Iran and Iranian-backed militias fired missiles at Israel and Arab states, apparently hitting the U.S. Embassy compound in Kuwait, while Israel and the United States pounded targets in Iran as the war expanded Monday with statements of defiance and increasing casualties.
WATCH: War with Iran | PBS News Special Report
In the chaos, the U.S. military said that Kuwait “mistakenly shot down” three American F-15E Strike Eagles during a combat mission.
At least 555 people have been killed in Iran so far by the U.S.-Israeli campaign, the Iranian Red Crescent Society said, and more than 130 cities across the country have come under attack. In Israel, 11 people have been killed, with 31 in Lebanon, according to authorities.
Iranian cleric Alireza Arafi, delivering his first public remarks since he was made a member of Iran’s temporary leadership council, said he hoped that a new supreme leader would be “quickly” appointed to replace Ali Khamenei.
Here is the latest.
3:01 p.m. EST
Tense calm in Jerusalem during a lull in Iranian missile fire
A tense calm has settled over the central Jerusalem after an afternoon and evening with no sirens announcing incoming missiles from Iran. The streets are still quite empty in West Jerusalem, where most Israelis live.
NATO chief calls on European allies to support war against Iran
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said in an interview that the United States’ and Israel’s war against Iran is crucial for security in Europe. He said the allies could support the effort even without direct involvement in military operations, through logistics and access.
Rutte, a former prime minister of the Netherlands, said he unreservedly approves of Trump’s decision to attack Iran and kill its supreme leader. Rutte cited the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran.
“It would be a stranglehold on Israel. It could potentially mean Israel’s defeat,” Rutte told German public broadcaster ARD in its Brussels studio on Monday.
When asked about the possibility of NATO entering the war, Rutte said absolutely no one believed that NATO would be involved. “This is Iran, this is the Gulf, this is outside NATO territory,” he said.
NATO troops deployed for 20 years to Afghanistan, and its 2011 air campaign helped topple Libya’s late leader Moammar Gadhafi.
Iran says it shot down 20 drones since the war began
Iranian state-run IRNA news agency said the country’s military has shot down 20 “enemy drones” since the beginning of the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Saturday.
Iraqi militias threaten U.S. military presence in Jordan
A prominent Iran-backed Iraqi militia has threatened to attack American military bases in neighboring Jordan.
Kataib Hezbollah has claimed attack on U.S. bases in northern Iraq in solidarity with Tehran.
Iran has been targeting American military assets in the Mideast in its ongoing war with Washington and Israel.
The Iraqi government for years has tried to keep a delicate balance maintaining strong ties with both Washington and Tehran.
Israel strikes a Hezbollah-linked financial institution in Lebanon
The military said it has completed a wave of strikes targeting branches of al-Qard al-Hasan, saying the quasi-banking system is being used to fund the militant group’s military wing.
The strikes come amid a day of successive Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon and in its capital, following Hezbollah rocket fire on Israel.
Al-Qard al-Hasan is officially a non-profit charity institution operating outside the Lebanese financial system, and one of the tools by which Hezbollah entrenches its support among the country’s Shiite population.
Israel targeted the institution also in 2024 during its months-long conflict with Hezbollah.
More U.S. adults oppose initial airstrikes on Iran, early polling suggests
Americans’ initial reactions to Trump ordering airstrikes against Iran over the weekend appear more negative than positive, according to a new snap poll from The Washington Post that was conducted via text message on Sunday.
About half of those polled opposed the strikes, while 39% were in support. Roughly 1 in 10 were unsure. Democrats and independents drove much of the disapproval, with nearly 9 in 10 Democrats and about 6 in 10 independents opposed to the military strikes.
Republicans were much more supportive, with 81% backing the military action. About 1 in 10 Republicans were opposed, and a similar share were unsure.
Respondents were about twice as likely to say the U.S. should stop the military strikes as that time, rather than continue them.
1:54 p.m. EST
Spain says joint U.S. bases were not used in attack on Iran
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called the U.S. attack an “unjustifiable” and “dangerous” military intervention.
Defense Minister Margarita Robles said “no assistance of any kind, absolutely none,” had been provided from the Rota and Morón bases in southern Spain, which are shared with the U.S. but remain under Spanish command.
“There is a deal with the U.S. over these bases, but our understanding of the deal is that operations have to comply with international legal frameworks and that there has to be international support for them,” Robles said.
The U.S. and Israel were acting “unilaterally without the support of an international resolution,” Robles said.
Flight map data from FlightRadar24 showed that several U.S. military aircraft had left the bases in southern Spain since the weekend attack, including nine tankers that departed Sunday from Morón for Germany.
Israel says it intercepted a drone from Lebanon
Israel’s military said the hostile aircraft was intercepted and it is reviewing the incident. The army’s social media post did not blame the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah or any other party.
Iran-backed Hezbollah did not immediately issue a statement. The group had fired rockets late Sunday into northern Israel, sparking Israeli strikes throughout Lebanon that killed at least 31 people and displaced thousands.
Drone hits at a fuel terminal in the UAE but fire is contained
Authorities in Abu Dhabi quickly responded to the drone attack on the Musaffah fuel terminal and got the fire under control. No injuries were reported and operations at the terminal were not affected, according to a statement by the Abu Dhabi Media Office posted on X.
12:24 p.m. EST
Russia’s Putin speaks to Saudi crown prince
Vladimir Putin held a phone call Monday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to discuss “the escalation in the Middle East as a result of American-Israeli armed aggression” against Iran, the Kremlin said.
Both “expressed serious concern over the real risks of the spreading of the conflict, which has already affected several Arab countries and is fraught with catastrophic consequences,” the Kremlin said in the readout of the call.
Putin “emphasized the urgent need to resolve the current extremely dangerous situation through political and diplomatic means,” and Prince Mohammed “expressed the opinion that Russia could play a positive, stabilizing role in these times, given its friendly relations with both Iran and the Persian Gulf countries,” the readout said.
Tennis stars in Dubai and Paralympians face travel issues due to war
Former U.S. Open tennis champion Daniil Medvedev has indicated he’s one of what the ATP Tour calls “a small number of players and team members” it is trying to help leave Dubai. A widespread travel shutdown has also caused issues for athletes heading to the Paralympics.
Medvedev’s Instagram account reposted on Monday a report from a Russian-language tennis outlet, Bolshe, which said he was safe and staying at a friend’s apartment in Dubai, amid flight cancellations after winning the ATP event there last week.
Medvedev and others are due to play at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, California, where main-draw matches start Wednesday.
The Winter Paralympics open in Italy on Friday and some athletes are facing travel difficulties, the International Paralympic Committee said. Iran has one cross-country skier expected to compete at the March 6-15 Paralympics.
12:14 p.m. EST
Trump articulates his four objectives for the U.S. war in Iran
The president said U.S. forces are out to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities, wipe out its naval capacity, stop the country from obtaining a nuclear weapon and “ensuring that the Iranian regime cannot continue to arm fund and directors armies outside of their borders.”
He said U.S. attacks have already “knocked out” 10 ships, and that attacks on Iran’s missile capacity is ensuring they is destroyed while stopping “their capacity to produce brand ones.”
“This was our last, best chance to strike — what we’re doing right now — and eliminate the intolerable threats posed by this sick and sinister regime,” Trump said.
Trump says the U.S. expected the Iran operation to take 4 to 5 weeks
The president said during an unrelated event at the White House that from the beginning, the U.S. has projected that time frame but “we have the capability to go far longer than that.”
He then said he wouldn’t get “bored” of continuing the operation over such time. “I don’t get bored. There’s nothing boring about this.”
Trump said the U.S. had also projected it would take four weeks to get rid of Iran’s military leadership, but that was quickly accomplished “so we’re ahead of schedule there.”
Iranian missiles filmed flying over Jerusalem skies
Iranian missiles drew straight lines of smoke across clear Jerusalem skies Monday afternoon. the conflict’s third day.
Interceptions by Israel’s advanced aerial defense system could be seen as the projectiles flying overhead suddenly lost course and began haphazardly falling before disappearing from view, leaving circles of smoke behind where they’d been hit by the interceptor missiles.
Loud booms could be heard, intermingled with the barking of dogs and chirping of birds.
Jerusalemites were told to take shelter three times Monday morning and early afternoon, but sirens didn’t ring for much of the afternoon.
Israeli military says airstrike in Beirut targeted a senior Hezbollah official
An Israeli airstrike in the Lebanese capital heavily damaged a building as the Israeli military said it targeted a senior Hezbollah official.
The strike occurred near the old compound of the Iranian embassy in Beirut’s Beir Hassan neighborhood.
Medal of Honor Ceremony begins at the White House
Trump is attending with top members of his administration. The event began with a prayer.
4 Greek warplanes land in Cyprus after a drone strike on air base
Four Greek F-16 fighter jets landed in Cyprus on Monday to bolster the country’s security, after a drone struck a U.K. military base.
The drone strike caused minor damage, according to Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides. Another two drones flying in the direction of RAF Akrotiri shortly after midday Monday where intercepted after two British Typhoon fighter jets and another pair of F-35 warplanes were scrambled from the base.
Cyprus government spokesman Constantinos Letymbiotis posted on X that the arrival of the F-16s was done in close cooperation with Greece, which was also sending two navy frigates equipped with an anti-drone system.
Iran’s deadly strikes in the Gulf highlight vulnerability of migrant workers
The five reported casualties from Iranian strikes in Gulf nations have been foreign nationals. The countries hit — including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Kuwait — rely heavily on labor from South and Southeast Asia.
Migrant workers in Gulf states are often housed in employer‑provided accommodations on the outskirts of cities or near industrial zones.
The Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs on Monday upgraded its travel advisory for the United Arab Emirates, placing it along with Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia at a level that automatically triggers a deployment ban on newly hired workers.
The Emirates reported three deaths, one each from Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Kuwait’s Health Ministry said a strike killed one person and wounded 32 others, all foreign nationals. Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said a post-strike fire killed an Asian worker and wounded two others.
The International Labor Organization estimates more than 24 million foreign workers were employed across the Gulf states in 2024, forming a backbone of the region’s economy while often remaining among its most vulnerable.
Medal of Honor Ceremony begins at White House
Trump is attending with top members of his administration. The event began with a prayer.
WATCH LIVE: Trump may address war with Iran at Medal of Honor ceremony
Israeli military says airstrike in Beirut targeted senior Hezbollah official
An Israeli airstrike in the Lebanese capital heavily damaged a building as the Israeli military said it targeted a senior Hezbollah official.
The strike occurred near the old compound of the Iranian embassy in Beirut’s Beir Hassan neighborhood.
Qatar says its air force shot down 2 Iranian warplanes
The Gulf state of Qatar, home to a key U.S. military base, said its air force had shot down two Iranian Sukhoi Su-24 bombers.
Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates said it intercepted nine ballistic and six cruise missiles and 148 drones on Monday. The Defense Ministry said it has repelled hundreds of Iranian drones and missiles since the attacks began on Saturday, in response to U.S.-Israeli bombardment.
No fatalities were reported Monday in the UAE. Three people were killed in Iranian attacks on Sunday.
Trump says he doesn’t ‘have the yips’ about sending U.S. ground troops into Iran
In a brief phone interview with the New York Post, the president said he wasn’t ruling out U.S. forces in Iran if “they were necessary.”
“I don’t have the yips with respect to boots on the ground. Like, every president says, ‘There will be no boots on the ground.’ I don’t say it,” Trump told the newspaper. “I say, ‘Probably don’t need them,’ (or) ‘if they were necessary.'”
Trump has said since the start of U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran that American military casualties were likely, as they are in any war, but he hasn’t committed to having U.S. forces on the ground long term. Before the strikes began, Vice President JD Vance told The Washington Post that there was “no chance” the U.S. would be pulled into a drawn out war in the Middle East.
Israel launches a new wave of strikes on Lebanon
The Israeli army said it had completed “a broad wave of strikes” on dozens of targets in southern Lebanon, including weapons storage facilities and missile launchers that it said belong to the militant group Hezbollah.
At least 31 people were killed in overnight Israeli strikes in Lebanon after Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel for the first time in more than a year.
11:16 a.m. EST
British prime minister defends letting U.S. use bases in the country
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday defended his decision to allow the U.S. to use British bases to launch defensive strikes against Iran, saying the country had to support its allies in the region and British citizens who were at risk due to indiscriminate attacks by Iran.
Speaking to the House of Commons, Starmer said that the government was focused on looking ”at all options to support our people.”
“We want to ensure that they can return home as swiftly and safely as possible, for their lives are on the line.”
Starmer also defended his decision not to join U.S and Israeli offensive actions against Iran, saying the U.K. had learned the lessons of the Iraq War and that any military action must be legally justified. Britain can legally take part in defensive action to protects its own citizens and allies, but it will not participate in offensive actions aimed at regime change, he said.
Pakistan’s president urges restraint
Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari on Monday condemned what he described as a “war being waged on Iran while negotiations were underway” and called for restraint.
In a televised address to lawmakers in parliament, Zardari said he joins “all Pakistanis in condoling the martyrdom of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.” He also condemned what he called “subsequent attacks launched on our brotherly countries in the Gulf region.”
Demonstrators in Pakistan supportive of the Iranian government attempted to storm a U.S. Consulate on Sunday, authorities said, leading to violent clashes with security forces that killed at least 22 people and injured more than 120 others.
Israeli strike in Lebanon kills a senior Islamic Jihad militant
The top commander in Lebanon of the Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, was killed at dawn Monday by an Israeli airstrike on a southern suburb of Beirut.
The group gave no further details about Adham Adnan al-Othman but said he had a long history of fighting Israeli forces.
Like the larger and stronger Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad was formed in the 1980s as a radical Islamist movement to resisting Israel.
Israel extends nationwide restrictions on public activities
The Israeli military’s Home Front Command said all schools across the country will remain closed and the ban on attending workplaces will continue at least until Saturday evening. Gatherings are prohibited and all beaches will remain closed to the public.
The nationwide restrictions were first imposed after Israel and the US launched a war against Iran on Saturday.
10:24 a.m. EST
Netanyahu visits site of Iranian missile attack
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has visited the site of a deadly Iranian missile attack in central Israel.
Nine people were killed Sunday when a missile slammed into a shelter located in a synagogue in Beit Shemesh.
Netanyahu accused Iran of intentionally targeting civilians and said the country poses a threat to the entire world. He said the world would benefit from the joint Israel-U.S. war against Iran.
“We set out to protect ourselves, but in doing so we protect many others,” Netanyahu said.
9:49 a.m. EST
Hegseth says Iran operation could be shorter or longer than 4 weeks
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the U.S. military operation in Iran could be shorter or longer than the four to five weeks that President Trump has recently suggested.
READ MORE: Hegseth insists the Iran conflict is ‘not Iraq’ and is ‘not endless’
“President Trump has all the latitude in the world to talk about how long it may or may not take,” Hegseth said at Monday’s news briefing. “Four weeks, two weeks, six weeks. It could move up. It could move back.”
Trump, in an interview Sunday with The New York Times, said the assault could last “four to five weeks.”
9:38 a.m. EST
U.S. Embassy in Beirut urging Americans to leave Lebanon
The U.S. Embassy in Beirut is urging Americans to depart Lebanon immediately while commercial flights remain available, saying that the security situation in the country “is volatile and unpredictable.”
The statement came as Israel carried a new wave of airstrikes on Lebanon that were clearly heard in the capital Beirut and the southern port city of Tyre.
Israel’s military also said that it killed Hezbollah’s intelligence official Hussein Mokalleh in a strike near Beirut earlier Monday.
The embassy urged U.S. citizens not to travel to Lebanon. It said all consular services are suspended until further notice, and that the U.S. embassy currently has no ability to provide any assistance to U.S. citizens in Lebanon.
Trump ‘disappointed’ in Starmer over UK bases
President Donald Trump says he is “very disappointed” in Prime Minister Keir Starmer for initially refusing to allow British bases to be used for U.S. strikes on Iran.
Trump told Britain’s Daily Telegraph that “we were very disappointed in Keir.”
In a change of position, Starmer announced Sunday that the U.S. can use bases in England and on Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean to strike Iran’s ballistic missiles and their launch and storage sites, but not to hit other targets.
Trump said the change in position is “useful” but “took far too much time.”
“It sounds like he was worried about the legality,” Trump said.
9:28 a.m. EST
Iran media reporting that wife of Khamenei died
Iranian media said Mansoureh Khojasteh, wife of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, died on Monday. She had been in a coma since Saturday’s strikes on her husband’s office.
Khojasteh, 78, was the only wife of Ali Khamenei. They married in 1964.
Separately, an Iranian human rights activists’ group cited an education ministry spokesperson as saying that 171 students were killed across Iran in the past 48 hours.
According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency, the ministry spokesperson said the deadliest strike hit the Shajareh Tayebeh girls’ elementary school in Minab, where 168 students died and 95 were injured. Additional casualties included two students in Tehran and a 9‑year‑old child in Abyek, Qazvin, while three others were injured in separate incidents in two districts of Tehran.
9:17 a.m. EST
Caine says cyberattacks were used to ‘disorient’ Iran
Cyberattacks knocked out Iran’s key systems ahead of U.S and Israeli strikes, according to Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Air Force Gen. Dan Caine.
U.S. cyber operations were used to “disrupt, disorient and confuse” Iranian forces at the start of the operation, Caine said.
Disruptions to its communications systems reduced Iran’s ability to assess the attack and to coordinate its response, Caine told reporters at a Monday briefing.
8:53 a.m. EST
Energy prices surge
European natural gas futures are spiking 42% in the wake of the shutdown of a major supplier of ship-born gas due to the fighting in the Middle East.
The futures contract for April delivery shot up to 45.46 euros ($53.26) on the ICE commodities exchange. The jump came after QatarEnergy said it would stop its production of liquified natural gas as the Mideast war rages. The state-owned firm blamed the war for the decision.
More US forces being deployed and positioned, Joint Chiefs chairman says
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters that more forces are being deployed.
The deployment already includes thousands of service members from all branches, including Reserve and National Guard forces; hundreds of advanced fighters; dozens of refueling tankers; the Lincoln and Ford Carrier Strike Group and their embarked air wings.
“The Joint Force has launched hundreds of missions over land and sea,” Cooper said.
Caine noted especially the Wisconsin Army National Guard units that are operating in Kuwait and Iraq, and Air National Guard units from a variety of states to include Vermont and Virginia.
‘This is not Iraq. This is not endless’ — Hegseth
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the military operations in Iran are the “most precise aerial operation in history.”
Decrying Tehran’s “expansionist and Islamist regime,” Hegseth referenced violence in places across Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon as proxies in more than four decades he said were part of “a savage, one-sided war against America.”
“Their war on Americans has become our retribution against their ayatollah and his death cult,” Hegseth told a news conference at the Pentagon.
READ MORE: Fact-checking statements made by Trump to justify U.S. strikes on Iran
Hegseth said the U.S. is not engaged in a nation building effort in Iran and that ongoing strikes on Iran have a clear mission and won’t be the prelude to a long sustained conflict.
“This is not Iraq. This is not endless,” he said. “This is not a so-called ‘regime change war’ but the regime sure did change and the world is better off for it.”
Cyprus to protest use of UK military bases
Cyprus said it is displeased that Britain did not make clear its intention to use its military bases in Cyprus in a capacity other than for humanitarian purposes.
Government spokesman Constantinos Letymbiotis said Cypriot authorities had assurances from U.K. officials that the bases would only be used for “strictly in a humanitarian capacity.”
Letymbiotis said protests will be lodged with the U.K. government to express Cyprus’ displeasure. He left open the possibility that the Cypriot government would possibly open negotiations with the U.K. regarding the bases’ status.
Global markets rattled
Military strikes on Iran rattled global markets on Monday with U.S. futures following markets in Europe and Asia lower. Energy prices rose sharply.
Futures for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average each sank about 1%.
Travel sectors, from airlines and cruise operators to global hotel chains, tumbled. Natural gas futures rose early 6% and futures for fuel used for transportation as well as industrial purposes, spiked more than 14%.
Germany’s DAX dropped 1.9% to 24,817.42, while in Paris the CAC 40 lost 1.7% to 8,435.80. Britain’s FTSE 100 slipped 1% to 10,808.53.
Shares fell in most Asian markets but they rose in Shanghai, where higher oil prices lifted some oil company stocks such as CNOOC, China Petroleum & Chemical and PetroChina to the 10% limit. The Shanghai Composite index climbed 0.5% to 4,182.59, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng lost 2.1% to 26,059.85. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index initially fell more than 2%.
Gold, a safe haven for investment in times of uncertainty, rose 3.1% to about $5,408.10 per ounce.
Cyprus says 2 drones targeting air base have been intercepted
Cyprus says two drones moving in the direction of a British air base on the island have been intercepted.
Cyprus government spokesman Constantinos Letymbiotis posted on X that the two drones were heading toward RAF Aktotiri Air Base.
Sirens sounded at around 1000 GMT at the key base, minutes before two Typhoon fighter jets and a pair of F-35s took off, ostensibly to intercept the drones. The sirens stopped an hour later with the aircraft landing shortly after.
Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides said earlier that a Shaheed-type drone had cause minor damage when it struck inside the base just after midnight.
Fourth U.S. soldier dies — Central Command
A U.S. soldier has died during the war with Iran, the U.S. Central Command announced on Monday, bringing the official tota l to four.
The soldier was wounded during the initial stage of Operation Epic Fury and died on Monday, it said.
A total of four U.S. soldiers have been killed since Israel and the U.S. launched strikes against Iran on Saturday.
President Donald Trump said in a video posted to his Truth Social platform on Sunday that “sadly, there will likely be more before it ends. That’s the way it is. Likely be more, but we’ll do everything possible where that won’t be the case.”
Governments scramble to return stranded travelers
Countries across the world are scrambling to bring citizens home who are stranded in the Middle East.
Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways said flights remain suspended, with its next update planned for Tuesday morning, while Jordan announced a partial closure of its airspace.
About 30,000 German tourists are currently stranded on cruise ships, in hotels or at closed airports. Air France canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut, Dubai and Riyadh, while carriers from Air India to KLM suspended flights and issued advisories.
The Czech Republic is sending two planes to Egypt and Jordan to bring home Czech nationals, Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said. Four more planes are heading to Muscat and Salalah in Oman to fly home Czech tourists.
In Asia, thousands of travelers were stranded on Indonesia’s tourist island of Bali because international flights were canceled. Bali’s international airport said at least 15 flights, including eight departures and seven arrivals, on routes to Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi were canceled as of Monday afternoon.
Putin speaks to UAE president — Kremlin
Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke Monday to the United Arab Emirates president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to discuss “the unprecedented tragic events in the Middle East in the context of the American-Israeli aggression against Iran and Tehran’s harsh retaliatory actions,” the Kremlin said.
Putin noted that Russia had sought to help facilitate a settlement of the situation regarding the Iranian nuclear program, but those efforts were “thwarted by an unprovoked act of armed aggression against a sovereign U.N. member state, in violation of the fundamental principles of international law.”
Al Nahyan described the Iranian strikes on the Emirates as completely unjustified, noting that the country’s territory wasn’t used for launching attacks on Iran. Putin expressed his readiness to convey these signals to Tehran and to provide all possible assistance to stabilize the overall situation in the region, the Kremlin said.
Britain ‘not at war,’ minister says
Britain is not at war, the government said Monday, despite saying it would allow the U.S. to use British bases during its war with Iran and after a Royal Air Force base in Cyprus was struck by an Iranian-made drone.
Sirens sounded again at RAF Akrotiri on Monday and British warplanes were scrambled, apparently in response to a new threat.
“The U.K. is not at war,” Middle East Minister Hamish Falconer said Monday. He told the BBC Iran has ballistic missiles “pointed at the Gulf and it is vital that those missile launchers are taken out in the face of these completely reckless attacks.”
Greece sends naval vessels to Cyprus
Greece is sending two frigates and two fighter jets to Cyprus after attacks against a British base on the island.
Defense Minister Nikos Dendias said one of the frigates was equipped with an anti-drone system recently tested in a European Union-led deployment in the Red Sea to protect international shipping.
“(Greece) will contribute in every possible way to the defense of the Republic of Cyprus, in order to confront the threats and unlawful actions taking place on its territory,” Dendias said.
‘There will have to be dialogue at some point’ — IAEA chief
IAEA chief Rafael Grossi expressed hope that a diplomatic process will resume with regard to Iran’s nuclear program, highlighting the “indispensable role” that the U.N. nuclear watchdog could play in such a scenario.
“My hope…is that we will be back at the negotiating table sooner rather than later. It is obvious that after this military conflict ends — and we all hope that this will be very, very soon — we will still need to have a long, durable solution, which will provide a sense of predictability and a sense of certainty for Iran and neighboring countries,” Grossi told reporters after the special session of the IAEA Board of Governors in Vienna.
The IAEA chief underlined that “there is a recognition” that “there will have to be a dialogue at some point.”
QatarEnergy to halt LNG production
QatarEnergy, one of world’s top natural gas producers, said it is halting production of liquefied natural gas, taking one of the world’s top suppliers off the market.
“Due to military attacks on QatarEnergy’s operating facilities in Ras Laffan Industrial City and Mesaieed Industrial City in the state of Qatar, QatarEnergy has ceased production of liquefied natural gas and associated products,” it said. “QatarEnergy values its relationships with all of its stakeholders and will continue to communicate the latest available information.”
It offered no timeline for restoring its production.
Lebanon says Hezbollah’s attack on Israel is an ‘illegal’ act
Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun said Hezbollah’s rocket attack on Israel were “illegal” acts, adding that such activities give Israel a pretext to destroy the country.
The government held a five-hour Cabinet meeting to discuss the Hezbollah action that triggered massive Israeli retaliation and the displacement of tens of thousands of people.
Information Minister Paul Morcos cited Aoun as saying that what happened overnight “was not to defend Lebanon or protect the Lebanese people. What are witnessing is building collapsing on their residents as they sleep.”
Attack on Israel’s Beer Sheba
Israel’s rescue services said at least 15 people were injured by Iranian missiles in the southern city of Beer Sheba.
Searches are ongoing for additional victims. Several missile barrages targeted Israel from Iran on Monday.
Etihad extends suspension of flights
Long-haul carrier Etihad Airways said in an update that all flights to and from its base in the Emirati capital, Abu Dhabi, will be now suspended until 2 p.m. local time on Tuesday.
Etihad, like fellow Gulf airlines Emirates and Qatar Airways, mainly serves long-haul travelers whose plans have been disrupted by the closure of regional airspace.
Oil prices surge
The price of oil jumped as tanker disruptions near the Strait of Hormuz raise fears about supply shortages from the Persian Gulf.
U.S. oil rose to about $71.97 a barrel on Monday and Brent climbed to about $78.46. Higher prices increase the risk of costlier gasoline and pricier goods.
The U.K. maritime center also reported attacks on vessels and warned of heavy electronic interference. Oman said a drone boat hit an oil tanker and killed one mariner. Saudi media said drones hit near Ras Tanura and Saudi Arabia shut the refinery as a precaution.
Traffic through the strategic Strait of Homruz has sharply dropped following U.S.-Israel weekend strikes in Iran. MarineTraffic.com said that transit through the chokepoint has fallen by 70% since Saturday.
It said that it has noticed changes in vessels’ navigation in the past three days including “U-turns, idling, reduced speeds, and last-minute diversions.”
Newly appointed Iranian cleric makes first comments
Iranian cleric Alireza Arafi has delivered some of his first public remarks since he was made a member of Iran’s temporary leadership council.
In remarks aired on state television, Arafi said he hoped that a new supreme leader would be “quickly” appointed. The 88-seat Assembly of Experts, a group of mostly hard-line clerics, will choose former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s replacement. But no clear successor is in place.
Arafi is serving on a temporary leadership council that includes President Masoud Pezeshkian and Iran’s hard-line judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei. Arafi added that state institutions were continuing to function “under these extremely difficult circumstances.”
Iran launches drones at a Qatari power plant
Iran has targeted a power plant in Qatar, the country’s defense ministry said. There were no casualties.
The ministry reported that Iran launched two drone attacks, one targeting a water tank at a power plant in Mesaieed, in southern Qatar, and another targeting an energy facility operated by Qatar Energy in the industrial city of Ras Laffan.
Kuwait shot down 3 U.S. warplanes by mistake, U.S. military says
The U.S. military said Monday that Kuwait “mistakenly shot down” thee American F-15E Strike Eagles during a combat mission as Iran attacked the country.
The U.S. military’s Central Command said the combat included attacks from Iranian aircraft, ballistic missiles and drones — the first time Iran’s aging combat fleet has been engaged in the war.
“The U.S. Air Force fighter jets were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses,” it said. “All six aircrew ejected safely, have been safely recovered, and are in stable condition. Kuwait has acknowledged this incident, and we are grateful for the efforts of the Kuwaiti defense forces and their support in this ongoing operation.”
Oil tanker attacked in Gulf of Oman
A bomb-carrying drone boat exploded against a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman on Monday, killing one mariner on board, Oman said.
The state-run Oman News Agency said the attack occurred in the Gulf of Oman off Muscat, the sultanate’s capital. It identified the vessel as the MKD VYOM. It said the dead crew member was from India.
Iran has been threatening vessels approaching the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf.
Iran’s UN ambassador condemns attacks
Ali Bahreini, Iran’s ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, said the “use of force and the deliberate killing of civilians” is a violation of the UN Charter and condemned the recent strikes by the U.S. and Israel.
“The ongoing unlawful military aggression against Iran exemplifies the dominance of raw power over the principles of human rights,” he said.
Drones over Abu Dhabi have been intercepted, UAE says
Air defenses in the United Arab Emirates have intercepted drones over Abu Dhabi, officials said.
Debris fell on a warehouse and a commercial facility in the city’s industrial areas. There was minor damage but no injuries, according to a statement posted on X by the Abu Dhabi Media Office.
Jordan says partial airspace closure remains in effect
The Jordanian Civil Aviation Authority says airspace will be closed between 6 p.m. (1500 GMT) to 7 a.m. (0400 GMT) daily until further notice. It called the closure “partial and temporary.”
Lebanese seek shelter from Israeli strikes in Beirut schools
Displaced families from southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs sought refuge in schools in the capital, after Israel launched its deadliest barrage of airstrikes in more than a year. It came hours after Hezbollah fired missiles across the border.
At a public school hastily converted into a temporary shelter, families arrived carrying mattresses, plastic bags and bundles of clothing. People sat on sidewalks beside their belongings, some smoking quietly as they waited for space to open inside.
Hussein Abu Ali, who fled with his wife and children, described the moment the strikes hit. “My son began shaking and crying. … Where are you supposed to go? I stepped outside, then back in because I was afraid of shooting in the air. I gathered my children and went down to the street.”
Israeli attacks killed at least 31 people and wounding 149, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry
Russia in contact with Iran and Gulf countries
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday that Russia remains “in constant contact with the Iranian leadership” while also keeping up communication with the Persian Gulf States.
Peskov said Moscow was deeply disappointed to see the U.S. and Israel attack Iran despite the progress made in the U.S.-Iranian talks.
He said Russia will continue to take part in the U.S.-mediated talks on Ukraine and praised Washington’s efforts to help negotiate an end to the conflict.
Iran says its Natanz nuclear enrichment site was targeted
Iran’s ambassador to the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog alleged on Monday that U.S.-Israeli airstrikes targeted Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment site.
Israel and the U.S. have not acknowledged strikes at the site, which the United States bombed during the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June.
Iran’s Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Reza Najafi, told journalists he condemned what he called the “unlawful, criminal and brutal” attacks by the U.S. and Israel against Iran.
“Again they attacked Iran’s peaceful safeguarded nuclear facilities yesterday,” he said. “Their justification that Iran wants to develop nuclear weapons is simply a big lie.”
Israeli warplanes strike Beirut again on Monday
Israel’s air force carried out new airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs Monday. The blasts were heard in parts of the Lebanese capital.
The strikes hit an area where the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group has a giant hall used to hold rallies. It was not immediately clear if there were casualties.
Saudi Arabia shuts key oil refinery after attack
Saudi Aramco temporarily shut down its Ras Tanura oil refinery near Dammam on Monday after it was targeted by Iranian drones.
Saudi state television reported the decision, citing what it described as an “official source.” It added there were no casualties from the fire and its decision was a precautionary one.
The refinery has a capacity over half a million barrels of crude oil a day.
An Iranian student describes heavy security presence
An Iranian university student reached by The Associated Press on Monday described a heavy security presence in the northern city of Babol and nearby towns.
Communications into Iran remain unstable with internet access mostly blocked. The student, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of security fears, said he had briefly regained an internet connection and was able to talk with friends in nearby towns where a similar security presence was reported. Babol is 136 miles (220 kilometers) north of the capital, Tehran.
The student said armed riot police were on the streets Saturday night and into the early hours of Sunday as crowds gathered to mourn the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
No damage so far to Iranian nuclear facilities — IAEA
The U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Mariano Grossi on Monday said that “up to now” the International Atomic Energy Agency has “no indication that any of the nuclear installations, including the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, the Tehran Research Reactor or other nuclear fuel cycle facilities” in Iran have been damaged or hit.
Addressing a special session of the IAEA Board of Governors in Vienna, he said that the IAEA continues to try and contact the Iranian nuclear regulatory authorities via the IAEA’s own Incident and Emergency Center “with no response so far,” given the limitations in communications caused by the conflict.
Grossi urged military restraint, warning that Iran and many other countries in the region that have been targeted militarily have “operational nuclear power plants and nuclear research reactors, as well as associated fuel storage sites,” which increases the threat to nuclear safety.
So far, he said, “no elevation of radiation levels above the usual background levels has been detected in countries bordering Iran.”
Death toll in Iran at least 555 — Iranian Red Crescent
The Iranian Red Crescent Society said Monday that the U.S.-Israeli airstrike campaign targeting Iran has killed at least 555 people so far in the Islamic Republic.
The society added that 131 cities have come under attack so far in the war.
Saudi oil refinery is attacked by drones
Saudi Arabia’s Ras Tanura oil refinery came under attack Monday from drones, the kingdom’s defense ministry said, with authorities downing the incoming aircraft.
A Saudi military spokesman made the announcement on the state-run Saudi Press Agency.
Online videos from the site appeared to show thick black smoke rising after the attack. Even successfully intercepted drones cause debris that can spark fires and injure those on the ground.
Ras Tanura, near Dammam, has a capacity over half a million barrels of crude oil a day.
Israel expects many days of combat in Lebanon
Israel’s military has launched an offensive campaign in Lebanon that could include “many prolonged days of combat ahead,” Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the military chief of staff, said on Monday morning.
Hezbollah launched several rockets and drones toward Israel overnight, and Israel responded by striking dozens of targets in Beirut and southern Lebanon, he said.
“Hezbollah will pay a very heavy price for this,” Israel’s military spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said. He added that Israel is keeping “all options on the table” for a possible ground operation in Lebanon.
Israel has called up more than 100,000 reservists since the war with Iran began on Saturday.
Israel also recommended that residents of 53 villages in southern Lebanon evacuate, causing massive traffic jams.
Germany won’t participate in military action against Iran
Germany will not actively participate in military action against Iran but will consider defending its soldiers stationed on multinational military bases in Jordan and Iraq if they get attacked, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Monday morning.
“The federal government has no intention of participating” in the conflict, Wadephul told Deutschlandfunk public radio. “We also do not have the necessary military resources.”
Multinational bases where German troops are stations in Irbil in northern Iraq and Al-Azraq in Jordan were targeted on the weekend, the German military said.
The soldiers on site were not injured and are safe, the German news agency dpa reported.
Strikes kill 3 in western Iran
Strikes killed three people in the western city of Sanandaj early Monday, Iran’s state-run news agency said.
IRNA said the strikes hit two residential sites without providing further details.
U.S. warplanes crash, Kuwait says
Several U.S. warplanes crashed Monday in Kuwait, the country’s Defense Ministry said, with all the pilots safely bailing out.
The ministry did not elaborate on what caused the crashes but it came during an intense period of Iranian fire targeting the country.
The Kuwaiti Defense Ministry said the pilots were taken to a hospital for checkups and their condition was stable.
The U.S. military’s Central Command did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Turkey temporarily stops border crossings by Iranians
Turkey has temporarily closed its border with Iran to crossings by Iranians visiting for short trips, the Trade Ministry said, following public concerns that the tensions could trigger migration flows.
A ministry statement said that in a mutual agreement reached with Iran, Turkey is allowing its citizens and third country nationals to enter from Iran but short trips by Iranians have been temporarily suspended.
Meanwhile, commercial freight crossings between Turkey and Iran are continuing “in a controlled manner,” the ministry said.
Israel says Gaza crossings to remain closed
Israel said crossings to Gaza, where much-needed humanitarian aid passes, will remain closed while the war with Iran continues.
COGAT claimed that Gaza has sufficient stockpiles of food for an “extended period” though some organizations, including the World Central Kitchen which operates soup kitchens across Gaza, have warned that they are running out of supplies.
“We need food deliveries every single day to feed hungry families who are not part of this war,” chef Jose Andres, the founder of World Central Kitchen, wrote on X.
Fire and smoke rise from inside U.S. Embassy compound in Kuwait
Smoke rises from an area surrounding U.S. Embassy following a strike, amid the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran, in Bayan, Kuwait, March 2, 2026. Screenshot of video obtained by Reuters
Fire and smoke rose from inside the U.S. Embassy compound in Kuwait after an Iranian attack on the small Mideast nation on Monday.
The United States had earlier issued an urgent warning to Americans there to take cover and remain indoors.
It said: “Do not come to the Embassy,” without elaborating.
Iran state media shows footage of damage at Tehran hospital
Iranian state media published footage showing damage at the Gandhi Hospital in Tehran.
Several loud explosions heard in Irbil, the capital of northern Iraq’s Kurdish region
Associated Press journalists heard several loud explosions Monday morning in Irbil, the capital city of Iraq’s semiautonomous region of Kurdistan.
WHO calls for protection of civilians and health care facilities
The World Health Organization called for the sparing of civilians and health care facilities in the Middle East amid a regional conflict triggered by Israeli-US strikes on Iran over the weekend.
“The protection of civilians and health care must be absolute,” Hanan Balkhy, regional dietitian at WHO wrote on social media.
“All parties must … ensure medical facilities remain protected.”
Strike hits Iranian state TV, witnesses say
Strikes across Iran continued into Monday, with one apparently taking Iranian state television off air.
Witnesses said an attack in northern Tehran’s Niavaran neighborhood struck one of the transmitters used for Iranian state TV.
Since then, its satellite signals have dropped.
State media had said hospitals and residential areas had been hit in strikes by the Americans and Israelis.
UAE closes stock exchanges
The United Arab Emirates is shutting the country’s main stock exchanges for the start of the trading week as the regional war intensifies.
The country’s Capital Market Authority said the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and Dubai Financial Market would be closed Monday and Tuesday.
It says it will closely monitor the regional situation and take any further steps as necessary.
Another market, the Nasdaq Dubai, also said it was halting trading both days.
Dubai is the Gulf’s main business hub, though the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi is also an important regional financial center and home to some of the world’s biggest sovereign wealth funds.
Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon kill at least 31 people
Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon after Hezbollah attacked it have killed at least 31 people, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said Monday.
The Hezbollah attack and the Israeli retaliatory strikes expand the ongoing war gripping the Mideast after the U.S. and Israel launched an airstrike campaign targeting Iran.
The Health Ministry said that the strikes also wounded 149 people.
It said about two-thirds of those killed were in southern Lebanon.
Cyprus president says drone caused ‘minor material damage’
Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides said a Shaheed-type drone caused “minor material damage” to military installations inside the U.K.’s RAF Akrotiri air base on the island’s southern coast.
Christodoulides said in a brief national address that the drone struck just past midnight Monday.
Airstrikes reported in Iran
Overnight, airstrikes were reported across Iran.
Elsewhere, explosions were heard in Dubai on Monday.
In Bahrain, the Interior Ministry said sirens sounded across the country as it urged residents to “head to the nearest safe place.”
And in Kuwait, authorities said debris fell on its Ahmadi oil refinery, slightly injuring two workers there.
The state-run KUNA news agency said earlier that Kuwait’s forces had thwarted a drone attack early Monday.
Top Iranian security official says Iran ‘will not negotiate’ with U.S.
A top Iranian security official on Monday said: “We will not negotiate with the United States.”
Ali Larijani made the statement on X, responding to a report from Qatar’s Al Jazeera news network.
The comment comes as an American and Israeli airstrike campaign continues to target Iran.
Iran and its militia allies have expanded their attacks over the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
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