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World leaders, who had been urging Israel and Iran to de-escalate tensions, once again implored both countries to avoid any taking any further action that could set off a wider war in the Middle East while Israel is fighting Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, both allies of Iran.<\/p>\n
\u201cSignificant escalation is not in anyone\u2019s interests,\u201d Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain, whose military participated in defending Israel against Iran\u2019s missile-and-drone attack last weekend, told reporters on Friday. \u201cWhat we want to see is calm heads prevail across the region.\u201d<\/p>\n
Early Saturday, there was an air attack on a base used by an Iranian-backed armed group<\/a>, Harakat al Nujaba, in Iraq\u2019s Babylon Province, according to an arm of Iraq\u2019s security forces, the Popular Mobilization Forces. A hospital said at least three people were wounded in the explosion there.<\/p>\n There was no claim of responsibility for the strike on Saturday at the base used by Harakat al Nujaba, which is part of Iraq\u2019s security apparatus. The U.S. military, which has carried out strikes on Iranian-backed armed groups in Iraq in the past, said in a statement<\/a> that it had not participated in any strikes in Iraq.<\/p>\n Some analysts said that the small scale of Israel\u2019s attack on Friday in Iran could give both countries a reason to refrain from further military strikes.<\/p>\n \u201cIt appears we are out of the danger zone and, because Israel\u2019s strike was limited, it has allowed both countries to back down for now,\u201d said Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House, a British research institution.<\/p>\n The area around Isfahan has several Iranian military sites, including nuclear facilities that Israel has targeted in the past.<\/a> But Iranian news agencies reported that none of the nuclear facilities had been hit and appeared keen to show that life was \u201cback to normal\u201d<\/a> in the city known for its turquoise and purple tiled mosques<\/a>, picturesque arched bridges and Grand Bazaar. Iran\u2019s official news agency, IRNA, published a gallery<\/a> of photos of people out and about in Isfahan \u2014 among them, women strolling with shopping bags and a child kicking a soccer ball.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n