carrying out a mission in Tehran to quell the tension between the United States and Iran.
After the Trump administration decided to withdraw from the landmark 2015 nuclear deal a year ago, it imposed severe sanctions on Iran again. The United States recently deployed an aircraft carrier and B-52 bomber to the Persian Gulf.
8:25 pm
Yemeni officials say the Saudi-led coalition has launched an airstrike against the Huhi rebel stronghold in the north of the country.
They said that the strike attacked the target of the Bachim area in Sa'ada governorate. These officials did not want to be named because they were not authorized to provide briefings to the media.
Iranian allied insurgents fired cruise missiles at the Saudi Arabian airport, injuring 26 people, after several weeks of air strikes.
The Al-Masirah satellite news channel related to the rebellion claimed that the Saudi-led forces also bombed civilian areas in another nearby area.
Since March 2015, Saudi Arabia has led a military alliance to support Yemen’s internationally recognized government and to fight the Houthi rebels.
Ahmen al-Haj in Saana, Yemen
5:05 PM
The Iranian president has officially welcomed Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
On Wednesday afternoon, Hasan Rohani made a historic visit to the Sadabad Palace in Tehran.
An honor guard on horseback holding the Iranian and Japanese flags escorted Abe’s car.
The Japanese leader is carrying out a mission in Tehran to quell the tension between the United States and Iran.
After the Trump administration decided to withdraw from the landmark 2015 nuclear deal a year ago, it imposed severe sanctions on Iran again. The United States recently deployed an aircraft carrier and B-52 bomber to the Persian Gulf.
Abe also plans to meet with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the highest leader of the Islamic Republic, during his two-day visit.
4:40 PM
Iran’s semi-official news agency reported that dozens of hard-line students gathered outside the Japanese Prime Minister’s plane outside Tehran’s international airport to protest Abe’s efforts to quell tensions between Iran and the United States.
Fars News reported on Wednesday that the protesters said that "the Japanese Prime Minister’s efforts to mediate between Iran and the United States are useless. If this is the goal of the visit, it will not be successful."
The students held a slogan written in Persian and Japanese, ridiculing Abe as "a Japanese representative or American ambassador."
A tough newspaper also criticized Abe’s visit, printing an image of a nuclear explosion mushroom cloud on his front page: “How can you trust the war criminal, Mr. Abe?” This seems to mean the end of the Second World War in the United States. At the time, he dropped an atomic bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
This is the first visit of the Japanese Prime Minister since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
4:15 PM
Egypt stated that Saudi Arabia stood in Saudi Arabia after the Hussein rebels in Yemen attacked the arrival hall of the Saudi airport.
A few hours after the attack on Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry said that Egypt called for an immediate end to all attacks on Saudi territory and would "disregard any attempt against the country."
The Iranian allied Hussein rebels claimed responsibility for the attack on Wednesday, calling them to launch cruise missiles at the Abkha airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia in response to the country’s war in Yemen.
Egypt supports most of the Arab Leagues led by Saudi Arabia, which have been fighting for Hussein in Yemen since 2015. Riyadh accused the Iranian armed insurgents, and Tehran denied this.
4 pm.
Saudi Arabia’s ally and neighboring country Bahrain said it strongly condemned 26 people injured by Yemeni insurgents attacking the arrival hall of Saudi Airport.
Bahrain says this is a terrorism and cowardly crime against innocent civilians.
The Iranian allied Huxi rebels claimed responsibility for the attack on Wednesday, saying they had launched a cruise missile at the Abkha airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia in response to the country’s war in Yemen.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bahrain expressed support for the "brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia" and affirmed "the need to adopt a determined international stance against Iran to prevent it from supporting these frequent terrorist acts."
The State of Bahrain is home to the 5th Fleet of the US Navy. It has also accused Iran of arming and training the Shiite Bahrain armed groups denied by Iran.
3:25 PM
Shinzo Abe has arrived in Tehran to ease tensions between Iran and the United States and become the first Japanese prime minister to visit since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
On Wednesday afternoon, Abe’s flight landed at Meralbad International Airport in Tehran.
His visit was seen as an effort to mediate in the context of an escalation of tension in the Persian Gulf region. Just before he arrived, Saudi Arabia said that Iranian-backed Hussein rebels in Yemen attacked an airport in the country, injuring 26 people.
Husis said they fired a cruise missile at the airport in Abha.
Although there were no deaths, this was the most injured civilian in Saudi Arabia due to attacks by insurgents.
Tensions between Tehran and Washington have intensified, leading to President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and the world’s powers a year ago.
3 pm
The Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the special envoy of Amman is discussing ways to ease tensions between the United States and Iraq in Baghdad.
The two-day visit by Oman Foreign Minister Yusuf Allawi was conducted in the context of high-risk diplomatic activities aimed at easing tensions between Washington and Tehran. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to be held in Tehran later on Wednesday.
Spokesperson Ahmad Sahhaf told the Associated Press that bin Alawi will discuss "solutions" to address regional challenges and added that Iraq has become a key country because of its "strategic relationship with Iran and the United States."
The Sultanate of Oman often plays a role in mediating regional crises. The visit coincides with a series of diplomacy aimed at easing tensions between the United States and Iran after US President Donald Trump withdraws the nuclear agreement between the United States and Tehran and the world powers.
2:20 pm
The Iranian president said that the pressure on the United States is gradually weakening - this is the latest provocative statement by Hassan Rohani in tensions in the Persian Gulf region.
Rohani delivered a speech at the cabinet meeting on Wednesday, a few hours before Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived in Tehran.
Iranian state television quoted Rohani as saying, "The pressure on the Iranian state has reached its maximum. From today, threats and pressures will be lost and will be exhausted."
Rohani refers to the withdrawal of the United States from the nuclear agreement between Iran and the world powers a year ago. This is the root cause of the current tension. The United States recently deployed an aircraft carrier and B-52 bomber in the area, and tensions have intensified.
Abe is expected to try to save more and more nuclear agreements and ease tensions between Iran and the United States.
1:40 pm
A few hours before Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s historic visit to the Islamic Republic of Iran began, the Japanese Foreign Minister met with his Iranian foreign minister in Tehran.
The meeting between Japan’s Kono Taro and Iran’s Mohamed Jawad Zarif on Wednesday focused on Tehran’s nuclear agreements with world powers, bilateral issues and regional tensions.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has visited Iran since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, is seeking to ease tensions between Iran and the United States.
Last year, the United States withdrew from the nuclear deal and re-implemented sanctions against Iran, targeting the oil sector. The United States recently deployed an aircraft carrier and B-52 bomber to the Persian Gulf because it saw an unexplained threat from Tehran.
1:05 pm
The Yemeni coalition led by Saudi Arabia said that the Hussein rebels in Yemen had attacked the airport in the southwestern town of Abha, injuring 26 people.
At the time of the attack on Wednesday, the Iranian Prime Minister is expected to mediate between Iran and Tehran as tensions in the Polish Bay region continue to escalate.
Union spokesman Turki al-Malki said a shell attack on the arrival gate of the Abkha airport near the Yemen border in the south of the country on Wednesday. This is based on the Al-Ekhabriya news channel of the Saudi Arabian State.
He said the attack resulted in 26 injuries, including three women and two children. Eight of them were hospitalized and the rest were slightly injured. Houthis earlier Wednesday claimed that they had launched a cruise missile at the Abuha airport.
Since 2015, Saudi Arabia has been fighting the Yemeni Iranian allies Hu Xi. The kingdom accused Iran of armed insurgents, and Iran denied this.
10:45 am
A tough Iranian newspaper printed a front-page image showing the mushroom cloud of a nuclear explosion, aimed at criticizing the Japanese Prime Minister’s close relationship with the United States before his historic visit to Iran.
The daily Farheekhtegan, or Educated, has a big headline in both English and Persian. He said, "How can you trust the war criminals, Mr. Abe?"
This photo seems to refer to the United States dropping atomic bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of the Second World War.
Iran’s tough news media immediately received a front page from a paper published by students at Islamic Assad University, which has campuses across the country.
On Wednesday, Abe will become the first Japanese prime minister to visit Iran since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
