Xinhua Middle East news summary at 2200 GMT, March 1

TEHRAN -- Iran's three-member interim leadership council has been formed and begun its operations, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Sunday in a video message carried by state-run IRIB TV.

He made the announcement hours after Iran confirmed the death of the country's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Saturday's U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran. (Iran-Interim Leadership Council-Operations)

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JERUSALEM -- Israeli military chief Eyal Zamir said late Sunday that the joint U.S.-Israeli operation against Iran would continue for "many more days" following an initial strike targeting Iran's top leadership.

"We are less than 48 hours into the operation, and many more days of combat lie ahead," Zamir said at Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv, where he approved plans to extend the offensive. (Israel-Iran-Attacks)

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TEHRAN -- Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Sunday it struck three oil tankers belonging to the United States and Britain in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz with missiles, setting the vessels on fire.

In a statement on its official outlet Sepah News, the IRGC said it also targeted U.S. military installations in Kuwait and Bahrain. It said strikes on Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait rendered it completely out of service, destroyed three naval infrastructure structures at the Mohammed Al-Ahmad naval base, and hit a U.S. naval command and backup center in Bahrain. (Iran-Oil Tankers-Attack)

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TEHRAN -- Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it destroyed a U.S. missile defense radar in the United Arab Emirates and struck a U.S. naval vessel in the Indian Ocean, state-affiliated Tasnim news agency reported Monday.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said a precision missile destroyed a radar of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) in Al-Ruwais, Tasnim reported, citing the IRGC. (Iran-UAE-THAAD)

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ABU DHABI -- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced Sunday the closure of its embassy in Tehran, and the withdrawal of its ambassador and all members of its diplomatic mission from Iran.

The UAE's foreign ministry said in a statement that the decision was made in the wake of Iranian missile attacks targeting its territory, which it said have affected civilian areas. (UAE-Iran-Embassy closure) Enditem