March 9: Trump says he’s not close to deciding on sending troops to Iran for nuke stockpile

Sirens to sound in north as Iran ballistic missile attack detected

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

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

Milei cheers economic benefits of Iran war for Argentina

Argentine President Javier Milei listens to speeches after the signing of a Board of Peace charter during the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, January 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Argentine President Javier Milei, a staunch ally of US President Donald Trump and Israel, hails the benefits of the Iran war for his country’s exports and foreign currency reserves.

The libertarian Milei, who has backed Washington and Israel’s strikes on Iran, says he expects an “improvement” in oil and agricultural exports as a result of the 10-day-old conflict.

Argentina is Latin America’s fourth-largest oil producer.

“Argentina, in this context, will see an improvement in its terms of trade because oil prices are rising, and Argentina is a net exporter,” Milei tells Argentine radio station FM NOW.

“Furthermore, all the grains that Argentina exports, soybeans, corn, and sunflower, are also rising in price,” Milei says in an interview from New York, where he is participating in an investment promotion event.

Last week, wheat reached its highest level in a year and soybeans hit their highest point since June 2014 as the war drove up energy and fertilizer costs.

Milei emphasizes that the war will boost Argentina’s efforts to build up its foreign currency reserves, as demanded by the International Monetary Fund in return for a new $20 billion loan agreement signed last year.

Ben Gvir seeks to appoint ally David Bavli as police’s legal adviser

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir leads a faction meeting of his Otzma Yehudit party at the Knesset in Jerusalem on February 16, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has informed Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara that he seeks to appoint his ally David Bavli as legal adviser to the police. Bavli currently serves as Ben Gvir’s legal counsel.

Police Commissioner Danny Levy has already expressed his opposition to Bavli’s appointment.

“It is time that the legal advisory and prosecution systems be headed by a worthy person, who will enable the Israel Police to implement the policies of the minister and the commissioner, and will not provide biased and political legal advice,” Ben Gvir says in a missive to the attorney general. “This position should be filled by a person with a new and sharp perspective, for the benefit of the Israel Police’s ongoing operations in general, and in addressing crime in the Arab sector in particular.”

It is unclear that Ben Gvir will be able to go through with the appointment.

Yossi Sedbon, a former top cop, tells Ynet: “Ben Gvir’s appointment has one purpose: another confrontation with Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara. This is an inappropriate appointment of a lawyer with no experience. The police’s legal adviser must have professional knowledge and experience that Bavli simply does not have.”

IDF announces new wave of ‘extensive’ airstrikes in Tehran

The Israeli Air Force has launched a fresh wave of “extensive” airstrikes in Tehran, the IDF announces.

The military says the strikes are targeting Iranian regime sites.

It marks the second wave of Israeli strikes in Iran’s capital today.

Australia grants asylum to five Iran women soccer players

Australia has granted asylum to some of Iran’s visiting women’s soccer team over fears they face persecution at home for not singing the national anthem before a match, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke says.

Iranian players’ gesture ahead of an Asian Cup tournament match in Australia last week was widely seen as an act of defiance against the Islamic Republic.

Five players escaped the team hotel on Australia’s Gold Coast overnight, holing up in a “safe location” while lodging their claims for asylum, Burke says.

“They were moved to a safe location by Australian police. I signed off last night on their applications for humanitarian visas,” he tells reporters.

“They are welcome to stay in Australia, and they are safe here, and should feel at home here.”

US President Donald Trump earlier said he had spoken with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to confirm the women were safe.

“I just spoke to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, of Australia, concerning the Iranian National Women’s Soccer Team. He’s on it! Five have already been taken care of,” Trump said on his Truth Social network, less than two hours after an initial post urging Australia to take them in.

UK warplanes down drones in Middle East, conduct ‘defensive’ sorties for UAE

British warplanes have begun “defensive air sorties” in support of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and taken out drones elsewhere in the Middle East amid the ongoing war, the UK defense ministry says.

The development comes as Britain’s response to the conflict is under criticism, including from the US president and the Cypriot government.

More US B-52 bombers landed at the UK air force base in Fairford, in southwestern England, today, AFP witnessed, after a first one landed on Friday.

Fairford is one of two bases, along with the Diego Garcia facility in the Indian Ocean, that the UK has given the US permission to use for “specific defensive operations into Iran” to destroy Iranian missiles at source, Defense Minister John Healey says.

“The UK is now conducting defensive air sorties in support of the UAE,” Healey tells MPs in a statement.

“Typhoons successfully took out two drones, one over Jordan, the second heading to Bahrain.”

Wall Street ends higher as hopes of Iran war resolution offset inflation fears

Wall Street stocks clawed their way back from a steep selloff to close higher, notching a final-hour rebound after US President Donald Trump suggested that the US-Israeli war on Iran could be close to ending.

All three indexes staged a late comeback after Trump said the war was “very far ahead” of his initial four-to-five-week estimated time frame.

Early in the session, oil prices reached their highest levels since mid-2022 due to constricted supply arising from shipping disruptions as the war on Iran entered its 10th day. Ballooning energy prices could metastasize into a broader inflation spike at a time when many US consumers are struggling with affordability.

Crude prices fell, however, after sources said the Trump administration is considering easing oil sanctions against Russia.

The stock market’s intraday swings as investors digest headlines have added volatility to the trading day in recent weeks.

“There is still an awful lot of uncertainty out there regarding the duration of the conflict, as well as the duration of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz,” says Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist of CFRA Research in New York. “Again today, seeing such a relative reversal in price movements indicates that investors are looking for any opportunity to jump back into the equity markets.”

Report: Justice Ministry Pardons Department determines PM’s request should be rejected

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu adjusts the headphones during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Jerusalem, December 7, 2025. (AP/Ariel Schalit, Pool, File)

Channel 13 news reports that the Justice Ministry’s Pardons Department has determined that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s request for a pardon in his criminal trial does not meet the criteria and should thus be rejected.

No further details are immediately provided.

The department is expected to submit its position as part of a process at the conclusion of which President Isaac Herzog will decide whether to grant the premier’s request.

Netanyahu did not accept any responsibility in his request to the president and continued to reject any wrongdoing, claiming his request was for the good of the country only — to enable him to focus entirely on leading and not on the trial.

Levin to recuse himself from handling PM’s pardon request to prevent delays

Justice Minister Yariv Levin attends a plenum session at the assembly hall of the Knesset on January 14, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

With the Justice Ministry’s Pardons Department expected to submit its position on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s request for a presidential pardon in his criminal trial, Justice Minister Yariv Levin plans to delegate the matter to Heritage Minister Amichay Eliyahu of Otzma Yehudit.

Levin believes he will face attempts to block him from dealing with the pardon request, due to his close ties to the premier, according to comments published by Ynet, Channel 12 and other Hebrew outlets.

To avoid delays amid claims of conflict of interest, the minister has decided to transfer the opinion to Minister Amichai Eliyahu, who handles cases in which the minister is recused, according to the reports.

The Pardons Department’s recommendation is unknown at this time, but Levin and Eliyahu are expected to back Netanyahu’s request regardless.

Putin and Trump discuss Iran and Ukraine wars — Kremlin

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump discussed the Iran war and Ukraine conflict during a “frank and constructive” telephone call today, the Kremlin says.

Putin and Trump held a one-hour call in their first talks since December and Washington sought the discussion, Putin’s diplomatic advisor Yuri Ushakov is quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.

“The accent was placed on the situation surrounding the conflict with Iran and the bilateral negotiations underway with the representatives of the United States on settling the Ukrainian question,” Ushakov says.

Ushakov says Putin called for a “quick political and diplomatic settlement” to the US-Israeli war against Iran, which has been a key ally for Russia.

The Russian leader also gave Trump “a description of the current situation on the line of contact where Russian troops are progressing with a lot of success,” he adds, referring to the Ukraine war.

Israel loses 10-1 to Dominican Republic, eliminated from next round of World Baseball Classic

In its third game of the World Baseball Classic, Team Israel has lost 10-1 to a Dominican Republic team with far greater star power. The loss eliminates Israel from advancing to the next round of play in the global baseball tournament.

The team, comprising primarily Jewish American baseball players, now has a 1-2 record in the four-game first round. For its final game, it will play the Netherlands tomorrow, which has also gone 1-2.

The Dominican Republic took a decisive 5-0 lead in the second inning when Fernando Tatis hit a grand slam off Israel’s pitcher Ryan Prager. The team, which is filled with Major League Baseball stars, scored again in the 4th, 7th, 8th and 9th innings, and clinched a spot in the WBC quarterfinals.

Spencer Horwitz scored Israel’s only run with a fourth-inning homer. Israel had only one other hit during the game, by Noah Mendlinger.

Sports analysts had predicted before the series that Team Israel was unlikely to win more than one game.

Chaos at airport as passengers find out at check-in counters they can’t board

Chaos broke out at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport earlier today when passengers who had tickets to depart on an outbound flight lost their temper after discovering at the last minute that they were not allowed to board the plane, Channel 12 reports.

Police had to be called to check-in counters at the airport to control disgruntled passengers as they fought over seats with airline staff.

The confusion is said to have been caused by the Transportation Ministry informing Israel’s flag carrier El Al last night that the quota on some outbound flights was raised to 200 passengers from 100 per aircraft. By early this morning, the Transportation Ministry is said to have reverted to 100 passengers per outbound aircraft.

כאוס בנתב"ג: באל על קיבלו אתמול אישור להעלות 200 נוסעים בחלק מהטיסות – אך היום המספר ירד חזרה ל-50 – נוסעים רבים נותרו זועמים בדלפקי הצ'אק אין לאחר שהגיעו לנתב"ג.

דיילי קרקע: "איבוד עשתונות – סגרו דלפקי צ'ק אין. יש אלימות בין המשטרה לנוסעים"@Dean_Fisher_ pic.twitter.com/VWNGoTxD3X

— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) March 9, 2026

“The Transportation Ministry reiterates that airlines are not permitted to carry more than 100 passengers on an outbound flight, in accordance with the guidelines of the Civil Aviation Authority and the defense system,” the Transportation Ministry says in response. “Airlines need to comply with these procedures to maintain the safety and security of passengers.”

As a result of the confusion, more passengers received notices for departures on some flights, but were not permitted to board.

“We are operating according to the Home Front Command’s guidelines, which are constantly updated, and apologize for the inconvenience to the company’s customers,” El Al says in a statement.

No reports of impacts or injuries in Iranian missile attack

There are no reports of direct impacts or injuries in the latest Iranian ballistic missile attack on Israel, medics say.

Sirens had sounded across central Israel and parts of the West Bank, in the 11th attack from Iran since midnight.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters.

Trump tells CBS ‘war is very complete, pretty much,’ could be over soon

President Donald Trump speaks at the Shield of the Americas Summit, March 7, 2026, at Trump National Doral Miami in Doral, Florida. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

US President Donald Trump tells CBS he believes the war in Iran could be over soon.

“I think the war is very complete, pretty much. They have no navy, no communications, they’ve got no Air Force,” he tells the network’s Weijia Jian. He says the campaign is “very far” ahead of his previous estimate of a war lasting 4-5 weeks.

Trump says ships are currently passing through the Strait of Hormuz but adds that he is “thinking about taking it over.”

IDF detects Iranian missile launch on central Israel

The IDF says it has detected another ballistic missile attack from Iran.

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

Lebanon seeks direct peace talks with Israel, US and Israel skeptical — report

US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack speaks during the Concordia Annual Summit in New York, September 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

The Lebanese government recently proposed, through the Trump administration, holding direct negotiations with Israel aimed at ending its war with Hezbollah and possibly reaching a peace agreement with Beirut, five sources familiar with the matter tell Axios.

Both Jerusalem and Washington responded skeptically to the proposal, according to sources, including a US official, an Israeli official, and three sources with direct knowledge of the matter.

The Lebanese government was said to approach US envoy Tom Barrack — who worked on the Lebanon file last year but has been less active in recent months — last week, asking him to mediate with Israel. Beirut reportedly claimed that some Hezbollah members were open to a deal and proposed holding direct talks with Israel at the ministerial level in Cyprus.

Barrack was said to respond that the Lebanese government must “stop with the bullshit” on disarming Hezbollah in order to move forward. “If it’s not real action about Hezbollah’s weapons, there’s no point,” a source told Axios.

Jerusalem rebuffed the proposal, saying that it was too late and that its military is currently focused on eliminating Hezbollah, the sources said. According to Israel’s Channel 12, it is still examining the offer.

Some sources add that Lebanese Army chief Gen. Rodolphe Haykal has resisted deploying troops against Hezbollah while fighting continues, despite the army’s stated commitment to disarming the terror group. This has reportedly prompted pressure from Washington on Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to remove Haykal.

Lebanese officials are increasingly frustrated that the Trump administration has largely ignored their outreach, leaving little room for mediation or peace talks with Israel, the sources said.

“There is no interest from the Trump administration to deal with Lebanon,” one source with knowledge told Axios.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office does not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.

An Israeli official told The Washington Post in an earlier report that Israel is “willing to engage with Lebanese officials [to] reach agreement on a ceasefire,” though the official made no indication that any Lebanese proposal had been made.

IDF says Air Force hit dozens of Iranian military sites in Tehran, Isfahan, Shiraz

The Israeli Air Force hit dozens of Iranian military sites during a wave of airstrikes in Tehran, Isfahan, and Shiraz earlier today, the IDF says.

Dozens of IAF fighter jets dropped over 170 bombs on the targets, the military says.

According to the IDF, the targets included a headquarters of the IRGC Quds Force in Tehran; a surface-to-air missile production and storage site, along with several air defense systems in Isfahan; and other military infrastructure in Shiraz, located in Iran’s south.

WATCH: Iranians in Isfahan shouting “Allahu Akbar” as explosions were heard during U.S./Israeli strikes on the city. pic.twitter.com/9TVXVJWp7c

— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 9, 2026

The IDF says the strikes are part of a new stage of the war aimed at “deepening the blow to the core arrays of the Iranian terror regime and its foundations.”

Oman’s sultan congratulates new Iran supreme leader

This handout picture provided by the office of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei shows Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said during a meeting with him (not pictured) in Tehran, on May 29, 2023 (KHAMENEI.IR / AFP)

Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq congratulates Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei on his appointment as Iran’s new supreme leader, the official Oman News Agency reports.

“His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq — may God protect and preserve him — sent a cable of congratulations to His Eminence Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei on the occasion of his selection as Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the agency says.

Oman was a mediator in recent talks between Iran and the United States, which collapsed during the war triggered by joint US-Israel strikes on Iran.

Iranian missile hits open area in north

The ballistic missile launched from Iran in the latest attack on northern Israel hit an open area, according to initial military assessments.

There are no reports of injuries in the attack, the 10th since midnight.

Sirens had sounded in the Western Galilee. The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in towns where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters.

US indicts two alleged ‘terrorists’ accused of trying to bomb NYC protest

The US Department of Justice has indicted two people accused of trying to bomb a protest in New York City, Attorney General Pam Bondi says in a post on X on Monday, calling them “alleged ISIS-inspired terrorists.”

“We will not allow ISIS’s poisonous, anti-American ideology to threaten this nation. Our law enforcement officers will remain vigilant.”

We have charged the two alleged ISIS-inspired terrorists who attempted to bomb a protest in New York City.

We will not allow ISIS’s poisonous, anti-American ideology to threaten this nation. Our law enforcement officers will remain vigilant. pic.twitter.com/4QMOrOvGhG

— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) March 9, 2026

Sa’ar to UN’s Lebanon envoy: IDF has to be in Lebanon to protect our citizens

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar (R) meets UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert in Jerusalem, March 9, 2026 (Shlomi Amsalem/GPO)

The deployment of Israeli troops over the border in Lebanon is necessary to  “prevent ground incursions by Hezbollah forces and rocket fire toward Israeli civilians and communities,” Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar tells UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.

“Hezbollah launched an attack against us, and there is no actor in the international community working to stop it except us,” says Sa’ar, according to his office.

He also says that weakening Hezbollah is a “shared interest” of both Israel and Lebanon.

He stresses that the UNIFIL peacekeeping force is an “obstacle” to IDF operations against Hezbollah.

IDF detects new ballistic missile launch toward Israel’s north

The IDF says it has detected a new ballistic missile attack from Iran.

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

Schools to stay closed, gathering restrictions remain unchanged until end of week

The IDF Home Front Command says nationwide restrictions amid the war with Iran remain unchanged as Tehran keeps up its ballistic missile fire on Israel.

Following a fresh assessment, the Home Front Command says that the current restrictions remain in place until Saturday at 8 p.m. By then, another assessment will be conducted.

As part of the current guidelines, educational activities are 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.

Following the Home Front Command’s assessment, Education Minister Yoav Kisch announces that his plan to allow for a gradual reopening of the education system later this week is postponed to Sunday.

Defense officials warn Hezbollah attacks to expand in bid to divert IDF from Iran — report

This photograph taken during a media tour organized by Hezbollah shows people inspecting the destruction at Nabi Sheet town after an Israeli military operation in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon, on March 7, 2026 (Nidal SOLH / AFP)

Hezbollah is expected to increase its rocket and drone attacks on Israel in the coming days as part of an effort to draw Israeli attention away from its conflict with Iran, defense officials said this evening in a discussion with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, Channel 12 reports, citing senior Israeli officials.

Security officials warned at the meeting that Hezbollah is seeking to wear down northern Israel and the broader home front by launching larger daily volumes of missiles and UAVs, including at strategic facilities, according to the Hebrew-language report.

This comes as Hezbollah and other terror groups continue to clash with the Lebanese Armed Forces in southern Lebanon, in what Israeli officials assess is part of a broader effort to divert Israel’s attention from the ongoing US-Israeli bombing campaign in Iran.

According to the report, the IDF has been reassessing the situation over the past day. Security officials were said to say in internal discussions that although Iran’s missile and drone launches have declined compared to the beginning of the campaign, and although there are signs of growing fatigue among military personnel in Iran, this is not yet expected “to translate into a reduced threat to the Israeli home front in the coming days.”

Senior officials tell the network: “We are in a process that will take time. The destruction of [Iran and Hezbollah’s missile] launchers is continuing constantly — this is the top mission. However, a large number of launchers still remain on the ground, and the capability still exists, even if it has been significantly weakened.”

Trump says he is ‘nowhere near’ deciding to send troops to Iran for nuclear stockpile

US President Donald Trump says he is “nowhere near” deciding whether to send US troops into Iran to secure the stockpile of highly enriched uranium there.

“We haven’t made any decision on that. We’re nowhere near it,” Trump tells the New York Post when asked about reported discussions between Israel and the United States on possibly deploying special forces to Iran to seize and secure the material.

A longstanding dispute over Iran’s nuclear program escalated into military conflict 10 days ago, with the US and Israel launching strikes against Iran and Iran responding with attacks across the Middle East.

Army says it bombed 6 Iranian military airbases last night

The Israeli Air Force bombed six Iranian military airbases during a wave of strikes in Iran last night, the IDF says.

Some of the airports were previously targeted by the IAF amid the war.

As part of the strikes, the military says it destroyed numerous aircraft, including attack helicopters and planes used by the IRGC’s Quds Force.

“Additionally, runways and defense and detection systems designed to operate against Israeli Air Force aircraft in Iranian airspace were targeted,” the IDF says.

The military says the airports were used by Iran to “arm and fund terror proxies across the Middle East,” including Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis.

Gantz pans failure to appoint new ministers for months as Knesset grants PM more powers

Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz speaks at a faction meeting at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, on February 9, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz condemns the Knesset’s approval of the transfer of additional powers belonging to the interior minister to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the absence of a full-time head of the ministry.

“Over the last few hours, a debate was held in the Knesset to transfer the powers of the interior minister to the prime minister because the government has not had an interior minister for many months,” Gantz says in a statement.

“Even when local authorities need the most attention, they do not have a minister, while there are unnecessary and delusional ministries. When more people need assistance, there is no welfare minister. When hospitals are preparing to handle difficult events, there is no health minister. I call on the prime minister to stop this absurdity and to appoint ministers to ministries who will work around the clock.”

Today’s vote comes several months after the Knesset approved the temporary transfer of some powers due to the lack of a full-time minister in the role. The Interior Ministry was previously run by the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, which left the government, though not the coalition, last summer over its failure to codify the Haredi community’s exemption from military service.

While Likud took over Shas’s portfolios, it did not appoint a new interior minister. Due to his graft trial, Netanyahu cannot directly take over the ministry himself, as the law bars ministers from serving in such a role while under criminal indictment and the ministry has continued to operate without a minister.

The health and welfare ministries are currently headed by Tourism Minister Haim Katz. Experts have argued that the lack of full-time dedicated ministers has significantly harmed the government’s ability to function for the good of the country’s citizenry.

IDF says over 1,900 Iranian soldiers and commanders killed in war

Smoke rises from the site of airstrikes in Tehran on March 7, 2026. (ATTA KENARE / AFP)

More than 1,900 Iranian soldiers and commanders have been killed in Israeli strikes in Iran since the start of the war, IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin says in a press statement.

He says thousands more have been wounded.

“We have many more targets; it is an ongoing effort, and we are deepening the blows to all levels of the regime,” he says.

Lebanese media reports Israeli strike on Hezbollah-linked association near Sidon

Lebanese media reports that an Israeli airstrike hit a building belonging to the Hezbollah-linked Al-Qard al-Hasan association in the village of Aaqbiyeh, south of Sidon.

The IDF issued an evacuation warning for the building ahead of the strike, and warned earlier today that it would be striking branches of Al-Qard al-Hasan, which is known to be used by the terror group as a quasi-bank.

Meanwhile, the IDF issues a wide evacuation warning for the entire village of Ansariya, just south of Aaqbiyeh.

“The activities of the Hezbollah terror organization are forcing the IDF to act against it with force. The IDF does not intend to harm you,” says army spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee.

“For your safety, you must evacuate your homes immediately and move away from the village to a distance of no less than 1000 meters,” he says.

غارتان على مبنى القرض الحسن في العاقبية بعد التحذير pic.twitter.com/7BpmhMhI48

— Annahar النهار (@Annahar) March 9, 2026

Hezbollah says it targeted IDF Home Front Command HQ, satellite station

The Hezbollah terror group claims to have targeted the IDF Home Front Command headquarters in Ramle, known as Rehavam Base, as well as a “satellite communications station” in Haela Valley near Beit Shemesh, in its missile attack on central Israel this afternoon.

The missile fire marks the deepest attack in Israel carried out by Hezbollah since hostilities intensified last week.

According to medical officials, a total of 16 people were lightly hurt in the attack.

Jerusalem asks to reopen schools for young children on Wednesday, other cities wait

Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion says he intends to partially reopen the city’s education system on Wednesday, after Education Minister Yoav Kisch earlier today announced a plan to allow local authorities considered at low risk to start operating their schools again later this week.

However, several mayors from other cities say they intend to keep schools closed at least until Sunday, according to the Ynet outlet.

“After conversations with representatives of the Home Front Command in Jerusalem, the Education Ministry, and the local parents’ representatives, I have submitted a request for approval from the authorized bodies to begin a phased return to school in Jerusalem,” Lion says in a statement. “The first stage will see the resumption of activities of daycares, grades 1-2, and special education schools.”

The mayor stresses that only schools with bomb shelters will be allowed to reopen.

“I support this move, because our children also need a routine, an educational framework and meetings with friends and teachers,” Lion adds, while emphasizing that the plan is subject to approval by the relevant authorities and to the updated assessments of the security situation.

Mayors of several cities in central Israel who belong to a group known as “Forum 16” say that they will wait to reopen their schools at least until Sunday. The group includes Herzliya, Rishon Lezion, Ra’anana, Rehovot, and Netanya.

“It’s enough to look at the skies of Israel and what is reported in the media to understand that opening the education system means taking an excessive risk and is irresponsible,” Carmel Shama-Hacohen, the head of the Forum, says. “The needs of the Israeli economy are important to all of us, but the balance clearly tips in favor of caution when it comes to the safety of our children’s lives.”

According to Ynet, the mayors of Haifa and Modiin also oppose reopening schools this week, while those in Maale Adumim in the West Bank and Kiryat Ata in the Haifa District say they are in favor of a gradual reopening on Wednesday.

16 people lightly hurt in Hezbollah’s missile attack on central Israel; daycare hit in Ramle

Damage to a classroom following a strike that hit a kindergarten in the central city of Ramle on March 9, 2026 (Ilia YEFIMOVICH / AFP)

A total of 16 people were lightly hurt in Hezbollah’s missile attack on central Israel this afternoon, Magen David Adom says.

In Ramle, the ambulance service says it treated 14 people in good condition following an impact that also caused damage to a daycare.

In the Mateh Yehuda area, two others were lightly hurt, MDA says, in an impact that police said caused damage to infrastructure.

Police: Hezbollah missile attack caused damage to infrastructure in center

Police say damage was caused to infrastructure in Hezbollah’s missile attack on central Israel this afternoon.

According to the police, a missile struck “an open area in the Mateh Yehuda [Regional Council] area,” and as a result, “damage was caused to infrastructure.”

Hezbollah, in a statement, claimed to have targeted a “satellite communications station” in Haela Valley near Beit Shemesh with a “barrage of precision missiles.”

The terror group claims the site belongs to the Israeli military, though it is in fact a civilian site operated by the European company SES.

Syrian leader announces support for Lebanon’s desire to disarm Hezbollah

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrives at the General Plenary of Leaders at the COP30 UN Climate Change Conference in Belem, Para State, Brazil, on November 6, 2025. (Mauro PIMENTEL / AFP)

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa declares his support for his Lebanese counterpart Joseph Aoun in the latter’s effort to disarm Hezbollah, state media reports.

“We stand alongside Lebanese president Joseph Aoun in disarming Hezbollah,” Sharaa says during a video conference with top European officials.

“We have reinforced our defensive forces along the border as a precaution to prevent the repercussions of the conflict from spilling over onto Syrian territory, and to combat cross-border organizations and prevent them from using Syrian soil,” Sharaa says.

Earlier, Aoun accused Hezbollah of seeking the “collapse” of the Lebanese state with its decision to launch rockets toward Israel.

IDF says 3 Hezbollah launchers used to fire at central Israel destroyed

The IDF says a total of three Hezbollah launchers used to fire long-range projectiles at central Israel this afternoon were destroyed in airstrikes.

The three launchers were struck within an hour of the missile attack, the IDF says.

EU’s top diplomat Kallas: Israel should cease operations in Lebanon

Smoke billows from the site of an Israeli air strike targeting Hezbollah in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut on March 9, 2026. (Ibrahim AMRO / AFP)

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas says Israel should cease its operations in Lebanon and that diplomacy offers the best chance of preventing Lebanon from sliding into chaos.

“Hezbollah’s decision to attack Israel in support of Iran endangers the entire region and adds a deadly dimension. Israel has the right to self-defense in line with international law,” Kallas says in a statement.

“At the same time, Israel’s response has been heavy-handed. Its retaliation is causing mass displacement and is further destabilizing a fragile situation,” she says, adding that “Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected.”

Trump says he will hold a press conference today

US President Donald Trump says he will hold a news conference at about 5:30 p.m. (23:30 in Israel), before returning to Washington from Florida.

He makes the announcement in a Truth Social post.

MKs extend law barring Palestinians who marry Israelis from receiving residency

Lawmakers vote 8-3 to approve a one-year extension of a longstanding law that largely bars Palestinians who marry Israelis from receiving residency in Israel. The law will now remain in effect until March 14, 2027.

Most votes today had few participants, with low turnout due to the war. For large stretches of the day, the Knesset’s various committees and plenum have been largely empty due to the decision to scale back parliamentary activity.

The so-called Citizenship Law was first passed in 2003, at the height of the Second Intifada, as a temporary security order meant to prevent terror attacks. It had been renewed on an annual basis until July 2021, when Israel’s previous coalition — a fragile alliance that included a left-wing and an Arab party — failed to marshal the votes to pass it. But it won approval in March 2022 and has since been extended on an annual basis.

The legislation has been wildly controversial since its inception, as rights groups charge it discriminates against Palestinians and Arab Israelis. The Supreme Court upheld the law in a 6-5 decision in 2012 after a protracted legal battle.

‘Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree’: Israel says Mojtaba Khamenei’s hands ‘already stained with blood’

After Mojtaba Khamenei is selected as Iran’s third Supreme Leader, the Foreign Ministry writes on X, “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

“Mojtaba Khamenei’s hands are already stained with the bloodshed that defined his father’s rule. Another tyrant to continue the Iranian regime’s brutality.”

Israel killed Khamenei’s father, who had been supreme leader since 1989, on the first day of the US-Israeli campaign against Iran. Israel has said that it would target whoever succeeded the elder Khamenei.

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
Mojtaba Khamenei’s hands are already stained with the bloodshed that defined his father’s rule.
Another tyrant to continue the Iranian regime’s brutality. pic.twitter.com/VW54UWpIdp

— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) March 9, 2026

After demanding Australia grant asylum to Iran soccer players, Trump says Albanese is ‘on it… Five already taken care of’

A hotel security member stands beside a police van at the entrance to the Royal Pines Resort, where members of the Iranian women's soccer team are staying, on the Gold Coast on March 9, 2026 (Patrick HAMILTON / AFP)

After calling out Australia for not granting asylum to members of Iran’s soccer team currently down under, US President Donald Trump says Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has agreed to allow the players to stay after the pair held a phone call earlier today.

“He’s on it!” Trump says of Albanese in a Truth Social post.

“Five [players] have already been taken care of, and the rest are on their way,” he says.

“Some, however, feel they must go back because they are worried about the safety of their families, including threats to those family members if they don’t return,” Trump adds, hailing Albanese’s conduct.

Iranian players refused to sing ahead of an Asian Cup tournament match in Australia last week — a gesture widely seen as an act of defiance against the Islamic Republic. Canberra has so far declined to comment on whether it could offer the players asylum.

According to local media reports, five of the players reached Australian police and are seeking asylum.

While Trump decided to weigh in on behalf of the Iranian soccer players in Australia, his administration has deported migrants back to Iran over the past year, including in the weeks leading up to the ongoing US-Israeli war against the Islamic Republic.

Medics say 4 lightly wounded in Ramle in Hezbollah missile attack

Magen David Adom says it treated four people who were lightly wounded at an impact site in the central city of Ramle amid Hezbollah’s missile attack this afternoon.

The ambulance service says the victims sustained injuries from a blast and glass shards. Damage was also caused to a daycare as a result of the impact.

The IDF says it is investigating the circumstances of the impact, including the fact that sirens did not sound in the area.

Israel bombs IRGC’s drone headquarters in latest strikes targeting regime

The Israeli Air Force bombed the drone headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the military says, as part of a wave of strikes on dozens of regime targets across Iran.

As part of the strikes, the IDF says it hit a “central headquarters” of the IRGC, which was “responsible for launching unmanned aerial vehicles.”

“The Iranian terror regime launched UAVs from this headquarters toward the State of Israel and stored additional UAVs there ready for launch,” the military says.

Minister Karhi accuses Yesh Atid MKs of ‘voting with supporters of terrorism’

Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi at the special panel on a contentious communications bill at the Knesset, December 8, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi accuses Opposition Leader Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid party of voting “together with the supporters of terrorism from the Joint List” after MKs Adi Azuz and Matti Sarfatti Harcavi supported a motion of no-confidence in the government, sponsored by the Knesset’s Arab factions.

Addressing lawmakers gathered in a fortified auditorium rather than the main plenum chamber, Karhi dismisses shouts by Yesh Atid MKs that they voted for the measure “by accident.”

Pushing back on Lapid’s statement earlier today, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition of continuing to advance a partisan agenda during wartime and using a “poison machine” against the opposition, Karhi declares: “The real poison is the poison that you’ve directed at IDF soldiers and the Israeli government during wartime.”

The “poison machine” is the name some avowed critics of Netanyahu use for what they say is a network of pundits, journalists, influencers and activists dedicated to besmirching the premier’s political rivals.

Yesh Atid MKs shout at Karhi, at one point standing in a group and chanting “liar” at the cabinet minister.

The party distanced itself from the votes in favor of the no-confidence motion this afternoon, stating that they had voted yes by mistake and that “the faction’s position is not to vote in favor of no-confidence motions” during the conflict with Iran.

Erdogan: We have delivered warnings to Iran about missile fire

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan listens as Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud speaks during a joint news conference in Istanbul, Turkey, December 30, 2025. (AP Photo/ Khalil Hamra)

Turkey has delivered a stern message to Iran after it fired a second ballistic missile at the country, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says.

“The necessary warnings have been delivered to Iran,” says Erdogan after hosting an emergency cabinet meeting at his office in Ankara.

“Despite our repeated warnings, provocative steps continue to be taken against Turkey,” he says. “No action should be taken that casts a shadow over our thousand-year-old neighborly and brotherly bond.”

He says the missile fired today was intercepted and fell on open land. Iran also fired a missile into Turkish airspace on March 4.

“Our goal, first and foremost, is to keep our country away from this fire,” says Erdogan.

Clalit transfers some patients to new protected hospital in Rishon Lezion

Clalit Health Services announces that it has begun transferring 216 patients, including the elderly and patients with medical complications, to its new protected hospital, Magen HaAri, Lion’s Shield, in Rishon Lezion for continued treatment and rehabilitation.

The medical and nursing teams who care for the patients will also move to the new hospital to ensure full continuity of care and provide patients with a sense of security, protection, and a familiar professional support system following the transfer, a Clalit spokesperson says.

“Many patients in rehabilitation and geriatric facilities are bedridden or have significant mobility limitations and require full assistance from medical teams to reach protected areas,” says Dr. Eytan Wirtheim, CEO of Clalit Health Services. “It is our mission to ensure a safe and protected environment for these complex patients and for the medical teams who care for them around the clock.”

False alarm in central Israel sends people rushing to shelters

An early warning issued by the Home Front Command in central Israel a short while ago was apparently a false alarm.

No additional ballistic missiles were detected by the IDF.

Another missile launched a short while ago, which triggered sirens in several settlements in the Jordan Valley, did not cause any injuries as it likely fell in an open area.

MKs okay transferring several issues under Interior Ministry to PM

Lawmakers approve transferring authority over several issues usually under the purview of the interior minister to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, several months after the Knesset approved the temporary transfer of a number of powers due to the lack of a full-time minister in the role.

Convening in an auditorium which serves as a protected space rather than in the plenum chamber, MKs vote 49-36 in favor of the move.

The Interior Ministry was previously run by the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, which left the government, though not the coalition, last summer over its failure to codify the Haredi community’s exemption from military service.

While Likud took over Shas’s portfolios, it did not appoint a new interior minister. Due to his graft trial, Netanyahu cannot directly take over the ministry himself, as the law bars ministers from serving in such a role while under criminal indictment and the ministry has continued to operate without a minister.

Hezbollah launcher used to fire at central Israel destroyed in strike

The Hezbollah launcher used to fire several long-range projectiles at central Israel was destroyed in an airstrike a short while ago, the IDF says.

The military says it struck the launcher within minutes of the missile attack, which lightly wounded two.

תוך דקות ספורות: צה"ל תקף את המשגר ממנו נורו הרקטות לעבר שטח הארץ לפני זמן קצר pic.twitter.com/iU6rwx2YqN

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 9, 2026

Sirens sound in Jordan Valley amid new Iranian ballistic missile attack

The IDF says it has detected a new ballistic missile attack from Iran.

Sirens sound in several West Bank settlements in the Jordan Valley and Israeli towns in the Beit She’an Valley.

Officials say over 50% of Israelis stranded abroad by Iran war have returned

Illustrative: An El Al aircraft is seen at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv on February 25, 2026 (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

The Israel Airports Authority says over 50 percent of Israelis who were stranded abroad upon the outbreak of the Iran war have returned, mainly via air routes and land border crossings with Egypt and Jordan.

Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport was gradually reopened Wednesday night for inbound flights, to help repatriate around 100,000 Israelis stuck abroad after the country’s airspace was shut on February 28 following the joint US-Israel attack on Iran. Since the partial reopening of Ben Gurion, about 24,000 Israelis have returned home on 133 repatriation flights operated by Israeli airlines (as of yesterday), the Israel Airports Authority says.

Another 44 repatriation flights carrying an estimated 8,000 passengers were expected to land today.

In addition, between February 28 and March 8, 22,800 Israelis who were abroad returned to the country via land border crossings with Egypt and Jordan. During the same period, 29,247 people left Israel via land border crossings.

Two people lightly injured in Hezbollah missile attack on central Israel

The site of a Hezbollah missile impact in an open area of central Israel, March 9, 2026. (Israel Police)

The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it treated two people who were lightly injured at an impact site in central Israel amid the Hezbollah missile attack a short time ago.

They include a 32-year-old man who was hit by a flying object and a 38-year-old woman who sustained a leg injury.

The IDF says it is investigating the failure to intercept one of Hezbollah’s missiles. According to the military, a number of long-range projectiles were fired in the attack from Lebanon. Some of the missiles were intercepted by air defenses, and others were allowed to hit open areas, it says.

The IDF says that one missile impacted in central Israel, and the “circumstances of the incident are under investigation.”

Trump ‘not happy’ after Khamenei’s son named new Iran leader

US President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable on Ratepayer Protection Pledge in the Indian Treaty Room at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus in Washington, DC on March 4, 2026. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)

US President Donald Trump tells the New York Post he is “not happy” with the appointment of Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei to replace his slain father as Iran’s supreme leader

“Not going to tell you. I’m not happy with him,” Trump tells the Post from his Doral golf club near Miami, when asked about his plans for the younger Khamenei.

68% of ‘connected’ American Jews support the US-Israel war against Iran, survey finds

About two-thirds of “connected” American Jews support the US-Israel war against Iran, a new survey has found, even as they are concerned that it could exacerbate antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment in the United States.

The results of the survey, taken last week by Israel’s Jewish People Policy Institute, suggest that American Jews are more supportive of the war than Americans overall. Multiple surveys last week found that about 60% of American voters opposed the military action, with support significantly lower among Democrats, historically the party of most Jewish voters.

A partisan shift is apparent in the JPPI survey, with near-total support for the war from those who describe themselves as politically conservative. Still, 57% of “leaning liberal” Jews said they support the war. Self-identified “strong liberals” were the only group of US Jews to say they oppose the war, with only 28% backing it.

The survey of 692 American Jews drew from a panel maintained by JPPI that aims to reflect the denominational distribution of U.S. Jews. The institute says its polls reflect the sentiments of “connected” Jews because its panel includes fewer intermarried Jews, more Jews who are affiliated with denominations and more Jews who have lived in Israel than demographic data would suggest is representative of US Jewry overall.

Katz says top Hezbollah man killed, over 1 million evacuate south Lebanon and Beirut

Defense Minister Israel Katz says the IDF killed a Hezbollah regional division commander in an airstrike overnight, and that over a million Lebanese civilians have adhered to Israeli evacuation warnings.

According to the defense minister’s office, during an assessment at the IDF Northern Command, Katz was informed that 650,000 Lebanese have evacuated Beirut’s southern suburbs, a known Hezbollah stronghold, and another 500,000 have left southern Lebanon.

The IDF ordered evacuation warnings for the entire south of Lebanon and four major neighborhoods in Beirut’s south in recent days, ahead of strikes on Hezbollah.

“In addition, the minister was updated on the elimination of the commander of Hezbollah’s Nasr Unit, Abu Hussein Ra’ab, during an IDF strike earlier tonight,” Katz’s office says.

The Nasr unit is one of three Hezbollah regional divisions in southern Lebanon. It is responsible for the area between Mount Dov and the Bint Jbeil area.

“Not only will we not withdraw in the face of Hezbollah, but we will take advantage of the opportunity to strike it and exact a price from it. We have an opportunity to bring very, very great security,” Katz says, according to remarks provided by his office.

Trump urges Australia to grant asylum to Iranian women’s soccer team

Iran players pose for a team photo ahead of the Women's Asian Cup soccer match between Iran and the Philippines in Robina, Australia, on March 8, 2026. (Dave Hunt/AAP Image via AP)

US President Donald Trump urges Australia to grant asylum to the visiting Iranian women’s soccer team, after players refused to sing the national anthem while playing there.

“Australia is making a terrible humanitarian mistake by allowing the Iran National Woman’s Soccer team to be forced back to Iran, where they will most likely be killed,” Trump says in a post on his Truth Social network.

“Don’t do it, Mr. Prime Minister, give ASYLUM. The US will take them if you won’t,” adds Trump, referring to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

3 days ago, Iran’s Women’s Soccer Team protested the Islamic Regime by refusing to sing the national anthem.

2 days ago, Iranian state media branded the women “wartime traitors.”

Today, the women were desperately begging for help from inside the team bus. They are being… pic.twitter.com/bZgZ5XGo5B

— The Persian Jewess (@persianjewess) March 9, 2026

Medics responding to reports of impacts in central Israel

Medics say they are responding to reports of impacts in central Israel following a long-range Hezbollah rocket attack from Lebanon.

Several interceptions were also observed over central Israel amid the attack.

Lebanon’s president warns that Hezbollah could turn country into ‘second Gaza’

This handout photograph released by the Lebanese Presidency Press Office shows Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun giving a joint press conference with Germany's president (not pictured) at the Presidential Palace in Baabda, east of Beirut, on February 16, 2026. (Lebanese Presidency Press Office/AFP)

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun accuses Hezbollah of putting Lebanon in danger of becoming “a second Gaza.”

Speaking with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa, Aoun says — without naming the Iran-backed terror group — that “the launch of a few rockets from Lebanon toward Israel was a trap and an almost overt ambush for Lebanon and the Lebanese state and the Lebanese people,” according to his office.

Hezbollah reprised its rocket and drone attacks on Israel last Monday, after a long hiatus, in retaliation for the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in an Israeli strike on February 28.

Aoun speaks of that initial Hezbollah rocket attack with scorn, saying they didn’t deter Israel from attacking Lebanon, nor were they anything approaching revenge for Khamenei’s assassination.

“There are those who wanted these rockets to lure the Israeli army to infiltrate inside Lebanon, and to invade some of its regions, and perhaps even to occupy them,” he says, as the IDF pushes further into southern Lebanon, “and that in order to corner Lebanon between two choices: either entering into a direct confrontation with the Israeli aggression that is unbound by any legal or humanitarian constraints. Which would lead to turning Lebanon into a second Gaza.”

Aoun says that his government intends to enforce a new ban on Hezbollah military activity “in a clear and decisive manner.”

Aoun calls on the international community to help implement a full ceasefire with Israel, support the Lebanese Armed Forces to disarm Hezbollah, and bring Lebanon and Israel back to direct talks.

Sirens sound in central Israel amid long-range rocket attack from Lebanon

Rocket sirens sound in central Israel amid a long-range rocket attack from Lebanon.

Alerts are also activated in Western Galilee in northern Israel amid the attack.

Israeli official says no clear alternative to Iran’s regime, warns of ‘never-ending story’ — report

A man holds a poster of Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei during a rally in Tehran, Iran, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Israel has not identified any viable replacement for the Iranian regime amid the ongoing US-Israeli bombing campaign against the Islamic Republic, an anonymous senior Israeli official tells The Washington Post.

The official, who is said to be familiar with the planning and strategy for the Iran war, expresses concern over Israel’s goal of toppling the regime in the operation without a clear plan for what would follow.

The remarks come as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government appear to be fully supportive of that goal, with the premier saying Saturday that the campaign would continue unabated and that the “moment of truth” was approaching for Iranians to unite against their government.

“We don’t see anyone who can replace the regime,” the Israeli official says in a phone interview, adding that “I’m not sure it’s in our interest to fight until the regime is toppled…Nobody wants a never-ending story.”

The official assesses that “the regime’s centralized command-and-control structure was weakening, and there were early signs of internal rifts — but nothing to indicate that a crack-up is close,” according to the Post.

The official is also said to doubt “that arming the Kurds or other minorities would be a good strategy because it would alienate the Iranian majority.”

At the same time, the official says the military campaign is close to achieving its core objectives of destroying what’s left of Iran’s nuclear program, ballistic missile inventories and weapons-making factories, as well as the leadership of its military, intelligence and internal security forces — but the official wouldn’t provide a timeline for completing these aims.

In light of the apparent complications in toppling the regime, the official presents an offramp to the operation once the military goals are complete, saying, “Of course, we wish to topple the regime, but that’s not the only endgame,” and that “[once the major military targets have been eliminated,] Israel would have achieved its goals…Iran won’t surrender, but it can send messages to accept a ceasefire with US conditions.”

The official also warns against Israel getting “dragged into the quagmire” by trying to eliminate Hezbollah in Lebanon, saying that “We are willing to engage with Lebanese officials [to] reach agreement on a ceasefire” there, and that while Israeli ground troops are inside southern Lebanon to attack Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force, “we are not planning large ground operations” in the neighboring country.

No injuries or impacts reported in latest Iranian missile attack on central Israel

The ballistic missile launched from Iran in the latest attack on central Israel was likely intercepted, according to initial military assessments.

There are no reports of direct impacts or injuries in the attack, the eighth since midnight, which sent millions in central Israel to shelters.

Missile fragments reportedly hit open areas.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters.

Lapid accuses government of advancing partisan agenda despite conflict with Iran

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid at a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, on March 9, 2026 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid accuses Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition of continuing to advance a partisan agenda during wartime while the opposition rallies behind the war effort and “puts politics aside.”

“I have been asked dozens of times in recent days, by television stations all over the world, why the head of the opposition is suddenly supporting the war,” and have repeatedly answered that “this is a war of the entire people of Israel. We are now putting politics aside,” Lapid tells reporters ahead of his party’s weekly faction meeting in the Knesset.

“So why are we here in the Knesset now? Because it turned out that we are the only ones putting politics aside. The government preaches to us that we need to unite in times of war, and then here, today, now, it promotes legislation whose purpose is to transfer more money to Channel 14,” he says.

Lawmakers this morning deliberated on a bill extending a temporary measure that added the pro-government Channel 14 to Idan Plus, the free-of-charge broadcast distribution platform.

“That is why they are all here today. Not for a sensible compensation plan for businesses, not for a sensible plan for the education system,” he continues. “They have no shame. They promised us, they told reporters, that they would only bring laws related to the war.”

Lapid further slams the coalition for voting on a measure transferring several powers of the interior minister, a position now vacant, to Netanyahu, as well as continuing “to promote the [Haredi draft] evasion law” and “transferring five billion shekels of coalition money, corrupt political money, through the government, hoping that the public won’t notice because they are in the shelters.”

Sirens expected in central Israel as new Iran ballistic missile attack detected

After a five-hour lull, the IDF says it has detected a new ballistic missile attack from Iran.

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

Sirens in north warn of suspected drone attack from Lebanon

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

The IDF says it has shot down dozens of Hezbollah drones launched from Lebanon in recent days.

Stock markets shudder worldwide after oil prices briefly spike to nearly $120 per barrel amid Iran conflict

An electronic board displaying market data at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, March 2, 2026 (Yehoshua Yosef/Flash90)

Stock markets shudder worldwide on worries about whether the global economy can withstand spiking prices for oil, which briefly got to nearly $120 per barrel, their highest level since four summers ago.

The S&P 500 fell 1.3%, coming off its worst week since October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 721 points, or 1.5%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 1.2% lower. That followed even worse losses in European and Asian stock markets.

Since the war with Iran began with attacks by the United States and Israel, the central worry for financial markets has been how high oil prices will go because of it and how long they will stay there.

Earlier today, the price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, briefly touched $119.50. It hasn’t been that expensive since the summer after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, another military conflict that likewise raised the risk for blockages in the global flow of oil.

If oil prices stay very high for very long, households’ budgets that are already stretched by high inflation could break under the pressure. Companies, meanwhile, would see their own bills jump for fuel and to stock items on their store shelves or in their data warehouses. It all raises the possibility of a worst-case scenario for the global economy “stagflation,” where growth stagnates and inflation remains high.

To be sure, oil prices pared their huge gains following talk that some of the world’s largest economies could coordinate a response to the spiking price of oil. A barrel of Brent crude pulled back to $101.76, though that’s still up 9.8% from Friday.

A barrel of benchmark US crude, meanwhile, jumped 9.6% to $99.59 after briefly spiking as high as $119.48.

After all casualties in cluster bomb attack were outside shelters, Home Front urges Israelis to follow guidelines

Home Front Command chief Maj. Gen. Shai Klapper (left) is seen alongside other officers at a home in central Israel hit by an Iranian cluster bomb munition, March 9, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

Speaking at the site of one of today’s Iranian cluster munition impacts in central Israel, the chief of the Home Front Command, Maj. Gen. Shai Klapper, calls on Israelis to follow emergency guidelines that “save lives.”

Cluster munitions reportedly hit six sites across central Israel, killing one and seriously injuring two others.

All of the casualties were outside bomb shelters, according to first responders.

“I want to express appreciation to the citizens of the State of Israel for the steadfastness and resilience you are demonstrating,” Klapper says from a home in central Israel that was hit by one of the submunitions from the Iranian ballistic missile.

“This apartment was hit by a cluster bomb. I know the scope of the launches is somewhat lower, and it may be that the amount of sirens are a bit higher, but this apartment illustrates that a cluster bomb also causes enormous damage,” he says.

Klapper says that nobody was hurt at the apartment because the family had followed the Home Front Command’s guidelines and took shelter.

“Therefore, from here I call on the citizens of Israel to continue to stand with resilience and courage, to follow the Home Front Command’s instructions — they save lives,” he adds.

Amir Shahar, whose home was hit, says the Home Front Command guidelines “truly save lives.”

“My son and my granddaughters ran to the neighborhood shelter. The apartment will be rebuilt, the home will recover, but no one was hurt, and I am full of appreciation for the response of the authorities,” he says.

NY police say explosives thrown at far-right protesters being probed as ‘ISIS-related terrorism’

A man holds a homemade explosive device before throwing it towards police during a protest organized by far-right influencer Jake Lang against alleged 'Islamification' in New York, in front of Gracie Mansion, March 7, 2026. (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)

New York City’s police commissioner says that authorities are investigating whether men who brought improvised explosive devices to a protest outside New York City’s mayoral residence were inspired by ISIS.

The devices, which did not explode, were hurled during raucous counterprotests Saturday near Gracie Mansion during a “Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City” event led by the far-right activist Jake Lang.

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch says the explosives could have caused serious injury or death.

Two people are in custody for their alleged roles in the confrontation but they have not been charged, Tisch says during a news conference. Police are working with federal prosecutors and the FBI, which has assigned agents with the bureau’s Joint Terrorism Task Force to the investigation.

“I can confirm this morning that this is being investigated as an act of ISIS-inspired terrorism,” Tisch says.

She says investigators have found no apparent link to Iran or the war.

“At this time, we do not have any information that connects this investigation to what’s going on overseas in Iran,” Tisch said.

Iran fired 17 missiles and 6 drones at Qatar today, all of them intercepted, says Doha

Iran fired 17 ballistic missiles and 6 drones at Qatar today, according to the Gulf emirate’s Defense Ministry.

Qatar intercepted all the missiles and drones, according to Doha.

2 UAE soldiers die in helicopter crash due to ‘technical malfunction’

Two Emirati soldiers have died in a helicopter crash, the UAE Defense Ministry announces, blaming a “technical malfunction” for the crash.

The crash comes amid increased military activity by the UAE, as Iran has fired hundreds of rockets and drones at the Gulf nation during the 10 days of the US-Israeli campaign against the Islamic Republic.

After Yesh Atid MKs support no-confidence motion, party says it opposes such votes in wartime

Opposition leader Yair Lapid leads a Yesh Atid party faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem on February 23, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid party comes out against no-confidence motions against the government during wartime, after coalition whip Ofir Katz slammed its MKs for voting in support of such a motion advanced by the Knesset’s Arab factions this afternoon.

In a statement, a spokesman for Yesh Atid tells The Times of Israel that the party is no longer bringing no-confidence motions and “the faction’s position is not to vote in favor of no-confidence motions” during the conflict with Iran.

The spokesman further clarifies when asked that two party MKs voted in favor of the motion “by accident.”

Speaking with The Times of Israel, Yesh Atid MK Moshe Tur-Paz says that the party’s approach was not to vote on such proposals.

A spokeswoman for Katz sent reporters a video of Hadash-Ta’al chairman Ayman Odeh criticizing the war with Iran during the debate over his motion, in which the Arab MK could be heard asking lawmakers “if the government didn’t succeed in Gaza, will it succeed in Iran? They’re always looking for an enemy.”

“And who voted in favor? Yesh Atid MKs, unbelievable,” Katz said in an accompanying statement.

After the outbreak of the latest fighting with Iran the heads of Israel’s political opposition rallied around Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and the military, with Lapid stating on February 28 that “we are all united on the operation.”

Mum on nuclear and proxy issues, Rubio says war aims are to destroy Iran’s missile program and navy

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to reporters before his scheduled House and Senate Intelligence Committees briefing about Iran on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accuses Iran of taking the world “hostage” through its retaliatory strikes and insists that the United States is on track with its war objectives.

“I think we are all seeing right now the threat this clerical regime poses to the region and to the world. They are trying to hold the world hostage,” Rubio says at an event at the State Department.

He also lays out the goals of the war against Iran, saying they are to “destroy the ability of this regime to launch missiles, both by destroying their missiles and their launchers; destroy the factories that make these missiles; and destroy their navy.”

He notably makes no mention of what US officials have previously said were two other goals — to prevent Iran from ever obtaining a nuclear weapon and to ensure that Tehran ceases support for proxies in the region.

The US has been criticized for not clearly laying out the aims of Operation Epic Fury to the American public, while offering varying rationalizations for the timing of the Iran strikes after the fact.

Police say undercover cops shot suspect who opened fire; his condition unknown

Undercover Border Police officers shot at a man who opened fire on them during an operation targeting alleged criminals in Lod, police say.

In a brief statement announcing the incident, police do not elaborate on the man’s condition.

Officers “carried out precise shooting at a suspect who opened fire towards them and endangered their lives,” police say of the operation said linked to protection racketeering.

Lufthansa group extends suspension of Tel Aviv flights through April 2

A Lufthansa plane takes off at the Ben Gurion International Airport, outside of Tel Aviv, August 14, 2025. (Yossi Aloni/Flash90)

The Lufthansa group of carriers says it is extending the suspension of flight operations to and from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport through April 2, due to the “current situation in the Middle East.”

The Lufthansa group – whose carriers also include SWISS, Austrian Airlines, and Brussels Airlines, and Eurowings – canceled flight services to and from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport as Israel closed its airspace following the joint US-Israel attack on Iran on February 28.

It also extends its cancellation of flights to the UAE through March 15.

Israel partially reopened the country’s airspace last week for Israeli carriers to operate limited repatriation flights.

Hezbollah pledges allegiance to Iran’s new supreme leader

Members of Hezbollah's parliamentary block in the Lebanese parliament attend a parliament session in Beirut on March 9, 2026. (FADEL itani / AFP)

Hezbollah welcomes the selection of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s new supreme leader, pledging allegiance after his predecessor and father Ali Khamenei was killed in US-Israeli attacks.

“We in Hezbollah extend our warmest congratulations and blessings on this occasion. We renew our pledge of loyalty to this blessed approach and our steadfastness on the path of allegiance,” the group says in a statement.

Hezbollah entered the Middle East war a week ago by attacking Israel in response to Ali Khamenei’s killing.

Attack on Cyprus is an attack on all of Europe, says Macron in Paphos

France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) embraces Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides (R) upon arrival at Paphos Military Base, Cyprus on March 9, 2026. (Gonzalo Fuentes / POOL / AFP)

French President Emmanuel Macron says that an attack on Cyprus is an attack on all of Europe as he speaks during a visit to the island nation after it was targeted by Iranian-made drones.

“When Cyprus is attacked, it is Europe that is attacked,” Macron says in Paphos alongside the leaders of Cyprus and Greece.

“The defense of Cyprus is obviously a key issue for your country, for your neighbor, partner and friend, Greece, but also for France and, with it, the European Union,” he adds.

IDF names 2nd soldier killed yesterday in southern Lebanon: Staff Sgt. Or Demry

Staff Sgt. Or Demry (IDF)

Staff Sgt. Or Demry, 20, is named by the IDF as the second soldier killed in yesterday’s Hezbollah attack on troops in southern Lebanon.

Demry, from Liman, served as a heavy machinery operator in the 91st “Galilee” Regional Division’s combat engineering unit.

He was killed when a projectile, possibly an anti-tank missile or a mortar, struck a D9 bulldozer near an army post. The bulldozer had been working to extract a stuck tank, according to an IDF probe.

The attack also killed Sgt. First Class Maher Khatar, 38, and lightly wounded another officer.

Sirens sound in Kiryat Shmona amid rocket attack from Lebanon

Sirens sound in Kiryat Shmona and other northern border communities amid a rocket attack from Lebanon.

Hezbollah has fired dozens of rockets at northern Israel today in several barrages, with no reports of injuries.

Zelensky says 11 countries have asked Ukraine for drone help against Iran

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during the 62nd Munich Security Conference on February 14, 2026, in Munich, Germany. (Alexandra Beier / AFP)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says that 11 countries had tapped Kyiv for help in how to counter Iranian drones being launched by Tehran across the Middle East as retaliation for US-Israeli strikes.

“As of now, there are 11 requests from countries neighboring Iran, European states and the US. There is clear interest in Ukraine’s experience in protecting lives, relevant interceptors, electronic warfare systems and training,” Zelensky says.

Ukraine touts itself as having world-class drone defense capabilities, built up through fending off nightly barrages of Iran-style attack drones launched by Russia.

Abu Dhabi says dozens of Iranian missiles and drones fired toward UAE

The United Arab Emirates’ defense ministry says that it detected 15 ballistic missiles and 18 UAVs from Iran today.

Twelve of the missiles were destroyed, while three fell into the sea, and 17 of the UAVs were intercepted, while one fell within the country’s territory, the ministry writes on X, reporting no new casualties.

Since Iran began its retaliatory strikes across the Gulf amid the ongoing US-Israeli bombing campaign against the Islamic Republic, the ministry says “a total of 253 ballistic missiles have been detected. Of these, 233 were destroyed, 18 fell into the sea, and 2 landed within the country. A total of 1,440 Iranian UAVs have also been detected, of which 1,359 were intercepted, while 81 fell within the country’s territory. 8 cruise missiles were also detected and destroyed.”

These attacks killed four people in the UAE, of Pakistani, Nepali and Bangladeshi nationalities, and minorly injured 117 people, the ministry continues. Yesterday, the UAE reported 112 injuries.

Shares on Tel Aviv Stock Exchange drop sharply as Iran war drags on

An electronic board displaying market data at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in Tel Aviv, March 2, 2026. (Yehoshua Yosef/Flash90)

Shares on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange drop sharply as crude oil prices soar and global financial markets plunge as investors brace for shipping and production disruptions amid Iran attacks.

The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange’s benchmark TA-125 index falls 3.4 percent. The TA-35 index of blue-chip companies is down 3.2%. The TA-90 index, which tracks the shares with the highest capitalization not included in the TA-35 index, falls 3.6%. The TA-Construction index dives 4.2% and TA-Insurance index dips 6%.

“Although Israel’s economy is energy independent and therefore less exposed to the spike in oil and gas prices, a slowdown in global economic growth could impact local growth,” says Hadar Romano, head of research at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.

The declines come after Tel Aviv shares gained last week as investors were pricing in a short and effective war with Iran. The TA-35 climbed 5.53%, TA-90 by 8.68% and TA-125 by 6.25%.

“These sharp gains in the local stock exchange occurred while investors in Europe watched the outbreak of the Middle Eastern war with concern, given its impact on energy prices,” says Romano.

Knesset committees extend law barring residency for Palestinians who marry Israelis

In a joint session, the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense and Interior committees jointly approve the one-year extension of a longstanding law that largely bars Palestinians who marry Israelis from receiving residency in Israel.

The so-called Citizenship Law was first passed in 2003, at the height of the Second Intifada, as a temporary security order meant to prevent terror attacks. It had been renewed on an annual basis until July 2021, when Israel’s previous coalition — a fragile alliance that included a left-wing and an Arab party — failed to marshal the votes to pass it. But it won approval in March 2022 and has since been extended on an annual basis.

The legislation has been wildly controversial since its inception, as rights groups charge it discriminates against Palestinians and Arab Israelis. The Supreme Court upheld the law in a 6-5 decision in 2012 after a protracted legal battle.

Lawmakers on the joint committee vote 2-1 to extend the legislation until March 14, 2027. The extension will go to the Knesset plenum for final legislative approval this afternoon.

IDF says dozens of Hezbollah drones intercepted, rocket launchers hit in south Lebanon in recent days

Israeli troops moving into position in the upper Galilee in northern Israel near the Lebanon border on March 9, 2026. (Jalaa MAREY / AFP)

The IDF says it has intercepted dozens of Hezbollah drones and struck dozens of the terror group’s rocket and missile launchers in southern Lebanon in recent days.

It publishes footage showing the interceptions of Hezbollah drones by a fighter jet, a helicopter and a ground-based air defense system.

The military says the rocket and missile launchers that were struck were located south of the Litani River, and had been used to fire dozens of projectiles at Israel.

The IDF has said that Hezbollah is launching most of its attacks from deeper within southern Lebanon, and not from close to the border.

חיל האוויר ממשיך בהתקפה ובהגנה מול ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה: יירוט עשרות כלי טיס בלתי מאויישים ותקיפת עשרות משגרי רקטות

בתגובה לירי הרקטות של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה לעבר שטח מדינת ישראל, חיל האוויר השלים ביממות האחרונות גלי תקיפות נוספים בלבנון.

במהלך התקיפות הושמדו עשרות משגרי רקטות… pic.twitter.com/5TENu0ckOL

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 9, 2026

NATO intercepts second Iranian missile in Turkish airspace, says Ankara

Turkey’s defense ministry says a ballistic missile fired from Iran was intercepted in Turkish airspace by NATO defense systems, in the second such incident in five days.

“A ballistic munition launched from Iran and entering Turkish airspace was neutralized by NATO air and missile defense assets in the eastern Mediterranean,” it says in a statement.

Some fragments from the weaponry fell in open territory in the southern Gaziantep area, causing no injuries, the ministry adds.

UN special coordinator for Lebanon visits Israel amid ‘escalating hostilities’

Defense Minister Israel Katz meets with Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, UN special envoy for Lebanon, in Tel Aviv, November 26, 2024. (Defense Ministry spokesperson)

The United Nations special coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert begins an official visit to Israel today “amidst escalating hostilities,” her office says in a statement.

Hennis-Plasschaert is set to meet with senior Israeli officials to address the “urgent need for a recommitment to the full implementation” of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which requires that the Lebanese Armed Forces be the only force with arms in southern Lebanon, the statement continues.

Hezbollah and Israel have been intensifying fighting since the Lebanese terror group began attacking Israel last week in response to the ongoing US-Israeli bombing campaign against Iran.

Macron arrives in Cyprus to discuss security amid Mideast war

France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) embraces Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides (R) upon arrival at Paphos Military Base, Cyprus on March 9, 2026. (Gonzalo Fuentes / POOL / AFP)

French President Emmanuel Macron arrives in Cyprus to discuss regional security, while Paris deploys warships to the Mediterranean as the US-Israeli war against Iran stretches into a second week.

Macron, who landed in Paphos earlier today, meets Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis for talks.

European Union member Cyprus was targeted last week by Iranian-made drones, leading Macron to order France’s Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier to the Mediterranean, as well as a frigate and air defense units to the island nation.

Macron was scheduled to visit the Charles de Gaulle this afternoon. France’s flagship is currently stationed off the coast of Crete, according to the Elysee.

Macron also spoke this morning to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the situation in the Middle East and Lebanon, the Elysee says.

He had already spoken with Netanyahu last week for the first time since the summer of 2025.

Knesset Economics Committee advances Smotrich’s banking reform

The Knesset Economic Affairs Committee, led by chairman Likud MK David Bitan, discusses repercussions of proposed sale of Zim Shipping Services to German giant Hapag-Lloyd, on February 22, 2026. (Knesset Spokesperson's Office)

The Knesset Economics Committee decides to advance part of the 2026 Arrangements Law, a critical piece of legislation whose passage is needed in order to adopt the 2026 state budget.

Members of the committee vote 3-0, with one abstention, to approve advancing chapter 7 of the bill, which deals with promoting competition in the bank guarantee market, to the final two readings in the Knesset plenum needed for it to pass into law. The Arrangements Law, a key part of the annual budgetary legislative package, determines how funds will be disbursed and must be passed along with the budget to avoid triggering early elections. Lawmakers voted last month to split it into two separate bills for consideration by the Knesset, which subsequently divided the legislation among multiple committees.

If passed into law, the part of the bill approved today would allow additional entities to provide a bank guarantee, thereby increasing competition.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has made banking reform one of the centerpieces of his 2026 budget proposal, stating in a press conference last December that he would lower the cost of living and take on big banks and monopolies. He warned at the time that unless his proposed reforms are included, “there will be no state budget.”

The committee also votes to advance an amendment to the Natural Gas Sector Law streamlining the process of appointing officials to the Infrastructure Coordination Committee.

Thousands gather in Tehran to pledge allegiance to new supreme leader

A woman poses with a picture of Iran's new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei (R), next to his late father Ali Khamenei, during a rally in support of him at Enghelab Square in central Tehran on March 9, 2026. (Atta KENARE / AFP)

Thousands of people flock to a central square in the Iranian capital to pledge allegiance to the Islamic Republic’s new leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, AFP journalists report.

The crowds that gather in Tehran’s Enghelab square include many carrying the Iranian flags and portraits of Mojtaba Khamenei, son of late supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in US and Israeli strikes on February 28.

US urges citizens to leave southeast Turkey, orders non-essential staff out of Adana consulate

Washington has advised non-essential staff to leave its consulate near the southern Turkish city of Adana near a key NATO base and ordered US citizens to leave “southeast Turkey,” the US embassy to Ankara says.

“On March 9, 2026, the Department of State ordered non-emergency US government employees and US government employee family members to leave Consulate General Adana due to the safety risks,” it says on X, referencing a travel advisory saying: “Americans in southeast Turkey are strongly encouraged to depart now.”

IDF launches ‘extensive’ airstrikes in three areas of Iran, says military

The Israeli Air Force has launched a new wave of “extensive” airstrikes in Tehran, Isfahan, and in southern Iran, the IDF announces.

The IDF says the strikes are targeting “infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime.”

This is the first time that the IDF has said it is striking in southern Iran, where until now only the American military has conducted operations.

Footage shows Iranian cluster bomb impacts in central Israel

Israeli rescue and emergency forces at the scene where shrapnel from a ballistic missile fired from Iran fell in Holon, March 9, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Footage shows two of the Iranian cluster bomb munitions’ impacts in central Israel during the ballistic missile attack this morning.

A total of six cluster munition impact sites were reported across central Israel, killing one and seriously injuring two others.

Warning: Graphic video

Footage shows two of the Iranian cluster bomb munitions' impacts in central Israel during the ballistic missile attack this morning.

A total of six cluster munition impact sites were reported across central Israel, killing one and seriously injuring two others. pic.twitter.com/8QEXYcuQXT

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 9, 2026

3, including girl, reported killed by IDF airstrike in central Gaza overnight

An internally displaced Palestinian woman reacts at a camp following an overnight Israeli strike in Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip on March 9, 2026. (Eyad Baba / AFP)

Palestinian media outlets report two women and a girl were killed and 10 people wounded overnight in an Israeli airstrike on a displaced people’s camp in central Gaza’s Al-Zawaida, on the Hamas-controlled side of the Gaza ceasefire line.

The IDF has not commented on the strike but regularly attributes such attacks to alleged ceasefire violations by Hamas.

The dead are identified by Palestinian media as Salsabeel Farraj, 12; Nour al-Shalalfeh, 30; and Amal Shemali, 46. Shemali was a correspondent for Radio Qatar, according to the reports. The three were taken to Al-Awda Hospital in central Gaza’s Nuseirat.

🔴في خرقٍ جديد لاتفاق وقف اطلاق النار .. 3 شـ.هد!ء بينهم الصحفية آمال شمالي، وطفلة تبلغ من العمر (12 عاما)، بغارة اسرائيلية على خيمة للنازحين غرب بلدة الزوايدة وسط قطاع غزة pic.twitter.com/hM6a7mvjDL

— وطن. يغرد خارج السرب (@watanserb_news) March 9, 2026

Separately, Julia al-Qudra, who is identified in Palestinian media as a young girl but whose age is not specified, reportedly died overnight at Khan Younis’s Nasser Hospital after being seriously wounded Saturday in an IDF strike that also killed her father in the southern Gaza city.

The IDF said after the strike Saturday that it targeted a Hamas operative in the southern Gaza Strip who was planning an imminent sniper attack against troops.

#متابعة | استشهاد الطفلة جوليا أحمد محمد القدرة ابنة الشهيد أحمد القدرة متأثرة بإصابتها جراء قصف الاحتلال وسط خانيونس يوم أمس pic.twitter.com/12KP3U1oX6

— شبكة فلسطين للحوار (@paldf) March 8, 2026

According to Palestinian media outlets, three men were killed and several people wounded yesterday in an IDF strike in Gaza City, in the Strip’s north.

The bodies of the dead were reportedly brought to Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital. The IDF said it targeted two Hamas operatives who were planning an imminent sniper attack against troops in the northern Gaza Strip.

Lebanese PM: Israel will not achieve goals through strikes, Beirut ready to resume talks

This handout photograph released by the Lebanese Presidency Press Office shows Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun giving a joint press conference with Germany's president (not pictured) at the Presidential Palace in Baabda, east of Beirut, on February 16, 2026. (Lebanese Presidency Press Office/AFP)

Israel will not achieve its goals in Lebanon through military strikes, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun tells three Scandinavian ambassadors, according to the Lebanese readout.

After Hezbollah renewed its rocket and drone fire at northern Israel last week, Israel has been striking the Iran-backed group across Lebanon, killing more than 200 of its fighters.

Aoun stresses Lebanon’s “full readiness” to resume negotiations with Israel to discuss “the essential security points necessary to halt the dangerous Israeli escalation.”

Aoun also issues a thinly-veiled warning to Hezbollah and its allies, saying the army will continue confiscating arms when conditions permit.

Any attempts to target the Lebanese Army “aligns, directly or indirectly, with the goals of those working to drag Lebanon into the ongoing regional war,” says Aoun, “bypassing the will of the majority of Lebanese who are weary of wars and their repercussions and insist on the state’s exclusive right to decide on war and peace.”

IDF says Hezbollah gunmen operating in ‘Christian village’ in south Lebanon targeted in strike

Troops of the 300th 'Baram' Regional Brigade operate in southern Lebanon, in a handout photo issued by the military on March 9, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

The military publishes a drone video showing the identification of armed Hezbollah gunmen operating in a “Christian village” in southern Lebanon.

According to the IDF, after the operatives were identified by troops of the 300th “Baram” Regional Brigade entering a building, an Israeli Air Force fighter jet struck the site and killed them.

The military does not name the village. It says Hezbollah’s activity in the area “constitutes another example of the cynical exploitation of civilian infrastructure for terrorist purposes” by the terror group.

#عاجل وخطير 🔴 تصفية خلية إرهابية من حزب الله في قرية مسيحية بجنوب لبنان

🔸تعمل قوات اللواء 300 بقيادة الفرقة 146 في منطقة جنوب لبنان في إطار عملية الدفاع الأمامي.

🔸وخلال النشاط رصدت القوات خلية تابعة لحزب الله الإرهابي تدخل إلى موقع داخل قرية مسيحية تقع في جنوب لبنان حيث قامت… pic.twitter.com/hlmnqeojqy

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) March 9, 2026

Likud Minister May Golan flies to the US despite limited wartime travel options

Social Equality Minister May Golan at a court hearing at the Rishon Lezion Magistrate's Court on September 15, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Social Equality Minister May Golan has flown to the United States in the middle of the war with Iran to address an International Women’s Day event organized by the United Nations.

Haaretz journalist Uri Misgav shared an image of Golan on an El Al flight to New York this morning, noting that the minister is traveling in business class during a period when many Israelis and foreign visitors are finding it difficult to leave the country due to sharply reduced airport activity brought about by ongoing Iranian ballistic missile strikes.

The country’s airspace shut on Saturday, February 28, when Israel and the US launched a major joint military strike on Iran and the Islamic Republic responded with barrages of missile fire. In the wake of the attack, US Ambassador Mike Huckabee advised US citizens in Israel wishing to leave the country to do so via Egypt, noting the “limited options” for egress.

Several hundred passengers were able to leave Israel yesterday after Ben Gurion Airport was partially reopened for outbound flights for the first time since the beginning of the war. Despite this, air travel options remain severely limited, with only two narrow-body aircraft permitted to leave per hour, each only carrying no more than 70 to 100 passengers.

Posting on X, opposition MK Vladimir Beliak (Yesh Atid) slams Golan for flying “with her entire entourage, during wartime, to the US, to speak at the UN” while her budget is being slashed and many of those for whom her ministry is responsible “feel abandoned.”

Golan is currently under police investigation on suspicion of accepting bribes under aggravated circumstances and receiving improper benefits.

Belgian PM condemns synagogue attack; lawmaker faults ‘climate of impunity’ for antisemitism

Belgian police conduct their investigation outside the synagogue on Leon Fredericq street, after it was hit overnight by a blast in Liege on March 9, 2026. (JOHN THYS / AFP)

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever issues a statement condemning an attack on a synagogue in his country early this morning, drawing ire from lawmakers who charged that the government should do more to counter antisemitism.

An explosion was reported at the synagogue early this morning in Liege, eastern Belgium, blowing out its windows and those of the building across the road at around 4 a.m.

No injuries were reported, with “only material damage,” a spokesman for the police in the city said in a statement.

“Antisemitism is an attack on our values and our society, and we must fight it unequivocally,” De Wever writes in a statement on X. “We stand in solidarity with the Jewish community in Liège and across the country.”

MP Michael Freilich, Belgium’s only Orthodox Jewish lawmaker, responds that government inaction on antisemitism created an environment that made such incidents possible.

“When antisemitism isn’t a priority for the public prosecutor’s office — with dozens of dismissed cases — it creates a climate of impunity,” Freilich writes on social media. “Physical attacks are, unfortunately, the predictable result. The once-promised zero tolerance for antisemitism is now colliding with an oversaturated justice system. My appeal to the government: finally address this.”

Lebanon postpones parliamentary elections by two years

Lebanese lawmakers attend a parliamentary session to elect a president, in Beirut, on January 9, 2025. (ANWAR AMRO / AFP)

Lebanon’s parliament postpones legislative elections, initially due to be held in May, by two years, according to a statement from the parliament speaker, because of the renewed war between Israel and the Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah.

MPs convened today, including Mohammed Raad, head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, as Israeli warplanes flew above the nearby southern suburbs of Beirut.

Iran blames Europe for helping ‘create conditions’ for war with Israel, US

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei during the weekly press conference held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the capital Tehran, on February 10, 2026. (ATTA KENARE / AFP)

Iran accuses European countries including France of creating the conditions that led to the United States and Israel attacking the Islamic Republic and triggering a war.

“European countries have unfortunately helped create these conditions,” says foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei during a weekly press briefing.

“Instead of insisting on the rule of law, instead of standing up to the bullying and excesses of the United States, they spoke and agreed with them at the UN Security Council regarding the discussion on restoring sanctions, and all these things together emboldened the American and Zionist parties to continue committing their crimes.”

Sirens sound in Haifa area after rocket fire from Lebanon

Anti-missile batteries fire interception missiles toward incoming ballistic missiles launched from Lebanon, as seen over northern Israel, March 9, 2026. (Michael Giladi/Flash90)

Sirens sound in the Haifa area following rocket fire from Lebanon.

It marks the second time Hezbollah has fired toward Haifa today.

No injuries or damage were reported in the earlier attack.

Putin congratulates new supreme leader, offers solidarity to ‘our Iranian friends’

In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin chairs a Security Council meeting via videolink in Moscow on December 26, 2025. (Mikhail METZEL / POOL / AFP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulates Mojtaba Khamenei on his appointment as Iran’s new leader, the Kremlin says.

Putin says he is confident Khamenei will continue his father’s work “with honor” and unite the Iranian people “in the face of severe trials.”

He adds that Russia will continue to stand by Tehran, saying he wished to “confirm unwavering support for Tehran and solidarity with our Iranian friends.”

Iran says ‘no point to talks’ amid fighting, denies striking Turkey, Cyprus, Azerbaijan

A banner depicting Iran's slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei hangs from a shade erected above the graves of recently-buried people killed in US-Israeli airstrikes at Beheshta Zahra cemetery on the southern outskirts of Tehran on March 9, 2026. (Atta Kenare / AFP)

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson downplays the likelihood of a ceasefire as long as attacks continue, Iran’s Student News Network reports, adding that Iran will continue to defend itself.

“There is no point to talks about anything but defense and crushing retaliations against enemies,” Esmaeil Baghaei says, before reiterating that Tehran has no war to fight with its Muslim neighbors but must target “facilities used by aggressors” for its legitimate defense.

The foreign ministry spokesperson also denied any Iranian attack against Turkey, Azerbaijan and Cyprus, pointing instead at what he calls “false flag attacks.”

At least 6 impact sites reported in central Israel after Iranian cluster bomb attack

First responders at the scene of a deadly missile impact at a construction site in Yehud on March 9, 2026. (Magen David Adom)

At least six impact sites of Iranian cluster munitions are reported in central Israel following the latest ballistic missile attack, police officials say.

The impacts are reported in Yehud, Holon and Bat Yam.

One man was killed, and another was critically wounded at a construction site in Yehud, and a third man was seriously wounded at another location in central Israel, according to medical officials.

One confirmed dead in central Israel after Iranian missile impact

First responders at the scene of a missile impact in central Israel on March 9, 2026. (Fire and Rescue Service)

One of those critically wounded in a suspected cluster munition impact in central has died, first responders say.

The Magen David Adom ambulance service says three people were injured at two locations in the Iranian ballistic missile attack.

At a construction site, two men in their 40s were critically hurt by shrapnel, with one succumbing to their wounds, MDA says. The second man was taken to a hospital.

At another location in central Israel, a man in his 30s was seriously wounded, according to MDA.

Today’s fatality marks the 11th victim of Iranian missile attacks on Israel since the start of the war on February 28.

Israeli Paralympian skis out of super-G race, will still compete in combined, giant slalom

Israel's Shaina Vaspi competes in the women's downhill at the FIS Para Alpine Skiing World Cup 2025-26 in Tignes, France, February 5, 2026. (Courtesy FIS)

Israeli Paralympian Sheina Vaspi skis out of the women’s standing super-G ski race at the 2026 Milano Cortina Games, failing to complete the run.

Vaspi missed a gate in the event and finishes the race without crossing the finish line.

Gold in the event goes to Russia’s Varvara Voronchikhina, the first Winter Paralympic gold for the country since 2014, after the International Paralympic Committee allowed six Russian athletes to represent their country, accompanied by their national flags, rather than competing as neutral athletes.

Vaspi skipped the women’s downhill event on Saturday since she does not compete on the Sabbath. She is slated to ski tomorrow in the alpine combined and on Thursday in the giant slalom.

Medics now say 3 seriously wounded in latest Iranian ballistic missile attack

A third person is seriously injured in Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack on central Israel, medics say.

Magen David Adom says it is taking the 30-year-old man to a hospital, after he was severely hurt by shrapnel.

The man was wounded at a separate location from two other men who were critically hurt by another impact, according to MDA.

Several apparent cluster bomb munitions struck central Israel during the attack, according to first responders.

2 seriously wounded in central Israel after likely Iranian cluster bomb impact

Medics respond to a missile impact site in central Israel on March 9, 2026. (United Hatzalah)

Two people are seriously wounded in central Israel by a suspected cluster bomb impact following Iran’s latest ballistic missile fire, medics say.

The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it is treating two men who are unconscious and in serious condition.

Several apparent cluster bomb munitions struck central Israel during the attack, according to first responders.

Medics responding to reports of impacts in central Israel after Iranian missile fire

Medics say they are responding to reports of impacts in central Israel following Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack.

It is not immediately clear if the impacts are the result of cluster munitions or missile fragments following interceptions.

Sirens had sounded across central Israel in the seventh Iranian missile attack since midnight.

Despite missile fire, Israel preparing to reopen schools in some areas this week

Families prepare to spend the night in a public shelter in central Jerusalem during the war with Iran and ongoing missile fire toward Israel, March 1, 2026. (Rachel Alroey/Flash90)

Against the backdrop of the war with Iran, Education Minister Yoav Kisch presents a plan to allow the gradual reopening of schools as early as this week, according to a statement from his spokesperson.

Kisch tells representatives of local authorities in a virtual meeting that the Education Ministry will allow schools to reopen based on their specific situations and needs. The minister clarifies that tomorrow, schools will remain closed or teach only remotely, but the new system might start operating later this week.

Under the new framework, the education system will be able to operate in areas classified as “yellow” (that is, at a lower level of risk) by the Home Front Command, provided that schools have access to shelters. Municipalities that are not classified as such will be able to request special permission from the Home Front Command to reopen.

At the moment, the entire country is classified as “orange,” with the Home Front Command set to reassess the current guidelines this evening.

“Each authority has different challenges and characteristics, and therefore requires tailored responses in the field of education,” Kisch says.

“The security and safety of students and education staff are our top priority,” he notes. “We will continue to maintain close coordination with the Home Front Command and with local authorities and will update the public on any developments.”

Under the plan, local authorities will be required to set up educational frameworks for the children of teachers and school staff if necessary. In addition, regarding special education schools, in the first phase, parents will need to bring their children to school, rather than rely on the transportation usually provided.

IDF says troops pushed further into Lebanon overnight to establish ‘forward defense’

Smoke plumes rise from the site of an Israeli airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs on March 9, 2026. (Fadel Itani / AFP)

Overnight, the Israeli military says, it pushed deeper into southern Lebanon as part of its “enhanced forward defense posture” after Hezbollah began attacking Israel a week ago.

Troops of the 7th Armored Brigade, under the 36th Division, raided the Rab al-Thalathine area, west of the Israeli border community of Misgav Am, with the aim of locating and clearing the Lebanese village of Hezbollah infrastructure and operatives, the army says.

Before the ground troops pushed into the area, the IDF says it carried out numerous air and artillery strikes.

“This operation is part of the effort to establish a forward defense that will create an additional security layer for the residents of the north,” the IDF says.

In the past week, the military says it has hit more than 700 targets in Lebanon, including 120 in the past day. More than 30 multi-story buildings in Beirut, used by Hezbollah, have been destroyed in the strikes, it says.

The IDF says it estimates that more than 300 members of Hezbollah and other terror groups have been killed in the strikes.

Iranian ballistic missile attack on central Israel detected by IDF

The IDF says it has detected a new ballistic missile attack from Iran.

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

Qatar arrests 300 people for sharing ‘misleading information’ about Iran war

Motorists drive past a plume of smoke rising from a reported Iranian strike in the industrial district of Doha on March 1, 2026. (Mahmud HAMS / AFP)

Qatari authorities have arrested more than 300 people for sharing images and “misleading information” during days of attacks by Iran, the interior ministry says.

The people arrested “filmed and circulated video clips and published misleading information and rumors that could stir public opinion,” a statement says.

Israel’s baseball team beats Nicaragua 5-0, evens World Baseball Classic record at 1-1

Israel's Cole Carrigg (8), Spencer Horwitz (13) and Harrison Bader, second from right, high-five after defeating Nicaragua in a World Baseball Classic game, March 8, 2026, in Miami. (AP/Lynne Sladky)

Team Israel beat Nicaragua 5-0 in its second game of the World Baseball Classic last night in Miami, ensuring that it won’t need to requalify for the next WBC tournament in four years and keeping hopes alive of advancing to the next round.

The team, comprising primarily Jewish American baseball players, improved to 1-1 in the four-game first round of its pool. It plays the Dominican Republic today and the Netherlands tomorrow, both expected to be difficult games.

Israel had a strong start from right-hander Dean Kremer, who retired 12 of the first 13 batters and helped keep Nicaragua scoreless early. The bullpen preserved the shutout, the first in Israel’s World Baseball Classic history.

Israel broke the game open with a four-run fifth inning, highlighted by a two-run single from Zach Levenson. Second baseman Noah Mendlinger led the offense with three hits and an RBI, while shortstop Cole Carrigg added two hits and two stolen bases.

No injuries reported after concurrent missile fire from Iran, Lebanon

There are no reports of direct impacts or injuries in the latest concurrent Iranian ballistic missile attack and Hezbollah rocket fire on northern Israel, medics say.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters.

600 Israelis arrive home on two flydubai flights that land in Tel Aviv

An airplane of budget airline Flydubai lands at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv on November 26, 2020, on the first scheduled commercial service between the two cities, following the normalization of ties between the UAE and Israel. (JACK GUEZ / AFP)

The first two direct flights to repatriate Israelis stranded in Dubai landed today at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport.

The two flights operated by Dubai-based flydubai flew home a total of 603 passengers, the Israel Airports Authority tells The Times of Israel.

The repatriation flights are part of a plan led by the Transportation Ministry to fly home thousands of Israelis stranded in the United Arab Emirates after efforts were paused over the weekend following the closure of airports in the Gulf country due to Iranian missile and drone attacks.

The operation comes against the backdrop of the war in Iran, which has seen Tehran fire missiles and drones at Israel, the UAE and other countries in the region.

IDF says it begins wave of airstrikes on south Beirut

A smoke cloud erupts from the site of an Israeli airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs on March 9, 2026. (Ibrahim Amro / AFP)

The IDF says it has begun a wave of airstrikes against Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

The military warned earlier that it would strike branches of the Al-Qard al-Hasan association, known to be used by Hezbollah as a quasi-bank.

بالفيديو: لحظة الغارة على الصفير – الضاحية الجنوبية

https://t.co/hnqE6kHdDv

للاشتراك في خدمة الخبر العاجل يمكنك الضغط على الرابط التالي:https://t.co/UCoWep9AlG pic.twitter.com/pKdtwdHM8t

— JNews Lebanon (@JNewsLebanon5) March 9, 2026

Sirens sound in north amid concurrent Iran and Hezbollah attacks

Sirens sound across northern Israel amid an Iranian ballistic missile attack.

A short while before, sirens also sounded near Haifa due to rocket fire from Lebanon.

The IDF has said it has no intelligence indicating that concurrent fire from Iran and by Hezbollah in Lebanon is a “coordinated” effort.

Another ballistic missile attack from Iran set to target northern Israel

Shortly after telling civilians they can leave bomb shelters, the IDF says it has detected another ballistic missile attack from Iran.

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

No reports of impacts or injuries in latest Iranian missile attack on Israel

Israelis take cover at a public shelter in Mazkeret Batya as a siren sounds warning of incoming ballistic missiles fired from Iran toward Israel, March 8, 2026. (Yossi Aloni/Flash90)

There are no reports of direct impacts or injuries in the latest Iranian ballistic missile attack on Israel, medics say.

A small number of missiles were launched in the attack, the fifth since midnight, setting off sirens across northern and southern Israel.

After warning, IDF strikes southern suburbs of Beirut

Smoke plumes rise from the site of an Israeli airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs on March 9, 2026. (Fadel Itani / AFP)

An air strike hits Beirut’s southern suburbs, Lebanese state media reports, after Israel warned it would target branches of a firm linked to Hezbollah.

Footage on AFPTV’s live broadcast shows large plumes of smoke rising from the area, a stronghold of the Iran-backed terror group.

Earlier today, the IDF warned it would strike branches of Al-Qard al-Hassan, a Hezbollah-linked financial firm mainly operating in the group’s strongholds.

Ben Gvir significantly expands Jerusalemites’ ability to obtain gun licenses

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir attends an event to deliver weapons to local volunteer security group members in Ashkelon, October 27, 2023. (AP/Tsafrir Abayov)

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has cleared an additional 41 Jerusalem neighborhoods for personal firearms licenses, meaning more than 300,000 Jewish residents will be eligible to obtain a gun.

The far-right minister touts the move to expand civilian access to firearms in a charged statement, saying it takes on significance not only amid the ongoing war with Iran, but due to the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

“Precisely in the shadow of the war and during Ramadan, Jerusalem residents have a basic right to defend themselves and their families,” he says, calling on those living in the newly-approved neighborhoods to go and obtain a gun license.

“Firearms in the hands of responsible citizens constitute an important component in strengthening personal security and enabling an initial response to terror and crime,” Ben Gvir says.

The 41 neighborhoods, all Jewish, join Har Nof, Givat Shaul, Neve Yaakov and Gilo — Jewish neighborhoods on outskirts of the capital — as areas in which residents are eligible to obtain a firearms license.

Though armed civilians have in the past thwarted terror attacks in Jerusalem by shooting and killing the perpetrators, the city has also seen innocent people slain by such civilians in the heat of the moment.

Additionally, advocacy groups against domestic violence groups have continuously warned that the ease with which one can obtain a license places women with violent partners at even greater risk, as 2025 saw a sharp uptick in femicides.

The most common weapon used in the 32 femicides committed last year was a firearm, though only three women were murdered with a licensed gun.

IDF says it detects Iranian ballistic missile attack aimed at northern and southern Israel

The IDF says it has detected a new ballistic missile attack from Iran.

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

Israir flight bringing Israelis home from Dubai lands in Aqaba, Jordan

Israelis stranded in Dubai board a plane chartered by Israir to Aqaba airport in Jordan, March 6, 2026. (Courtesy Israir)

Israeli carrier Israir says it operated a third flight overnight to repatriate its customers stranded in Dubai since the start of the war with Iran.

The flight carrying 170 passengers took off from Dubai last night and landed at Aqaba airport in Jordan. Upon landing in Aqaba, Israir provided passengers with food and drink, and transportation to the border crossing in Jordan, where they offered assistance, including help with visa requirements and extended opening hours at the border crossing.

After crossing to the Israeli side, passengers were transferred to shuttle buses provided by the Israel Airports Authority and Transportation Ministry, taking them to several central points across the country.

Israir will be operating another flight on the route today with 150 passengers.

Over the weekend, Israir operated two special flights with 310 Israeli customers that took off from Sharjah International Airport, located about 50 minutes from Dubai, and landed at the Aqaba airport. From there, passengers were transferred to the land border crossing in Jordan and crossed to the Israeli side to travel back home.

China says it opposes any targeting of Iran’s new supreme leader

China says it opposes any targeting of Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, after threats by the Israeli military against the successor to his slain father, Ali Khamenei.

“China opposes interference in other countries’ internal affairs under any pretext, and Iran’s sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity should be respected,” foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun tells a press conference.

He says that the move to name a new leader “is a decision by the Iranian side based on its constitution.”

Synagogue in Belgium damaged in blast, no injuries, say police

A synagogue was damaged in a blast overnight in Liege, eastern Belgium, police say, adding they are investigating the cause of the explosion.

No injuries are reported, with “only material damage,” a spokesman for the police in the city of Liege says in a statement.

The blast took place around 4 a.m. in front of the synagogue, blowing out the windows of the buildings across the road, the spokesman adds.

A security perimeter was erected, and the federal police are expected at the scene, according to the French-speaking RTBF public broadcaster.

Built in 1899, the synagogue also serves as a museum for the history of Liege’s Jewish community, according to the its website.

Iran threatens to seize assets of ‘enemies’ abroad

Iran’s judiciary reiterates that it can order the assets of “enemies” abroad seized in the country.

It made the announcement today on the judiciary’s Mizan news agency.

Reporters for Farsi-language media abroad have seen their assets seized over the years.

The report also says that “any intelligence or espionage activity conducted” abroad for the Israeli or US governments “could lead to the confiscation of all assets and even the death penalty.”

Iran fires barrage of drones toward Saudi Arabia

A barrage of drones was fired toward Saudi Arabia early this morning, hours after an attack killed two Bangladeshi nationals in the kingdom.

The Saudi Defense Ministry says it intercepted drones in the northern Jawf region, as well as the vast Shaybah oil field.

Late last night, an attack in the central city of Kharj killed the two Bangladeshi nationals and wounded 12 others. All but one was from from Bangladesh.

Iran state TV confirms new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei was wounded

This handout picture taken in Tehran on October 30, 2024, shows Mojtaba Khamenei, son of Iran's slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. (Office of Supreme Leader / AFP)

As Iranian state television reports on the ascension of Mojtaba Khamenei as supreme leader, it refers to him as being wounded in the war.

The anchors read reports describing him as “janbaz,” or wounded by the enemy, in the “Ramadan war,” which is how media in Iran refer to the current conflict.

It does not elaborate. However, Khamenei’s father and his wife were killed in the February 28 Israeli airstrike in Tehran at the start of the war.

Khamenei has yet to be seen since the war began. He was announced as Iran’s new supreme leader overnight.

IDF warns of coming airstrikes in south Beirut, calls for evacuation

Rubble of destroyed buildings is pictured at the site of an Israeli airstrike in the Rweiss neighborhood in Beirut's southern suburbs, March 8, 2026. (AFP)

The IDF warns it will soon carry out strikes in Beirut against infrastructure of the Al-Qard al-Hasan association, known to be used by Hezbollah as a quasi-bank.

“In the coming hours, the IDF will operate with force against terror infrastructure belonging to the Al-Qard al-Hasan, which constitutes a central element in financing the activity of the Hezbollah terror organization and harms the Lebanese economy in service of Iranian interests,” says army spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee.

“The IDF does not intend to harm you, and therefore I again call on the residents of the southern suburbs to evacuate their homes, according to the evacuation routes we have published,” he says, referring to last week’s order to evacuate four major neighborhoods in south Beirut, a known Hezbollah stronghold.

Turkey to deploy six F-16 fighter jets to northern Cyprus

A fighter jet takes off from RAF Akrotiri base following two reported drone attacks near Limassol on March 2, 2026. (AFP)

Turkey plans to deploy six F-16 fighter jets to northern Cyprus today to bolster the defenses of the Turkish community there, broadcaster NTV says, citing a civil aviation official from the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

On Saturday, a Turkish defense ministry source said Turkey was considering the deployment of F-16 aircraft to Cyprus, among other steps being taken to ensure the security of the Turkish Cypriot state as conflict spreads in the region.

Iranian ballistic missile targeting northern Israel likely intercepted

Israelis take cover at a public shelter in Mazkeret Batya as a siren sounds warning of incoming ballistic missiles fired from Iran toward Israel, March 8, 2026. (Yossi Aloni/Flash90)

The ballistic missile launched from Iran in the latest attack on northern Israel was likely intercepted, according to initial military assessments.

There are no reports of direct impacts or injuries in the attack, the fourth since midnight, medics say. Sirens had sounded across northern Israel.

The IDF Home Front Command says civilians in areas where sirens sounded can now leave bomb shelters.

Bahrain’s state oil company declares force majeure after Iran strikes refinery

Bahrain’s state oil company declares force majeure for its shipments after an Iranian attack set its refinery ablaze.

The state-run Bahrain News Agency carries the announcement of the force majeure, a legal maneuver that releases a company of its contractual obligations because of extraordinary circumstances.

It says the company’s operations “have been affected by the ongoing regional conflict in the Middle East and the recent attack on its refinery complex.”

It insists that local demand can still be met.

State media says that a strike targeting Bahrain’s sprawling Al Ma’ameer oil facility caused a fire at the complex along with material damage.

“Outbreak of a fire due to the Iranian aggression targeting a facility in Al Ma’ameer, with material damage reported but no casualties recorded, and the competent authorities have begun firefighting procedures,” Bahrain News Agency says in a post on X.

IDF detects Iranian ballistic missile attack heading toward northern Israel

After a four-hour lull, the IDF says it has detected a new ballistic missile attack from Iran.

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

Crude oil prices spike above $115 a barrel as war impedes production and shipping

Fuel prices are shown on a gas pump at a filling station in Richardson, Texas, March 6, 2026. (AP/Tony Gutierrez)

Oil prices spike near $120 per barrel before falling back slightly today as the Iran war intensifies, threatening production and shipping in the Middle East and pummeling financial markets.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, surged to $119.50 per barrel but later was trading at $112.98.

West Texas Intermediate, the light, sweet crude oil produced in the United States, spiked at $119.48 per barrel but fell back to $110.17.

The war’s toll on civilian targets grew as Bahrain accused Iran of striking a desalination plant vital to drinking water supplies, and oil depots in Tehran smoldered following Israeli strikes.

Oil prices have surged as the war, now in its second week, ensnares countries and places that are critical to the production and movement of oil and gas from the Persian Gulf.

Family of Bondi Beach Hanukkah shooter seeks court gag order

A note is pictured next to floral tributes laid at Bondi Pavilion in memory of the victims of a terror massacre targeting a Hanukkah event days earlier, at Bondi Beach, in Sydney, Australia, on December 20, 2025. (DAVID GRAY / AFP)

Lawyers for a man accused of carrying out a deadly shooting on Sydney’s Bondi Beach last year are seeking a court order to stop media naming his family, saying their safety is at risk.

Police say 24-year-old Naveed Akram opened fire on a Hanukkah celebration on December 14, killing 15 people, in Australia’s worst mass shooting in decades. His father, Sajid Akram, who police also accuse of carrying out the shooting, was shot dead by police at the scene.

Lawyers for Naveed Akram request a court in Sydney prohibit the publication of the names of his mother, brother and sister, as well as their home address and places of work and schooling. Magistrate Greg Grogan extends an interim suppression order until next month, citing the global media interest in the case.

Akram faces a total of 59 charges over the attack, including 15 counts of murder, 40 counts of wounding with intent to murder and a terror offense. He is yet to enter a plea.

The case is expected to briefly return to court next week, before a longer hearing on April 8, where the prosecution will outline its brief of evidence.

IDF says it struck base used by IRGC and Basij forces in Iran

The IDF says it struck several military bases of Iran’s Basij paramilitary force and internal security forces in the city of Isfahan, along with missile sites in other areas of the country.

During the wave of strikes in Isfahan, the IDF says it hit the headquarters of Iran’s “regional corps,” a command center of the internal security forces, a base used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Basij, and the IRGC’s police headquarters.

Elsewhere, the Israeli Air Force struck a rocket engine production facility and missile launch sites, the military says.

צה״ל תקף אתרי שיגור של טילים בליסטיים ומפקדות של כוחות ביטחון הפנים והבסיג׳ באיראן

צה"ל ממשיך להעמיק את הפגיעה בכלל מערכיו ויכולותיו של משטר הטרור האיראני.

חיל האוויר בהכוונת אמ״ן השלים גל תקיפות נוסף לעבר תשתיות של משטר הטרור האיראני במספר מרחבים באיראן.

במסגרת התקיפות,… pic.twitter.com/jAoSXCg2dz

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 9, 2026

G7 to discuss joint release of emergency oil reserves – report

Gas prizes are displayed at a gas station with the European Central Bank in background in Frankfurt, Germany, March 2, 2026. (AP/Michael Probst)

The G7 finance ministers will discuss today a joint release of oil from emergency reserves coordinated by the International Energy Agency, the Financial Times reports.

Three G7 countries, including the US, have so far expressed support for the idea, the FT adds, as the war between the US and Israel and Iran has sent crude oil prices surging.

Saudi Arabia condemns ‘reprehensible’ Iranian attacks on Gulf

Vehciles drive along the King Fahad road, a principal transport arteries that links the city's southern and northern districts, in the Saudi capital Riyadh on March 3, 2026. (Fayez Nureldine / AFP)

Saudi Arabia lambasts Iran, calling Tehran’s attacks targeting the kingdom and their Gulf neighbors “reprehensible,” according to a statement from the foreign ministry.

Saudi Arabia “renews the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s categorical condemnation of the reprehensible Iranian aggressions against the Kingdom, the Gulf Cooperation Council states, a number of Arab and Islamic countries, and friendly nations, which cannot be accepted or justified under any circumstances,” the statement posted on the ministry’s official X account reads.

Smoke rises from Bahrain’s Bapco oil refinery after Iranian drone attack

Thick smoke is seen rising from the direction of the Bapco oil refinery in Bahrain, according to a witness.

Smoke surrounds the refinery after the government earlier said injuries and damage were sustained in the Sitra area as a result of an Iranian drone attack, the witness adds.

Bapco is Bahrain’s main oil refinery and a key facility in the country’s energy sector.

IDF says it’s ‘unaware’ of Hezbollah claims of overnight clashes, helicopter downing

The IDF says it is unaware of claims made by Hezbollah that its operatives clashed with Israeli troops and shot down a helicopter in eastern Lebanon overnight.

Lebanon’s state news agency reported that “fierce clashes” took place after the landing of Israeli helicopters near Nabi Chit, the same area where Israeli troops conducted a recent failed mission to recover the remains of airman Ron Arad, who has been missing since the 1980s.

Hezbollah claimed in statements that it had engaged the Israeli forces, and two sources in the terror group claimed to AFP that a helicopter was downed.

Asked for a comment on the reported incidents, the military says it is “unaware” of any of the claims.

New clip implicates US in deadly strike on Iran girls’ school

An image of an apparent American Tomahawk cruise missile about to strike a girls' school in Iran's Minab during opening strikes of the Iran war on February 28, 2026. (Screenshot: Mehr News/X)

Newly released footage aired by Iranian media and confirmed by The New York Times and open source investigative collective BellingCat strengthens the evidence that the US is responsible for the strike on a girls’ school in Iran’s Minab that killed over 170 people, many of them kids, during the American-Israeli strikes that launched the war with the Islamic Republic.

The clip, published by Iran’s semi-official Mehr News Agency, shows the hit by what has been confirmed to be a Tomahawk cruise missile, which the US military possesses and which the IDF and Iranian military do not.

Top US officials have denied intentionally targeting the school, which is adjacent to a Revolutionary Guards base and used to be marked in maps as part of the same complex. US President Donald Trump has claimed it was a misfire by the Iranians.

New video footage shows a US Tomahawk missile hitting an IRGC facility in Minab, Iran, on Feb 28, showing for the first time that the US struck the area. The footage also shows smoke already rising from the vicinity of the girls’ school, where 175 people were reportedly killed. pic.twitter.com/4jBXrNcRJO

— Trevor Ball (@Easybakeovensz) March 8, 2026

More alarms sound in Kiryat Shmona area amid relentless Hezbollah rocket salvos

Air raid sirens sound again in Kiryat Shmona and nearby Lebanon border towns, as Hezbollah continues to pound the area with rockets.

Lindsey Graham knocks Israel for targeting Iran’s oil facilities

US Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, speaks to the media in Tel Aviv, December 21, 2025. (AP/Maya Levin)

Republican US Senator Lindsey Graham knocks Israel over its targeting of Iran’s oil facilities over the weekend.

“Our allies in Israel have shown amazing capability when it comes to collapsing the murderous regime in Iran. America is most appreciative,” Graham tweets. “However, there will be a day soon that the Iranian people will be in charge of their own fate, not the murderous ayatollah’s regime.”

“In that regard, please be cautious about what targets you select. Our goal is to liberate the Iranian people in a fashion that does not cripple their chance to start a new and better life when this regime collapses. The oil economy of Iran will be essential to that endeavor,” Graham tweets.

The Trump administration was also reportedly angered by the strikes on Iran’s oil fields, which Israel claims were being used by the military forces of the Islamic Republic.

The criticism from Graham stands out, given how effusive he has been in support of the US-Israeli war in Iran. He is also seen as close to Trump, though it’s unclear how much influence the senator has over the president’s decision-making.

Drone intercepted near US-operated base at Baghdad airport

Iraqi air defenses have shot down a drone as it approached Victoria Base, a US-operated military compound inside Baghdad International Airport, a security source tells the AP on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the press.

There are no reported injuries or damage.

It is not immediately clear who is behind the attack.

Pro-Iranian Iraqi militias, such as Saraya Awliya al-Dam, have previously targeted the base.

Saudi Arabia sharpens warnings to Iran, says attacks will deal long-term harm to ties

Saudi Arabia sharpens its warnings to Iran, telling Tehran it would be the “biggest loser” if it continues to attack Arab states.

The Saudi statement comes after a new drone attack apparently targeted its massive Shaybah oil field.

The kingdom dismisses comments by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday that Iran had halted its attacks on Gulf Arab states.

“The kingdom affirms that the Iranian side has not implemented this statement in practice, neither during the Iranian president’s speech nor afterward,” Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry says in a statement. “Iran has continued its aggression based on flimsy pretexts devoid of any factual basis.”

It adds that the Iranian attacks mean “further escalation which will have grave impact on the relations, currently and in the future.”

Qatar arrests more than 300 people for disseminating ‘misleading information’

Qatar says more than 300 people from different nationalities have been arrested over allegations of inciting public concern amid the war in the Middle East.

The Interior Ministry says they were detained for “filming, circulating and publishing misleading information.”

Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE all report Iranian attacks

Qatar’s Defense Ministry reports a missile attack on the country.

In Saudi Arabia, the Defense Ministry says forces destroyed two drones that were targeting its vast Shaybah oil field.

Meanwhile, fire breaks out at an oil facility in the United Arab Emirates following an attack in Fujairah, one of the UAE’s seven emirates, authorities say.

The fire in the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone was extinguished, they say.

Bahrain says Iran drone attack on Bahrain has left 32 civilians wounded

Bahrain’s health ministry says an Iranian drone attack targeting the Gulf nation’s island of Sitra has wounded 32 civilians.

All of the wounded are Bahraini citizens and there are four “serious cases,” including children, says the ministry in a statement carried by the Gulf nation’s state news agency.

Northern residents can leave shelters after Iran salvo; woman said hurt while rushing to shelter

The IDF Home Front Command says the latest Iranian attack targeting northern Israel is over, and residents can leave bomb shelters.

The Magen David Adom ambulance service says there are no reports of casualties caused directly by the attack.

It says medics are heading to treat a woman who was hurt while rushing to a shelter, and to another woman suffering from acute anxiety.

IDF launches fresh wave of strikes in central Iran

The IDF has launched a new wave of airstrikes in central Iran, the military announces.

The army says in a brief statement that it is targeting “infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime.”

IDF says it struck Hezbollah target in Beirut

The IDF struck a Hezbollah target in Beirut a short while ago, the military says.

The army says more details will follow.

Meanwhile, a loud explosion is heard in Beirut’s southern suburbs, with plumes of smoke seen rising from the southern suburbs.

The area, a Hezbollah stronghold whose residents the Israeli military has ordered to evacuate, has been pounded by Israel over the past week but had not suffered any strikes since Saturday.

AFP contributed to this report.

Sirens sound as new Iranian missile launches target northern Israel

A new Iranian missile launch has been detected, with air raid sirens sounding in many parts of northern Israel.

‘Death to Mojtaba’: Video shows Iranians chanting against new supreme leader in Tehran

Chants hostile to Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, have been heard in the Iranian capital Tehran shortly after his appointment, according to a video posted on social media.

In the 17-second clip, filmed at night from a building window, women’s voices can be heard shouting “Death to Mojtaba” in Persian, while religious chants can be heard in the distance.

AFP is unable to determine exactly where the footage was filmed or whether similar chants were heard elsewhere in the city.

C'EST CRIÉ. « Mort à Mojtaba ! », scandent ce dimanche 8 mars 2026 depuis leurs fenêtres des habitants du quartier d'Ekbatan, dans le nord-ouest de Téhéran, en réaction aux rumeurs faisant état de la nomination de Mojtaba Khamenei, fils de l'ayatollah Ali Khamenei, en tant que… pic.twitter.com/IhwnvzNXZ1

— Armin Arefi (@arminarefi) March 8, 2026

Woman injured from Iran missile shrapnel is in good condition, hospital says

The woman who was wounded from shrapnel in Rishon Lezion amid Iran’s missile attack is in good and stable condition, Shamir Medical Center says.

The woman is in her 50s, the hospital says.

The Magen David Adom says, regarding the impact in which she was injured: “We arrived quickly at the scene and saw a crater on the road, with broken rocks on the ground all around. A woman there was injured from rocks that flew at her. We gave her life-saving treatment and took her to the hospital in stable condition.

Police say the damage is from a cluster munition.

Meanwhile, Iranian state broadcaster IRIB says the country has fired its “first wave of missiles under Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei towards occupied territories,” posting a picture on Telegram of a projectile bearing the slogan “At Your Command, Sayyid Mojtaba,” a Shiite religious reference.

AFP contributed to this report.

Iran‑aligned Shiite Iraqi militia hails new Iran leader

The Kataib Hezbollah militia praises the appointment of Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s supreme leader, calling him “a figure possessing the leadership qualifications and competence necessary to shoulder the responsibilities of this great trust in these critical times.”

In a statement, the group says the choice “is further proof of the vigilance of the Assembly of Experts and their deep foresight regarding the existential challenges facing the nation in confronting global arrogance,” adding that he is “the best successor for the best predecessor.”

Yemen’s Houthis hail new Iran supreme leader choice as ‘resounding blow’ for enemies

Yemen’s Houthi rebels welcome Iran’s ruling clerics appointing their slain leader’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, as the country’s new supreme leader, calling it a major blow for the Islamic Republic’s enemies as it fights a war with the United States and Israel.

“We congratulate the Islamic Republic of Iran, its leadership and people, on the selection of Sayyid Mojtaba Khamenei as Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution at this important and pivotal juncture,” the group says in a statement on Telegram.

It calls his selection “a new victory for the Islamic Revolution and a resounding blow to the enemies of the Islamic Republic and the enemies of the nation.”

US State Department orders non-essential diplomats out of Saudi Arabia

The US State Department says it has ordered non-essential US diplomats and US government employee family members to leave Saudi Arabia due to safety risks.

The United States began to pull out non-essential staff from Gulf Arab countries a week ago, three days into the war. The US ​embassy in Riyadh on Tuesday approved voluntary departures, on the same day that it was struck by Iranian drones that led to a fire that ​damaged the mission’s facilities.

Woman moderately injured after Iranian missile shrapnel impacts in Rishon Lezion

A woman in her 40s has been moderately injured as a result of falling shrapnel in Rishon Lezion following the latest Iranian attack on central Israel, medics say.

Magen David Adom medics are treating the woman for a head injury after she was hit by flying rocks following the impact. She was apparently not inside a bomb shelter.

תיעוד: רסיס בראשון לציון@hadasgrinberg pic.twitter.com/3awAmbCEHd

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) March 8, 2026

There is notable damage to a local building, the city’s mayor tells Channel 12 news.

Impacts have also been reported in Lod and Modiin Illit.

תיעוד: שברי יירוט במודיעין עילית@hadasgrinberg pic.twitter.com/upNjzfjHx5

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) March 9, 2026

Clashes reported in east Lebanon as Israeli forces land in area of recent failed mission to return Ron Arad

More clashes allegedly break out in eastern Lebanon as Israeli forces land by helicopter on the Lebanese-Syrian border, in the area where they conducted their recent failed mission to recover the remains of airman Ron Arad, who has been missing since the 1980s.

“Fierce clashes are taking place… towards the outskirts of the town of Nabi Chit to repel Israeli forces that carried out a landing by helicopters on the heights of the eastern mountain range towards the Lebanese-Syrian border and are trying to advance,” Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reports.

Two Hezbollah sources claim to AFP on condition of anonymity that an Israeli helicopter in the area was downed by the group, though the terror group has made countless exaggerated claims in the past. Hebrew media reports say the claim is baseless.

In a subsequent official statement, the Iran-backed group says it detected “the infiltration of approximately 15 Israeli enemy helicopters” from the Syrian side of the border in eastern Lebanon.

The group says its fighters “engaged the helicopters and the infiltrating force with appropriate weapons, and the confrontation” is ongoing.

Fresh Iranian missile salvo triggers air raid sirens throughout northern Israel

Minutes after missiles are lobbed by Iran at central Israel, early warning sirens sound in the north due to more Iranian launches aimed at northern Israel.

Air raid sirens subsequently sound throughout the Galilee, including in Haifa.

Later, the Home Front Command says residents can leave bomb shelters, declaring the attack over.

Meanwhile, initial reports of impacts are coming from central Israel, where residents have been told they can leave the shelters.

Another Iranian missile attack triggers sirens in Tel Aviv area; apparent interceptions heard, impacts reported

An early warning is again received in wide swaths of central Israel and parts of the West Bank, indicating another missile launch from Iran, minutes after a previous salvo was declared over.

Incoming missile sirens subsequently sound in Tel Aviv and the Shfela area to the city’s south, with apparent interceptions heard.

Initial reports indicate shrapnel fell in Rishon Lezion and Lod, with no reports of injuries.

IDF says Iran attack over, as fresh Hezbollah salvo triggers sirens in border towns

The IDF Home Front Command says the latest Iranian missile attack is over and residents can leave bomb shelters, just as fresh incoming rocket sirens sound in Kiryat Shmona and other Lebanon border towns, indicating another Hezbollah attack.

There have been no immediate reports of impacts or injuries in either salvo.

As oil prices soar 20% to above $100, Trump says it’s a ‘small price to pay’ for removing Iran threat

The US oil benchmark soars above $100 a barrel as trading opens, with investors braced for further turmoil after Iran appoints the son of slain leader Ali Khamenei to replace him.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) jumps 20% to $109.17 a barrel, a level not seen since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, while the international Brent benchmark contract is up 19% at $110.35.

However, US President Donald Trump dismisses the spike as a “small price to pay” for removing the threat of Iran’s nuclear program.

“Short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace. ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!” he writes on his Truth Social platform.

IDF detects another missile launch from Iran; sirens sound in Sharon area; no injuries reported

Early warning alerts sound in northern, central and southern Israel following the identification of missile launches from Iran.

Incoming missile sirens subsequently blare in the Sharon coastal area, between Netanya and Zichron Yaakov, and in parts of the northwestern West Bank.

The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it has received no immediate reports of injuries.

IDF says latest Hezbollah rocket attack is over

The IDF Home Front Command says the latest Hezbollah rocket attack is over, and residents of the Lebanon border town of Misgav Am can exit bomb shelters after sirens sounded there.

There are no immediate reports of impacts or injuries.

Hezbollah has carried out numerous rocket and drone attacks on northern Israel today.