Despite apologies, Tehran launches new attacks on Gulf states

The US and Israel continue striking Iran and Tehran launches new attacks on Gulf states. Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian apologised to neighbouring countries and insisted Iran would not target them unless attacked first. We hear from Iran’s Ambassador to the UK, Seyed Ali Mousavi.

We discuss the Gulf states's response with Allison Minor, former envoy for Yemen and director for Arabian Peninsula affairs at the National Security Council in the US, now the director of the Project for Middle East Integration with the Atlantic Council.

And for more than 50 years, singer Annie Caldwell kept faith in her soul and gospel music despite limited success. Now she is gaining international acclaim with her family band, Annie and the Caldwells. Their new album, Can’t Lose My (Soul) - recorded in a Mississippi church - is out on David Byrne’s label, with Sir Elton John among the fans.

Joining our presenter Julian Worricker to discuss these stories are Rana Rahimpour, an Iranian-British journalist, also a psychedelic therapist and counsellor and Anand Menon, professor of European politics and foreign affairs at King's College London and director of the thinktank the UK in a Changing Europe.

(Photo: Smoke rises following an explosion, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Tehran, Iran, 8 March, 2026. Credit: Reuters)