Iran has launched missile attacks on Tel Aviv following threats by US President Donald Trump to bomb the country "back to the Stone Ages". The strikes came after more than a month of escalating conflict between Iran and the US-Israel alliance, which has spread across the Middle East and disrupted global markets. Trump, in a 19-minute televised address, declared the US was close to achieving its objectives but warned of intensified attacks unless Iran agreed to negotiations. "Over the next two to three weeks, we are going to bring them back to the Stone Ages, where they belong," Trump said.
Iran's Khatam Al-Anbiya military command responded with missile fire, prompting Israeli air defences to intercept incoming projectiles. Four people were lightly injured in the Tel Aviv area, according to police. State media broadcast a statement vowing "more crushing, broader, and more destructive actions" against the US and Israel. "This war will continue until your humiliation, disgrace, permanent and certain regret, and surrender," the Iranian military said. The attacks coincided with Passover celebrations, forcing some Jewish Israelis to observe the holiday in underground shelters. Jeffrey, a Tel Aviv resident, described dining in a bunker as "not my first choice" but a necessary precaution.
Iran dismissed US ceasefire overtures as "maximalist and irrational", with foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei confirming indirect messages had come via intermediaries like Pakistan, but no direct talks. Trump has signaled openness to negotiations with Iran's new leadership, which he called "less radical and much more reasonable". He also threatened to target Iran's electric infrastructure if no deal was reached. In Tehran, mourners at the funeral of a slain Revolutionary Guards commander chanted defiance. "We will resist until the end," said 57-year-old Moussa Nowruzi. Hezbollah fighters launched drones and rockets into northern Israel, following the Israeli killing of a senior Hezbollah commander in Beirut, which killed seven people. Lebanese authorities report over 1,300 deaths since hostilities began on March 2.
Gulf states including the UAE activated air defences against drone and missile threats. Trump pledged US protection for regional allies including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain. The Strait of Hormuz remains a flashpoint, with Iran's Revolutionary Guards vowing to block it to enemy vessels while the US demands its reopening as a ceasefire condition. A 35-nation summit led by Britain aims to address the crisis. The World Bank's Paschal Donohoe said the conflict fuels volatility, warning of rising inflation, job losses and food insecurity globally. In Thimphu, resident Karma Kalden, 40, blamed external factors like the Middle East war and Indian price hikes, not local governance, for economic strain.
Trump's "Stone Ages" rhetoric didn't just escalate a conflict—it handed Iran a propaganda victory by confirming its narrative of Western aggression. When a US president openly threatens to erase a nation's modernity, it doesn't project strength; it fuels the very resistance he claims to want to crush. For Nigerians already grappling with soaring fuel prices, this war's ripple effects mean harder economic choices, not abstract geopolitics. The idea that distant leaders can bluster their way to peace while ordinary people absorb the cost is not new—it's just rarely this visible.
