Blast near US embassy in Oslo as Middle East conflict intensifies

A loud explosion was heard near the Embassy of the United States in Oslo early Sunday, according to reports citing Norwegian police.

Police in Oslo said it was not immediately clear what caused the blast or who was responsible. “The police are in a dialogue with the embassy and there are no reports of any injured persons,” the department said in a statement.

The incident came a day after the Embassy of the United States in Baghdad in Baghdad was hit by Katyusha rockets, according to a report citing security sources.

Meanwhile, explosions were also reported in Tehran and Jerusalem as Israel said it had launched fresh strikes targeting Iranian infrastructure.

Iran strikes Israeli refinery

Iranian state media reported Sunday that the country targeted Israel’s Haifa Oil Refinery with Khyber-Shakan missiles, describing it as a major energy facility.

The claim came after Iran said that joint strikes by the United States and Israel hit an oil depot in southern Tehran on Saturday. The official Islamic Republic News Agency reported that the depot was attacked, though another outlet said nearby refinery facilities were not damaged.

Trump claims Iran has ‘lost’

US President Donald Trump said Saturday that Iran had effectively “lost” the conflict and had “surrendered to Middle East neighbours” and apologised.

His remarks came hours after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signalled possible de-escalation and apologised to neighbouring countries for recent attacks.

Pezeshkian said Iran’s armed forces had been instructed “not to attack or launch missiles at neighbouring countries unless attacked from there,” describing regional states as Iran’s “brothers”.

However, he also rejected US calls for an unconditional surrender, calling such demands “a dream that they should take to their grave.”

Israel launches new strikes on Tehran

Israel said it carried out a “broad-scale wave of strikes” targeting government facilities in Tehran early Saturday. Iranian state television reported explosions in western parts of the capital, though details about damage or casualties were not immediately available.

Israeli forces also conducted airstrikes in Lebanon, including in Beirut’s southern suburbs and the eastern city of Baalbek, areas where the Iran-backed Hezbollah group has strong influence.

Lebanon’s health ministry said three people were killed and 16 injured in Israeli strikes near a mountain town in eastern Lebanon.

Regional attacks widen

The conflict has triggered attacks across the region. Saudi Arabia said it intercepted a ballistic missile fired toward Prince Sultan Air Base near Riyadh, which hosts US troops.

Saudi authorities also reported destroying four drones heading toward the Shaybah oil field in the country’s Empty Quarter desert.

In Iraq, at least two drones struck energy infrastructure and facilities used by US contractors in Basra Province, sparking fires at sites linked to American energy firms.

Officials say the conflict has already caused heavy casualties, with more than 1,200 people reported killed in Iran, over 200 in Lebanon and about a dozen in Israel, while six US troops have also died.

US increases military pressure

The US military has intensified operations in the region. United States Central Command said more than 3,000 Iranian targets — including missile sites, naval assets and facilities linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — have been struck in the past week.

Washington has also moved to bolster Israel’s capabilities. The United States Department of State approved a $151 million arms sale to Israel, including thousands of one-thousand-pound bombs, citing an emergency requirement.

Trump has ruled out negotiations with Tehran, saying the conflict would end only with Iran’s “unconditional surrender”.

Global concern grows

The war has drawn reactions from major global players. Intelligence officials have suggested that Russia may have provided Iran with information that could help target US military assets in the region.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged an immediate ceasefire in a call with Pezeshkian, according to the Kremlin.

António Guterres, secretary-general of the United Nations, warned that the conflict risks spiralling “beyond anyone’s control” and called for urgent diplomatic negotiations.

Assassination plot linked to Iran

In a separate development in the United States, a Pakistani man with alleged links to Iran was convicted of plotting to assassinate Trump and other American leaders.

Asif Raza Merchant, 48, was found guilty by a federal jury in Brooklyn of murder-for-hire and attempting to commit terrorism across national borders.

Prosecutors said he had been sent by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to recruit hitmen and target prominent US figures, including Trump, former president Joe Biden and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley.