March 20: US reportedly draws up plans for ground op in Iran, detention of its forces

Former top US counterterrorism official denies improper sharing of classified intel

Joe Kent, right, looks on during a Washington 3rd District debate at KATU studios, October 7, 2024, in Portland, Oregon. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Joe Kent, the former counterterrorism director who resigned this week in protest of the Iran war, denies allegations that he improperly shared classified information.

The Associated Press reported that the FBI is investigating whether Kent leaked such information, citing someone familiar with the matter. The person said the investigation preceded his resignation on Tuesday. No additional details were available.

“As for the leak allegations, I’m not concerned because I know I did nothing wrong,” Kent says on SiriusXM’s “The Megyn Kelly Show.” He suggests he was targeted because he spoke out.

“I am concerned because we’ve all seen the FBI and the full weight of the government come down on individuals who speak out,” Kent says.

The Justice Department has undertaken several probes into perceived political foes of US President Donald Trump, including former FBI Director James Comey, although prosecutors have struggled to make charges stick.

Kent, the director of the US government’s National Counterterrorism Center, stepped down Tuesday, saying he “cannot in good conscience” support the Trump administration’s war in Iran.

US has drawn up plans for ground op in Iran, CBS reports

Illustrative: US soldiers patrol in Syria's northeastern city Qamishli, in the Hasakeh province, then mostly controlled by Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), on January 9, 2025. (Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP)

US military officials have made detailed plans for the deployment of troops into Iran, multiple sources briefed on the discussions tell CBS news.

The US military has also discussed how to manage the potential detention of Iranian forces if Washington decides on an invasion, two sources say.

Rocket sirens blare in Kiryat Shmona, nearby northern communities

Sirens warning of incoming rockets sound in the northern communities of Kiryat Shmona, Kfar Giladi, and Misgav Am.

IDF says it is striking Hezbollah targets in Beirut

A man walks through rubble at the site of an Israeli airstrike in central Beirut on March 18, 2026. (Ibrahim Amro / AFP)

The IDF is conducting strikes on Hezbollah targets in Beirut, it says in a statement.

The military does not provide further details in its statement.

Rocket sirens blare in Upper Galilee communities

Sirens warn of incoming rockets fired at communities in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel.

US okays temporary trade of oil from Iran already at sea to curb supply crisis

Illustrative: Iranian oil tanker Fortune is anchored at the dock of the El Palito refinery near Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, May 25, 2020. (AP Photo/Ernesto Vargas)

WASHINGTON — The US Treasury temporarily lifts sanctions on Iranian oil loaded onto vessels before March 20, in Washington’s latest step to stem a supply crisis over the Middle East war.

The authorization allows for the delivery and sale of crude oil and other petroleum products already on Iranian ships, and will last until April 19, the Treasury said in a statement.

The move by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, which Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday was under consideration, follows a similar lifting of sanctions on Russian oil at sea. Friday’s authorization does not apply to deliveries of oil to Cuba, North Korea or Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine.

At least three drone attacks target US military site in Baghdad

BAGHDAD, Iraq — At least three drone attacks targeted a US diplomatic and logistics hub that houses US military personnel at Baghdad International Airport, according to two security officials.

One of the officials says that a fire broke out near the base following the third attack.

No injuries reported after latest Iranian missile attack on Negev

Illustrative: A large public shelter in central Tel Aviv, March 20 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

No injuries are reported following Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack on Israel.

The missile, which triggered sirens in the Negev Desert, was likely intercepted, according to preliminary military assessments.

Sirens expected to sound in southern Israel as rockets launched from Iran

A new ballistic missile attack from Iran has been identified by the IDF.

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

White House: Trump predicted Iran war would take 4-6 weeks, tomorrow marks week 3

The White House notes that it is three weeks since the start of the Iran war, which the Pentagon and US President Donald Trump predicted would take 4-6 weeks.

“Since Day One of Operation Epic Fury, President Trump clearly outlined the US Military’s objectives to end the threat of the Iranian terrorist regime,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt writes on X.

“The President and the Pentagon predicted it would take approximately 4-6 weeks to achieve this mission. Tomorrow marks week 3 — and the US Armed Forces are doing an exceptional job,” she says.

“Day by day, the Iranian Regime is being crippled, and their ability to threaten the United States and our allies is being significantly weakened. As always, President Trump is laser focused on one thing: total and complete VICTORY,” she adds.

Hamas given proposal for gradual weapon handover in months-long process — officials

Armed members of Hamas and Islamic Jihad greet people gathering for Eid al-Fitr prayers in Gaza City, Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP/Abdel Kareem Hana)

The disarmament proposal presented to Hamas by Gaza ceasefire mediators this week in Cairo envisions all armed groups in the Strip gradually handing over their weapons over the coming months, two Arab diplomats familiar with the matter tell The Times of Israel.

The proposal requires Hamas to — within 90 days — hand over its heavy weaponry, such as missiles and rocket launchers, in addition to maps of its tunnel network.

In addition, a buy-back program would offer jobs and funds to armed group members who agree to hand over their personal weapons, though, that process is expected to take longer than the initial three-month timeline given for heavy weaponry, the first Arab diplomat says.

While Hamas negotiators have expressed willingness in talks with Arab mediators to hand over the terror group’s heavy weapons, they have insisted on maintaining lighter weapons, arguing that they are necessary for self-defense, the Arab diplomat adds.

Details of the disarmament proposal were first published by the National Public Radio, The New York Times and Haaretz.

The proposal envisions the weapons being handed over to the yet-to-be-formed Palestinian police. The National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), which is supposed to replace Hamas in governing Gaza, began recruitment for the new police force last month.

Palestinians who previously served as Hamas civil servants have been allowed to apply to the new police force, but they will have to undergo Israeli vetting in order to be approved, the first Arab diplomat says, adding that those who Israel says were involved in Hamas’s October 7 onslaught may not be granted immunity.

The weapon handover will take place geographically, beginning with southern Gaza, and will see the Palestinian police and the International Stabilization Force phase out the IDF in areas from which weapons have been cleared, the Arab diplomat says.

The second Arab diplomat expressed skepticism that Israel would ultimately agree to further withdrawals of its troops from Gaza.

The proposal also envisions Israel lifting curbs on humanitarian aid and reconstruction equipment for Gaza as the handover of weapons progresses.

The gradual disarmament framework goes against what Israeli officials had long said was their stance, demanding that the weapons handover be conducted all at once.

However, mediating countries — the United States, Qatar, Turkey and Egypt — were convinced that the Israeli demand was unrealistic, the Arab diplomat says.

Israel was aware of the proposal presented to Hamas in Cairo this week and did not object to it, believing that it would ultimately be rejected by Hamas anyway, the second Arab diplomat says.

The Gaza mediators are hoping Hamas responds to the proposal this week, and the Arab diplomat speculated that the group would come back with a counteroffer, which will further drag out the process.

The disarmament proposal was presented to Hamas in Cairo meetings headed by the Board of Peace’s High Representative for Gaza Nickolay Mladenov, along with US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s senior adviser Aryeh Lightstone, the Arab diplomats say.

IDF again calls on Lebanese civilians to evacuate Beirut’s south suburbs

The IDF again calls on Lebanese civilians to evacuate Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold known as the Dahiyeh.

“The IDF continues to operate and attack the military infrastructure belonging to the Hezbollah terror organization throughout the Dahiyeh area with increasing force. The IDF does not intend to harm you, and therefore, for your safety, you must evacuate immediately,” says army spokesman Col. Avichay Adaree.

The Israeli Air Force has struck dozens of Hezbollah targets in the Dahiyeh in the past three weeks, and the military has repeatedly called on Lebanese civilians to evacuate the area.

Trump: We’re getting close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down Iran war

US President Donald Trump says, “We are getting very close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down our great military efforts in the Middle East with respect to the terrorist regime of Iran.”

Writing on Truth Social, Trump then proceeds to list what he says are the US military objectives.

“(1) Completely degrading Iranian missile capability, launchers and everything else pertaining to them. (2) Destroying Iran’s defense industrial base. (3) Eliminating their navy and air force, including anti-aircraft weaponry. (4) Never allowing Iran to get even close to nuclear capability, and always being in a position where the USA can quickly and powerfully react to such a situation, should it take place. (5) Protecting, at the highest level, our Middle Eastern allies, including Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, and others,” Trump says.

Destroying Iran’s defense industrial base, eliminating Iran’s air force and anti-aircraft weaponry and protecting US allies in the Mideast were not among the objectives that US officials have given for the war to date.

While the list has fluctuated, US officials have generally stuck to the destruction of Iran’s missile program, the destruction of Iran’s navy, the ending of Iran’s support for armed proxies and ensuring that Iran can never obtain a nuclear weapon.

As for the Strait of Hormuz, Trump writes that it will “have to be guarded and policed, as necessary, by other nations who use it.”

“The United States does not! If asked, we will help these countries in their Hormuz efforts, but it shouldn’t be necessary once Iran’s threat is eradicated. Importantly, it will be an easy military operation for them,” Trump says.

NATO countries have balked at Trump’s calls to help the US secure the Iran-blocked Strait of Hormuz, saying they are willing to help secure the key oil transport channel, but not in the middle of the war, which they didn’t start, and not after the US president spent much of the last year alienating Western allies over his policies toward Ukraine and Greenland.

While the US doesn’t ship oil through the Strait, the channel’s continued closure does significantly impact the world economy and, by extension, the US.

Iran says it has no oil surplus to offer global markets

Iran says it has no surplus crude oil to offer to international markets, after the US treasury secretary revealed Washington could lift sanctions on Iranian oil at sea.

“Currently, Iran basically has no surplus crude oil left on the water or for supply in other international markets, and the US treasury secretary’s statement is solely aimed at giving hope to buyers,” Iranian oil ministry spokesman Saman Ghoddoosi writes on X.

Iran-linked hackers restore website after US seizes domains

The website used by an Iranian government-linked hacking unit that claimed responsibility for a March 11 cyberattack on a US medical device maker is back up and running a day after the FBI and Department of Justice seized its internet domains.

Four domains associated with “Handala Hack Team” had been seized, the Department of Justice said on Thursday. Handala is one of several public personas used by a hacking unit operating under Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as part of the agency’s psychological operations, the DOJ said.

Today, Handala says in a post on its website that the seizures were “desperate attempts by the United States and its allies to silence the voice of Handala.”

The quick rebound highlights the resilience of Iranian-linked hacking units’ public personas, says Ari Ben Am, an adjunct fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation.

“Iranian threat actors, MOIS in particular, are no strangers to takedowns,” Ben Am says. “Handala alone has had tens of Telegram channels, X accounts and domains taken down, and these takedowns have never slowed them down significantly. It will be trivial for Handala and its MOIS operators to get that content back up on another domain very, very soon.”

The domains seized included those used to originally make the claim of the attack on Michigan-based Stryker, according to a partially redacted FBI affidavit filed in support of the seizure.

Specific references to the company are blacked out, but the affidavit refers to a March 11, 2026, cyberattack on a major American multinational medical technologies firm, and quotes the Handala message posted announcing the Stryker attack.

A DOJ spokesperson tells Reuters the FBI affidavit “asserts that there is probable cause to believe that the operators of the ‘Handala’ persona are members of a conspiracy that carried out a destructive malware attack against a US-based multinational medical technologies firm.”

Stryker says in a March 19 statement on its website that it was restoring systems that directly support customers, ordering, and shipping but that its products were safe.

“We’re grateful to the government for their efforts to seize domains linked to the purported threat actors,” the company says.

Turkey: Israeli attacks on Syria a ‘dangerous escalation’

Turkey lashes out at Israel for striking army camps in southern Syria, urging the international community to intervene.

“We view Israel’s attack targeting military infrastructure in southern Syria as a dangerous escalation and strongly condemn it,” a foreign ministry statement says, urging the international community “to stop the Israeli attacks.”

Syria has so far avoided being dragged into the regional war that began on February 28 when Israel and the United States began striking Iran, which has hit back by firing ballistic missiles and drones at countries across the region.

But on Friday, Israel’s military said it had struck Syrian army camps in response to what it called attacks against the Druze community in the southern Sweida province.

Since the war began, Turkey has repeatedly accused Israel of pursuing an “expansionist policy” and seeking to drag other nations into the war.

S&P 500 drops 1.5%, concluding turbulent week as oil surges

Wall Street stocks ended sharply lower Friday after oil prices shot higher on fears that lengthy supply disruptions due to the Middle East war could lead to a global economic downturn.

All three major indices were firmly in the red, with the broad-based S&P 500 down 1.5 percent at 6,506.54 points.

Authorities dispatch forces to sites of reported impacts from cluster bomb carrying Iran missile in central Israel

The police and IDF say they have dispatched forces to the sites of reported impacts in central Israel, after Iran fired a ballistic missile carrying a cluster bomb warhead.

No injuries have been reported.

Footage shows that one bomblet impact caused a small crater in a playground in the central city of Kiryat Ono.

The IDF says it has dispatched Home Front Command search and rescue soldiers to the sites of reported impacts in central Israel, after Iran fired a ballistic missile carrying a cluster bomb warhead.

No injuries have been reported. pic.twitter.com/FLBKRamxDd

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 20, 2026

Trump rules out ceasefire, but says Israel will agree to end war when he’s ready

US President Donald Trump speaks to journalists before boarding Marine One as he departs from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, on March 20, 2026 for his Mar-a-Lago residence, where he will spend the weekend. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)

US President Donald Trump says he’s not currently interested in a ceasefire with Iran.

“We can have dialogue, but I don’t want to do a ceasefire. You don’t do a cease fire when you’re literally obliterating the other side,” Trump tells reporters outside the White House.

Asked if Israel will agree to end the war when the US decides to do so, Trump responds, “I think so, yeah.”

“The relationship is a very good one. We want more or less similar things. You know what we want? We want victory — both of us — and that’s what we’ve got,” Trump says.

He says countries like South Korea, Japan and China will “have to” help secure the Strait of Hormuz amid Iran’s efforts to block the channel.

Trump declines to comment on reports that he’s weighing a takeover of Iran’s Kharg Island in the hope that it’ll coax Tehran to open the Strait of Hormuz.

IDF detects day’s 9th Iran missile attack en route toward central Israel

A new ballistic missile attack from Iran has been identified by the IDF.

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

US ambassador welcomes Lebanon’s proposal for talks with Israel

The US ambassador to Lebanon hails the Lebanese president’s proposal to launch direct negotiations with Israel to put an end to the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Lebanon was pulled into the Middle East war when Tehran-backed Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel on March 2, to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“We appreciate the importance of the issue for the president and the importance of his responsibility in finally deciding that he must meet with the Israelis, because matters are not resolved without talking,” Michel Issa tells journalists following a meeting with Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rai in Beirut.

“Each party has their point of view of how meetings start,” he says, however adding that he believed Israel “has decided not to stop” striking Lebanon yet.

“That means Lebanon has to decide whether it can meet the Israelis in this case,” he says.

Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun on March 9 proposed direct talks with Israel, but Israel has since said there are no talks planned.

Poll: Plurality of Americans support strikes against Iran

A plurality of Americans support the US-Israeli strikes against Iran, a poll from the Politico news site indicates.

The survey finds that 43% of Americans support the US-Israel joint military strikes on Iran, while 33% are opposed, and the remainder don’t know or don’t take either side.

The support is strongest among Trump supporters, with 81% of self-identified MAGA Republicans in favor of the strikes. For all Republicans, 74% support the war and 10% are opposed, while 24% of Democrats are in favor and 56% are opposed.

The top reasons for supporting the strikes are that Iran was developing nuclear weapons, trust in Trump, and the need for regime change in Iran.

The leading reasons for opposing the strikes are a lack of trust in Trump, “America should not be starting wars,” and that the cost of the operation would be better spent in the US.

Suspected drone infiltration siren triggered in Galilee Panhandle

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

The alerts are activated in several towns near Kiryat Shmona.

US says it could ‘take out’ Iran’s Kharg Island any time amid report of mulled blockade

The United States could “take out” Iran’s Kharg island whenever it wanted, the White House says, after a report that President Donald Trump’s administration was considering plans to occupy or blockade the oil hub.

Axios reported that Trump was mulling an operation against Kharg to pressure the Islamic Republic to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial shipping lane that Tehran has largely blocked.

“The United States Military can take out Kharg Island at any time if the President gives the order,” White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly writes in a statement when asked about the Axios report.

“Thanks to a detailed planning process, the entire administration is and was prepared for any potential action taken by the terrorist Iranian regime,” adds Kelly.

“President Trump knew full well that Iran would try to stop the freedom of navigation and free flow of energy, and he has already taken action to destroy over 40 minelaying vessels.”

An effective Iranian blockade has paralyzed commercial shipping through the crucial maritime chokepoint, contributing to the spike in global oil prices since the start of the war on February 28.

UK approves US use of British bases to strike Iran missile sites targeting ships

The British government has given authorization for the US to use military bases in Britain to carry out strikes on Iranian missile sites that are attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

British ministers met earlier today to discuss the Iran war and Iran’s blocking of the Strait of Hormuz, according to a Downing Street statement.

“They confirmed that the agreement for the US to use UK bases in the collective self-defence of the region includes US defensive operations to degrade the missile sites and capabilities being used to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz,” the statement says.

Detained Brits used as ‘human shields’ in Iran war zone, family says

The family of a British couple detained in Iran said on Friday the pair were being used as “human shields” during the US-Israeli war on Iran, and they accused Britain’s government of failing to make progress on their release.

Lindsay and Craig Foreman were sentenced to 10 years in prison last year after Iran charged them with espionage, which they deny.

The family says the couple is being used as “effective human shields” and said a blast near Evin prison in Tehran had blown out window panels in Craig Foreman’s ward and caused plaster to fall onto inmates, who dived under their beds for cover.

“My parents are living under a ‘drone of drones’, the constant, maddening buzz of 600 machines in the sky,” Joe Bennett, Lindsay Foreman’s son, says in a statement.

“They are sharing small rectangular cells with rats and cockroaches, sleeping on metal bunks without mattresses in a state of constant physical pain.”

Iraq declares force majeure on foreign-operated oilfields over Hormuz disruption, sources say

Iraq has declared force majeure on all oilfields developed by foreign oil companies, as military operations in the region have disrupted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, preventing most of the country’s crude exports from moving, oil ministry sources say.

US said to believe Kharg Island takeover will ‘catch Iran by the balls,’ lead to capitulation

Explaining the Trump administration’s rationale for potentially taking over Iran’s Kharg Island, an unnamed American source tells Axios, “We need about a month to weaken the Iranians with aerial attacks, take over the island, catch them by the balls and use this in negotiations.”

IDF says it struck weapon factories in Tehran, ballistic missiles storage sites in central Iran

In two waves of airstrikes in Tehran and central Iran overnight and this morning, the Israeli Air Force bombed dozens of Iranian military sites, the IDF says.

In Tehran, the IDF says it struck several weapon factories, along with sites used to develop components for ballistic missiles.

East of Tehran, IAF aircraft hit facilities where ballistic missiles were being stored, while Iranian soldiers were operating there, the military says.

The IDF says that in recent days it has identified that Iran is firing ballistic missiles at Israel from the center of the country, after the military “degraded most of the regime’s capabilities to launch from western Iran.”

Settler extremists boast of attacks on Palestinians during Hebrew month of Adar in public WhatsApp channel

A public WhatsApp channel run by Jewish extremists posts a message in the group boasting of how many attacks had been carried out against Palestinian civilians and their property in the West Bank over the course of the Hebrew month of Adar, which ended on Wednesday.

The attacks touted included five targeting the Palestinian village of Mikhmas, three targeting the Jordan Valley region of Masafer Yatta and attacks targeting 26 other villages.

In these attacks, 19 vehicles were destroyed, dozens of tires were slashed, 16 homes were destroyed, 37 Palestinians were injured and two mosques were torched, according to the message.

Such attacks take place on a near-daily basis, with almost complete impunity.

Yesterday, a lawmaker from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party said she was not familiar with the phenomenon at all.

הרמטכ״ל זמיר ״קורא לכל הגורמים במדינה לפעול״ נגד זה. pic.twitter.com/8E0PItnpJb

— Ahmad Tibi (@Ahmad_tibi) March 20, 2026

Harvard says Trump lawsuit ‘another retaliatory action’ over its refusal to let gov’t control school

Harvard University calls the Trump administration lawsuit over its treatment of Jewish students “another pretextual and retaliatory action” over its refusal to turn over control of the school to the government.

Harvard says in a statement that it is committed to ensuring that members of the Jewish and Israeli communities are embraced and respected, and can thrive on campus.

Harvard says its efforts reflect the opposite of what the Trump administration called “deliberate indifference,” and says it will defend against the lawsuit.

Report: Trump weighing Kharg Island takeover to coax Iran into reopening Hormuz

The US is weighing plans to occupy or blockade Iran’s Kharg Island to pressure the Islamic Republic to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Axios reports, citing four unnamed sources familiar with the matter.

Kharg Island processes 90 percent of Iran’s crude oil exports.

“He wants Hormuz open. If he has to take Kharg Island to make it happen, that’s going to happen. If he decides to have a coastal invasion, that’s going to happen. But that decision hasn’t been made,” a senior administration official tells Axios.

Taking over Kharg would likely require a massive US ground troop presence.

“We’ve always had boots on the ground in conflicts under every president, including Trump. I know this is a fixation in the media, and I get the politics, but the president is going to do what’s right,” a second senior official says, adding that no decision had been made.

NATO says it has relocated all its Iraq mission personnel to Europe

NATO’s Iraq mission has safely relocated all of its personnel from the Middle East to Europe, the military alliance says.

“I would like to thank the Republic of Iraq and all the Allies who assisted in the safe relocation of NATO personnel from Iraq,” US Air Force Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, says in a statement.

The mission advises Iraqi security forces and is not involved in combat, NATO says.

“NATO Mission Iraq will continue from Joint Force Command Naples,” the statement adds.

Dubai property sector shows early signs of weakness

Dubai’s property market is beginning to show early signs of weakening, nearly three weeks into the US-Israeli war on Iran, with data from analysts showing tanking transaction volumes and some real estate agents pointing to price reductions.

The war, and Tehran’s strikes against Israel, US bases and Gulf states, including the United Arab Emirates, have pierced Dubai’s image as a safe haven for the world’s wealthy.

Real estate transaction volumes in the UAE fell 37% year-on-year in the first 12 days of March, and 49% month-on-month, Goldman Sachs analysts estimated in a note published this week.

Some properties are already being offered at big discounts, with price cuts of 12-15%, according to some real estate agents and messages on social media that Reuters reviewed.

For instance, a seller was looking for a “quick sale” for a property close to the Burj Khalifa — the world’s tallest building — a message shared by an agent read. The seller was looking for $650,000, down about 12% from a previous price of $735,000, “due to the current situation.” The agent spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

An off-plan flat in Dubai’s coveted Palm Jumeirah was also being offered at a 15% discount to its original price of around $2 million, according to a message reviewed by Reuters on a WhatsApp group created a week into the war.

Cops forcefully disperse hundreds holding Eid al-Fitr prayers outside Old City amid Al-Aqsa closure

Police forcefully disperse hundreds of Muslim worshipers outside the gates of Jerusalem’s Old City earlier today, where Eid al-Fitr prayers were held in light of the wartime closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The holiday, which marks the end of Ramadan, typically sees tens of thousands of Muslims pray inside the mosque and in the courtyards surrounding the holy site, located atop the Temple Mount.

This year, the area is closed, along with other holy sites in the Old City such as the Western Wall and Church of the Holy Sepulchre, due to the ongoing war with Iran.

In footage from earlier today, officers are seen using tear gas and batons against the crowd of Palestinians, running after individuals who had gathered to pray outside Herod’s Gate.

At least one individual was arrested, Haaretz reports.

Watch: Israeli police attacked Palestinians, gathering to pray outside Jerusalem’s old city, for the first day of Eid Al Fitr. Since the start of the war with Iran, Israel closed Al Aqsa compound and the other holy sites in the city pic.twitter.com/YXyPZApRGn

— Oren Ziv (@OrenZiv_) March 20, 2026

Authorities maintain that they are solely concerned with enforcing Home Front Command wartime guidelines, but critics have accused law enforcement of operating on a double standard when it comes to Jewish versus Arab public gatherings.

Earlier this week, the Foreign Press Association lambasted police for what it called an “unprovoked assault” on journalists covering evening prayers outside the walls of the Old City, which left a CNN producer with a fractured wrist.

Officers detained several reporters, damaged photographic equipment and confiscated memory cards, the statement read.

Mojtaba Khamenei said to issue written statement to mark Persian New Year, denying attacks on Turkey and Oman

A man watches a televised statement purportedly by Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei on March 12, 2026. (AFP)

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei purportedly releases a written message on marking the start of the Persian New Year, which he names the year of a “resistance economy under national unity and national security.”

In the statement, released on his Telegram channel, Khamenei says that attacks against Turkey and Oman were not carried out by Iran or its allied forces.

Khamenei has yet to publicly show his face since he was reportedly injured in the Israeli strike that killed his father and other family members on February 28.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei:

The attacks that took place in Türkiye and Oman—both of which have good relations with us—against certain locations in those countries were in no way carried out by the armed forces of the Islamic Republic or other forces of the Resistance… pic.twitter.com/02QWpC4q7U

— The Daily News (@DailyNewsJustIn) March 20, 2026

No injuries, direct impacts reported following day’s 8th Iran missile attack

No injuries or direct impacts are reported following Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack on Israel, the eighth since midnight.

The small number of missiles, which triggered sirens in the southern Negev Desert and in areas of northern Israel, were intercepted or struck open areas, according to preliminary military assessments.

IDF detects Iran missile launch en route toward Israel’s north as sirens still ringing in south

As sirens sound in Dimona and several nearby towns in the Negev Desert amid an Iranian ballistic missile attack, an early warning is issued in northern Israel as another Iran missile launch is detected by the IDF.

Iran’s Quds Force chief issues 1st written statement since war’s outbreak, praising ‘resistance front’

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani praises Tehran’s “resistance front” regional allies for purportedly fighting the US and Israel in the current conflict, Iranian media reports.

Qaani makes the remarks in his first statement since Israel’s killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on February 28 at the start of the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran.

‘What has become of us?’: Rabbi haunted from testimony of sexual assault by settlers during raid of Palestinian hamlet

The head rabbi of a modern Orthodox yeshiva in northern Israel writes about his experience visiting the Palestinian hamlet of Khirbet Humsa, which suffered a brutal attack by settlers last weekend.

“I heard directly, firsthand, from a young man what had happened there. From his expression, the blue bruise around his eye and his sorrowful gaze, it was clear he was telling the truth,” writes Yehuda Gilad from the Ma’ale Gilboa yeshiva.

“In that same conversation (with the help of a translator), he described in detail the prolonged abuse they endured while bound. Then, with visible shame, he described something I had previously been unable to believe.”

“I find it difficult, and my hands tremble as I write this about Jews, and yet I will write it because I am convinced it indeed occurred: yes, these perpetrators painfully bound his genitals. Not to mention the humiliation inherent in this,” Gilad says.

“These events recall the pogroms our ancestors endured in various exiles. Have we become like the worst of the nations?” he asks.

“I want to turn to the question — what must be done? But I feel I am still at the stage of crying out,” Gilad continues. “Alas, what has become of us?”

Israeli authorities have yet to arrest any suspects in the attack on Khirbet Humsa. Indictments in such attacks, which have been unfolding on a near-daily basis, are rare, and convictions even more so.

Yesterday, Rabbi Yehuda Gilad from ישיבת מעלה גלבוע visited the West Bank and wrote the statement below (provided in our translation):

“With God’s help, Rosh Chodesh Nisan, ‘a time of atonement for all their generations.’

Yesterday, I went through a difficult and deeply… pic.twitter.com/DzyoyAMy0K

— Smol Emuni US (@SmolEmuniUS) March 19, 2026

IDF detects day’s 8th Iran missile launch heading toward southern Israel

A new ballistic missile launch from Iran has been identified by the IDF.

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

Footage catches moment Iran missile fragment struck Jerusalem’s Old City

Footage shows the moment a fragment from an Iranian ballistic missile struck Jerusalem’s Old City.

According to the IDF, the missile was intercepted, and fragments fell down, causing damage at a parking lot in the Jewish Quarter, around 400 meters from the Western Wall and Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on the Temple Mount.

Another video shows the moment a fragment from an Iranian ballistic missile struck Jerusalem's Old City this afternoon. pic.twitter.com/qNvTXmRDr6

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 20, 2026

Footage shows the moment a fragment from an Iranian ballistic missile struck Jerusalem's Old City.

According to the IDF, the missile was intercepted, and fragments fell down, causing damage at a parking lot in the Jewish Quarter, around 400 meters from the Western Wall and… pic.twitter.com/jBdygrBZTs

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 20, 2026

Hezbollah denies UAE accusations of having network in country

Hezbollah denies that it has a presence inside the United Arab Emirates, after Emirati authorities announced they had arrested at least five members of a “terrorist network” linked to Hezbollah and its backer, Iran.

Earlier this week, Hezbollah issued similar denials that it maintained a presence in Kuwait, after Kuwaiti authorities announced the discovery of two alleged cells linked to the group, arresting a combined 26 people.

In a statement, the Lebanese militant group said it “denies the fabricated accusations made against it by the security authorities in the United Arab Emirates.”

“Hezbollah has no presence inside the UAE or in any other country under any cover or commercial designation or otherwise.”

According to Emirati authorities, the alleged network had “sought to infiltrate the national economy and carry out external schemes threatening the country’s financial stability” as part of “a pre-established strategic plan in coordination with external parties linked to Hezbollah and Iran,” the official WAM news agency said, citing the UAE State Security Apparatus.

In recent years, the Lebanese government has had tensions with Gulf states, which have expressed concern about Hezbollah projecting influence outside of Lebanon.

Poland evacuates its troops from Iraq, minister says

Poland has evacuated its troops from Iraq, the defence minister said on Friday, amid an ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

“Due to the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East region, following an analysis of operational conditions and potential threats, a decision was made to relocate the Polish Military Contingent from Iraq,” Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz writes on X.

US to deploy thousands of additional troops to the Middle East, officials say

The United States military is deploying thousands of additional Marines and Sailors to the Middle East, three US officials tell Reuters.

One of the officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, says that the USS Boxer, along with the Marie Expeditionary Unit aboard, were departing the West Coast of the United States about 3 weeks ahead of schedule.

Action movie star Chuck Norris has died: family statement

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with American actor Chuck Norris, at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on February 08, 2017. (Haim Zach/GPO)

Chuck Norris, the US martial artist and Hollywood action star most famous for his role in “Walker, Texas Ranger,” has died, his family says Friday. He was 86.

“It is with heavy hearts that our family shares the sudden passing of our beloved Chuck Norris yesterday morning,” the family says in a statement on Instagram.

“To the world, he was a martial artist, actor, and a symbol of strength. To us, he was a devoted husband, a loving father and grandfather, an incredible brother, and the heart of our family.”

“He lived his life with faith, purpose, and an unwavering commitment to the people he loved. Through his work, discipline, and kindness, he inspired millions around the world and left a lasting impact on so many lives,” the statement says.

Norris reportedly fell ill on Thursday on the Hawaiian island of Kauai.

Norris turned 86 last week, marking the event with a video of him boxing on social media and saying, “I don’t age. I level up.”

The martial arts expert turned actor has starred in a slew of action films since his acting debut with a cameo in a 1968 Dean Martin film, “The Wrecking Crew.”

Four years later, his epic fight with the kung-fu superstar Bruce Lee in “The Way of the Dragon” helped turn Norris into an icon on big and small screens alike.

“Nothing like some playful action on a sunny day to make you feel young,” Norris said in his birthday message last week.

Rescue forces rushing to Iran missile impact in Jerusalem’s Old City; no injuries reported

Rescue forces are responding to reports of an impact in Jerusalem’s Old City, following Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack.

Damage was caused, footage shows, but no injuries are reported, medics say.

The damage was caused to a parking lot in the Jewish Quarter, some 350 meters from the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif compound.

Rescue forces are responding to reports of an impact in Jerusalem's Old City, following Iran's latest ballistic missile attack.

Damage was caused, footage shows, but no injuries are reported, medics say. pic.twitter.com/yL7h05K044

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 20, 2026

US sues Harvard for billions over treatment of Jewish and Israeli students

The Harvard University logo is displayed on a metal gate leading to Harvard Yard at Harvard University, September 30, 2025, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

US President Donald Trump’s administration has sued Harvard University over the Ivy League school’s alleged failure to protect Jewish and Israeli students, and is seeking to recover billions of dollars of taxpayer money.

In a complaint filed in Boston federal court, the US Department of Justice said Harvard remains deliberately indifferent to hostility on its campus and has intentionally refused to enforce its campus rules when victims are Jews or Israelis.

“This sent the clear message to Harvard’s Jewish and Israeli community that the indifference was not an accident; they were being intentionally excluded and effectively denied equal access to educational opportunities,” the complaint says.

Harvard has no immediate comment.

Today’s lawsuit comes less than two months after Trump said his administration was seeking $1 billion from Harvard to settle probes into school policies, after a published report said Trump had dropped his demand for a $200 million payment.

It also follows a February 13 lawsuit where the government accused Harvard of failing to comply with a federal investigation, and sought documents to determine whether the university illegally considered race in its admissions process.

IDF detects day’s 7th Iran missile attack en route for Jerusalem, southern Israel

A new ballistic missile launch from Iran has been detected by the IDF.

Sirens are expected to sound in the Jerusalem area and parts of southern Israel.

Indian gas tankers getting ready to sail through Hormuz, data shows

Two Indian-flagged liquefied petroleum gas tankers are preparing to sail through the Strait of Hormuz in the coming days after a pause in voyages with no crude oil tankers leaving the waterway in the past 24 hours, according to shipping data and sources.

The two tankers are currently anchored in Gulf waters, according to data from Kpler and shipping sources.

According to market assessments from sources on Friday, based on available data, there had been no voyages over the past 24 hours by crude tankers through the waterway, with one empty crude oil tanker, hit with US sanctions, returning through the Strait back towards Iranian waters on March 18, separate Kpler data shows.

US Federal Reserve governor sounds alarm on inflation risk due to Iran war

US Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller says he is concerned about the impact of the US-Israel war on Iran on inflation due to the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Waller, who has since last year backed interest rate cuts over labor market concerns, says he changed his mind in the last two weeks on the pace of interest rate cuts due to concerns about inflation.

“Since that time the Strait of Hormuz was closed, this is looking like it’s going to be a much more protracted conflict, and oil prices are going to stay high for a longer time,” he tells US broadcaster CNBC on Friday.

“So that suggested inflation was more of a concern than I was putting it.”

Waller backs the Fed’s decision earlier this week to hold rates steady.

While he flags inflation as an issue, he says he is not currently in favor of rate hikes.

French jihadist sentenced to life jail for Islamic State crimes against Yazidis

A French jihadist has been sentenced to life in jail over Islamic State group atrocities against Iraq’s Yazidi minority, the first case in France to tackle the issue.

The Pais Assizes Court has found Sabri Essid guilty in absentia of genocide, crimes against humanity and complicity in the crimes, committed when IS occupied swathes of northern Syria and Iraq a decade ago.

Removing sanctions on Iran oil will bring supply to ports, US energy secretary says

Removing sanctions on stranded Iranian oil would get supplies to Asia within three or four days, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright says.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday that the US may soon remove sanctions on Iranian oil stranded on tankers at sea, as Washington seeks to curb prices that are soaring over Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

“Within days, within three or four days, that oil will start to arrive at ports,” Wright says in an interview on Fox Business Network’s “Mornings with Maria” program.

Wright says the unsanctioned oil would then be refined and hit the market over the coming month and a half.

“I think that most of that oil will be absorbed in the next 30 to 45 days,” he says.

IDF says it killed top Iran intel official in Tehran strike earlier this week

A top official in Iran’s Intelligence Ministry was killed in an airstrike in Tehran earlier this week, IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin says in a press conference.

Defrin says the strike on Wednesday that killed Mehdi Rastami Shamastan came following “joint intelligence research by the Military Intelligence Directorate, the Mossad and the Shin Bet.”

Shamastan was “a key figure in advancing terror activity against Israeli and Jewish civilians in Israel and around the world,” he says.

Trump fumes at ‘COWARD’ NATO allies for bucking call to secure Hormuz

US President Donald Trump fumes at NATO allies for bucking his calls to join a US-led initiative to secure the Iran-blocked Strait of Hormuz.

“Without the USA., NATO IS A PAPER TIGER! They didn’t want to join the fight to stop a Nuclear Powered Iran. Now that fight is Militarily WON, with very little danger for them,” Trump writes on Truth Social.

“They complain about the high oil prices they are forced to pay, but don’t want to help open the Strait of Hormuz, a simple military maneuver that is the single reason for the high oil prices. So easy for them to do, with so little risk. COWARDS, and we will REMEMBER!” Trump adds.

NATO countries have balked at Trump’s calls, saying they are willing to help secure the key oil transport channel, but not in the middle of the war, which they didn’t star, and not after the US president spent much of the last year alienating Western allies over his policies toward Ukraine and Greenland.

Sirens triggered in Western Galilee amid Hezbollah attack from Lebanon

Sirens sound in the Western Galilee amid a Hezbollah attack from Lebanon.

Alerts are activated in Nahariya and several nearby towns, warning of a suspected drone infiltration and rocket fire.

Ukraine deploys 228 drone defense specialists to Middle East

Kyiv has deployed 228 specialists to help Middle Eastern countries with drone defence, and is working with Middle Eastern leaders to sign “serious agreements,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says.

Zelenskiy also tells reporters that Ukrainian and US working groups would continue work on bilateral documents between Kyiv and Washington and discuss a wide-ranging drone deal at a meeting in the US over the weekend.

No injuries reported following Hezbollah rocket fire at Galilee

No injuries are reported following Hezbollah rocket fire on northern Israel, medics say.

Sirens had sounded in several Galilee communities near Safed.

Visiting French FM voices concern over IDF ground op in Lebanon; Sa’ar tells him Israel ‘will act decisively against’ enemies

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot says that he outlined ⁠France’s reservations about a possible Israeli ground operation in ​southern Lebanon, speaking to reporters after meeting with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar in Jerusalem.

Barrot adds that the ​Lebanese ⁠army must do everything possible to disarm Iran-backed Hezbollah as demanded ⁠by ​the Lebanese government.

Barrot is speaking during a brief visit to Israel after traveling to Lebanon yesterday amid efforts to reduce regional tensions and secure a ceasefire there.

The top French diplomat says ​he does not see an obvious ‌end to Middle East tensions during the ongoing US-Israeli aerial assault against Iran, but that ​France and its allies would ​continue to work towards trying to ⁠find a lasting solution.

“There is ​no obvious short-term way out of ​the ongoing regional escalation, which has in some ways been unfolding since October 7, ​2023,” he says. “But this must in no ​way serve as a pretext for inaction.”

In a post on X, Sa’ar says the two discussed the war against Iran and intensified fighting with Hezbollah during their meeting.

I hosted my French counterpart, FM @jnbarrot, in Jerusalem.
I listened to his impressions from his visit to Lebanon, and we discussed at length the war against Iran, Hezbollah, and other issues.

I presented to him the scope of attacks on Israel from Lebanese territory (over… pic.twitter.com/u8wXmqe8eP

— Gideon Sa'ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) March 20, 2026

Sa’ar says he reiterated to Barrot that “the Lebanese government and its army are not taking any meaningful action against Hezbollah, neither militarily nor in other aspects,” and that he “presented Israel’s precise operations against Hezbollah operatives, while making efforts to minimize harm to the civilian population as much as possible.”

“Israel will continue to defend itself and its citizens and will act decisively against all those who seek its elimination,” Sa’ar told his French counterpart, calling on France and the European Union to designate “the entirety” of the Iran-backed group as a terrorist organization, “not only its military wing,” as some European countries have done.

Israel says strike targeting Basij leadership also killed intel chief

An Israeli airstrike in Tehran earlier this week that killed the commander of the Basij and his deputy, also killed the paramilitary force’s intelligence officer, the military says.

The IDF says it can now confirm that the strike late Monday also killed Ismail Ahmadi, the chief of intelligence in the Basij.

The top officials in the oppressive paramilitary had been targeted while at a tent camp that was recently established by the Basij. According to the IDF, the Basij set up the camp after the military struck many of the headquarters of the paramilitary force.

On Tuesday, the military said Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani, his deputy, and several other top officers were killed in the strike.

יחד עם מפקד יחידת הבסיג': צה"ל חיסל את ראש אגף המודיעין של יחידת הבסיג' בטהרן

חיל האוויר בהכוונה מדויקת של אמ"ן, תקף מוקדם יותר השבוע את צמרת ההנהגה הבכירה של יחידת הבסיג' בלב טהרן, במסגרתה חוסל מפקד היחידה, ע'לאם רצ'א סליאמני ומספר מפקדים בכירים נוספים.

כעת צה"ל מאשר כי בתקיפה… pic.twitter.com/P19lMm7hgq

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 20, 2026

IDF says more that 570 Hezbollah operatives killed since start of fighting

Mourners grieve by the bodies of Hezbollah members killed during an Israeli operation on the village of Nabi Chit in the eastern Bekaa Valley, during the funeral in the village on March 8, 2026. (Photo by Nidal SOLH / AFP)

The Israeli military says it has killed over 570 Hezbollah operatives, including 220 members of the terror group’s elite Radwan Force, since hostilities escalated amid the war with Iran.

More than 2,000 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon have also been struck in the past three weeks, the IDF says, including 120 command centers, 100 weapon depots, and 130 missile launchers.

Lebanon’s health ministry says Israeli attacks have killed over 1,000 since the war began.

Iran threatens to target Israeli, US officials, even when vacationing in ‘tourist and entertainment centers’

Mourners bid farewell to the bodies of Iran's slain intelligence minister Esmail Khatib and his family during their funeral after the weekly Friday noon prayers in Tehran on March 20, 2026. (Photo by AFP)

Iran’s military threatens to hunt down officials and army commanders from the United States and Israel, even while they are vacationing or visiting entertainment centres.

“We are watching your cowardly officials and commanders, pilots and wicked soldiers,” armed forces spokesman Abolfazl Shekarchi says, quoted by state TV.

“From now on, based on the information we have on you, the promenades, resorts and tourist and entertainment centres in the world will not be safe for you either.”

Czechs probe arms company fire over ‘terror attack link’; anti-Israel group takes responsibility

Czech police are investigating a fire that broke out at an arms company on Friday as a potential terror attack, the interior minister says, after an anti-Israel group claimed responsibility.

“We are examining all available information. There is a likely link to a terror attack,” Interior Minister Lubomir Metnar says on X, after the fire brigade said a blaze broke out at a warehouse in a business park.

Arms producer LPP Holdings says in a statement that the fire broke out on its premises.

The company has in the past said it cooperated with Israel’s Elbit Systems.

Sirens sound in Galilee amid a Hezbollah rocket attack

Sirens sound in the Galilee amid a Hezbollah rocket attack from Lebanon.

Meanwhile, no injuries are reported in Iran’s sixth missile salvo on Israel, which triggered sirens across the north and center of the country.

UK police arrest suspected Iranian spies for trying to enter submarine base

Two suspected Iranian spies have been arrested after attempting to enter Britain’s nuclear submarine base in Scotland on Thursday, the Sun newspaper reports.

Two lightly wounded in Rehovot cluster bomb strike

The site of an Iranian missile impact in Rehovot, Israel, on March 20, 2026. (Jonathan Shaul/FLASH90)

Two people are lightly wounded in Rehovot by an apparent Iranian cluster bomb impact, medics say.

Magen David Adom says it treated a man and a woman in their 70s who were hit by a blast. Both are in good condition.

Ukraine deploys units to intercept drones in five Middle Eastern countries

A Ukrainian military instructor demonstrates the operation of an interceptor drone designed to destroy Russian attack drones in the Kyiv region of Ukraine, March 11, 2026. (AP/Efrem Lukatsky)

Ukraine has deployed military units to protect critical and civilian infrastructure against drones in five Middle Eastern countries, Ukraine’s security council secretary Rustem Umerov says after a visit to the region.

Umerov has visited the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan in the past week. He says Ukrainian units had been deployed in those nations, and that further steps for “long-term security cooperation” with each of them had been outlined.

“Ukrainian military specialists are operating in each of these countries under the coordination of the National Security and Defense Council,” he writes on X.

“Interception units have been deployed to protect civilian and critical infrastructure. Work is also underway to expand coverage areas.”

Kyiv has said that nearly a dozen countries across the world have sought its help and advice in defending against large waves of cheap kamikaze drones, which Russia has been launching at its neighbour for years and which Iran is now using in the Gulf.

Sirens sounding across central and northern Israel in sixth salvo since midnight

Sirens are sounding in wide areas of central and northern Israel amid ballistic missile fire from Iran.

It marks the sixth missile salvo on Israel since midnight.

Missile launch detected from Iran, sirens expected in center

A new ballistic missile launch from Iran has been identified by the IDF, targeting central Israel.

Sirens are expected to sound in the coming minutes.

Rehovot home on fire after cluster munition impact

A home in Rehovot burns after being hit by an apparent cluster munition from an Iranian missile on March 20, 2026 (Magen David Adom)

A home in the central city of Rehovot is burning following an apparent cluster munition impact, rescue services say.

There are no immediate reports of injuries after Iran launched a ballistic missile carrying a cluster bomb warhead at central Israel.

Several other impact sites were reported in central Israel.

בעקבות השיגור מאיראן: בית נפגע ברחובות, שריפה פרצה במקום | תיעוד @Itsik_zuarets pic.twitter.com/PCo2FrQaE3

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) March 20, 2026

Abu Dhabi police arrest over 100 for filming, posting ‘misleading’ info during war

Police in the United Arab Emirates say they had arrested over 100 people for filming and posting “misleading” information during the Middle East war, as Gulf countries crack down on footage and posts related to Iran’s attacks.

“Abu Dhabi Police announced the arrest of 109 individuals of various nationalities who filmed sites and incidents and circulated incorrect information via social media platforms during current events,” it says in a statement on X, adding that some of the people had shared “misleading information.”

Switzerland halts weapons exports to US due to Iran war

Swiss army knives are displayed 06 July 2007 in a shop in Montreux. (Photo by FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP)

Switzerland says it would not issue licences for companies to export weapons to the United States due to the ongoing attacks on Iran, citing its neutrality.

“The export of war materiel to countries involved in the international armed conflict with Iran cannot be authorized for the duration of the conflict,” the government says in a statement.

“Exports of war materiel to the USA cannot currently be authorized,” it adds.

Rescue services responding to reports of cluster bomb impacts after missile attack on central Israel

The Iranian ballistic missile fired at central Israel a short while ago is assessed to have carried a cluster bomb warhead.

Rescue services are responding to reports of several impacts, possibly caused by bomblets or other falling fragments.

There are no immediate reports of injuries.

UK’s Farage says would ban mass prayer events in public sites amid iftar row

Hard-right UK lawmaker Nigel Farage, currently leading opinion polls, says he will ban mass Muslim prayer at historic British sites if he becomes prime minister.

The anti-immigrant firebrand called a Ramadan event in London’s Trafalgar Square earlier this week an “attempt to overtake, intimidate and dominate our way of life.”

Monday’s open iftar, the evening meal to break the traditional Ramadan fast, has been the subject of political debate in recent days, with Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer criticising a Conservative MP for opposing the event.

Too many are too polite to say this.

But mass ritual prayer in public places is an act of domination.

The adhan – which declares there is no god but allah and Muhammad is his messenger – is, when called in a public place, a declaration of domination.

Perform these rituals in… pic.twitter.com/PIfJAgb7Zk

— Nick Timothy MP (@NJ_Timothy) March 17, 2026

“We have to stop this kind of mass demonstration, provocative demonstration, in historic British sites, because that’s what it is,” Farage said on Thursday.

Asked during a visit to Scotland whether he favoured banning all mass religious observances, Farage, leader of Reform UK, replied “yes.”

Pressed on whether that included Jewish or Catholic observances, he added: “I’ve never seen Jewish services taking place in places of historic Christian worship, or anywhere else.

“We have to get this right. We can’t stop individuals from praying, we wouldn’t want to stop individuals praying, but mass prayer is banned, mass Muslim prayer is banned, in many Muslim countries in the Middle East itself,” he says.

Missile launch detected from Iran, sirens to sound in central Israel

Another ballistic missile launch from Iran has been identified by the IDF, targeting central Israel.

Sirens are expected to sound in the coming minutes.

This comes a short while after a missile fired at southern Israel triggered sirens in Dimona and nearby towns.

No injuries reported in latest Iran missile strike that triggered sirens in Dimona

No injuries or direct impacts are reported following Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack on Israel, the fifth since midnight.

The missile had triggered sirens in Dimona and other towns in the Negev Desert.

Russia summons Israeli envoy to lodge formal protest over strike on Russian journalists

Russia’s foreign ministry summons Israel’s ambassador to Russia to lodge a formal protest over an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon, which injured Russian state TV journalists, the state TASS news agency reports.

It said that Oded Joseph, Israel’s ambassador, has been told that Russia wanted an investigation into the attack, which happened on Thursday, and assurances that such incidents would not happen again.

The Israeli military said the TV crew was operating in an area where a warning to leave had been issued. It regularly says it “has never and will never deliberately target journalists.”

💥🇷🇺🇱🇧 If RT Journalist hadn't moved after hearing the sound of fighter jet, he woud have been k*illed right now in Lebanon.

Steve Sweeney is from Ireland, currently working for Russian state TV RT for International news. pic.twitter.com/w3jhIvdt7u

— International Observer (@Intlobserver0) March 19, 2026

Missile launch detected from Iran, sirens to sound in south

A new ballistic missile launch from Iran has been detected by the IDF, targeting southern Israel.

Sirens are expected to sound in the coming minutes.

US, Israel strike 16 Iranian cargo vessels in port towns: Iran media

The United States and Israel struck 16 Iranian cargo vessels in port towns on the Gulf, local media reports, saying the ships were burnt.

“Following the American–Zionist air attack, at least 16 cargo vessels belonging to citizens of the towns of Bandar Lengeh and Bandar Kong were completely burnt in the fire,” a local offical from the southern Hormozgan province says, quoted by the Tasnim news agency.

IDF says its striking regime targets in northern Iranian city of Nur

The IDF says it has launched a wave of airstrikes against Iranian regime sites in the city of Nur.

Nur is located northeast of Tehran.

Running app reveals location of France aircraft carrier in Mediterranean

The French aircraft carrier Charles-de-Gaulle is seen as it passes through the Strait of Gibraltar off the coast of southern Spain in Tarifa, on March 6, 2026.(Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)

A member of the French navy using an app to track his jogging performance broadcast the exact position of his country’s flagship aircraft carrier, a newspaper reports

France deployed the Charles de Gaulle — and accompanying frigates — to the Mediterranean in early March shortly after US-Israeli strikes on Iran sparked war in the Middle East.

It has been in the eastern Mediterranean since March 9 as part of what Emmanuel Macron has called a “purely defensive” posture in support of France’s allies in the conflict.

Le Monde newspaper reports that the runner jogged in circles on a ship in movement on March 13 in the middle of the sea northwest of Cyprus, according to his public profile on the Strava fitness tracking app, while satellite images showed the aircraft carrier was in the immediate vicinity at the time.

The same person had also been running in Copenhagen, Denmark, in late February, across a bridge from Malmo, Sweden, where the Charles de Gaulle was anchored at the time, Strava data showed.

The French armed forces told AFP that appropriate measures would be taken if the report was true, as members of the navy were regularly reminded about the risk of security breaches using such apps.

Three reported killed in Israeli strike in Gaza City

Gaza media outlets affiliated with Hamas reported that three people were killed and another was wounded in an IDF strike in eastern Gaza City.

The Times of Israel could not independently verify the report. There was no immediate comment from the IDF.

Elderly woman injured while seeking shelter from missiles

The Magen David Adom rescue service says a woman in her 70s is being transported to a hospital in central Israel with moderate injuries sustained while trying to reach a shelter during a series of missile attacks a short while ago.

A statement from the rescue service says the woman suffered injuries to her head.

Several others are being treated for minor injuries related to the scramble for shelter it says.

Injuries sustained while seeking shelter typically outnumber those suffered from actual missile impacts or falling shrapnel.

Iron Dome reservist charged with assisting Iran for $1,000 in crypto

Police Superintendent Shirat Peretz of the police’s Unit for International Crime Investigations says that a reservist charged with spying for Iran passed sensitive information about the Iron Dome system and other classified information to agents he was in contact with and received $1,000 in crypto currency in return.

A joint investigation by the police’s Unit for International Crime Investigations and the Shin Bet found that the reservist, 26-year old Raz Cohen from Jerusalem, was in contact with Iranian intelligence agents for several months, and was instructed by them to conduct a series of security missions, including passing sensitive security information, authorities say.

Cohen, who was arrested recently, has been charged in Jerusalem District Court with assisting the enemy during a war, transmitting information to the enemy with the intent to harm state security, and transmitting information to the enemy which is likely to assist the enemy.

However, charges related to the case indicate his alleged activities took place months before the current war.

The sentence for assisting the enemy during a war provided in the penal code is life in prison, or the death penalty, which has almost never been used.

According to a statement by the police and Shin Bet, Cohen, who served in a unit responsible for the Iron Dome air defense system, was aware that he was working with Iranians agents, and said that he received money in return for conducting the missions they asked him to perform.

He also passed information on military sites and the names of Israeli security officials to the agents, with whom he was in contact for a month.

“The Israel Police and the Shin Bet once again warn citizens and residents of the State of Israel against having contact with foreign agents from enemy countries, or unknown officials. All the more so, performing missions for them in exchange for payment or for any other reason,” the statement says.

“These officials, including intelligence and terrorist agents from enemy countries, continue their efforts to recruit and use Israelis for security, espionage and terrorist missions in Israel including during the current war,” the statement continues, adding that such agents are also trying to recruit Israelis on social media networks.

IDF confirms killing Iranian Guards spokesman

The IDF confirms killing the spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Ali Mohammad Naini, in an airstrike in Iran.

The strike was carried out overnight by the Israeli Air Force, following intelligence provided by the Military Intelligence Directorate, the army says.

The military says Naini “served in several propaganda and public relations roles” over the years, including as “the IRGC’s main propagandist” for the past two.

“In his role, Naini disseminated the regime’s terrorist propaganda to its proxies across the Middle East in order to influence and advance terror attacks against the State of Israel from the different fronts,” the IDF says in a statement.

Iranian state media announced earlier that Naini had been killed in a strike.

Haifa refinery says more damage near site discovered, but most production online

Excess gas is burned at the oil refinery in Israel's northern city of Haifa late on March 19, 2026. (Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)

The Bazan oil refinery in Haifa says it discovered additional damage to its site overnight following an Iranian missile attack yesterday, which will take “a few days” to restore.

The refinery says in a regulatory filing to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange that damage was caused to “exterior infrastructure belonging to a third party, which is essential to the [refinery’s] activities, located outside the refinery site.”

It says most production is active and the rest is on its way to being restarted.

Energy Minister Eli Cohen said yesterday that “no significant damage to infrastructure sites” had been caused in the attack after fragments from a missile interception hit the facility.

According to the filing, the company initially believed the impact had been limited to power lines and an open area next to a management building.

There were no injuries in the attack.

Iran has been targeting energy infrastructure in Israel and the Gulf after its South Pars gas installation was bombed earlier this week.

Responding to the report, Avihu Han, Haifa’s Deputy Mayor and Chairman of the Haifa Bay Cities Association for Environmental Protection, urges the government to shutter the refineries as soon as possible, in line with its own decision to transition to importing and safely storing petroleum distillates in different locations.

“We can’t continue playing Russian roulette with the lives and security of the residents of the Haifa metropolis and the energy security of the citizens of the State of Israel,” he says.

“Yesterday’s incident and today’s announcement about the shutdown of the facilities are further proof that refineries in the heart of a civilian metropolis represent a failure of energy (policy) and security.”

During the June 2025 war with Iran, three Bazan workers were killed in a fire after an Iranian missile strike.

Missile fragment damages Rehovot home, no injuries

Damage was caused to a home in Rehovot by falling fragments following Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack, according to the police.

No injuries are reported, rescue services say.

A picture shows damage to a home, including a piece of a missile sitting on the floor of a living room.

Second attack from Iran within minutes detected

Another ballistic missile launch from Iran has been detected by the IDF within minutes of the last attack, also targeting central Israel and the Jerusalem area.

Sirens are expected to sound again in the coming minutes.

Missile attack from Iran set to target center, Jerusalem

A ballistic missile launch from Iran has been detected by the IDF, targeting central Israel and the Jerusalem area.

Sirens are expected to sound in the coming minutes.

Number of injured in war tops 4,000

People injured in a missile strike on Kiryat Shmona arrive at Ziv Medical Center in Safed, March 19, 2026. (David Cohen/Flash90)

The Health Ministry reports that in the past 24 hours, 150 injured people have been taken to hospitals as a result of the conflict with Iran, bringing the number of hospitalizations due to the fighting to over 4,000.

Among those treated in hospitals over the past day, two are in serious condition, two are in moderate condition and 136 are in good condition.

Ten people have been treated for anxiety.

Authorities previously said that two people were seriously injured in a rocket attack on Kiryat Shmona yesterday.

The ministry says that since the beginning of the war with Iran on February 28, 4,099 people have been admitted to hospitals, 80 of whom are currently hospitalized.

The ministry does not give a breakdown of the causes of injuries, and some might be sustained by people trying to reach shelter rather than as a direct result of missile fire from Iran or rocket fire from Lebanon.

IRGC spokesman killed in strike, Iran says

IRGC spokesman Ali Mohammad Naini, seen in an Iranian handout photo. (used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

The spokesperson for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Ali Mohammad Naini, has been killed in strikes launched by the US and Israel, Iranian state media reports.

The Tasnim news agency reports that Naini, who has served as spokesman for the IRGC since 2024, “was martyred.”

Israel has not yet commented.

Naini was quoted earlier in the day rebuffing a claim from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Iran’s missile production had been rendered inoperable.

In new message, Iranian leader says regime’s enemies at home and abroad should not have security

Iran’s new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei is calling for the enemies of his nations to have their “security” taken away, in his latest message to the public.

Khamenei makes the remarks in a statement issued on his behalf and addressed to President Masoud Pezeshkian offering condolences after Israel killed Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib.

The ayatollah says the ministry should respond by voiding the security of Iran’s “internal and external enemies.”

Khamenei hasn’t been seen since he was named as supreme leader, succeeding his father, the 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the first day of the war on Feb. 28.

American and Israeli officials have suggested that Mojtaba Khamenei was hurt in the war.

IDF says its drones being shot down over Iran

An Israeli drone flies over Dahiyeh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

More than a dozen Israeli Air Force drones have been shot down over Iran amid the current war, according to military officials.

An exact number is not given, but the officials say fewer than 20 unmanned aerial vehicles have been lost.

The military says its policy during the war is that loss of unmanned aircraft is acceptable for the purpose of thwarting ballistic missile attacks on Israel’s home front.

For that reason, the IAF has been sending cheaper UAVs for riskier strike missions in Iran, knowing that they are likely to be shot down. In at least one case, one of these cheaper drones actually made it back to Israel, according to military officials.

No Israeli fighter jets have been shot down, though pilots have come under anti-aircraft missile fire numerous times. In one case, the military said a fighter pilot was “close to being hit.”

Israeli air defense reservist accused of spying for Iran

An Israeli reservist who manned the Iron Dome air defense system was arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran and carrying out other security-related activities on behalf of the Islamic Republic, authorities say.

The suspect is named as Raz Cohen, a 26-year-old resident of Jerusalem.

A statement from police and Shin Bet alleges Cohen was in contact with Iranian agents for months, and carried out several missions for them, including passing sensitive information in exchange for money.

Sirens on northern border as Hezbollah appears to renew attacks

Rocket alert sirens sound in Kiryat Shmona and a neighboring town on the Lebanese border, in what appears to be a fresh attack from Hezbollah.

The alert is the first for a Hezbollah attack on the north in over seven hours.

Israel says it hit Syrian army after attack on Druze

The Israeli military says it struck Syrian military positions in southern Syria in response to an alleged attack on Druze civilians in the Sweida area yesterday.

The strikes hit a headquarters and weapons at several Syrian army camps, the IDF says.

“This was in response to the events yesterday, in which Druze civilians were attacked in the Sweida area,” the military says in a statement.

The strikes were not reported by major Syrian media outlets, and details surrounding the attack on the Druze remain murky.

In a statement circulated online, a Druze militia operating in the Sweida area claims that nine people were killed yesterday in circumstances that are not detailed; 12 people were detained at a checkpoint, and seven others were “abducted”; and that there was an attack with rockets and drones.

The IDF says that it will “not allow harm to the Druze in Syria and will continue to act to protect them,” and that it “continues to monitor developments in southern Syria and will act in accordance with the directives of the political leadership.”

No injuries after second missile attack of morning

No injuries or direct impacts have been reported following Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack on Israel, the second in under an hour.

The missile had triggered sirens near Jerusalem and in parts of southern Israel.

Iran has launched three missile attacks at Israel since midnight.

IRGC spokesman claims Iran still making missiles, rebuffing Netanyahu

The spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps insists that Tehran is still building missiles, seeking to counter a claim by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that it no longer can make any.

Gen. Ali Mohammad Naeini’s comments are carried by Iran’s state-run IRAN newspaper.

Referencing how Iranian schools consider a 20 as a perfect score, the general says, “Our missile industry score is 20 and there is no concern in this regard because we are producing missiles even during war conditions, which is amazing, and there is no particular problem in stockpiling.”

He also says the war will go on.

“These people expect the war to continue until the enemy is completely exhausted,” the general says of the Iranian public. “This war must end when the shadow of war is lifted from the country.”

Speaking from Jerusalem Thursday night at his first in-person press conference since the launch of the US-Israel campaign against Iran, Netanyahu said that “After 20 days, I can tell you — Iran today has no ability to enrich uranium, and no ability to produce ballistic missiles.”

New ballistic missile launch from Iran detected

A new ballistic missile launch from Iran has been detected by the IDF, targeting central Israel and the Jerusalem area.

Sirens are expected to sound in the coming minutes.

No offense meant by Jesus Genghis Khan comparison, Netanyahu says

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a press conference in Jerusalem on March 19, 2026. (Ronen Zvulun / POOL / AFP)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says on X that he “did not denigrate Jesus Christ” in a televised address last night, after a minor firestorm over comments he made regarding the war in Iran.

Citing historian Will Durant, Netanyahu said Thursday evening that “History proves that, unfortunately and unhappily, Jesus Christ has no advantage over Genghis Khan. Because if you are strong enough, ruthless enough, powerful enough, evil will overcome good. Aggression will overcome moderation.”

In a posting in English from his official account on X, Netanyahu reiterates that the idea was Durant’s.

“A fervent admirer of Jesus Christ, Durant stated that morality by itself is not enough to ensure survival,” the post reads. “A morally superior civilization may still fall to a ruthless enemy if it does not have the power to defend itself.”

“No offense was meant,” he adds.

Among those criticizing Netanyahu were Mario Nawfal, a Dubai-based entrepreneur with a large social media following on X.

“Bro… that’s not a flex, that’s a facepalm on steroids,” he chided. “Israel’s already fighting the global optics war, and the PM decides to drop ‘might makes right, Jesus who?’ in the middle of it.”

No injuries reported after sirens sound in Tel Aviv, other areas

There are no initial reports of injuries following the latest missile attack from Iran.

Sirens had sounded in Tel Aviv and areas north of the city, along with a wide swath stretching east through the West Bank to the Jordan Valley.

Reports indicate the missile hit open land, with no reports of damage.

Iran missile launch detected, sirens expected soon

The IDF says a new ballistic missile launch has been detected from Iran, the first in several hours.

Sirens are expected to sound in areas near the center of the country as well as the northern West Bank and Jordan Valley, according to Home Front Command.

US authorities seize domains of Iranian hackers who stole info from former PM Bennett

The US Justice Department says it seized four internet domains that were used by an Iran-backed hacking group that previously leaked data it stole from former prime minister Naftali Bennett and a close aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Justicehomeland, Handala-Hack, Karmabelow80, and Handala-Redwanted were used by Iran for “attempted psychological operations targeting adversaries of the regime by claiming credit for hacking activity, posting sensitive data stolen during such hacks, and calling for the killing of journalists, regime dissidents, and Israeli persons,” the Justice Department says.

According to US authorities, in recent weeks the Handala group had claimed to leak personal details of Israel Defense Forces personnel or others associated with the military. It also claimed to have stolen nearly a terabyte of information from the Sanzer Hasidic sect, including what it called “documents of financial cooperation, witchcraft ceremonies, and secret correspondences with Netanyahu.”

Last week, the group claimed responsibility for a sweeping cyberattack on US medical technology giant Stryker, saying it wiped more than 200,000 systems and extracted 50 terabytes of data in retaliation for military strikes on Iran.

In December, the Handala group said it had hacked the phone of Bennett, who is considered the most credible challenger to Netanyahu in this year’s elections. Bennett confirmed the data breach but said his phone had not been accessed. Handala also claimed to have broken into the phones of former justice minister Ayelet Shaked and Netanyahu’s chief of staff Tzachi Braverman, posting details on a now-seized domain.

Dubai says it fought off Iranian attack as Eid holiday begins

Dubai says it successfully fended off an Iranian aerial attack, after heavy explosions shook the United Arab Emirates city in the early morning.

“Authorities in Dubai confirm the success of all air interception operations, with no injuries reported,” says the Dubai Media Office, the sheikhdom’s government communications arm.

The attack came as mosques made the day’s first call to prayers for Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

Kuwait’s Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery hit by drone attack, sparking fire

Kuwait’s state oil firm KPC says its Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery was hit by multiple drone attacks early this morning, causing a fire in some units, with no initial casualties reported, the state news agency says.

Firefighters responded immediately, with several units shut down as a precaution to ensure workers’ safety.

Gulf states say responding to missile, drone attacks

Emirati and Kuwaiti air defenses are responding to missile fire, authorities in the Gulf states say, while Saudi Arabia intercepts drone attacks.

Elsewhere in the Gulf, Bahrain’s interior ministry says that shrapnel from an “Iranian aggression” caused a fire at a warehouse, which was brought under control and resulted in no injuries.

The ministry earlier said air raid sirens were activated.

In Kuwait, an army statement says air defenses were “responding to hostile missile and drone threats,” while the UAE state media reports “incoming missile and drone threats from Iran.”

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps says in a statement carried by the Tasnim news agency that they had targeted US forces in the UAE’s Al-Dhafra air base as well as sites in Israel with missiles and drones.

There are no immediate reports of any casualties.

Saudi Arabia’s defense ministry says that within less than two hours, its forces had “intercepted and destroyed” 10 drones in the country’s east and another in the north.

Saudi Arabia said to predict oil prices could exceed $180 a barrel if disruptions continue to late April

Oil officials in Saudi Arabia are projecting that oil prices could soar past $180 a barrel if disruptions due to the Iran war persist until late April, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Reuters cannot immediately verify the report.

IDF says launched new wave of airstrikes against regime infrastructure in Tehran

Following the recent round of Iranian ballistic missile fire targeting northern Israel, the IDF says it has launched a new wave of airstrikes in the Iranian capital.

It says the strikes are targeting “infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime across Tehran.”

Report: US approves $7 billion more in weapons for United Arab Emirates

The Trump administration has approved about $7 billion in weapons for the United Arab Emirates that the State Department is not required to announce to the public under rules governing US arms exports, the Wall Street Journal reports.

That is in addition to arms sales to three Middle East countries worth more than $16.5 billion announced earlier on Thursday, the Journal says.

The unannounced deals include the sale of Patriot PAC-3 Missiles worth about $5.6 billion and CH-47 Chinook helicopters costing about $1.32 billion to the UAE, the Journal says, citing US officials, adding that those sales were not announced publicly because they expanded previously agreed arms deals.

UN Security Council holds urgent closed meeting on Iran’s ‘cowardly’ attacks on Gulf energy sites

Bahrain’s UN Ambassador Jamal Alrowaiei, the Arab representative on the UN Security Council, says his country requested an urgent meeting because of the continuing “cowardly attacks by Iran” on Gulf countries, Jordan and other nations.

He says afterward that Bahrain and many of the 15 council members stressed a need for Iran to implement a March 11 resolution demanding an immediate halt to attacks against Gulf countries and the targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure, including energy installations.

He says the resolution, adopted by a vote of 13-0 with Russia and China abstaining, also calls for Iran to stop all actions and threats aimed at closing, obstructing or interfering with navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for shipment of 20% of the world’s oil.

Alrowaiei dodges a question about reports that Bahrain is seeking a resolution on freedom of navigation, including through the strait.

UAE says it dismantled terrorist network funded by Iran and Hezbollah

United Arab Emirates authorities say they have dismantled what they call a terrorist network funded and operated by Lebanon’s Hezbollah terror group and by Iran, and arrested its members.

According to the state news agency, the network was involved in “money laundering, financing terrorism and threatening national security.”

“The network had been operating within the country under a fictitious commercial cover and sought to infiltrate the national economy and carry out external schemes threatening the country’s financial stability,” the agency says.

There is no immediate comment from Hezbollah or Iran.

EU leaders call for moratorium on strikes against energy and water facilities in Middle East 

Leaders from the European Union’s 27 countries call for de-escalation in Iran and the wider region, as well as a moratorium on striking critical infrastructure, amid growing concerns about the impact of the Iran war on the global economy.

Leaders discuss the situation in the Middle East and its broader implications during a regular summit in Brussels.

“The European Council calls for de-escalation and maximum restraint, the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure and full respect of international law by all parties,” the leaders say in written conclusions following their talks.

“In this regard, it calls for a moratorium on strikes against energy and water facilities,” they say.