March 5: Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi leader says ‘finger on the trigger’ in Mideast war

Arab foreign ministers to hold emergency meeting Sunday

Foreign ministers of Arab League member states will hold an emergency meeting on Sunday to discuss Iran’s attacks on several countries in the region, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing Arab officials familiar with the matter.

The meeting was requested by Saudi Arabia and will be held via video conference, the Journal adds.

US House rejects war powers resolution, backs Trump on Iran war

The US House of Representatives rejects an effort to stop President Donald Trump’s air war on Iran and require that any hostilities against Iran be authorized by Congress, backing the Republican president’s military campaign on the sixth day of the expanding conflict.

The vote was 219 to 212 in the House, where Trump’s fellow Republicans control a narrow majority of seats.

Strike on Beirut southern suburb after evacuation warning: AFPTV

An Israeli strike targeted the southern suburbs of Beirut late Thursday, according to Lebanese state media, following an Israeli evacuation warning.

AFPTV footage shows a plume of smoke rising from the site in Lebanon, which was drawn into the Middle East war on Monday when the Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah attacked Israel in response to the killing of Iran’s supreme leader.

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi leader says ‘finger on the trigger’ in Mideast war

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi leader says his group is ready to strike at any moment in a televised speech, on day six of the US-Israeli campaign against the Islamic republic.

“Regarding military escalation and action, our fingers are on the trigger, ready to respond at any moment should developments warrant it,” Abdul Malik al-Houthi says.

Lebanon says death toll from Israeli strikes rises to 123

The death toll from Israeli strikes on Lebanon this week increased to 123, the Lebanese health ministry says, as a new wave of strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburb.

“The toll from the Israeli aggression on Monday… increased to 123 martyrs and 683 wounded,” a ministry statement says.

Trump urges Iranian diplomats abroad to request asylum, help shape better future for their country

US President Donald Trump says the US and Israel “continue to totally demolish the enemy, far ahead of schedule.”

“We’re destroying more of Iran’s missiles and drone capability every single hour,” he claims during an event at the White House, adding that the US has sunk 24 Iranian ships in three days.

He claims 60% of Iran’s missiles have been destroyed and 64% of its missile launchers have been destroyed.

“But they’re tough, and they want to fight,” Trump says, while again claiming that Iranian officials are calling up the US looking to make a deal. Iran’s foreign minister denied that it was the case hours earlier.

Trump says he’s not interested in a deal, regardless.

He recalls that his administration announced steps yesterday aimed at keeping oil prices down amid the war.

“Further action to reduce pressure on oil is imminent, and the oil seems to have pretty much stabilized,” Trump says, again acknowledging that prices will likely rise due to the war.

Trump once again calls on all members of Iran’s security forces to lay down their arms in exchange for immunity or face immediate death.

He tells the Iranian people, “You’re going to have a chance, after all these years, to take back your country.”

“We also urge Iranian diplomats around the world to request asylum and to help us shape a new and better Iran with great potential,” Trump says, the first time he has issued such a call.

“The United States will ensure that whoever leads the country next, Iran will not threaten America or its neighbors.”

He laments that even before the war started, Iran had its missiles aimed at Mideast countries that have not even been hostile to the Islamic Republic.

“They were going after the entire Middle East, and then we came along. We blew up their party,” Trump says.

No immediate reports of injuries following Iran missile attack on central Israel — medics

There are no immediate reports of injuries following the latest Iranian ballistic missile attack on central Israel, medics say.

According to military assessments, a small number of missiles were launched in the salvo.

Missile fragments and submunitions from a cluster bomb warhead impacted in several areas, causing damage, according to the police. One impact site in a central town sparked a fire, rescue services say.

Sirens had sounded in Tel Aviv and the surrounding area in central Israel amid the attack, the eighth from Iran since midnight.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters, but should remain close to them.

Anti-Zionist activists stage another blood libel display in Washington

Anti-Zionist activists stage a blood libel display in Washington, DC, according to videos the activists post on social media.

The blood libel is an age-old antisemitic conspiracy that has caused repeated mass violence against Jews for centuries.

It falsely claims that Jews murder non-Jewish children to consume their blood for ritual use.

In the display, actors at a table wear masks of Jeffrey Epstein, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump.

The actors tear apart and devour a blood baby and drink mock blood from wine glasses.

The characters wear Israeli flags and an Israeli flag is draped on the table in front of the Epstein character.

Signs on the table say “Satanic elite” and “Zionist World Plan,” which includes instructions for a “goyim dinner.”

A framed image shows Satan, according to the videos.

A menu says, “Israel’s pedophile blackmail dinner.” The appetizer is listed as a “cannibalism special” serving “dismembered baby intestines,” and the main course is “hundreds of young girls raped.”

Another placard on the table accuses “satanic ‘Israel'” of “organ theft.”

The display takes place on Pennsylvania Avenue., near the White House.

The videos are shared by the anti-Zionist activists Hazami Barmada and Atefeh Rokhvand, who staged a similar blood libel display in the city in November. Barmada is a Harvard graduate and former UN staffer, according to LinkedIn.

“At the White House, exposing Epstein’s ties to the Zionist establishment,” Barmada says in the video posted today.

Echoes of the blood libel have surfaced among anti-Zionist activists, who often levy unfounded accusations that Israel harvests Palestinian organs.

Anti-Zionists sometimes recycle age-old anti-Jewish tropes, with Israel, Zionists or Zionism taking the historical place of Jews.

Late last year, a university researcher in the UK taught a blood libel to students during a lecture.

Footage shows what are likely sub-munitions from Iran cluster bomb crashing in central Israel

Footage shows what are likely sub-munitions from an Iranian cluster bomb warhead crashing down in central Israel this evening, amid a ballistic missile attack.

The IDF has previously confirmed that Iran has launched ballistic missiles carrying cluster bomb warheads at Israel.

The warhead of such missiles opens up while descending and spreads around 20 smaller munitions, each with around 2.5 kilograms of explosives, in a radius of around 8km.

Iranian MRBM attack on central Israel moments ago using a large cluster munition warhead. pic.twitter.com/txPMnGT7UQ

— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) March 5, 2026

Likud minister renews plea for Trump to sanction Israel’s AG and chief justice

Likud minister Idit Silman urges US President Donald Trump to sanction Israel’s Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and Supreme Court Chief Justice Isaac Amit.

“Your pressure regarding a pardon in the fake cases that were stitched up against Prime Minister Netanyahu is welcome. But it is important to understand who is blocking even a discussion of that request,” Silman claims in an English tweet, which was apparently translated from Hebrew, given her use of the phrase “stitched up.”

“Israel’s Attorney General, Gali Baharav-Miara, is preventing any discussion of the pardon, while Supreme Court President [Isaac] Amit is backing her and preventing her dismissal, while also striking down laws passed by Israel’s elected legislature,” she continues.

“Since the United States stands for democracy in Israel, it is time to impose serious personal sanctions against both of them,” she adds.

Israel has begun wave of airstrikes against Hezbollah sites in south Beirut, IDF says

The Israeli Air Force has begun a wave of airstrikes against Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut’s southern suburbs, the IDF announces.

The strikes come after the IDF issued an evacuation warning for four major neighborhoods in the southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold known as the Dahiyeh.

Another launch of Iran missiles detected by IDF; sirens expected in central Israel shortly

Another launch of ballistic missiles from Iran has been detected by the IDF.

Sirens are expected to sound in central Israel shortly.

This comes shortly after civilians in central Israel were given an all-clear after a missile from Iran hit an open area, without triggering any sirens.

Sirens in Upper Galilee warn of suspected drone infiltration from Lebanon

Sirens warning of a suspected drone infiltration from Lebanon sound in the Upper Galilee.

Meanwhile, no alerts are activated in central Israel following the latest ballistic missile attack from Iran, as the projectile landed in an open area.

The Home Front Command had issued an early warning across central Israel for the missile, though it now gives an all-clear.

Italy temporarily closes embassy in Tehran

Rome is temporarily closing its embassy in Tehran and moving staff to Azerbaijan, Italy’s foreign minister says.

“We have decided for security reasons to temporarily close our embassy in Tehran, and move the personnel to Baku,” Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani tells journalists at the Senate.

His spokesman confirms the closure to AFP but stresses Italy “has not broken off diplomatic relations.”

Oil field run by US firm hit in drone attack in Iraqi Kurdistan, sources say

A drone attack struck an oil field operated by a US firm in Dohuk in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, causing a fire, security sources say.

After two hour lull, IDF detects launch of Iran missiles toward central Israel

After a lull of two hours, the IDF says it had detected a new launch of ballistic missiles from Iran.

Sirens are expected to sound in central Israel in the coming minutes.

IDF officer in serious condition, another moderately wounded fighting Hezbollah in south Lebanon

An IDF officer was seriously wounded and another soldier was moderately hurt during fighting against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon this afternoon, the military says.

Both troops served in the Givati Brigade. They were taken to a hospital for treatment, and their families were notified, the army says.

Hezbollah earlier claimed to have targeted Israeli troops with an anti-tank guided missile in southern Lebanon.

Israeli troops have pushed deeper into southern Lebanon in recent days, with the IDF saying it assumed “forward defensive positions to establish an additional defensive layer to remove the threats to the residents of northern Israel.”

The deployment came after Hezbollah began attacking Israel, in what the terror group initially said was a response to Israel’s killing of Iran’s supreme leader, but has later claimed was a response to Israel’s continued presence and airstrikes in Lebanon since a November 2024 ceasefire.

NSC advises limited transit via Egypt, Jordan; urges Israelis in UAE to return

The National Security Council recommends that Israelis returning to or flying out of Israel via Egypt or Jordan do so only through airports in Taba, Aqaba, or Amman, and to avoid other locations in these countries.

The NSC warns against remaining in Egypt or Jordan, where a Level 4 travel warning is in effect, and recommends traveling directly from the airport to the border crossings closest to Israel. Travelers should conceal any Israeli or Jewish identifiers and should not post details of their travel plans on social media, the NSC adds.

The NSC also recommends that Israelis currently in the United Arab Emirates return to Israel via commercial flights, and reiterates its warning to Israelis elsewhere not to travel through the UAE.

Israel partially evacuated its embassy staff in the UAE on Tuesday after two attempted Iranian terror attacks on diplomats there, an Israeli official confirmed to The Times of Israel. Thousands of Israelis reportedly remain in the Gulf state and are trying to return to Israel.

“Representatives of the Foreign Ministry are in contact with Israelis in the UAE and are assisting them as much as possible,” a foreign ministry spokesperson told The Times of Israel.

Report: Staffers at US embassy in Israel threatened with expulsion if they keep leaking Huckabee’s emails

US deputy ambassador to Israel David Brownstein reportedly warned staffers at the American embassy in Jerusalem that they could be expelled from the country if they continue leaking US Ambassador Mike Huckabee’s internal messages to staff.

Brownstein tells staffers in a memo leaked to CNN that sharing Huckabee’s emails violates “operational security” and is “absolutely unacceptable & will be grounds for removal from post with prejudice & administrative action.”

The fact that Huckabee’s messages — along with Brownstein’s — continue to be leaked to reporters suggests mounting dissatisfaction within the embassy over the leadership’s conduct.

China in talks with Iran to allow safe oil and gas passage through Hormuz, sources say

China is in talks with Iran to allow crude oil and Qatari liquefied natural gas vessels safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz as the US-Israeli war on Tehran intensifies, three diplomatic sources tell Reuters.

The war, which entered its sixth day on Thursday, has left the critical shipping passageway all but shut, with countries around the world cut off from a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.

China, which has friendly relations with Iran and relies heavily on Middle Eastern supplies, is unhappy about the Islamic Republic’s move to paralyze shipping through the Strait and is pressing Tehran to allow safe passage for the vessels, according to the sources.

The world’s second-largest economy gets about 45% of its oil from the Strait.

Ship tracking data showed a vessel called the Iron Maiden passed through the Strait overnight after changing its signaling to “China-owner,” but far more sailings will be needed to calm global markets.

Crude oil prices are up more than 15% since the conflict began amid production stoppages as Tehran attacks energy facilities in the Gulf as well as ships crossing the Strait.

Its missiles have also reached as far afield as Cyprus, Azerbaijan and Turkey, destabilizing global markets and prompting major economies to warn about inflation risks.

Crude ​tanker transits through the strait fell ​to ⁠four vessels on March 1, the day after hostilities broke out, versus an average of 24 a day ⁠since ​January, Vortexa vessel-tracking data showed.

Around 300 oil tankers remain inside the Strait, according to Vortexa and ship tracker Kpler.

Sugar industry veteran Mike McDougall tells Reuters that Middle East sugar executives say there are some ships transiting the Strait at the moment, all of which are either Chinese or Iranian-owned.

Jamal Al-Ghurair, the managing director of Dubai-based Al Khaleej Sugar, tells Reuters some ships carrying sugar are currently allowed to pass through the Strait while others are not, without giving further details.

Iran’s government said earlier in the week that no vessels belonging to the United States, Israel, European countries or their allies would be allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, but the statement made no mention of China.

Sissi says Egypt in ‘state of near-emergency’ as war threatens economy

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi says his country is in an economic “state of near-emergency” as a result of the Middle East war, warning of runaway inflation.

The Arab world’s most populous nation has not been physically impacted by the US and Israeli war with Iran, which has seen strikes on Egypt’s wealthy Gulf allies and paralysed trade through the vital Strait of Hormuz.

But by the close of business Thursday, the Egyptian pound had fallen to an eight-month low against the US dollar, trading at 50.2 to the USD amid reports of short-term investment outflows.

Egypt’s import-dependent economy has proven highly sensitive to fluctuations in the currency, which has lost two-thirds of its value since 2022.

At a military academy event, Sissi says “the current crisis might have some repercussions on prices,” warning that price-gouging traders could be tried “in military courts,” according to a statement from his spokesman.

Over the weekend, Sissi had warned the war could spell trouble for the Suez Canal, the region’s other vital waterway besides the Strait of Hormuz and a key source of foreign currency for Egypt.

Major shipping companies have already directed traffic away from the region, rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope off the tip of southern Africa.

Sissi says that Egypt is attempting “sincere and honest mediation efforts to stop the war, as its continuation will have a hefty toll.”

Cairo has in the past hosted nuclear talks between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency, and is a guarantor of the US-brokered Gaza ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.

But Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said earlier today that his country is “not asking for a ceasefire” or negotiations with the US.

Sri Lanka offloads 208 crew members from second Iranian ship a day after US strike sinks frigate

Sri Lanka starts to offload 208 crew members from a second Iranian vessel off its coast, a day after 87 people were killed and several others were still missing after a U.S. submarine strike on an Iranian warship in the same region.

“After detailed discussions with all parties, Sri Lanka has decided to assist the Iranian vessel,” Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake tells a press briefing in Colombo.

The crew being offloaded included 53 officials, 84 cadets, 48 senior sailors and 23 sailors, Dissanayake says. Some crew members would remain on board to help the Sri Lankan Navy navigate the vessel to Trincomalee Port in the eastern part of the island, he adds.

The ship was near the port of Colombo, in the country’s exclusive economic zone but outside its maritime boundary, Dissanayake says.

“We worked on the stance that this is our humanitarian responsibility,” he tells the briefing.

Germany says it has no plans to send extra forces to Middle East

Germany says it has no plans to send additional military support to the Middle East, after European allies announced plans to move forces to the eastern Mediterranean following a drone strike at a British air base in Cyprus.

Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto told parliament earlier today that Italy, Spain, France and the Netherlands would send naval assets to protect Cyprus in the coming days.

Britain is also deploying a destroyer and additional helicopters with anti-drone capabilities to the region and is joining France and Greece in boosting air defenses in Cyprus.

Germany’s navy participates in the long-running United Nations UNIFIL monitoring mission in Lebanon, but the defense ministry says the military’s focus remained on NATO defense operations in eastern Europe.

“Germany is currently not planning any additional military capabilities beyond its existing contributions to international missions in the Middle East,” the ministry says in a statement.

The statement says the anti-aircraft frigate “Sachsen” was currently taking part in NATO’s Cold Response exercise in the Arctic.

The statement from the ministry reiterated comments from Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, who declares in parliament: “Germany is not a party in this war. The Bundeswehr is not taking part in this war.”

Anti-Zionist activists to hold vigil for Khamenei in New York City

Anti-Zionist and far-left activist groups announce a vigil for the late Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in New York City tomorrow.

The event will take place in Washington Square Park, a central location in Manhattan.

The vigil is endorsed by at least seven smaller, extremist activist groups, such as the Bronx Anti-War Coalition and Crown Heights Bites Back. The leading anti-Zionist groups in the city have not signed on.

“This vigil is a solemn reminder that Amerikan colonial violence is a singular evil. We honor all those who have been killed at the hands of Amerikan pigs,” the groups say in a statement. “We stand with Ayatollah Khamenei because he stood for us.”

Some of the groups have held similar vigils for the terrorist leaders Yahya Sinwar of Hamas and Hassan Nasrallah of Hezbollah.

Europol warns Iran crisis raises threat of terror, extremism and cyberattacks

The Middle East conflict will have “immediate repercussions” for European Union security with an increased threat of terrorism, serious and organised crime as well as violent extremism and cyberattacks, European police body Europol tells Spanish news agency EFE.

Europol spokesman Jan Op Gen Oorth says he expects to see more cyberattacks against European infrastructure and an increase in online fraud using increasingly sophisticated Artificial Intelligence and exploiting the flurry of information swirling about the conflict online, EFE reported.

Groups linked to Iran could seek to carry out “destabilizing activities” within the EU, he adds, referring to groups linked to the so-called Axis of Resistance, the network of anti-American and Israeli Shi’ite militias in countries including Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen. These could include terrorist attacks, intimidation campaigns, terrorist financing and cybercrime.

“The level of terrorist threat and violent extremism in EU territory is considered high,” he tells the news agency.

The terror threat could be heightened by individuals acting alone or small cells acting on their own initiative, he said.

“The rapid spread of polarizing content on the internet can accelerate short-term radicalisation processes among diaspora communities within the EU and other individuals,” he says.

IDF says it carried out another wave of strikes in western and central Iran, hitting some 200 targets

The Israeli Air Force carried out another wave of strikes in western and central Iran today, hitting some 200 targets, including dozens of ballistic missile launchers, the military says.

The IDF releases footage showing some of the airstrikes that targeted Iranian soldiers.

תיעוד מחיסול חיילים של משטר הטרור האיראני: הושלם גל תקיפה רחב של כ-200 מטרות במערב ובמרכז איראן

חיל האוויר השלים לאורך היום גל תקיפה רחב נוסף, במסגרתו הוטלו חימושים רבים על כ-200 מטרות במערב ומרכז איראן, בהם עשרות משגרי טילים בליסטיים.

בתיעוד שמתפרסם כעת מאחד האתרים שהותקפו,… pic.twitter.com/mIk4XRfloz

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 5, 2026

No reports of injuries following Hezbollah rocket barrage at northern Israel — medics

There are no reports of injuries following the latest Hezbollah rocket barrage on northern Israel, medics say.

Sirens had sounded in Tiberias, the Haifa area, and numerous other towns in the Galilee and the Golan Heights.

According to the IDF, some of the rockets were intercepted while the others were allowed to hit open areas “according to protocol.”

US suspending operations at embassy in Kuwait

The United States has suspended operations at its embassy in Kuwait City, the State Department says in a statement, amid US and Israeli strikes against Iran.

Araghchi: Iran not asking for ceasefire or negotiations with US

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says that the Islamic republic was neither asking for a ceasefire nor negotiations with the US, adding that Iran had no plans to close the Strait of Hormuz for now.

“We are not asking for a ceasefire. We don’t see any reason why we should negotiate with the US… We negotiated with them twice and every time they attacked us in the middle of negotiations,” Araghchi tells NBC News.

Speaking of the strategic Strait of Hormuz, Araghchi says: “We have no intention to close it right now but as the war continues we will consider every scenario.”

Iran FM says ground invasion would be ‘disaster’ for foes

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says his country was prepared for any potential ground invasion, saying such a move would spell “disaster” for the Islamic republic’s foes.

“We are waiting for them,” Araghchi tells US broadcaster NBC News, as the United States and Israel kept up strikes on Iran. “We are confident that we can confront them and that would be a big disaster for them.”

Flight to bring French nationals from UAE forced back, minister says

An Air France flight chartered by the French government to bring French nationals back from the United Arab Emirates was forced to turn back due to missile fire in the area, French Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot says.

“This situation reflects the instability in the region and the complexity of repatriation operations,” Tabarot adds.

France started repatriation flights from the Middle East on Wednesday as governments rush to bring home tens of thousands of citizens stranded by the intensifying US and Israeli conflict with Iran.

Iran state TV claims drones struck aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln; no proof aired

Iranian state TV claims that drones fired by the Revolutionary Guards, the ideological arm of the Islamic republic’s military, had struck the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.

State television does not provide any details on the claim. The Guards had previously alleged to have hit the US carrier, but the Pentagon said at the time that the “missiles launched didn’t even come close”.

Trump on rising gas prices during Iran operation: ‘If they rise, they rise’

US President Donald Trump says he is not concerned about rising US gas prices driven by the widening Iran conflict, telling Reuters in an exclusive interview that the US military operation was his priority.

“I don’t have any concern about it,” he says, when asked about the higher prices at the pump. “They’ll drop very rapidly when this is over, and if they rise, they rise, but this is far more important than having gasoline price go up a little bit.”

Trump has outlined a four-to-five-week timeline for the military campaign against Tehran, but political and military experts have questioned it, noting that the US government has yet to articulate its end goal while the conflict continues to spread to the region and beyond.

In the interview, Trump says he was not looking to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and that he was confident the Strait of Hormuz, the critical channel for oil shipping near Iran, would remain open because Iran’s navy is at the “bottom of the sea.”

Global oil prices have jumped 16% since the war started on Saturday, as the spreading conflict disrupted Middle East supplies.

The national average cost of gas has risen 27 cents since last week to $3.25 per gallon, according to AAA, a U.S. travel organization that tracks fuel prices. The current national average is 15 cents higher than a year ago.

Trump says the costs “haven’t risen very much.”

This is a change in tone for the president, who touted the drop in gas prices in his State of the Union address last month and at a Texas rally focused on energy that took place just hours before the US launched its airstrikes.

NATO allies increase missile defense posture after Turkey incident

NATO allies have increased their alliance-wide ballistic missile defense posture following the intercept of a missile from Iran targeted at Turkey, the alliance’s military headquarters says.

The posture will remain at the heightened level until the threat from Iran’s “continued, indiscriminate attacks across the region subsides,” Colonel Martin O’Donnell, spokesperson for the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, says in a post on X.

Shipping giant MSC to introduce emergency fuel surcharge on all cargo from northern Europe to Red Sea and East Africa

Shipping company MSC says it would implement an emergency fuel surcharge to all cargo from Northern Europe (including the UK and Scanbaltic) to the Red Sea and East Africa, effective March 16.

MSC will impose $40 per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) from Northern Europe (including the UK) to Red Sea for dry containers, and $60 per TEU for refrigerated containers.

Dry containers from Northern Europe (including the UK) to East Africa would be charged $65 per TEU, while refrigerated containers would be charged $100 per TEU, the world’s largest carrier of ocean container cargo said.

MSC will also impose $50 per TEU from the Scanbaltic region to the Red Sea for dry containers, and $75 per TEU for refrigerated containers, while the rate would be $75 for dry containers per TEU and $120 for refrigerated containers per TEU from the Scanbaltic region to East Africa.

Saudi airline flynas to operate limited flights to Dubai from Friday

Saudi Arabian budget airline flynas will operate limited exceptional flights between Saudi Arabia and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates starting on Friday, Saudi state television reports.

US, Qatar discuss acquiring Ukrainian drones to down Iran’s Shaheds, source says

The US and Qatar are in discussions with Kyiv about acquiring Ukrainian interceptor drones as a cheap alternative to down Iranian Shahed UAVs amid the war in the Gulf, a source familiar with the matter tells Reuters.

The early-stage talks are taking place between government officials, not companies, and the technology being discussed includes systems to listen out for incoming enemy drones and disrupt their communication signals, the source says.

Qatar’s International Media Office does not respond to a request for comment. The Pentagon declines to comment.

Sirens triggered in northern Israel following rocket fire from Lebanon

Sirens sound across northern Israel following rocket fire from Lebanon.

The alerts are activated in Tiberias, the Haifa area, and numerous other towns.

Hezbollah has launched dozens of rockets at northern Israel today.

IDF says it killed top Hezbollah commander in Wednesday Beirut strikes

A top Hezbollah commander was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut yesterday, the military announces.

According to the IDF, Zaid Ali Jumaa was responsible for Hezbollah’s “firepower management” and served as the head of its artillery forces in southern Lebanon.

“As part of his role, Jumaa was responsible for launching thousands of rockets, missiles, and drones toward the State of Israel from Lebanese territory,” the military says.

The IDF says that he held other key roles in Hezbollah over the years, and also fought alongside the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria during the civil war.

As commander of the Khiam area in south Lebanon, the IDF says Jumaa led a deadly 2015 anti-tank missile attack against Israeli troops, during which two soldiers — Maj. Yochai Kalangel and Staff Sgt. Dor Chaim Nini — were killed.

צה"ל חיסל את מפקד ניהול כוח האש של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה בביירות

חיל האוויר בהכוונת אמ״ן, תקף אתמול במרחב ביירות וחיסל את המחבל זיד עלי ג'מעה, אחראי ניהול כוח האש של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה ואחראי הארטילריה בדרום לבנון.

מתוקף תפקידו, ג׳מעה היה אמון על שיגור אלפי רקטות, טילים וכלי… pic.twitter.com/9q52Ax6W6C

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 5, 2026

Trump announces Noem out as homeland security secretary; GOP Sen. Mullen to replace her

US President Donald Trump announces that he has replaced Kristi Noem, head of the powerful of Homeland Security Department.

Trump, in a post on Truth Social, says Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullen would take over from Noem at DHS on March 31.

Trump: I am pleased to announce that the Highly Respected United States Senator from the Great State of Oklahoma, Markwayne Mullin, will become the United States Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), effective March 31, 2026. The current Secretary, Kristi Noem, who has served us… pic.twitter.com/Vc87Zazqxi

— Acyn (@Acyn) March 5, 2026

IDF chief: Israel moving to next stage of campaign against Iran; more surprises to come

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir says Israel is moving on to the “next stage of the campaign” against Iran.

“After completing the stage of the surprise opening blow, in which we created air superiority and suppressed the ballistic missile array, we are now moving to the next phase of the campaign, in which we will intensify the strike on the foundations of the regime and its military capabilities,” he says in a press statement.

“We have additional surprising moves in our hands, which I do not intend to reveal,” Zamir says.

Zamir says that he is in “continuous contact” with his American counterparts, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, and the commander of CENTCOM, Adm. Brad Cooper.

“We are fighting out of shared interests and values. In synchronized action, we are stripping the regime of its military capabilities and bringing it to strategic isolation and to a point of weakness it has never experienced before,” he says.

“This is historic cooperation,” Zamir adds.

IDF chief says Israel has destroyed 80% of Iran’s air defense systems

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, in a press statement, says Israel has destroyed 80% of Iran’s air defense systems and achieved “almost complete air superiority” over Iran.

“Within 24 hours, our pilots paved the way to Tehran. We destroyed about 80% of the air defense systems and achieved almost complete air superiority over the skies of Iran,” he says.

“So far, Israeli Air Force pilots have carried out 2,500 strikes and dropped more than 6,000 munitions,” Zamir says.

“Thanks to this and to the high-quality intelligence, we are striking the ballistic missiles that pose a direct threat to the citizens of the State of Israel. We have neutralized and destroyed more than 60% of the ballistic missile launchers, a very significant achievement that reduces the damage to the home front and saves many lives,” he continues.

“Every missile is lethal, I emphasize that the threat has not yet been removed and still poses a danger,” Zamir adds.

Katz: Netanyahu set goal of killing Khamenei in November; Iran protests accelerated US-Israel strike plans

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set the goal of assassinating Iran’s former supreme leader Ali Khamenei in November, Defense Minister Israel Katz says in an interview with Channel 12 news aired this evening.

“Already in November, we held discussions with the prime minister in a very small forum. The prime minister set the objective: to eliminate Khamenei,” Katz tells the Hebrew network.

“In consultation with the IDF and the Mossad, the target date was ultimately set for the middle of the current year, around June — to carry this out,” he continues.

At that stage, Israel did not share its plans with Washington, Katz says. “We prepared under the assumption that we might have to carry it out on our own,” he says, but soon after, “a kind of dialogue” began between Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump on the matter.

Israel and the United States were then taken aback when protests erupted across Iran late last year, Katz adds, claiming that this created a concern within Israel that the domestic unrest may provoke the regime to launch a preemptive strike on Israel, before Israel could take advantage of the strategic window.

“It surprised everyone. The unrest didn’t just create an opportunity — there was also serious concern at the time that, because of the pressure on the regime from the protests, the regime might launch a preemptive missile strike on Israel and on American forces in the region.

At that time, discussion about toppling the regime “came up” between Washington and Jerusalem, and the two sides reached an agreement “on cooperation in defining the objectives,” and began talking about “creating the conditions for the Iranian people to begin acting to overthrow the regime — we began advancing those objectives.”

From that moment, “There was joint planning, and afterward a joint operational planning process,” Katz says.

“And I think the only person in the world, the only leader who could have created such cooperation with President Trump, is Benjamin Netanyahu,” he adds.

Katz insists that neither Israel nor the US dragged the other into attacking Iran, insisting that decisions were made independently in light of the perceived threats posed by the Islamic Republic.

No reports of injuries following latest Iran missile salvo on northern Israel

There are no reports of injuries following the latest Iranian ballistic missile attack on northern Israel, medics say.

Sirens had sounded in Haifa and the surrounding area amid the attack, the seventh from Iran since midnight.

Concurrently, sirens sounded in several communities in the Galilee and Golan Heights due to rocket fire from Lebanon.

According to the IDF, several rockets were fired from Lebanon, and they were intercepted by air defenses.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters, but should remain close to them.

Dow falls over 2% on latest spike in oil prices

Losses on Wall Street deepened as the latest oil price surge added to worries that supply disruptions connected to the Middle East war will spur on inflation.

Near 18:30 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 47,681.72, down more than 1,050 points or 2.2 percent.

The broad-based S&P 500 fell 1.4 percent to 6,775.85, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index slid 1.3 percent to 22,515.70.

Trump, Katz both said to raise issue of pardoning Netanyahu on their own volition, raising speculation of PM-backed campaign

Channel 13 journalist Sefi Ovadia reports that US President Donald Trump raised his demand for President Isaac Herzog to pardon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu without being asked about it during his interview with the Axios news site.

Hours earlier, Channel 12 interviewed Defense Minister Israel Katz, who on his own volition raised the importance of pardoning Netanyahu.

Ovadia speculates that the two instances demonstrate that a coordinated campaign is underway, suggesting that Netanyahu himself may be behind it.

District court reinstates ban on Braverman contacting chief of staff

The Lod-Central District Court overturns a decision by the Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court that allowed key restrictive release restrictions on Tzachi Braverman to expire, despite the ongoing criminal investigation into suspicions he interfered with another investigation.

The district court rules, therefore, that all restrictive conditions that had previously been incumbent on Braverman, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s chief of staff, will come back into effect and remain operative until March 10.

These include a ban on Braverman contacting Netanyahu and a long list of other officials in the Prime Minister’s Office connected to the investigation, and a ban on him leaving the country, which will remain in effect until March 12 but not be extended any longer than that.

Lod-Central District Court Judge Michael Kershan adds, however, that if the police summon Braverman — who has been appointed as Israel’s next ambassador to the UK — for further questioning, he must present himself within 48 hours.

Braverman is being investigated on suspicion of interfering with an investigation and other crimes, in connection with allegations that he told Eli Feldstein, a spokesperson for Netanyahu, that he could quash a military investigation into Feldstein over the leak of a classified document to the German newspaper Bild.

France to send armored vehicles to Lebanon, Macron says

France will strengthen its cooperation with the Lebanese Armed Forces and provide them with armored transport vehicles as well as operational and logistical support, French President Emmanuel Macron says, as Lebanon was pulled deeper into the war in the Middle East earlier this week.

“Everything must be done to prevent this country, which is close to France, from being dragged into war once again,” Macron says in a post on X.

“In this moment of great danger, I call on the Israeli Prime Minister not to extend the war to Lebanon. I call on Iranian leaders not to involve Lebanon further in a war that is not its own,” the French leader adds.

Trump says he’d welcome Kurdish opposition groups launching offensive against Iranian regime

US President Donald Trump says he’d welcome Kurdish opposition groups launching an offensive against the Iranian regime.

“I think it’s wonderful that they want to do that, I’d be all for it,” the president said.

When asked if the US would provide or had offered air cover, he responds, “I can’t tell you that,” but adds that the objective for the Kurds would be “to win.”

“If they’re going to do that, that’s good,” Trump adds.

Iranian Kurdish militias have consulted with the United States in recent days about whether, and how, to attack Iran’s security forces in the western part of the country, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter.

The Iranian Kurdish coalition of groups based on the ‌Iran-Iraq border in the semi-autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan has been training to mount such an attack in hopes of weakening the country’s military, as the United States and Israel pound Iranian targets with bombs and missiles.

Trump also signals confidence that the major shipping route near Iran, the Strait of Hormuz, will remain open.

Closing the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow chokepoint between Iran and Oman through which a fifth of the world’s ​crude oil and liquefied natural gas passes, has been one of Iran’s main objectives, and shipping through the crucial energy artery has ground to a near ⁠halt after Iranian hits on six vessels.

“They have no navy, you know the navy is now at the bottom of the sea,” Trump says. “I’m watching Hormuz very closely.”

IDF issues wide evacuation warning in Lebanon’s eastern Beqaa Valley

The IDF issues a wide evacuation warning in Lebanon’s eastern Beqaa Valley ahead of airstrikes on Hezbollah sites.

“Urgent warning to the residents of the Beqaa area, specifically the residents of the villages and towns: Douris, Brital, and Majdaloun. Hezbollah’s activities in the area force the IDF to act against it with force in order to target its military infrastructure. The IDF does not intend to harm you,” says army spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee.

“To ensure your safety, we call on you to evacuate the area immediately and head west via the Zahle–Baalbek road,” he says.

Adraee warns that “Anyone who is near Hezbollah members, its facilities, or its [weapons] is putting their life and the lives of their family members at risk.”

“We will inform you when it is safe to return to your homes,” he adds.

#عاجل ‼️انذار عاجل إلى سكان منطقة البقاع وتحديدًا سكان القرى والبلدات: دورس، بريتال ومجدلون

????إن أنشطة حزب الله في المنطقة تجبر جيش الدفاع على العمل ضده بقوة وذلك لاستهداف بنى تحتية عسكرية تابعة له. جيش الدفاع لا ينوي المساس بكم.

????لضمان سلامتكم ندعوكم الى إخلاء المنطقة فورًا… pic.twitter.com/m2fZ3GcO3Y

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) March 5, 2026

In a few days it will be harder for Iran to disrupt shipping, Israeli envoy says

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations claims that in a few days it will be much harder for Iran to disrupt vessels coming through the Strait of Hormuz and that the volume of missiles Tehran was firing was already falling.

Speaking to reporters at the United Nations, Danny Danon urges Israelis and Israel’s neighbors to be patient, as it was only a matter of time before Iran’s rocket fire was minimized and its military capabilities dismantled.

Danon tells reporters that hundreds of attacks against Iranian missile launchers were showing results.

“You saw at the beginning of the war around 100 missiles ending in Israel. Today, you are talking about maybe 20. So I’m sure we will see that going to that direction,” he said.

“Every day, their capabilities shrink. Every hour, we, together with the US, degrade, destroy and dismantle the launch sites and stockpiles. The volume of missiles they are firing is already falling, and we are only six days in.

“They are getting weaker and weaker,” Danon says, adding that it was not yet time for diplomacy with Iran.

“I think diplomacy will come into action, (but) not yet,” he says.

“We have to finish the job… It will not be months, it will be weeks or days, but we need to continue. We need to continue to hammer, to dismantle the capabilities, and then… to use diplomacy to ensure that they are not doing the same.”

When Iranians look into the skies now, they only see Israeli and American aircraft, Danon says.

“We need to be patient,” he says. “Give us a few more days, it will be much, much harder for the Iranians to disrupt the vessels coming through the Strait of Hormuz.”

Trump says he’ll accept help from any country on Iran after Ukraine drone offer

US President Donald Trump tells Reuters that he would accept assistance from any country, when asked about an offer of support from Ukraine to help defend against Iranian drones.

“Certainly I’ll take, you know, any assistance from any country,” Trump tells Reuters in a telephone interview.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday that Ukraine had received a specific request from the United States for help in dealing with drones in the Middle East.

Zelensky: Ukraine has received US request for help with drones in Middle East

President Volodymyr Zelensky says on Thursday that Ukraine had received a specific request from the United States for help in dealing with drones in the Middle East.

“We received a request from the United States for specific support in protection against (Iranian-designed) ‘shaheds’ in the Middle East region,” Zelensky writes in English on the X social media platform.

“I gave instructions to provide the necessary means and ensure the presence of Ukrainian specialists who can guarantee the required security.”

Israeli forces dismantle settler outpost near village where 2 Palestinians were killed

Israeli forces have reportedly dismantled an illegal Jewish outpost adjacent to the northern West Bank settlement of Shiloh overnight.

The Nof HaMishkan outpost is close to the Palestinian village of Qaryut, where two Palestinian brothers were shot dead Monday in a clash with a group of settlers that included Shiloh’s resident chief security officer.

Responding to reports that Nof HaMishkan was dismantled, the Defense Ministry’s Civil Administration says it took down Israeli structures that were illegally built on private Palestinian land near Qaryut.

“The evacuation was executed in accordance with an order signed by the IDF Central Command chief, after serious criminal and violent incidents came out of the area and threatened regional stability,” the statement says.

During the overnight raid at Nof HaMishkan, forces from the Border Police and from the Israeli Civil Administration kicked out two settler families and confiscated livestock that was in their possession.

הרס חריג הלילה בבנימין: עדר הצאן הוחרם ובתי החווה הוחרבו

כוחות מג"ב והמנהל האזרחי פשטו הלילה על חוות נוף המשכן סמוך לשילה, פינו שתי משפחות, החרימו ציוד והחריבו את המבנים ודיר הכבשים. התושבים: "נקמה הזויה ופרס לטרור"https://t.co/3HbJFqWYd7 pic.twitter.com/YOsybK0JrP

— ערוץ 7 (@arutz7heb) March 5, 2026

Extremist settler activist Elisha Yered cites Nof HaMishkan residents calling the demolition “a prize for terrorism” and demanding Israeli authorities instead prosecute the village of Qaryut after two of its “Hamas-identified terrorists were eliminated” while attacking a settler operating a bulldozer in the area of the village.

Settler activists have claimed that the slain brothers were Hamas fighters after they were featured on an alleged Hamas condolence poster that hailed them as “jihadi martyrs.”

The poster appeared in small regional Telegram groups, but was not published in any official channels of Hamas, which itself called the brothers simply “martyrs” in a statement condemning their killing.

The alleged “jihadi” condolence poster purported to have been issued by the Hamas movement rather than by its military wing, al-Qassam Brigades, which normally issues condolence posters for Hamas operatives killed by Israel.

In addition, the alleged “jihadi” condolence poster referred to the slain brothers as Fahim and Muahmmad Azem, while Hamas in its official channels referred to them as Fahim and Taha Muammar.

The IDF said at the time of the shooting on Monday that it was investigating reports of “friction” between Palestinians and settlers in Qaryut. No arrests have been reported.

Stay away from synagogues, don’t fly to UAE, says NSC to Israelis abroad

The National Security Council issues a travel warning in light of a “concrete concern that terrorist elements are currently working to harm Israelis abroad.”

Since the war began, there have been “several attempts” to carry out terrorist attacks against Israelis abroad, all of which have been foiled.

The NSC asks Israelis to avoid flying through the United Arab Emirates; to avoid public displays of Jewish or Israeli symbols; and to synagogues and other Jewish sites.

Trump says he’s going to have ‘big impact’ on selection of Iran’s next leader

US President Donald Trump says “people are loving what’s happening” in Iran, despite polls showing broad disapproval in the US of the ongoing war.

“We’re taking out a threat to the United States of America, a major threat, … and doing it like nobody’s ever seen before,” he tells Politico.

The US president says he’s “going to have a big impact” on the selection of Iran’s leadership after the war, “or they’re not going to have any settlement, because we’re not going to have to go do this again.”

“We’ll work with the people and the regime to make sure that somebody gets there that can nicely build Iran but without nuclear weapons,” Trump says.

The American leader boasts of the accomplishments in the joint US-Israeli campaign so far, asserting of the Islamic Republic: “They have no navy. They have no air force. They have no detection of air.”

French military: We are not letting US use bases in Middle East, but US support aircraft can use a base in France

Reports about the deployment of American assets at French bases in the Middle East are “incorrect,” the French General Staff tells The Times of Israel in a statement.

US support aircraft, and not combat aircraft, are now allowed to use the Istres air base in France, says the French military.

“This is a routine procedure within NATO,” says the general staff, adding that “France has insisted that these assets not participate in any way in operations conducted by the United States in Iran, but strictly in support of the defense of our partners in the region.”

The US has given France “full assurances” that this will be the case, says the French military.

Iran said to claim it has launched 500 missiles, 2,000 drones since start of war

Iran has launched over 500 ballistic and cruise missiles and over 2,000 drones since the start of the war, an Iranian military source tells the Iranian Fars news agency.

The report claims that 40% of the Iranian attacks targeted Israel and the other 60% targeted American sites in the region.

Despite the claim, Iran’s missile and drone attacks have also hit civilian sites in Gulf nations, as well as Azerbaijan.

Responding to Trump, Herzog says he’s not dealing with pardon request mid-war, will decide without ‘pressures of any kind’

After US President Donald Trump called him a “disgrace” for not pardoning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog’s office says that he is not dealing with the pardon request during the war with Iran.

“President Herzog greatly respects and appreciates the tremendous contribution of Donald Trump to Israel’s security,” says the President’s Residence in a statement. “He views him as the leader of the free world, a central ally of Israel, and particularly values his firm stance against Iran.”

Herzog’s office reiterates that Israel “is a sovereign state governed by the rule of law,” and as such, the request is currently being dealt with by the Justice Ministry, which will offer its legal opinion, as per the law.

“After the process is completed, the president will examine the request according to the law, the good of the country, and according to his conscience, without any influence from external or internal pressures of any kind,” his office stresses.

Lebanon president asks France’s Macron to urge Israel not to bomb south Beirut

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun asks his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron to urge Israel not to bomb Beirut’s southern suburbs, after the Israeli military issued an evacuation warning for the area.

In a phone conversation, Aoun asked Macron “to intervene with Israel to prevent Beirut’s southern suburbs from being targeted”, and to help bring about a “ceasefire as soon as possible,” according to a statement from the Lebanese presidency.

Trump says Zelensky ‘has to get a deal done,’ insists Putin ready

US President Donald Trump describes Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky as the obstacle to a deal with Russia, whose leader, Vladimir Putin, he insisted was cooperative.

“Zelenksy, he has to get on the ball, and he has to get a deal done,” Trump says in an interview with Politico.

IDF says it destroyed Hezbollah rocket launcher used to strike Acre earlier today

A Hezbollah rocket launcher used in a barrage on the Acre area earlier today was destroyed in an airstrike shortly after the attack, the military says.

Fewer than 20 rockets were launched from Lebanon in the barrage. According to the IDF, some of the rockets were intercepted while the others were allowed to hit open areas “according to protocol.” No injuries or damage were caused.

The military says that shortly after the attack, it struck the launcher. It publishes footage of the strike.

בסגירת מעגל מהירה: צה"ל תקף את אתר השיגור ששיגר רקטות לעבר עכו הבוקר

מוקדם יותר היום, שוגרו רקטות לעבר מרחב עכו, ללא נפגעים ונזק.

זמן קצר לאחר מכן, צה"ל תקף והשמיד את אתר השיגור ממנו נורו הרקטות.

צה"ל לא יאפשר פגיעה באזרחי מדינת ישראל וימשיך לפעול בעוצמה נגד ארגון הטרור… pic.twitter.com/wPuhPhMEyO

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 5, 2026

Netanyahu visits US airmen in southern Israel: Our cooperation is historic

The cooperation between Israel and the US in the campaign against Iran “is historic,” says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a visit the Ovda Israeli Air Force base in southern Israel housing both Israeli and American air crews.

“We continue striking targets of the terrorist regime in Iran as well as terrorist elements in Lebanon,” says Netanyahu. “The achievements are significant, but the work is still great.

Citing safety precautions, Israel to bar Friday Ramadan prayers at Jerusalem holy site amid Iran war

Amid the war with Iran, Muslim worshippers will not be permitted to attend Friday Ramadan prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on the Temple Mount tomorrow, Israeli authorities announce.

“The State of Israel is committed to freedom of worship and religion, and has allowed this during the first two weeks of the blessed month of Ramadan, but the axis of death led by Iran endangers everyone’s lives through its continued launching of rockets toward Israel and the entire region,” says Brig. Gen. Hisham Ibrahim, chief of the Civil Administration, a Defense Ministry body that’s part of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories unit, which regulates much of daily life in the West Bank.

“For this reason, and in accordance with the instructions of Israel’s Home Front Command, and to preserve public safety and protect people, all holy sites in the Old City of Jerusalem, including the Western Wall, Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, will remain closed tomorrow, Friday, and worshippers and visitors of all religions will not be allowed to enter,” Ibrahim says in a video posted on COGAT’s Facebook page.

In the past two Fridays of Ramadan, thousands of West Bank Palestinians were permitted by Israel to enter Jerusalem for the prayers at Al-Aqsa. Israel said that it would cap the number of Palestinian worshipers from the West Bank attending the weekly prayers at 10,000.

Seafarers can refuse to sail through Mideast Gulf region, top union says

Seafarers have the right to refuse to sail on ships passing through the Middle East Gulf including the Strait of Hormuz after the threat level for the region was raised to its highest level, the leading labour union and shipping industry groups says.

Bahrain says fire at Bapco Energies refinery after Iranian missile strike contained, operations continue

A fire broke out at a unit of Bahrain’s Bapco Energies refinery after an Iranian missile strike, but the blaze has been contained, with no injuries reported and refinery operations continuing, Bahrain’s National Communication Centre says.

Middle East chaos stems from erosion in international law, EU’s Kallas says

The current turmoil in the Middle East is a direct result of the erosion in international law, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas says.

In a speech at the University of Zurich, Kallas says the international order has been undermined by major powers acting unilaterally, pointing the finger particularly at Russia, but also directing criticism at China and the United States.

“Today, the chaos we see around us in the Middle East is a direct consequence of the erosion of international law,” she says, arguing that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had encouraged others to act with impunity.

Erdogan tells Macron Turkey seeking return to negotiations on Iran

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tells his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron by phone that Turkey is making intensive efforts to strengthen the ground for diplomacy and a return to negotiations on Iran, Erdogan’s office said on Thursday.

“Erdogan said that the prolongation of conflict in Iran would be a source of instability for both the region and the world,” the statement says, adding that conflict in the region necessitated increasing defense cooperation among NATO allies.

Trump says he wants to be involved in selecting Iran’s next leader; Khamenei’s son a ‘lightweight’

US President Donald Trump says he needs to be personally involved in selecting Iran’s next leader, just as he was in Venezuela.

“They are wasting their time. Khamenei’s son is a lightweight. I have to be involved in the appointment, like with Delcy [Rodriguez] in Venezuela,” Trump tells Axios in a phone interview, acknowledging reports that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s son Mojtaba has been tapped as a likely successor.

“Khamenei’s son is unacceptable to me. We want someone that will bring harmony and peace to Iran,” Trump says.

Trump’s comments appear to undercut US claims that the goal of the war in Iran is not regime change, even if it would be a welcome byproduct.

Hezbollah claims it targeted IDF with anti-tank missile; no comment from IDF

Hezbollah claims to have targeted Israeli troops in an anti-tank guided missile attack this afternoon.

In a statement, the terror group says it observed a “gathering of Israeli enemy soldiers” in southern Lebanon and targeted them with a missile.

The IDF has not yet commented on the incident.

Israeli troops have pushed deeper into southern Lebanon in recent days, with the IDF saying it assumed “forward defensive positions to establish an additional defensive layer to remove the threats to the residents of northern Israel.”

The deployment came after Hezbollah began attacking Israel, in what the terror group initially said was a response to Israel’s killing of Iran’s supreme leader, but has later claimed was a response to Israel’s continued presence and airstrikes in Lebanon since a November 2024 ceasefire.

IDF issues evacuation warning for Iranians in industrial zones near Tehran ahead of strikes

The IDF issues an “urgent warning” to Iranians in industrial zones near Tehran of ahead of planned airstrikes.

“Urgent warning to all individuals located in the Abbas Abad industrial area and also the Shenzar industrial area near Sharif Abad in eastern Pakdasht. In the coming hours, the IDF will operate in the area, as it has in recent days across Iran, to strike military infrastructure of the Iranian regime,” says the IDF’s Persian-language spokesman, Lt. Col. (res.) Kamal Penhasi in a statement.

“For your safety and well-being, we ask that you immediately leave the designated area mentioned on the map,” he adds.

‼️ هشدار فوری به کلیه افراد مستقر در ناحیه صنعتی «عباس آباد» و نيز ناحیه صنعتی شنزار در نزدیکی شریف آباد در شرق پاکدشت بر اساس ناحیه مشخص شده قرمز رنگ بر روی نقشه ضمیمه.

⭕️ ارتش اسرائیل همچنان که در روزهای اخیر در سراسر ایران برای حمله به زیرساخت های نظامی رژیم ایران اقدام کرده… pic.twitter.com/n9IPxI3y32

— ارتش دفاعی اسرائیل | IDF Farsi (@IDFFarsi) March 5, 2026

Trump demands ‘disgraceful’ Herzog immediately pardon Netanyahu so PM can focus on Iran war

US President Donald Trump demands that President Isaac Herzog immediately pardon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Trump tells Channel 12 in a phone interview that Herzog must give Netanyahu a pardon “today.”

Trump says he doesn’t want Netanyahu to be bothered by any issue other than the war with Iran.

The US president calls Herzog a “disgrace,” claiming he’s raised the matter with the Israeli president for a year and that Herzog promised him five times that he would pardon Netanyahu.

Trump says he is refusing to meet Herzog until he gives Netanyahu a pardon. There have been no reported efforts by Herzog to meet with Trump.

Trump claims Herzog’s been holding the issue over Netanyahu’s head for a year.

This was the second time Trump has attacked Herzog in less than a month, after he said in February that Herzog “should be ashamed of himself” for not granting a pardon to Netanyahu, who is standing trial for alleged fraud, bribery and breach of trust.

Trump has been calling for Netanyahu to be pardoned since June 2025 — meaning less than one year.

Responding to Trump’s criticism last month, Herzog’s office said that contrary to the US president’s claims, the Israeli president has not decided on whether to grant Netanyahu a pardon.

This is because the matter is still being reviewed by the Justice Ministry, which has to provide a legal opinion before the president can make a decision, the statement from Herzog’s office said.

“Only upon completion of that process will President Herzog consider the request in accordance with the law, the best interests of the State of Israel, guided by his conscience, and without any influence from external or internal pressures of any kind,” the statement added.

“President Herzog deeply appreciates President Trump for his significant contribution to the State of Israel and its security. Israel is a sovereign state governed by the rule of law,” the statement added, cautiously suggesting that Trump was trying to infringe on Israel’s sovereignty, while insisting that Herzog would not allow that to occur.

Bahrain says facility in oil infrastructure area attacked

Bahrain’s interior ministry says one of its facilities in an industrial zone housing an oil refinery has been attacked, and one witness tells AFP they saw smoke rising from the area.

“One facility in Maameer was targeted, and the relevant authorities are handling the incident,” the statement says.

Iran continues targeting regional oil infrastructure. Most recently, an Iranian missile struck a refinery in Bahrain. pic.twitter.com/jEvmwbqXrt

— GMI (@Global_Mil_Info) March 5, 2026

IDF launches 13th wave of strikes in Tehran since start of war

The Israeli Air Force has launched a new wave of airstrikes against Iranian regime targets in Tehran, the IDF announces.

It marks the 13th wave of strikes in Iran’s capital since the start of the war, and the second today, according to the military.

Further details are expected to be provided later.

Lebanon: Toll from Israeli airstrikes up to 102 killed, 638 wounded

Lebanon’s Health Ministry says 102 people have been killed and 638 injured in Israeli airstrikes since Hezbollah resumed rocket attacks on Israel earlier this week.

The toll does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.

Poll: Netanyahu’s Likud rises to 31 seats at expense of coalition partners, with no impact on blocs

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud rises from 27 seats last week to a projected 31 seats according to a poll conducted yesterday by The Times of Israel’s sister site Zman Yisrael, in the first poll conducted since the start of the current conflict with Iran.

However, the boost appears to come largely at the expense of Likud’s coalition partners, including National Security Minister’s far-right Otzma Yehudit party, which drops from eight seats last week to six, while the ultra-Orthodox parties Shas and United Torah Judaism each lose one seat, falling to nine and seven respectively.

Despite this internal shift, there doesn’t seem to be any impact on the overall balance of seats held by the two main blocs, with the coalition and opposition camps projected to remain neck and neck with 53 seats.

This does not include the four Arab parties that signed an agreement in January to work toward running together on a joint list and are projected to win 10 seats, or Benny Gantz’s Blue and White party which is projected to win four.

Meanwhile, former IDF chief Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar Party rises to 14 seats, up from 12 last week, and 9 two weeks ago. Similarly to Likud’s gain, this boost appears to come largely at the expense of Eisenkot’s own bloc, notably former prime minister Naftali Bennett’s party, which drops to its lowest showing in weeks with 15 seats.

Price of US oil contract up over 5% on Iran war

Benchmark US oil contract West Texas Intermediate soared more than five percent to $78.88 per barrel in trading today, the highest level since January last year, as the Iran war threatens supplies.

International benchmark Brent North Sea crude jumped 3.6 percent to $84.34 per barrel.

Iran’s underground missile bunkers to be targeted in 2nd phase of war, sources tell Reuters

The joint Israeli-American war in Iran is entering a second phase that will see the targeting of ballistic missile sites buried deep underground, two sources familiar with Israel’s military campaign tell Reuters.

The joint air assault with the US in Iran is nearing the end of its first week after opening salvos killed the country’s leaders and set off a regional war with Iranian attacks in Israel, the Gulf, and Iraq, and Israeli attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Israel’s military says it has hit hundreds of Iranian missile launchers above ground that could target Israeli cities.

The second phase will include bunkers storing ballistic missiles and equipment, say the sources, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject.

Many such strikes would likely be carried out by the US with its heavy bombers capable of carrying bunker-busting bombs that can penetrate Iran’s heavily fortified underground ballistic missile sites.

One source says Israel aims to neutralize Iran’s ability to launch aerial attacks at Israel by the end of the war, which is also focused on taking out the Islamic Republic’s leadership.

A spokesperson for the military does not immediately respond to a request for comment on its attack plans.

Yesterday, The Times of Israel reported that the Israeli military was planning for at least one or two more weeks of operations against Iran, during which it aims to hit thousands of targets, with the goal of systematic degradation of the Iranian regime and its military capabilities.

Earlier today, the IDF said that in an overnight strike, the Air Force struck “an underground infrastructure site used by the Iranian regime to store ballistic missiles and storage sites for missiles intended for use against aircraft.” The military had not previously announced attacks on underground missile facilities.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

Blasts heard in Abu Dhabi as UAE air defenses respond to missile threat

Residents in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi reports hearing a series of loud explosions, with UAE air defenses responding to a missile threat as Iran pressed on with its retaliation campaign in the Gulf.

“Air defense systems are currently responding to a missile threat,” the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority says in a statement on X. Abu Dhabi residents say they heard numerous heavy explosions.

‘Dahiyeh will resemble Khan Younis’: Smotrich warns of Gaza-like destruction coming to Lebanon

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich warns that a southern Beirut suburb, a stronghold of Hezbollah, will face devastation similar to Gaza after the Israeli military told residents to evacuate.

“Very soon, Dahiyeh will resemble Khan Younis,” Smotrich said, referring to a southern Gaza city that has been heavily damaged by Israeli bombardment during the two-year war with Hamas.

“Hezbollah made a mistake, and it will pay a heavy price. We are striking at the head of the octopus in Iran, and at the same time we will sever Hezbollah’s arm,” he said in a video statement as he visited Israel’s northern border.

Israeli Minister Bezalel Smotrich says Beirut’s Dahieh district will soon “look like Khan Younis.” pic.twitter.com/zx1NzUEZFG

— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 5, 2026

Hormuz, Gulf of Oman and Gulf designated ‘warlike operations area’ by maritime sector

The maritime sector on says it has designated the Strait of Hormuz, Gulf of Oman and Gulf as a “warlike operations area” owing to the Iran war.

The upgrade from a “high risk area designation” by unions and maritime employers on March 2 “reflects the continuing and heightened threat to seafarers and vessels operating in the region,” they say in a joint statement.

WHO says it has verified 13 attacks on health sites in Iran

The World Health Organization chief says that it has verified 13 attacks on health infrastructure in Iran amid a US-Israeli campaign, and it is checking reports that four medics were killed and 25 others injured.

“WHO has verified 13 attacks on health care in Iran and one in Lebanon,” World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus tells a press conference, without attributing blame or giving details.

Both the US and Israel say they are not targeting civilian sites and infrastructure in Iran.

Dr. Hanan Balkhy adds at the same briefing that four ambulances in Iran were also affected and that hospitals and other health sites suffered minor damage due to strikes nearby, citing Iranian authorities. One of these hospitals in the capital Tehran was evacuated as a result, the UN health agency previously says.

Iran’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva has alleged that 10 facilities have been hit by military strikes in a letter to Tedros earlier this week.

Balkhy, WHO regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean, says that “the situation across the eastern Mediterranean is indeed escalating rapidly” and expresses concern for civilians and health systems.

However, she says that “it seems that Iran has a strong and robust primary health care system, and there doesn’t seem to be significant damage.”

“Of course, the best medicine is peace,” says Ghebreyesus.

Knesset panel votes to keep court activity restricted to essential services

The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice committee votes to extend an order by Justice Minister Yariv Levin restricting the court system’s activity until Sunday, March 9.

The order also allows arrest hearings to be conducted via video conference.

The committee also votes to approve the extension of a separate order by Defense Minister Israel Katz closing military courts.

After Israel and the United States launched strikes on Iran last Saturday, the court system announced that only essential services would be available, with most courthouses closed except for urgent proceedings.

20,000 seafarers, 15,000 passengers stuck in Gulf amid Iran war — UN agency

The UN’s International Maritime Organization tells AFP that around 20,000 seafarers and 15,000 cruise ship passengers are stuck in the Gulf because of the Middle East war.

The shipping regulator’s secretary general Arsenio Dominguez says that the “IMO is ready to work with all stakeholders to help ensure the safety and well-being of the seafarers affected.”

Since war erupted on Saturday, the IMO has recorded seven incidents involving ships in the region that have resulted in two deaths and seven people wounded.

“Beyond the economic impact of these alarming attacks, it is a humanitarian issue. No attack on innocent seafarers is ever justified,” Dominguez tells AFP.

“I reiterate my call for all shipping companies to exercise maximum caution when operating in the affected region,” he adds.

Iran has effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s crude and considerable supplies of liquefied natural gas travel.

Several shipping groups, including Danish shipping giant Maersk, have suspended bookings in the Gulf.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on Wednesday claimed “complete control” of the Strait, with reports of additional vessels coming under attack.

Energy intelligence firm Kpler says oil tanker transits through the Strait had dropped by 90 percent from last week.

With energy prices already spiking, US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the US Navy was ready to escort oil tankers through the crucial shipping route.

WHO suspends operations at Dubai emergency logistics hub

The Middle East war has forced the World Health Organization to suspend operations at its emergency logistics hub in Dubai, the agency’s chief says.

“Operations at WHO’s logistics hub for global health emergencies in Dubai are currently on hold due to insecurity,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus tells reporters.

Son of last shah says Iran clerics’ next leader will be illegitimate

The son of the last shah toppled in Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution says that whoever the clerical government chooses to succeed the late ayatollah Ali Khamenei will be illegitimate.

Reza Pahlavi, who has positioned himself as an alternative if the Islamic Republic falls, says on social media that “victory is near” after Khamenei was killed last weekend as Mideast war began.

“Any attempt to appoint a successor for him is pre-destined to fail. Whomever is introduced… will lack legitimacy and will be considered an accomplice to the bloody record of this regime and its criminal leaders,” Pahlavi says.

Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of Khamenei, is among the leading contenders to succeed his father.

Dear compatriots,

As I emphasized in my message following the demise of Khamenei, any attempt to appoint a successor for him is pre-destined to fail. Whomever is introduced—be it Mojtaba or Hassan—will lack legitimacy and will be considered an accomplice to the bloody record of… https://t.co/mrWAQAHDXw

— Reza Pahlavi (@PahlaviReza) March 5, 2026

EU, Gulf states urge Iran to end attacks threatening ‘global security’

EU and Gulf ministers are calling for Iran to immediately end its “indiscriminate” attacks against Gulf countries, warning the strikes threatened international security.

“The ministers strongly condemned the unjustifiable Iranian attacks against the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries which threaten regional and global security and called on Iran to cease immediately its attacks,” says a joint statement issued after they held crisis talks by videolink.

UK embassy says ‘temporarily’ withdrawing some staff from Bahrain

The United Kingdom says it is “temporarily” withdrawing some staff and their dependents from its Bahrain embassy as Iran presses on with its retaliation campaign in the Gulf.

“Due to the ongoing security situation, the UK has taken the precautionary step of temporarily withdrawing some Embassy staff” and their families, it says in a statement on Instagram.

“Our Embassy continues to operate,” it says, adding that “the situation is serious and we do not expect it to end in the coming days.”

Iran foreign minister accuses Israel of Azerbaijan drone attack

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accuses Israel of launching a drone attack in Azerbaijan that was blamed on Iran, describing it as an attempt to harm Tehran’s relations with its neighbor.

In a phone call with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov, Araghchi “denied that Iran fired any projectiles” at Azerbaijan. He also condemned “the role of the Israeli regime in such attacks in order to divert public opinion and destroy Iran’s good relations with its neighbors,” according to a statement from Iran’s foreign ministry.

Four people were wounded in the midday drone attack in Azerbaijan’s exclave of Nakhichevan near the Iranian border.

Iranian army says it launched drone attack on US targets in Iraqi Kurdistan

Iran’s army says it has launched a drone attack on a US site in the Iraqi Kurdistan city of Erbil.

“The headquarters of the American aggressor forces in Erbil, Iraq, was attacked by the army’s ground forces’ attack drones,” the army says in a statement broadcast by state TV.

Residents flee Beirut’s southern suburbs after Israeli evacuation warning: AFP

Residents of Beirut’s southern suburbs are fleeing en masse after an evacuation warning from the Israeli army covering an area home to hundreds of thousands of people, AFP journalists report.

Some residents are firing into the air shortly after the Israeli warning to urge locals to leave as quickly as possible.

Massive traffic jams have formed on the outskirts of the southern suburbs, which has a strong Hezbollah presence, leaving people unable to evacuate quickly.

IDF says it killed Hamas commander in Navy strike in northern Lebanon

A Hamas commander was killed in an Israeli Navy strike on Lebanon’s Beddawi Palestinian camp in the northern coastal city of Tripoli this morning, the IDF announces.

According to the military, the strike killed Wasim Atallah Ali, who is responsible for “training and exercises” in Hamas’s military wing in Lebanon.

“The terrorist worked to advance terror attacks aimed at harming the citizens of the State of Israel and IDF troops, and his activity posed a threat to Israel and its citizens,” the military says.

The IDF publishes footage of the strike, as well as others carried out by the Israeli Navy against Hezbollah weapon depots in southern Lebanon.

Starmer: Business as usual for UK-US special relationship; UK sending 4 extra Typhoon jets to Qatar

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says the country’s so-called special relationship with the United States is operating as normal, after US President Donald Trump earlier this week criticized the UK and said Starmer had hurt the pair’s historically close ties.

“We’re sharing intelligence on a 24/7 basis in the usual way. That is the special relationship. That is the special relationship in operation,” Starmer tells a press conference on Thursday.

Starmer also says four additional Typhoon fighter jets will be sent to Qatar as the conflict in the Middle East escalates, insisting that the UK has the right plan for defense.

Britain’s cautious response to the Iran crisis and to a drone attack on its key military base in Cyprus have led to doubts among partners about its military effectiveness.

Starmer says Britain has the right plan and had already been pre-deploying military equipment across the region before the start of the war.

“My focus is providing calm, levelheaded leadership in the national interest,” Starmer says.

“That means deploying our military and diplomatic strength to protect our people, and it means having the strength to stand firm by our values and our principles, no matter the pressure to do otherwise.”

He said Britain was sending four additional Typhoon jets to join the squadron in Qatar to strengthen our defensive operations there and in the region.

Azerbaijan closes southern airspace near Iran for 12 hours

Azerbaijan has closed part of its airspace in the south after it said four Iranian drones flew across its border.

The airspace will remain closed for 12 hours, according to a notice to airmen (NOTAM) issued by Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijani president says Iran ‘will regret’ drone attack; Sa’ar condemns ‘aggression’

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev warns that Iran “will regret” its drone attacks in Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave.

“These dishonorable people, who committed this act of terror against us, will regret it,” Aliyev says in a meeting with his security council, according to state media. “We will not put up with this groundless act of terror and aggression committed against Azerbaijan. Our Armed Forces have been instructed to prepare and implement retaliatory measures.”

Aliyev also reiterates that Azerbaijan will not allow its territory to be used by any country to stage attacks on neighboring states, as it stated last year during Israel’s June war with Iran.

Meanwhile, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar condemns the attack and stresses that Israel is determined to continue its bombing campaign against the Iranian regime, in a phone call with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Jeyhun Bayramov.

“This aggression against Azerbaijan and against other countries in the region is completely unacceptable and once again proves that the Iranian regime is insane and unrestrained. Israel is determined to continue the military operation until its objectives are achieved,” Sa’ar writes on X.

No reports of injuries following latest Iran missile salvo on central Israel

There are no reports of injuries following the latest Iranian ballistic missile salvo on central Israel, medics say.

A small number of missiles were launched in the attack, according to preliminary military assessments. No direct impacts are reported, but missile fragments reportedly landed in several areas.

Sirens had sounded in Tel Aviv, across central Israel, and in the West Bank amid the attack, the sixth from Iran since midnight, sending millions to shelters.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters, but should still remain close to them.

Manchester vigil for Khamenei crashed by pro-Israel, anti-regime Brits

Around 100 people held a vigil for slain Iran Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Manchester, England.

Participants lit candles and placed flowers on the ground next to a photo of Khamenei, who was killed on the opening day of US and Israeli strikes on Iran on Saturday. Participants also waved Palestinian and Islamic Republic flags along with signs, including one that read, “You can kill a man, but you can’t kill an ideology.”

The event was crashed by hundreds of pro-Israel and anti-regime counter-protesters who blasted loud celebratory music, including the Village People’s YMCA — a popular song at campaign rallies for US President Donald Trump.

Students in Manchester have attended a candlelight vigil to mourn the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Find out more ????https://t.co/VwGOQ9ZAUu pic.twitter.com/a3RSfTw4CO

— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) March 5, 2026

????BREAKING: The Manchester Islamist vigil for Khamenei has been CRASHED by proud Iranians and locals celebrating and waving around portraits of Donald Trump

Manchester stands against hate!pic.twitter.com/Xg23UN5Bb8

— Inevitable West (@Inevitablewest) March 4, 2026

Senior Kataeb Hezbollah officer killed, Iraqi pro-Iran militias threaten European nations that join war on Iran

Pro-Iranian militias in Iraq vow to target the regional interests of European nations that participate in the “Zionist-American” strikes on the Islamic Republic and its proxies, after a senior officer in Kataeb Hezbollah, Iraq’s largest pro-Iran militia, was killed in an airstrike south of Baghdad overnight.

“The criminal Zionist-American enemy continues rallying its allies against the free people of the Islamic Republic and the region, begging some of the European countries to join,” the militias say in a statement issued via their umbrella group, Islamic Resistance in Iraq. “Any of those countries that do join in this battle… their forces and interests in Iraq and the region will be subject to legitimate targeting.”

The statement comes as the United Kingdom and several European Union countries send reinforcements to EU member Cyprus after a British sovereign base on the Mediterranean island was attacked by an Iranian drone on Monday. Britain has also said it would let the US use UK military bases in the region for “defensive” strikes against Iran.

Earlier today, Kataeb Hezbollah chief Abu Hussein al-Hamidawi announced the death of his senior deputy Ali Hassan al-Furayji and two other operatives in a US-Israeli strike overnight.

Hamidawi said his deputy was in his 60s and had for over two decades served as a “valiant commander in Kataeb Hezbollah.”

????️ كتائب حزب الله العراق تؤكد رسمياً أن 3 من عناصرها – قائد كبير واثنان من مرافقيه – قُتلوا مساء أمس في هجوم على مركبتهم بواسطة طائرة مسيرة في محافظة بابل بالعراق.
أبو حسن الفريجي، القيادي الذي يُطلق عليه في إعلان التعزية "القائد الجهادي الكبير"، هو جزء من الصف الأول لقيادة هذه… pic.twitter.com/6i96V998Eu

— Safaa Subhi صفاء صبحي (@SafaaAlNuaimi) March 5, 2026

According to Arabic media, the three Kataeb Hezbollah operatives were killed in a strike that targeted a vehicle belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of pro-Iran militias that was formally placed under the control of the Iraqi military in 2016 amid the country’s war against the Islamic State terror group.

A funeral procession for the three operatives was held today at the PMF media directorate in Baghdad, according to footage published by Arabic media. The footage shows the operatives’ coffins, decked in Kataeb Hezbollah insignia, on a stage in front of a large crowd holding flags of Iraq and Kataeb Hezbollah flags, and pictures of Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed at the start of the US-Israeli bombing campaign in Iran on Saturday.

#العراق

سلاح المعركة للقائد الجهادي الكبير ابو حسن الفريجي ورفاقه يوضع على النعوش الطاهرة اثناء التشييع. pic.twitter.com/j6UcvU3Nqi

— Sayad Hayder (@HayderSayad) March 5, 2026

IDF says 300 Iranian ballistic missile launchers destroyed since start of war

Since the start of the current war, the IDF says it has destroyed 300 Iranian ballistic missile launchers.

The announcement comes as the Israeli Air Force says it carried out a wave of airstrikes against Iranian military sites in western and central Iran this morning, destroying ballistic missile launchers and air defense systems.

“This is to reduce as much as possible the scope of fire towards the territory of the State of Israel,” the military says.

The IDF says that during the wave of strikes this morning in western and central Iran, the 113th wave since the start of the war, dozens of bombs were dropped on dozens of Iranian missile launch sites.

מתחילת מבצע ״שאגת הארי״: חיל-האוויר תקף מאות אתרי שיגור והוציא מכלל שימוש יותר מ-300 משגרי טילים בליסטיים

חיל-האוויר השלים בשעות הבוקר (ה') את גל התקיפה ה-113 נגד תשתיות של משטר הטרור האיראני במערב ובמרכז איראן.

בגל התקיפה הטילו מטוסי חיל-האוויר חימושים רבים על עשרות אתרים, מהם… pic.twitter.com/s7W9v6vmaq

— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) March 5, 2026

Chief rabbis oppose trains running on Shabbat to help returning Israelis stranded abroad leave airport

Chief rabbis Kalman Ber and David Yosef send a letter to Transportation Minister Miri Regev, protesting the decision to run trains from Ben-Gurion Airport to Tel Aviv on Shabbat to help Israelis returning to the country after being stranded abroad amid the conflict with Iran.

“We hereby protest vigorously against the mass desecrations of the Sabbath planned for this coming Shabbat, conducted officially by the Government of Israel, in situations where there is certainly no element of pikuah nefesh whatsoever, and without consultation with the Rabbis,” they write in the document, disseminated by a Rabbinate spokesperson.

Pikuah nefesh, or matters of life and death, is a concept in Jewish law that allows one to break Shabbat to save a life or protect someone’s health, and it is at times interpreted broadly.

Earlier today, Israel Railways announced that between Friday at 1 p.m. and Sunday morning, it would run trains between the airport and the Tel Aviv Savidor Station on a “fill-and-go” basis.

According to the latest data, 120,000 Israelis currently abroad seek to return to Israel. The Transportation Ministry estimates that the current operation to bring home Israelis will take 7-10 days, depending on the security situation and scope of air traffic operations.

Only Arkia and Israir are planning to operate flights on Shabbat, as they regularly do, but not the Israeli main carrier El Al.

IDF detects new launch of Iran missiles heading toward central Israel after 3-hour lull

After a lull of nearly three hours, the IDF says it has detected a new launch of ballistic missiles from Iran.

Sirens are expected to sound in central Israel in the coming minutes.

House to vote on Iran war powers resolution, with GOP expected to narrowly defeat it

The House is preparing to vote today on a war powers resolution to halt US President Donald Trump’s attack on Iran, a sign of unease in Congress over the rapidly widening conflict that is reordering US priorities at home and abroad.

It’s the second vote in as many days, after the Senate defeated a similar measure along party lines. Lawmakers are confronting the sudden reality of representing the American people in wartime and all that entails — with lives lost, dollars spent and alliances tested by a president’s unilateral decision to go to war with Iran.

The tally in the House is expected to be tight, but will likely see a similar result to the Senate vote, given that Republicans narrowly control both bodies of Congress.

The outcome will provide an early snapshot of the political support, or opposition, to the US-Israel military operation and Trump’s rationale for bypassing Congress, which alone has the power to declare war.

The roll calls are a clarifying moment for the president and the parties just days into the overseas conflict that has quickly carried echoes of the long US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Many veterans of those wars have since run for office and now serve in Congress.

Trump’s Republican Party largely sees the conflict with Iran not as the start of a new war, but the end of a regime that for decades has long menaced the West. The operation has killed Iran’s supreme leader ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which some view as an opportunity for regime change, though others warn of a chaotic power vacuum.

For Democrats, Trump’s war with Iran, influenced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is a war of choice that is testing the balance of powers in the US Constitution.

While views in Congress are largely falling along party lines, there are crossover coalitions. Both the House and Senate resolutions were bipartisan, and are drawing bipartisan support and opposition. The House is also voting on a separate resolution affirming that Iran is the largest state sponsor of terrorism.

The war powers resolution, if signed into law, would immediately halt Trump’s ability to conduct the war unless Congress approved the military action. The president would likely veto the measure.

As an alternative, a small group of Democrats has proposed a separate war powers resolution that would allow the president to continue the war for 30 days before he must seek congressional approval. It is not expected to come yet for a vote.

Rights group reports 50 settler attacks on Palestinians during 1st four days of Iran war

During the first four days of the ongoing Iran war, 50 incidents of settler violence against Palestinians were reported across the West Bank, according to Yesh Din, an organization that works to safeguard Palestinian right in in the West Bank.

The incidents took place from Saturday to Tuesday in 37 Palestinian communities and included fatal shootings, physical assaults, damage to property and threats.

“Under the cover of the war, settler violence is escalating with the aim of forcing Palestinians out and taking over their land. The government’s ambitions of displacing Palestinians are being carried out on the ground by violent settlers,” Yesh Din says in a statement.

Hezbollah elite fighters reportedly return to south Lebanon to fight Israeli troops

Hezbollah has deployed elite fighters to confront Israeli forces in southern Lebanon, sending them back into the border region from which they withdrew after a war in 2024, three Lebanese sources familiar with the deployments says, as the Iran-backed group wades deeper into the conflict in the Middle East.

Members of Hezbollah’s Radwan force had received orders to join the battle and block advances by Israeli tanks, the sources say, citing the town of Khiyam — one of several areas where Israeli troops reportedly advanced on Wednesday — as an example.

The Hezbollah elite fighters deployed to the south after the terror group opened fire with rockets and drones on Monday, according to the sources, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the topic.

They had left that part of Lebanon — specifically the area between the Litani River and the border with Israel — after a US-brokered ceasefire in November, moving north of the river, the sources say.

The sources do not say how many elite forces had been deployed.

Turkey says it strongly condemns Iranian drone attacks on Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan

Turkey says that it strongly condemns the Iranian drone attacks in Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave, and repeated its call for attacks targeting third countries to be halted.

“We emphasize once again the need to stop attacks targeting third countries in the region and carrying the risk of spreading the war,” the foreign ministry says in a statement, after the top diplomats of the two countries discussed the attacks in a call earlier.

Ukraine ready to lend expertise on defending Mideast oil infrastructure, Zelensky says

Ukraine is ready to provide its expertise to help defend oil infrastructure in the Middle East as the Iran conflict spirals, President Volodymyr Zelensky says.

He makes the remark during a briefing in Kyiv, where Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha says separately that Kyiv has received requests from partners for help with anti-drone defenses and is discussing “concrete steps” on the matter.

US Central Command publishes footage of its airstrikes on Iranian aircraft

The US Central Command publishes footage of American airstrikes on Iranian aircraft.

The videos show strikes on hardened aircraft shelters and other planes at airbases in Iran.

“The Iranian regime’s ability to impact US forces and regional partners is rapidly declining, while American combat power continues to build,” CENTCOM says.

The Iranian regime's ability to impact U.S. forces and regional partners is rapidly declining, while American combat power continues to build. pic.twitter.com/21TXHbWwFi

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 5, 2026

Lebanon decides to end visa-free entry for Iranians, calls for ban on IRGC activity in country

Lebanon’s cabinet announces new measures against Iran, including re-imposing visa requirements for Iranians visiting the country.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam requested in the cabinet meeting that “all necessary measures be taken to prevent any activity by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in Lebanon,” according to Information Minister Paul Morcos.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps has been cooperating closely with Hezbollah for decades, turning it into a powerful militia on Israel’s northern border.

The current government, led by President Joseph Aoun and Salam, is an anti-Hezbollah coalition that emerged with Western backing after Israel hammered Hezbollah in a 2024 air and ground offensive.

Salam takes to X after the cabinet meeting to blast “the one who dragged Lebanon into adventures that we were all better off without, without asking about their catastrophic repercussions on the country and our people, all in service of external interests that have nothing to do with Lebanon’s interest,” a reference to Iran’s proxy Hezbollah opening fire on Israel this week.

“Treasonous talk is not bravery, and the Lebanese have grown tired of it,” Salam continues, calling on Hezbollah — though not by name — “to apologize to the Lebanese people for the new burdens he has saddled them with, from destruction and displacement and ruin.”

IDF says it carried out over 550 aerial refuelings amid war with Iran

The military publishes footage showing the Israeli Air Force’s 120th Squadron’s aerial refueling activities amid the war with Iran.

According to the IDF, more than 550 aerial refuelings were carried out over the skies of the Middle East, allowing hundreds of IAF fighter jets to operate in Iran, located over 1,500 kilometers (nearly 1,000 miles) from Israel.

The IDF says five million pounds of fuel were transferred by the IAF’s refuelers during the current conflict, which constitutes more than half of the total refuelings carried out during June 2025’s 12-day war.

The IAF has also relied heavily on the US military’s aerial refueling capabilities, as the US military has roughly 10 times Israel’s refueling fleet. Dozens of US refueling tankers have been stationed in Israel amid the conflict.

An IAF Boeing 707 refueling plane refuels a fighter jet over the Middle East, in a handout video issued on March 5, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

El Al flight landing in Israel delayed by Iran missile barrage

An El Al repatriation flight arriving early this morning from Tbilisi, which was about to land at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, was forced to lift back up due to a rocket and missile attack alert.

After about 20 minutes in the air, the aircraft landed safely at Ben Gurion, a passenger aboard the plane told Israel’s Channel 12.

Ministry says 20,000 Israelis returned to country since Iran war began, 120,000 still want to return

The Transportation Ministry says more than 20,000 Israelis stranded abroad have returned home in recent days via land border crossings and maritime routes, as the country’s airspace gradually reopened overnight.

According to the latest data, 120,000 Israelis currently abroad seek to return to Israel. The Transportation Ministry estimates that the current operation to bring home Israelis will take 7-10 days, depending on the security situation and scope of air traffic operations.

Israeli airlines El Al, Arkia and Israir started overnight to gradually operate repatriation flights to help fly back Israelis following the closure of the country’s airspace on Saturday, when Israel and the US launched major joint military strikes on Iran.

Satellite images show damage to tunnel bases, buildings at targeted Iranian missile sites

New satellite images show the aftermath of Israeli or American airstrikes on Iranian missile bases.

The images, taken by Vantor, show damage to a building at a missile base in Garmdarreh and destruction caused to a building and tunnel entrances at the Khorramabad missile complex.

Both Israel and the US say they have been targeting Iran’s ballistic missile array, with strikes against missile launchers, depots and production sites.

Many of Iran’s ballistic missile production and storage sites are located deep underground. Therefore, only the US, with its heavy bombers, has the capability of targeting them.

New high-resolution satellite images released by @vantortech show the aftermath of air strikes on the IRGC's Khorramabad Garrison and missile complex.

Tunnel entrances and at least one building have been damaged by strikes.

Before: January
After: March pic.twitter.com/W2z60ZtZ17

— Shayan Sardarizadeh (@Shayan86) March 5, 2026

As Iran bolsters campaign to recruit spies, police and Shin Bet warn Israelis not to cooperate

In the midst of war with Iran, police and the Shin Bet warn Israelis against maintaining contact with or spying for Iranian intelligence operatives, amid attempts to recruit ordinary citizens into espionage schemes on behalf of the Islamic Republic.

The agencies say that since the June war, Iran has ramped up its campaign to build a network of homegrown Israeli spies, most of whom are recruited via the internet and spurred on by the promise of money.

Police say such recruits are enlisted to carry out missions meant to “gather intelligence on strategic targets, the locations of individuals and critical infrastructure.”

Since the outbreak of the June war, 16 espionage cases have been uncovered by authorities and serious indictments have been filed against the suspects, police continue, adding that those convicted of such offenses face a lengthy prison sentence.

Diplomats in Riyadh ordered to shelter in place due to potential threat, sources say

Diplomats and staff at embassies in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter have been told to shelter in place due to a potential threat, three people with direct knowledge of the matter say.

They do not have further details.

PA civil defense says 4 lightly wounded, 70 Iranian missile shrapnel impacts reported since Saturday

The Palestinian Authority’s civil defense agency says it has responded to 12 cases of Iranian missile shrapnel impact since Saturday, out of a total of 70 reported cases.

The statement does not say why teams were not dispatched to the other 58 cases of reported impact.

Falling shrapnel has lightly wounded four people — three near Jenin, in the northern West Bank, and one near Ramallah, in the central West Bank — the civil defense agency says in the statement carried by official PA news outlet WAFA.

At least three homes sustained limited damage from shrapnel, in the areas of Ramallah, Tubas and Nablus, according to the PA.

IDF issues unprecedented evacuation warning for entire Hezbollah stronghold in Beirut

The IDF issues an “urgent warning” to residents of Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold known as the Dahiyeh, ahead of planned strikes against the terror group.

The unprecedented evacuation order marks the first time that the Israeli military has called on wide swaths of the Lebanese capital to evacuate.

Previous evacuation warnings in Beirut have been for specific buildings that the IDF has then struck. The latest order covers four major neighborhoods in the southern suburbs of the city.

“Residents of the neighborhoods of Bourj el-Barajneh and Hadath move east toward Mount Lebanon on the Beirut–Damascus road. Residents of the neighborhoods of Haret Hreik and Shiyyah move north toward Tripoli on the Beirut–Tripoli road, and also east toward Mount Lebanon via the Metn Expressway,” says army spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee.

“Save your lives and evacuate your homes immediately,” he says.

“It is forbidden to move south. Any movement southward may endanger your lives. We will notify you when it is safe to return to your homes,” Adraee adds.

#عاجل ‼️انذار عاجل لسكان الضاحية الجنوبية في بيروت – انقذوا حياتكم وقوموا باخلاء بيوتكم فورًا

????سكان أحياء برج البراجنة والحدث – يرجى التوجه شرقاً باتجاه جبل لبنان على محور بيروت-دمشق.

????سكان أحياء حارة حريك والشياح – يجب الانتقال شمالًا باتجاه طرابلس بمحور بيروت-طرابلس وشرقًا… https://t.co/dSmTNOXvVs pic.twitter.com/o5AkFScE5Y

— Lieutenant Colonel Ella Waweya | إيلا واوية (@CaptainElla1) March 5, 2026

Iran has fired 7 missiles, 131 drones at UAE so far today

The UAE says Iran fired seven ballistic missiles at it today, of which one impacted inside the country.

Iran also fired 131 drones today, of which only six hit the UAE. The rest were intercepted, says the Emirati Defense Ministry.

In total, Iran has fired 196 ballistic missiles at the UAE, of which 181 were intercepted and 13 fell into the sea. Two hit the country.

The UAE has intercepted 1,001 of the 1,072 Iranian drones Iran fired at it, says its Defense Ministry.

Three people have died in the attacks — a Pakistani, a Nepali and a Bangladeshi. Ninety-four people have been injured.

Trump offers US backing, including aircover, to Iranian Kurdish groups if they go on offensive — report

US President Donald Trump offered “extensive US aircover” and other forms of support for Iranian Kurdish opposition groups this week, The Washington Post reports, citing multiple people familiar with the effort

Trump spoke this week to Kurdish leaders in Iran and in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the report says.

“The American request to the Iraqi Kurds is to open the way and not obstruct” Iranian Kurdish groups inside Iraq,” says a senior Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) official, “while also providing logistical support.” The PUK is one of the two major Iraqi Kurdish parties, and is generally seen as closer to Iran and more distant from Israel than its rival, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).

The senior official says that Trump was “clear” in his Sunday conversation with Bafel Talabani, leader of the PUK. “He told us the Kurds must choose a side in this battle — either with America and Israel or with Iran.”

Trump also called KDP head Masoud Barzani. A senior official from his party tells The Washington Post that Trump offered a similar message to Barzani, but adds that “it’s not about who has more active armed militias” to cross into Iran, “it’s about who has more support from inside” the country.

Iranian and Iraqi Kurds are in a difficult situation. The US has backed Kurds in Iraq and Syria, but has also repeatedly prioritized the interests of more powerful state adversaries of the Kurds. Iraq’s Kurds have reached an uneasy modus vivendi with Iran, based on the sides not backing attacks on the other.

Iran’s Kurds would also face reprisals from the regime if it survives.

There were premature reports in Israeli and American media about the start of an Iranian Kurdish offensive last night that were later taken down.

“We are in a very delicate position,” says the senior PUK official. “If this ground offensive fails, we do not know what Iran’s reaction against the Kurdistan region of Iraq would be. At the same time, we cannot simply reject Trump’s request — especially when he personally calls and asks for it.”

Iran military says its combat drones attacked US site in Kuwait

Iran’s military says it has launched a drone attack against a US military site in Kuwait.

“Drone units of the armed force’s navy targeted a site of the US forces Camp Udairi in Kuwait using combat drones,” the army says in a statement broadcast by state TV.

Camp Buehring, formerly known as Udairi, is a major US military facility in northwestern Kuwait.

Iran denies launching drone toward Azerbaijan

Iran’s general staff of the armed forces denies it has launched a drone toward Azerbaijan.

The denial comes, however, as Iran has repeatedly denied targeting oil infrastructure and other civilian targets during the war, despite its drone and missile fire hitting those sites.

Iran crisis could last weeks, possibly months, UK minister warns

British foreign office minister Hamish Falconer says there are indications the Iranian crisis could run into weeks or possibly months.

“The situation is evolving, but there are indications that this is a crisis, not of days, but of weeks and possibly months,” Falconer tells parliament.

Lufthansa extends suspension of flights to Israel until March 22

Lufthansa has extended the suspension of flights to and from Dubai and Abu Dhabi through Tuesday and to and from Tel Aviv until March 22 inclusive, while those to and from Tehran will not take place until May 1 due to the situation in the Middle East, the airline group says.

“The Lufthansa Group continuously monitors and assesses the security situation in the Middle East and is in close contact with the authorities,” it says in a statement.

In addition, flights have also been suspended to and from the Cypriot city of Larnaca; Beirut, Amman; and Iraq’s Erbil until later dates in March.

IDF says latest Tehran strikes targeted Basij bases, special forces HQ, other command centers

In its latest wave of airstrikes in the Tehran area, the IDF says, it struck the headquarters of Iran’s special forces, bases of the Basij paramilitary force, and other regime sites.

Some 90 Israeli Air Force fighter jets participated in the strikes, hitting some 40 targets with around 200 bombs, according to the military.

The IDF says that the “headquarters of the special units of the Iranian terror regime” in the Alborz province, just west of Iran’s capital, “commands all of the regime’s special units in the province and serves to direct the regime’s armed forces.”

Elsewhere in Tehran, the IDF says, it struck targets of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Basij bases, a headquarters of the internal security forces, and dozens of other command centers and weapon storage sites.

No reports of injuries after 5th Iranian missile salvo since midnight

There are no reports of injuries following the latest Iranian ballistic missile salvo on central Israel, medics say.

A small number of missiles were launched in the attack, according to preliminary military assessments. There are no reports of impacts in residential areas.

Sirens had sounded in Tel Aviv, in Jerusalem, and across central Israel amid the attack, the fifth from Iran since midnight, sending millions to shelters.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters, but should still remain close to them.

Meanwhile, footage published by Palestinian media shows a small plume of smoke following shrapnel impact in an open area near Nablus. No injuries are reported from the impact.

مصادر محلية: سقوط شظايا صاروخ قرب معسكر حوارة جنوب نابلس. pic.twitter.com/tW9gBfEkP6

— شبكة فلسطين للحوار (@paldf) March 5, 2026

Iran warns EU countries will ‘pay price’ if they stay silent on war

European Union countries will “pay the price, sooner or later” if they remain silent on the US-Israeli offensive against Iran, a spokesperson for Tehran’s foreign ministry tells Spanish broadcaster TVE.

Esmaeil Baghaei also reiterates Tehran’s denial that a missile intercepted in Turkish airspace was launched from Iran.

New Iranian missile launches detected, sirens sound in central Israel

The IDF says it has detected a new launch of ballistic missiles from Iran.

Sirens sound in central Israel, sending residents to bomb shelters.

Iran claims it launched missiles with 1-ton warheads at Ben Gurion Airport and nonexistent airbase at airport

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claims to have launched ballistic missiles with 1-ton explosive warheads at Ben Gurion Airport this morning.

In a statement, the IRGC says that at dawn, it launched Khorramshahr-4 missiles at “the heart of Tel Aviv, Ben Gurion Airport, and the 27th Squadron base of the Israeli Air Force at this airport.”

There is no 27th Squadron in the Israeli Air Force, and the claim is likely referring to Airbase 27, or Lod Airbase, which was once part of Ben Gurion Airport before being closed for good in 2010.

All of Iran’s ballistic missiles launched overnight at Israel were intercepted by air defenses, according to the IDF. One missile launched in the morning struck an open area in a central town.

IRGC launched a Khorramshahr-4 missile with a 1-ton warhead toward Israel earlier today at dawn, claiming it penetrated 7 layers of air defense. pic.twitter.com/C4s0THqwcn

— Current Report (@Currentreport1) March 5, 2026

Lebanon says death toll from current round of conflict is up to 77

The number of people killed in Lebanon since a resurgence in hostilities between Israel and the Hezbollah terror group on Monday has risen to 77, with 527 people wounded, the Lebanese health ministry says.

It is not clear how many of the casualties are civilians. The health ministry earlier claimed that seven children were killed.

After attacks by the US and Israel on Iran, Hezbollah launched missiles and drones into Israel Monday for the first time in over a year, and Israel has retaliated with strikes on Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs.

More than 83,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon by the renewed conflict, with the Israeli army estimating that the number has passed 300,000 as it urges civilians to evacuate the area and head north of the Litani River..

Six foreigners injured in Abu Dhabi by debris from intercepted drone

Falling debris from an intercepted drone injured six people in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi today, the UAE’s media office says.

“Authorities in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi responded to an incident involving falling debris at two locations in the ICAD 2 area, following the successful interception of a drone by air defenses. The incident resulted in six minor to moderate injuries to Pakistani and Nepalese nationals,” Abu Dhabi media office says in a statement.

Cops arrest Arab citizen for filming himself giving police station the middle finger

Police have arrested a 20-year-old Arab citizen after he filmed himself flipping off a police station in Umm al-Fahm today.

According to law enforcement, “officers noticed a car that did U-turns several times near the station and continued driving, something that aroused their suspicion.”

Cops pulled the young man over and found that he had filmed himself giving the police station the middle finger. They arrested him for interrogation and released him afterwards, subject to restrictions.

Iran army claims its drones hit Tel Aviv, northern radar site; no such impacts have been reported

Iran’s army claims it has carried out drone strikes in Israel today, even though no such impacts have been reported.

The strikes hit “targets in Tel Aviv as well as Meron radar base” in Israel’s north, the army says as quoted by state TV.

There have been no reports of drone impacts in Israel today. The Israeli military has reported shooting down over 100 drones launched from Iran since the start of the current war.

Israel returns 850 high school students stranded in Poland by war

Some 850 high school students who were stranded in Poland on heritage trips due to the US-Israel joint strikes on Iran have been returned to Israel through secret rescue operations via Taba in Egypt, Hebrew media reports.

The operation was organized by the Education Ministry and the Shin Bet, Ynet says. No update has been given on an educational group of 16 stuck in the United States, or a group of nine stranded at the beginning of the week in Romania.

Ben Gurion Airport reopened to limited arriving civilian flights today after five days of war, as the first repatriation flights began to bring home the tens of thousands of Israelis stranded abroad.

IDF under 20 rockets fired from Lebanon in latest volley; some downed, others hit open areas

Fewer than 20 rockets were launched from Lebanon at northern Israel a short while ago, the military says.

According to the IDF, some of the rockets were intercepted while the others were allowed to hit open areas “according to protocol.”

There are no reports of injuries, medics say. Sirens had sounded in the Galilee Panhandle and Western Galilee.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters, but should still remain close to them.

Lapid blasts government’s ‘confused’ wartime restrictions as economy reopens but schools stay shut

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid slams the government’s wartime restriction policies as “confused” after the Home Front Command eased workplace restrictions yesterday at the request of the Finance Ministry, while schools remain closed.

“It is unacceptable for decisions and guidelines about reopening the economy to be so confused. It is unacceptable that the Education Ministry is not coordinated with the Finance Ministry and local authorities,” the Yesh Atid faction chair writes in a post on X.

“The situation is particularly severe in special education, where there is no solution for children and young people with special needs,” Lapid continues, demanding that the Prime Minister’s Office coordinate with “all the relevant bodies and bring order.”

The statement follows yesterday’s announcement from the Education Ministry that schools would continue with distance learning today and tomorrow, followed by an announcement from the IDF Home Front Command a few hours later that it was easing restrictions that were imposed at the start of the conflict.

As part of the changes, educational activities remain prohibited, except for a number of outlined exceptions; gatherings of up to 50 people are permitted, provided a shelter can be reached in time; and workplaces can operate under the same conditions.

Emanuel Fabian and Sharon Wrobel contributed to this report.

France authorizes US use of French bases — report

France has authorized US armed forces to use French bases amid the conflict in Iran, French broadcaster BFMTV reports.

Spokespeople at the French Defense Ministry do not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Incoming rocket alarms blare in north after fire from Lebanon

Sirens sound in northern Israel following rocket fire from Lebanon.

The alerts are activated in several towns in the Galilee Panhandle and in the Western Galilee.

Hezbollah has launched dozens of rockets at northern Israel since it entered the conflict on Monday.

Security bodies say 3 men arrested in January after trying to smuggle firearms from Jordan via drone

The police and Shin Bet announce that security forces foiled a firearms smuggling attempt from Jordan into Israel earlier this year, arresting three Bedouin men implicated in the alleged trafficking.

The trio tried to sneak 36 handguns and 63 magazines into the country by way of a heavy-duty drone, the agencies say in a joint statement.

Their drone was intercepted by the army in January. They were soon arrested near the Jordanian border, transferred to the Arad police station and later interrogated by Shin Bet agents on smuggling suspicions.

The three men were indicted today in the Beersheba District Court, police announce, after over a month of investigating the case.

Italy, Spain, France and Netherlands to send naval assets to Cyprus, minister says

Italy, Spain, France and the Netherlands will send naval assets to protect Cyprus in the coming days, Rome’s Defense Minister Guido Crosetto tells parliament.

A British Royal Air Force base on the island on Monday was targeted by an Iranian-made drone as part of the US ​and ⁠Israeli air war against Tehran.

4 men charged over smuggling of goods to Gaza for millions; one of them stayed in Gaza unauthorized for days

State prosecutors file two indictments against four men on smuggling charges, after they allegedly trafficked goods including cigarettes and electronic devices into the Gaza Strip in return for millions of shekels in total.

The four defendants smuggled goods into the enclave on two occasions, using aid trucks that passed through the Kerem Shalom crossing, prosecutors write.

The first indictment is filed against two residents of Rahat, and concerns the smuggling of around a hundred crates of cigarettes, personal care products, hookah coals and bicycles, which they loaded onto an aid truck departing from Hebron in November 2025. They received NIS 450,000 ($146,000), per the indictment.

The second is filed against two men from Bir al-Maksur, a northern Arab town, who smuggled cigarettes and various electronic devices, including phones and car batteries, into Gaza in January 2026, in exchange for NIS 4.5 million ($1.5 million).

In the second case, the deputy commander of an IDF battalion in the area helped spirit Adnan Abu Latif, a truck driver and defendant in the first indictment, into the Strip alongside the smuggled goods. He remained in the area — Hamas-controlled territory — for three days, prosecutors say.

The four are indicted in the Haifa District Court on charges including assisting the enemy during wartime, using property for terrorist purposes, aggravated fraud and obstructing an investigation.

Qatar says air defense systems intercepting missile attack

Qatar’s defense ministry says its military is working to intercept an incoming missile attack as loud blasts reverberate across Doha and smoke is seen over the city.

“The Ministry of Defense of the State of Qatar announces that the State of Qatar has been subjected to a missile attack,” it says in a statement. “Air Defense systems are intercepting the missile attack,” it adds.

Column of black smoke seen on Doha horizon following explosions

Smoke is seen rising on the Doha horizon, after loud explosions shook the Qatari capital.

A column of black smoke is seen rising on the horizon after journalists heard several blasts across the city, as Tehran presses its retaliatory air campaign against its Gulf neighbors following US and Israeli strikes on Iran.

Russia claims US, Israel trying to drag Arab countries into a wider Middle East conflict

Russia accuses the United States and Israel of trying to drag Arab countries into a wider Middle East conflict by “provoking” Iran into striking at targets across the region.

“They deliberately provoked Iran into retaliatory strikes against targets in some Arab countries, which led to human and material losses, which the Russian side deeply regrets,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry says in a statement.

“In doing so, they are trying to drag the Arabs into a war for someone else’s interests.”

The only way to prevent the Middle East from being further destabilized is to stop the “aggression” of the US and Israel, the ministry contends, saying there are no signs for now that the two “aggressors” will halt their strikes.

IDF says Hezbollah cell killed in overnight drone strike

A cell of Hezbollah operatives was killed in a drone strike in southern Lebanon overnight, the military says.

According to the IDF, the operatives were identified by troops of the 91st “Galilee” Regional Division entering a building that served Hezbollah as a command center.

The Israeli Air Force then struck the building, killing the operatives, the military says.

The incident took place as troops pushed deeper into southern Lebanon in recent days, with the IDF saying it assumed “forward defensive positions to establish an additional defensive layer to remove the threats to the residents of northern Israel.”

חוסלה חוליית מחבלים שפעלה מתוך מפקדה בדרום לבנון

כוחות אוגדה 91 זיהו במהלך הלילה מספר מחבלים מארגון הטרור חיזבאללה, נכנסים למבנה ששימש כמפקדה של הארגון, במרחב הפעילות של כוחותינו בדרום לבנון.

חיל האוויר תקף וחיסל את המחבלים מיד לאחר הזיהוי.

צה"ל ימשיך לפעול על מנת להסיר כל… pic.twitter.com/jb1caBEH8Y

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 5, 2026

IDF says wave of overnight Tehran strikes targeted missile storage, launch sites

A wave of Israeli airstrikes in Tehran overnight destroyed Iranian missile storage and launch sites, the military says.

According to the IDF, one underground site was used by Iran to store ballistic missiles. Several other air defense missile storage sites were also struck, along with ballistic missile launchers, the military says.

During the sortie, an Israeli Air Force fighter jet identified several Iranian soldiers operating an air defense system, the IDF says.

“The fighter jet struck the launcher and the soldiers, thwarting the launches toward Israeli Air Force aircraft,” the military says.

במהלך התקיפות שבוצעו, מטוס קרב של חיל-האוויר זיהה מספר חיילים ממשטר הטרור האיראני, שהפעילו משגר טעון עם טילים המיועדים לפגיעה בכלי טיס. בסגירת מעגל, מטוס הקרב תקף את המשגר ואת החיילים ובכך סיכל שיגורים לעבר כלי טיס של חיל-האוויר. pic.twitter.com/bc29XGFiwg

— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) March 5, 2026

Azerbaijan summons Iran’s envoy, says 2 drones attacked its territory, injuring 2 civilians

Azerbaijan accuses Iran of firing two drones at its territory, injuring two civilians, and says it has summoned the Iranian ambassador in order to issue a strong protest.

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry says one drone fell on an airport in Nakhchivan, near the border with Iran, and another landed near a school.

In a statement, it condemns the attacks, demands an explanation from Iran, and says Azerbaijan reserves the right to take “appropriate response measures.”

There is no immediate comment from Iran.

UK defense minister said heading to Cyprus amid Middle East war

Britain’s Defense Minister John Healey is headed to Cyprus, media reports say, following the outbreak of war in the Middle East and a drone strike on a UK air base on the Mediterranean island.

Healey will arrive today, the BBC and the PA news agency report.

The visit comes after the runway of the Royal Air Force (RAF) base at Akrotiri came under attack by an unmanned drone on Monday.

No injuries reported in latest Iranian salvo; missile strikes open area in central town

There are no reports of injuries following the latest Iranian ballistic missile fire on central Israel, medics say.

One missile struck an open area in a central town, according to rescue forces.

Sirens had sounded in Tel Aviv and across central Israel amid the attack.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters, but should still remain close to them.

Monitor says internet in Iran still ‘around 1 percent of ordinary levels,’ decries ‘Orwellian environment’

Iran’s internet is “around 1% of ordinary levels,” with a communication blackout sparked by the war with Israel and the United States entering a fifth day, monitor Netblocks says.

“Iran’s internet blackout has now exceeded 120 hours with connectivity still flatlining around 1% of ordinary levels,” Netblocks says in a message posted on social media platform X.

“Meanwhile, an increasingly Orwellian environment is emerging as telcos threaten users who try to connect to the global internet with legal action.”

IDF says 320 targets in Lebanon struck this week

Since Hezbollah joined the conflict on Monday, the military has struck over 320 targets in Lebanon, 80 of them in the past day, IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin says in a press conference.

Missiles, drones heading from Iran have landed in airport in Azerbaijan, source says

Missiles and drones flying from the direction of Iran fell on the territory of the airport in the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan today, a source close to the Azerbaijani government tells Reuters.

Nakhchivan International Airport is located roughly 10 km (6 miles) from the border with Iran.

WATCH: Iranian Shahed-136 kamikaze drone visible on Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan attack. https://t.co/cr1uNsnBMV pic.twitter.com/akwg60zriH

— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 5, 2026

IDF says Iran missile salvo detected after 6-hour lull

After a lull of some six hours, the IDF says it had detected a new launch of ballistic missiles from Iran.

Sirens are expected to sound in central Israel in the coming minutes.

IDF airs video showing yesterday’s world-first F-35 downing of manned plane in Iran

The IDF releases footage showing the downing of an Iranian Yak-130 jet over Tehran yesterday by an Israeli Air Force F-35I fighter.

The incident marked the first-ever downing of a manned aircraft by an F-35, and the first time in some 40 years that the Israeli Air Force has engaged in air-to-air combat with manned aircraft.

According to IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, the Iranian aircraft had taken off from Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport “and posed a threat to our aircraft.”

“Completed, the target is down, continuing to strike,” the F-35I pilot can be heard saying in the video.

"ביצעתי, המטרה נפלה, נמשיך לתקיפה": תיעוד ראשון ממטוס ה״אדיר״ (F-35I) מפיל מטוס קרב איראני (YAK-130) מעל שמי טהרן.

חיל-האוויר ממשיך לתקוף עשרות תשתיות של משטר הטרור האיראני וסולל את הדרך ליצירת עליונות אווירית בשמי טהרן. pic.twitter.com/RGUX4x1bFK

— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) March 5, 2026

Italy plans to send air defense aid to Gulf states after Iranian strikes, Meloni says

Italy is planning to send air defense aid to Gulf countries in the face of Iranian air strikes, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni says.

“Like the United Kingdom, France and Germany, Italy intends to send assistance to Gulf countries, specifically in the field of defense and in particular air defense,” Meloni tells radio station RTL 102.5.

“This is not only because they are friendly nations, but above all because tens of thousands of Italians live in the region and around 2,000 Italian troops are deployed there — people we want to, and must, protect,” she adds.

Israel announces intention to resume outbound flights on Sunday

Transportation Minister Miri Regev announces that Israel is preparing to reopen the country’s airspace for outbound flights on Sunday.

“After assessing the situation, we have made the decision to open the skies starting Sunday for outbound flights, subject to security developments,” says Regev. “We will update throughout the day.”

Elbit Systems becomes largest Israeli company by market value, after 45% surge this year

Defense company Elbit Systems becomes the largest Israeli firm by market value, surpassing Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries and the country’s two biggest lenders, Bank Hapoalim and Bank Leumi.

Elbit shares jump almost 5%, taking its market value at the end of trading on March 4 to NIS 123 billion ($40 billion), according to Tel Aviv bourse data. Teva is ranked second with a market value of NIS 118 billion, followed by Bank Leumi at NIS 115 billion and Bank Hapoalim at NIS 105 billion.

Since the start of the year, Elbit shares soared 45%, buoyed by growing sales to Israel’s military and contracts with international customers.

Among all companies listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, Elbit is the second most valuable company after US cybersecurity giant Palo Alto Networks, with a market capitalization of NIS 396 billion.

Cyprus says drone that hit a British air base took off from Lebanese capital

Cyprus says the Shahed drone that struck a British airbase on the island nation’s southern coastline was launched from Beirut.

A Cypriot official confirms the drone that damaged a hangar at RAF Akrotiri just after midnight Monday had taken off from the Lebanese capital.

The official speaks on condition of anonymity because he isn’t permitted to speak publicly about the attack.

Two more drones detected midday Monday were intercepted by British warplanes that took off from RAF Akrotiri.

There have been several false alarms regarding drone sightings since those initial strikes.

IDF expects Hezbollah fire to accelerate, says all Iranian overnight missiles downed

The rate of Iran’s ballistic missile fire on Israel continues to slow, according to the Israeli military, with all projectiles fired overnight being successfully intercepted by air defenses.

Iran fired at central Israel three times overnight, lobbing a handful of ballistic missiles in total. The IDF says that all of the missiles were shot down.

While the rate of fire has dropped significantly over the course of the war, the IDF believes it may soon stabilize, meaning missile fire is not expected to stop entirely.

Since the start of the war, there have been 13 sites of Iranian missile impacts in residential areas of Israel. Some of the impact sites — in Beit Shemesh, Tel Aviv and Beersheba — have been large warheads, while in other areas, fragments or submunitions from cluster bomb warheads have caused damage and injuries.

Meanwhile, the military assesses that Hezbollah’s attacks on Israel from Lebanon may increase amid the ongoing fighting.

So far, the Iran-backed Lebanese terror group has launched dozens of rockets and drones at Israel, mainly at the north of the country, but also a handful of projectiles at the center. There have been two impact sites in the north from Hezbollah rockets.

Amid the decrease in Iranian attacks, from noon, gatherings of up to 50 people will be permitted, provided a shelter can be reached in time. Workplaces will be allowed to operate under the same conditions.

The Home Front Command is scheduled to conduct another assessment over the weekend and may decide to allow educational institutions to reopen starting next week.

Iran claims to have attacked US tanker in Persian Gulf, says it controls passage in wartime

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claims an attack on an American oil tanker in the northern reaches of the Persian Gulf.

The tanker is on fire, the statement asserts.

The statement read on Iranian state television does not elaborate, but may be linked to an attack off the coast of Kuwait earlier today in which a tanker was targeted, according to a report from the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center.

The Guards add in the statement that, in time of war, passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be under the control of the Islamic Republic.

Iran says it targeted ‘separatist groups’ that intended to enter through western borders

Iran’s intelligence ministry says the country targeted posts of “separatist groups” that  intended to enter through western borders, adding that they sustained heavy losses.

Iranian Kurdish militias have consulted with the United States in recent days about whether, and how, to attack Iran’s security forces in the ​western part of the country, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter.

Some reports last night said a cross-border operation had been launched, before this was denied by Iran.

The Iranian ministry statement, carried by state media, says Iranian forces are cooperating with “noble Kurds” to thwart the “Israeli-American” plan to attack Iranian soil.

Health Ministry says 1,473 Israelis have been hospitalized as result of Iran war

The Health Ministry reports that in the past 24 hours, 199 injured people have been taken to hospitals as a result of the conflict with Iran.

Among those treated in hospitals, 14 are in moderate condition and 170 are in good condition.

Thirteen people have been treated for anxiety, and two have undergone or are undergoing medical evaluation.

A total of 1,473 people have been evacuated to hospitals since the fighting began on Saturday. Of that number, 145 are still currently hospitalized or in the ER, while the remainder have been treated and released.

Four of the people still currently hospitalized are in serious condition, although two of them were not directly wounded by missile strikes.

Another 28 people are still currently hospitalized in moderate condition, and 67 others are in good condition. Two others remain in the hospital for medical evaluations.

Katz speaks to Hegseth, hails Trump-Netanyahu cooperation as ‘changing regional and global history’

Defense Minister Israel Katz spoke overnight with his American counterpart, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, his office says.

According to a readout from the defense minister’s office, Katz expressed his condolences over the deaths of six US servicemembers who were killed in Iranian attacks, “and noted that Israel is doing and will continue to do everything to assist in protecting the safety of US troops in the region.”

“Katz asked to thank US President [Donald] Trump for the great support for Israel and noted that the cooperation between President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu against Iran is changing regional and global history,” the statement says.

Katz also thanked Hegseth “for his great support for Israel and for the extensive assistance in defending the citizens of the State of Israel against the Iranian missile threat, and noted the close and unprecedented cooperation between the militaries to achieve all of the war’s objectives.”

According to the defense minister’s office, Hegseth “praised the unprecedented cooperation between the militaries and the capabilities of the IDF” and told Katz: “Continue to the end, we are with you.”

Suspected drone sirens sound near Jordan border in south

Sirens warning of a suspected drone infiltration sound on the Jordan border.

The alerts are activated in several communities in southern Israel.

The IDF has reported shooting down over 100 drones launched from Iran since the start of the current war.

IDF reiterates call for residents of southern Lebanon to flee northward; estimates 300,000 have evacuated

The IDF reiterates its warning to Lebanese civilians in southern Lebanon to evacuate their homes amid the fighting against Hezbollah.

“Urgent warning to residents of southern Lebanon: You must continue moving immediately to the north of the Litani River,” says army spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee.

“We reiterate, the warning also includes residents of the cities of Tyre and Bint Jbeil,” he says.

Adraee says that “anyone who is near Hezbollah operatives, its facilities, or its [weapons] is putting their life at risk. Any house used by Hezbollah for military purposes may be subject to targeting.”

The IDF estimates that over 300,000 Lebanese civilians have so far evacuated their villages in southern Lebanon. During the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in 2024, nearly 1.2 million Lebanese were displaced from their homes.

Explosions heard in Tehran’s west, Karaj area

Witnesses in Tehran have heard explosions in the city’s west and in the direction of Karaj.

Iran’s FM: US will ‘bitterly regret’ striking Iranian frigate in Indian Ocean

The US struck Iranian frigate Dena, a guest of India’s navy carrying almost 130 sailors, in international waters without warning, Iran’s foreign minister asserts on X.

“The US will bitterly regret the precedent it has set,” Abbas Araghchi says.

A US submarine strike hit the Iranian vessel off Sri Lanka’s southern coast, thousands of miles from the Gulf, killing dozens.

The U.S. has perpetrated an atrocity at sea, 2,000 miles away from Iran's shores.

Frigate Dena, a guest of India's Navy carrying almost 130 sailors, was struck in international waters without warning.

Mark my words: The U.S. will come to bitterly regret precedent it has set. pic.twitter.com/cxYiI9BLUk

— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) March 5, 2026

Iran denies firing missile toward Turkey

Iran’s Armed Forces respects the sovereignty of Turkey and denies firing any missile toward its territory, it says in a statement carried by state media.

Turkey’s defense ministry said yesterday that a ballistic missile fired from Iran toward Turkish airspace after passing Syria and Iraq was destroyed by NATO air and missile defense systems over the eastern Mediterranean.

Iran says it targeted Kurdish groups’ headquarters in Iraqi Kurdistan

Iran says it has targeted headquarters of Kurdish forces in Iraqi Kurdistan, according to Iranian state media, following strikes on Kurdish regions in both Iran and Iraq.

“We targeted the headquarters of Kurdish groups opposed to the revolution in Iraqi Kurdistan with three missiles,” Iran’s official IRNA news agency posts on Telegram, quoting a military statement.

Senior Hamas official killed in Israeli strike overnight — Lebanese state media

Lebanese state media says an Israeli strike overnight killed a Hamas official, the first reported targeted killing of a member of the Palestinian terror group since US-Israeli strikes on Iran triggered regional war.

Wassim Atallah al-Ali and his wife were killed when an “enemy drone targeted their home” in Beddawi, a Palestinian camp near Tripoli, in a predawn strike, the National News Agency (NNA) reports, describing the man as a senior Hamas official.

IDF says new wave of Tehran airstrikes launched

The Israeli Air Force has launched a new wave of airstrikes against Iranian regime targets in Tehran, the IDF announces.

Further details are expected to be provided later.

Iranian diplomat: ‘Many coffins would return to the US’ if it deploys ground forces

Ambassadors of Iran and Israel hold separate news conferences in South Korea’s capital, trading sharp accusations as their countries continue an escalating war in the Middle East.

Speaking through an interpreter, Iran’s Ambassador to South Korea Saeed Koozechi demands Seoul — a key US ally — be more vocal in demanding a halt to what he calls an illegal aggression by US and Israeli forces, which launched attacks amid active nuclear negotiations.

He says “many coffins would return to the United States” if it decides to deploy ground forces, and defends Iranian strikes on Gulf states hosting US military bases as unavoidable.

The Israeli ambassador in Seoul, Raphael Harpaz, says the joint US-Israeli military operations aim both to destroy Iran’s nuclear development facilities and ballistic missile sites, and to help free the Iranian people from oppression.

South Korea has supported US-led diplomatic efforts to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions but has not explicitly endorsed the US-Israeli attacks, instead calling for a swift restoration of dialogue.

First repatriation flights for Israelis land at Ben Gurion Airport

The first repatriation flights for Israelis stranded abroad amid the war with Iran have landed at Ben Gurion airport.

They are an El Al flight from Athens and an Israir flight from Rome.

Flights by Arkia and Air Haifa are set to arrive later.

The Israeli airlines have started to gradually operate repatriation flights to help fly back an estimated 100,000 Israelis unable to return home since Israel shuttered its airspace on Saturday.

Sharon Wrobel contributed to this report.

IDF says it struck Hezbollah drone command center in Beirut overnight

Hezbollah command centers in Beirut were targeted in a wave of overnight Israeli airstrikes, the military says.

Among the targets was a command center belonging to Hezbollah’s aerial forces, which is responsible for drone attacks on Israel, according to the IDF.

“The command centers that were struck were intended to be used by Hezbollah to advance and carry out various terrorist attacks against IDF troops and Israeli civilians,” the military says.

Ahead of the strikes, the IDF issued evacuation warnings for Lebanese civilians in the area.

במהלך הלילה: צה״ל תקף בביירות מפקדות נוספות בשימוש ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה

צה"ל תקף לפני זמן קצר בביירות, והשלים גל תקיפות נגד מספר מפקדות של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה.

בין המפקדות שהותקפו, מפקדה בשימוש היחידה האווירית של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה.

המפקדות שהותקפו יועדו לשמש את ארגון… pic.twitter.com/mT6fxz4z04

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 5, 2026

Report: Iranian bombers were shot down ‘2 minutes’ before striking largest US military base in Middle East

Iranian warplanes were “two minutes” away from striking Qatar’s al-Udeid Air Base, the largest military base housing American troops in the Middle East, before Qatari F-15 planes shot them down, CNN reports, citing two unnamed sources briefed on the matter.

The Revolutionary Guards’ Soviet-era Su-24 tactical bombers were identified carrying “bombs and guided munitions” toward al-Udeid, which usually houses some 10,000 US troops, and Qatar’s Ras Laffan natural gas processing compound, and didn’t answer radio calls, one of the sources says.

The planes crashed in Qatari territorial waters, with searches underway for the crews, officials say.

IDF releases new video of strikes on Iranian missile launchers, air defense systems

The IDF publishes new footage of airstrikes against an Iranian ballistic missile launcher and an air defenses system in Iran.

According to the military, the ballistic missile launcher in Qom was ready for an attack on Israel.

The air defense system destroyed in the strike was located in Isfahan, the military says.

תיעוד: תקיפת משגר טילים ומערכת הגנה באיספהאן ובקם שבאיראן

כלי טיס של חיל האוויר תקפו והשמידו במרחב קם שבאיראן משגר טיל בליסטי, חמוש ומוכן לשיגור לעבר מדינת ישראל.

בנוסף, הושמדה מערכת הגנה שנועדה לפגוע במטוסי חיל האוויר באיספהאן.

תקיפות אלה מצטרפות למאמץ לפגיעה במערכי האש של… pic.twitter.com/TE10NLVULz

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 5, 2026

Sirens sound in Western Galilee towns due to suspected drone from Lebanon

Warning sirens are activated in a number of Western Galilee communities due to a suspected drone infiltration from nearby Lebanon.

Lebanon says 2 killed in IDF strike on Palestinian camp in northern city of Tripoli

The Israeli military struck a building in the Beddawi Palestinian camp in the coastal city of Tripoli, killing two people, Lebanon’s Health Ministry says.

The strike, which hit the area without prior warning and marked the northernmost strike so far, wounded another individual, the Health Ministry says.

The Israeli military doesn’t immediately say who it targeted in the strike.

Located about 85 kilometers (53 miles) north of Beirut and more than 180 kilometers (112 miles) from the Lebanese–Israeli border, Beddawi was targeted during the 2024 war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Lebanon’s state news agency separately reports that an overnight Israeli drone strike targeted a vehicle on a coastal highway in southern Lebanon, killing three people.

The highway connects the city of Tyre to Naqoura, a border town near Israel.

PM’s office says Israel and US have made ‘historic gains’ against Iran

Israel and the United States have made “historic gains” in the war against Iran, which began when the allies launched strikes on the Islamic Republic, Prime Minister Benjamin’s Netanyahu’s office says.

“Israel and the United States have together made historic gains to protect our citizens and the civilized world,” a spokesperson for Netanyahu, Shosh Bedrosian, says in a video message.

She also claims the attack was needed as Iran was rebuilding its atomic bomb program in “new underground bunkers,” and because there were indications of an Iranian plans “to attack Israel and American forces in the Middle East.”

IDF says safe for Israelis to leave shelters after 3rd overnight Iran missile attack

The IDF announces that it is now safe for Israelis to leave their bomb shelters, following the third overnight ballistic missile attack from Iran.

Fresh Iranian missile launch sets off sirens in Jerusalem area, central Israel

The Israel Defense Forces says that Iran has launched another ballistic missile attack targeting Israel, as sirens are activated in communities in central Israel, the Jerusalem area and parts of the West Bank.

No injuries reported in latest Iranian missile attack

The Magen David Adom ambulance service says no injuries were reported in the latest Iranian ballistic missile attack, as the Home Front Command tells Israelis they can leave their shelters.

US identifies remaining two soldiers killed in Kuwait attack after naming other four

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa — The last two names of the six US soldiers killed in a Kuwait attack are released by the Pentagon, and they are from California and Iowa.

The soldiers identified Wednesday are Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Marzan, 54, of Sacramento and Maj. Jeffrey O’Brien, 45, of Indianola, Iowa.

The Pentagon says Marzan was at the scene when a drone strike hit the command center in Kuwait and is “believed to be the individual who perished at the scene,” according to the statement. A medical examiner will confirm identification, the Pentagon says.

Four soldiers were previously identified by the Pentagon on Tuesday.

They died Sunday when a drone hit a command center in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, just a day after the US and Israel launched its military campaign against Iran. Iran responded by launching missiles and drones against Israel and several Gulf Arab states that host US armed forces.

The other soldiers identified Tuesday by the Pentagon were: Sgt. Declan Coady, 20, of West Des Moines, Iowa,; Sgt. First Class Nicole Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake, Minnesota; Capt. Cody Khork, 35, of Winter Haven, Florida; and Sgt.First Class Noah Tietjens, 42, of Bellevue, Nebraska.

“Sadly, there will likely be more, before it ends. That’s the way it is,” President Donald Trump says of the deaths. Trump will attend the dignified transfers of the soldiers when they arrive in the US, the White House says. The ritual honors service members killed in action.

Sirens sound in northeastern Israeli towns, northern West Bank amid latest Iran missile attack

Rocket warning alerts are activated in a number of northeastern Israeli communities and settlements in the northern West Bank, after the IDF says it detected another ballistic missile launch from Iran.

Qatar evacuates residents of area around US embassy as ‘temporary precautionary measure’

Qatar is evacuating residents living in the vicinity of the US embassy in Doha as a “temporary precautionary measure,” the Gulf country’s interior ministry says early on Thursday.

“Suitable accommodation has been provided for them as part of necessary preventive measures,” the ministry says in a statement.

US-chartered flight for American citizens has departed Mideast — State Department

The US chartered a flight for American citizens out of the Middle East earlier today, the State Department says.

This appears to be the first one since the start of the Iran war.

“Additional flights will be surged across the region. American citizens in UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Israel interested in the [State] Department’s charter flight or ground transportation options should complete the Crisis Intake Form or contact the State Department’s 24/7 Task Force at +1-202-501-4444,” the State Department adds in a statement.

Israelis given all clear to leave shelters after latest Iran missile attack; no injuries reported

The IDF Home Front Command gives Israelis the all clear to exit their bomb shelters following the Iranian ballistic missile attack.

The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it hasn’t received any reports of injuries.

IDF detects ballistic missile fire from Iran; sirens sound in central Israel

The IDF says it has detected a launch of ballistic missiles from Iran, with sirens activated across central Israel and parts of the northern West Bank.

The military stresses that it is working to down the missiles.

IDF issues another evacuation warning for Beirut’s southern suburbs ahead of fresh strikes

The IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman issues an evacuation for a neighborhood in Beirut’s southern suburbs, a major Hezbollah stronghold, ahead of strikes on buildings allegedly linked to the terror group.

US Senate defeats resolution to curb Trump’s war powers against Iran

The US Senate rejects a resolution aimed at curbing President Donald Trump’s authority to continue military strikes on Iran, in a narrow congressional show of support for a conflict launched without explicit approval from lawmakers.

The bipartisan measure, introduced by Democrat Tim Kaine and Republican Rand Paul, would have required the withdrawal of US forces from hostilities against Iran unless Congress authorizes the campaign.

But with Republicans holding a 53–47 majority in the upper chamber of Congress and largely backing the president’s decision to attack Iran alongside Israel, the resolution falls short by exactly that margin.

The vote comes five days into a rapidly expanding conflict that has already killed Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several senior figures in Tehran, while US troops have died in an Iranian attack on a US base in Kuwait.

Democrats argue Trump unconstitutionally bypassed Congress when he ordered the air campaign and say the administration has offered shifting justifications for the war.

Iran threatens to target Dimona nuclear site if Israel, US seek to topple Islamic Republic

Iran will target the Israeli nuclear site of Dimona if Israel and the US seek regime change in the Islamic Republic, semi-official ISNA news agency reports, citing an Iranian military official.

IDF issues evacuation warning for Beirut building it identifies as Hezbollah site

The IDF issues an evacuation warning for a building in Beirut, ahead of an airstrike against a Hezbollah site.

“You are located near facilities and interests affiliated with Hezbollah, against which the IDF will operate forcefully in the near term,” says spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee, attaching a map showing the location of a building in Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold.

“For your safety and the safety of your family members, you must evacuate this building and the adjacent ones immediately and move at least 300 meters away from them,” he adds.

#عاجل ‼️ انذار عاجل للمتواجدين في الضاحية الجنوبية في بيروت وتحديدًا في حارة حريك.
⭕لكل من يتواجد في المبنى المحدد بالأحمر وفق ما يُعرض في الخارطة والمباني المجاورة له: أنتم تتواجدون بالقرب من منشآت تابعة لحزب الله
⭕من أجل سلامتكم وسلامة أبناء عائلاتكم أنتم مضطرون لإخلاء هذه… pic.twitter.com/fLXKulMia1

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) March 4, 2026