JERUSALEM//KUWAIT CITY/ABU DHABI/WASHINGTON ― Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that toppling Iran's government is now a central Israeli objective and "within reach," as regional tensions escalate.

"I am convinced of our ability to remove this threat once and for all. That means toppling this regime," Netanyahu told Israel's military general staff at a Jewish New Year event in Tel Aviv. "This is the central mission still ahead of us, but it is close. It is not impossible. It is within reach."

He said Iran's leadership was "weaker than ever" and "fighting for its life," warning Israel's enemies: "Don't mess with us."

Israel threatens to hit Iran's energy infrastructure

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened on Thursday to strike Iran's military and civilian infrastructure, including energy facilities, if Tehran attacks Israel.

In a video statement, Katz said that economic pressure and fears of unrest could push the Iranian leadership towards "desperate measures."

"An Iranian attack on Israel will free Israel from any existing restraint in attacking Iran," he said. "We will strike all national military and civilian infrastructure in Iran -- including energy infrastructure."

Katz said Israel was prepared "in defense and attack for any possibility" and threatened to "return Iran deep into the Stone Age and darkness."

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His remarks came amid heightened regional tensions. Iran had reportedly warned Washington last month that it would respond forcefully if Israel launched an offensive against the Ali al-Taher Ridge in southern Lebanon, according to media reports.

The ridge, located about 15 km from the Israeli border, has emerged as a key flashpoint in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict. Israel believes Hezbollah has underground military facilities in the area and has repeatedly carried out strikes on and around the ridge. 

Iran strikes US bases in UAE, Kuwait

Iran's Army said Thursday that its forces have struck US military bases in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Kuwait with missiles and kamikaze drones earlier in the day.

In a statement on its website, the army said the strikes were in revenge for the Iranian military personnel and civilians killed in recent US attacks against Iran.

It added that its forces targeted the US Army's satellite communications systems, equipment warehouses, and a fighter aircraft hangar at the Ahmad al-Jaber Air Base in Kuwait, causing damage to the communications systems and the hangar.

The army said it also struck the US troops and radar systems at the Al Minhad Air Base in the UAE, stressing that its forces' responses to any attack by the US Army will be "harsh and devastating, and will continue until achieving the ultimate victory and punishing the aggressor."

Media: 6 Iranian army members killed

Six members of the Iranian Army's Navy were killed in the US strikes against Iran on Tuesday night, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported on Thursday.

The report said the victims included three pilots, identifying them as Mojtaba Baqeri, Hamed Okati and Hossein Mahdavian.

In a Thursday post on X, Hossein Kermanpour, head of the Iranian Health Ministry's public relations, said 18 people were killed and 142 others injured in the US attack against Iran between Aug 30 and Sept 2.

Vance: US probing Iran wedding party strike

US Vice-President JD Vance said Thursday the US is probing a strike that Tehran says hit a wedding party in southern Iran, renewing scrutiny over civilian casualties from US military operations in the Middle East country.

"We're investigating it because obviously we care. We want to know," Vance said at a White House press briefing.

"If we do make mistakes, again, this is a big difference between us and Iran, when our military makes mistakes, they learn from them to try to get better from them," he added.

US Central Command spokesperson Tim Hawkins said Wednesday the US military was looking into reports of the wedding party strike.

The Iranian media reported Wednesday that the US strike on Tuesday night hit a wedding party in Sirik County in Hormozgan province, killing at least four people and injuring 68 others.

According to the reports, a US missile struck a home where dozens of people had gathered for the wedding of a fisherman's daughter.