‘Confront the enemy’: Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei issues new directive after meeting military head

Iran’s head of the military central command, Ali Abdollahi, met with the country’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, Iranian state media reported on Sunday (May 10). The report added that he issued fresh directions ordering the continuation of the operation against the US. This comes days after the Islamic Republic’s President Masoud Pezeshkian met with Mojtaba, who has not made any public appearance since the war began in West Asia.

Khamenei issued “new directives and guidance for the continuation of operations to confront the enemy” state TV said. It did not specify when or where the meeting took place.

Several theories and rumours have circulated over his health and condition since he was named supreme leader, with many reports suggesting that he had been wounded in the US-Israeli strikes that killed his father.

UAE, Kuwait report drone attacks

Meanwhile, tensions were reignited in the Gulf on Sunday (May 10) with Iran launching fresh drone attacks across the region. While cargo vessels were targeted in the Strait of Hormuz, the UAE and Kuwait also reported drone attacks. This comes after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps threatened to target US sites in the Middle East and “enemy ships” if its tankers came under fire.

The United Arab Emirates on Sunday said that it intercepted two Iranian drones. “UAE air defence systems successfully engaged two UAVs launched from Iran,” the defence ministry said in a statement on X.

In a statement, Kuwait military reported a drone attack against the country at dawn. “At dawn today, the armed forces detected a number of hostile drones in Kuwaiti airspace, which were dealt with in accordance with established procedures,” the general staff of the army said on X, without specifying the origin of the drones.

Vessel targeted in Gulf waters

A commercial vessel was struck in Gulf waters on Sunday. The Qatari Defence Ministry said that a cargo ship was targeted by a drone in the country’s territorial waters. The incident resulted in a fire on board the vessel. “A commercial cargo vessel in the country’s territorial waters – northeast of Mesaieed Port – coming from Abu Dhabi, was targeted by a drone on Sunday morning. The incident resulted in a limited fire on board the vessel, with no reported injuries,” the Qatari ministry said on X.

Earlier, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said that a bulk carrier was hit 23 nautical miles northeast of Doha by an “unknown projectile”.

While there was no immediate claim of responsibility, Iran’s Fars news agency reported, citing a source, that “the bulk carrier that was struck near the coast of Qatar was sailing under the US flag and belonged to the United States.”

Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing conflicts in West Asia involving Israel, Iran, the US, Gulf nations and non-state actors like Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthis, Islamic State, and others. Claims and counterclaims, disinformation and misinformation are being made online and offline. Given this context, WION cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, social media posts, photos and videos.