New Orleans under Hurricane Watch from Tropical Storm Sally

A wave crashes as a man stands on a jetty near Orleans Harbor in Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans, Sunday, June 7, 2020, as Tropical Storm Cristobal approaches the Louisiana Coast. (AP)
A wave crashes as a man stands on a jetty near Orleans Harbor in Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans, Sunday, June 7, 2020, as Tropical Storm Cristobal approaches the Louisiana Coast. (AP)
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New Orleans under Hurricane Watch from Tropical Storm Sally

A wave crashes as a man stands on a jetty near Orleans Harbor in Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans, Sunday, June 7, 2020, as Tropical Storm Cristobal approaches the Louisiana Coast. (AP)
A wave crashes as a man stands on a jetty near Orleans Harbor in Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans, Sunday, June 7, 2020, as Tropical Storm Cristobal approaches the Louisiana Coast. (AP)

Tropical Storm Sally formed Saturday off south Florida amid forecasts it would grow into a hurricane capable of striking the US Gulf Coast in coming days with high winds and a life-threatening storm surge.

The earliest 18th-named storm in an Atlantic tropical season, Sally quickly became better organized within hours of forming and was expected to become a hurricane by late Monday, the National Hurricane Center said. New Orleans and surrounding areas, along with a stretch of the coast from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida line, were placed under a hurricane watch.

Late Saturday, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm, and officials in the New Orleans area issued a mandatory evacuation order for areas outside of levee protection, including Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine, and Irish Bayou. The evacuation order was set to go into effect at 6 pm Sunday.

The National Hurricane Center said dangerous storm surge was possible along the northern Gulf Coast starting on Monday and added hurricane conditions could set in there early Tuesday.

The Miami-based hurricane tracking center said Sally spent Saturday afternoon spreading gusty winds and heavy rains around south Florida.

Sally's maximum sustained winds were clocked at 40 mph (65 kph) with higher gusts.

By late Saturday, Sally was centered about 70 miles (110 kilometers) southwest of Port Charlotte, Florida, and about 425 miles (685 kilometers) east-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. The storm was crawling into the Gulf at a pace of 8 mph (13 kph), heading in a west-northwest direction.

Sally became the earliest 18th-named storm on record in an Atlantic hurricane season, besting Stan when it formed on Oct. 2, 2005, said Colorado State hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach.

A tropical storm watch has been extended westward from the Okaloosa/Walton County line in Florida to the Alabama-Florida line.

A storm surge watch, meanwhile, was in effect from the mouth of the Mississippi River to the Alabama-Florida line, including Lake Pontchartrain, Lake Maurepas, Lake Borgne in Louisiana — and Mobile Bay in Alabama.

Elsewhere, a strengthening Paulette became a hurricane late Saturday as it bore down on Bermuda, threatening to bring dangerous storm surge, coastal flooding and high winds to the territory in the coming days.

Paulette had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kph) as of 11 p.m. Saturday, and was about 385 miles (615 kilometers) southeast of Bermuda. Forecasters warned Paulette was expected to become a dangerous hurricane when it nears or crosses over Bermuda on Monday. Life-threatening surf and rip current conditions, as well as heavy rainfall totals, are likely, forecasters said. Residents of the island were urged to rush final storm preparations to a conclusion.

Tropical Storm Rene weakened in recent hours and was reclassified as a tropical depression. It had maximum sustained winds of 35 mph (55 kph) and was about 1,200 miles (1,935 kilometers) east-northeast of the Northern Leeward Islands. Forecasters said Rene wasn’t expected to strengthen and did not pose any threat to land.



Revolutionary Guards: Israel’s Skies Are Open to Iran

IRGC Brig. Gen. Ali Mohammad Naeini. (Tasnim)
IRGC Brig. Gen. Ali Mohammad Naeini. (Tasnim)
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Revolutionary Guards: Israel’s Skies Are Open to Iran

IRGC Brig. Gen. Ali Mohammad Naeini. (Tasnim)
IRGC Brig. Gen. Ali Mohammad Naeini. (Tasnim)

The Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said Israel’s skies are "open and unprotected" against Iran, with "no obstacles" to launching new operations at the right time.

The statement denied any damage to Iran’s air defenses or missile production following an Israeli strike in late October.

IRGC Brig. Gen. Ali Mohammad Naeini said joint military drills with the Iranian army would continue, showcasing what he called "a new chapter in Iran’s deterrence power."

The drills include revealing underground missile bases and testing ballistic missiles.

Iran is fully prepared for "major and complex battles of any scale," Naeini said, as tensions with Israel and regional developments grow.

Speaking at a press conference, he referred to recent changes in Syria and the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime. He accused Iran's enemies of using "cognitive warfare" to falsely portray the country as weakened.

Naeini pointed to Iran’s strikes on Israel in April and October, calling them "just a small part of our limitless power."

"The skies over occupied territories remain open and unprotected for us. We can act with more precision, speed, and destructive force," he added.

He accused Israel of spreading false narratives to weaken Iran’s morale but vowed to "correct the enemy’s distorted perception."

"We are always ready, and when the orders come, we will show our strength again," he warned.

Naeini described the military drills as a display of "strength and deterrence" and said their message "will reach the enemy in the coming days."

Iran’s army and the IRGC have begun three months of annual military drills across land, sea, and air, aimed at addressing new security threats and simulating real battles. The exercises, both defensive and offensive, aim to boost military readiness, counter terrorism and sabotage, and strengthen national morale.

Naeini dismissed Israeli claims that Iran’s defenses were weakened after the October 26 attack, saying missile production remains unaffected and defense systems are fully operational.

On warnings of a possible third Iranian strike on Israel, Naeini said: "There is no obstacle to new operations when the time is right." He promised future actions would be "more powerful and surprising."

He accused Israel of suffering heavy losses, claiming 1,000 Israeli soldiers have died since the start of the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation in Gaza. Supporting resistance movements remains central to Iran’s military doctrine, he said.

Naeini emphasized that Iran does not seek war, but the drills are meant to strengthen deterrence and defense.

Iranian media reported that air defense units conducted exercises near sensitive sites, including the Natanz nuclear facility. Special forces were also deployed in western Iran to address security threats.

In early October, Iran launched 200 missiles towards Israel, with Tel Aviv reporting that most were intercepted by its air defenses or those of its allies.

Tehran said the attack was in retaliation for Israel's killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and an IRGC commander in a strike on southern Beirut in September, along with the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in July.

On October 26, Israeli warplanes targeted military sites in Iran, including missile facilities and radar systems, destroying them.