US Iran war news highlights: Hezbollah targets Israel; UAE intercepts missiles, drones from Iran

War in Middle East LIVE: Indian students studying in Iran have started making arrangements to leave the country as safety concerns grow, with the first group expected to depart for the Armenia border on Thursday as evacuation plans take shape, ANI reported.

Students enrolled at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences and Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences have been offered two routes to exit, through Armenia or Azerbaijan, with authorities and student groups coordinating efforts to ensure safe travel to the border points.

War in Middle East LIVE: An air strike struck Beirut’s southern suburbs after Israel issued a warning ahead of the attack, according to reports.

The strike came shortly after the warning was announced, prompting concerns over escalating tensions in the area.

War in Middle East LIVE: Italy is supplying anti-aircraft defence systems to Gulf countries, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said, signalling support for regional security amid heightened tensions.

War in Middle East LIVE: G7 energy ministers said they stand ready to take all necessary measures in coordination with the International Energy Agency (IEA) to address the rise in crude oil prices.

The ministers signalled they were prepared to act jointly to stabilise energy markets.

War in Middle East LIVE: Israel’s intelligence assessment indicates that Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was lightly wounded during the joint Israel-US air war against Iran, Reuters reported.

The official said the injury is believed to be the reason Khamenei has not appeared in public.

War in Middle East LIVE: Lebanon’s National News Agency has revised the death toll from an Israeli air strike on Tamnin al-Tahta in the eastern Baalbek district to seven, Al Jazeera reported.

The agency had earlier reported that 10 people were killed in the attack.

According to Lebanon’s Health Ministry Emergency Operations Center, seven people were killed and 18 others were wounded when the strike hit the town in the Bekaa Valley.

War in Middle East LIVE: British police said they had banned a pro-Iranian march scheduled to take place in London on Sunday, warning of the possibility of “extreme tensions” with counter-protesters and risks linked to the ongoing Middle East conflict, Reuters reported.

The Al Quds march, held annually in central London, is organised by the Islamic Human Rights Commission, which police said supports the Iranian regime.

Authorities said the legal threshold for banning a protest in Britain is high and noted that the power had not been used in 14 years. However, police said the risk of public disorder in this case was “so severe” that blocking the event was justified.

The ban will also apply to any counter-protest marches planned in response to the rally.

War in Middle East LIVE: Two Iranian drones struck near Dubai International Airport on Wednesday, wounding four people, authorities said, though flight operations continued, AP reported.

The Dubai Media Office said the attack caused “minor injuries to two Ghanaian nationals and one Bangladeshi national, and moderate injuries to one Indian national.”

Authorities said flights at the airport continued despite the incident.

War in Middle East LIVE: FIFA expects Iran’s national football team to be allowed to travel to the United States for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, despite ongoing tensions between the two countries. Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA, said he discussed the issue with US President Donald Trump, who assured him that Iran’s team would be permitted to compete, as per AP.

Iran has already qualified for the tournament, which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19. The Iranian side is scheduled to play group matches against New Zealand and Belgium in Inglewood, California, before facing Egypt in Seattle.

(AP)

War in Middle East LIVE: China has said it opposes attacks targeting Gulf countries and condemned strikes on civilians and non-military sites amid rising regional tensions.

Speaking at a regular press briefing in Beijing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said China “does not agree” with assaults on Gulf nations and strongly denounces indiscriminate attacks on civilian populations and infrastructure not linked to military operations, reported Reuters.

War in Middle East LIVE: Pakistan has said it will stand by Saudi Arabia if needed as tensions rise in the Middle East.

Speaking to Bloomberg TV, Mosharraf Zaidi, spokesperson for the Pakistani prime minister, said Islamabad’s support for Riyadh was certain. “There is no question we might, we will come to Saudi Arabia’s aid - no matter what and no matter when,” he said, adding that the two countries have long supported each other even before their defence pact signed last year.

(Bloomberg)

War in Middle East LIVE: Qatar Airways on Wednesday said it will operate a limited number of flights to and from Doha starting March 12. The airline plans to run 29 flights via Hamad International Airport, including 15 departures and 14 arrivals, under special permissions.

Outbound flights from Doha will connect to cities such as Mumbai, New Delhi, Islamabad, New York, Frankfurt, Beijing, London, Cairo and Johannesburg, ANI reported. Incoming flights to Doha are expected from Seoul, Jeddah, Hong Kong, Muscat, Melbourne, Dallas and Bangkok, among others.

The airline said the flights have been permitted after temporary clearance from the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority, which has allowed limited operating corridors. However, it clarified that these services are only meant to help passengers affected by the disruption and do not signal the full resumption of regular commercial operations.

(ANI)

War in Middle East LIVE: Rumours that Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s newly named supreme leader, was injured during the ongoing conflict with Israel and the United States have been dismissed by a senior government figure, reported AFP.

Yousef Pezeshkian, son of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and a government adviser, said he checked with contacts after hearing reports that Khamenei had been hurt. “I heard news that Mr Mojtaba Khamenei had been injured. I have asked some friends who had connections. They told me that, thank God, he is safe and sound,” he said.

(AFP)

War in Middle East LIVE: The European Central Bank (ECB) would act swiftly if rising energy prices linked to the Iran war push inflation higher across the euro zone, ECB policymaker Joachim Nagel said. Nagel, who also heads the Deutsche Bundesbank, said policymakers are currently adopting a “wait-and-see approach” but warned that the spike in energy costs has increased inflation risks, as per Reuters.

“We must be very vigilant,” he said, adding that if energy price rises begin feeding into broader consumer prices, the ECB “will act decisively in a timely manner.”

(Reuters)

War in Middle East LIVE: Oil prices gave up earlier gains and hovered near $87 a barrel after a report said the International Energy Agency was considering a record release of emergency reserves to address rising prices triggered by the Iran war.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the proposed release would exceed the 182 million barrels that IEA member countries released in 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Brent crude slipped after rising as much as 3.7%, while West Texas Intermediate fluctuated near $83. The moves come during a highly volatile week in energy markets, with prices briefly surging above $100 on Monday.

War in Middle East LIVE: A cargo ship was struck in the Strait of Hormuz, prompting its crew to begin evacuating, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said.

The British maritime security agency reported the incident and said the crew were abandoning the vessel following the strike. Further details about the damage or the cause of the incident were not immediately available.

War in Middle East LIVE: Several blasts were heard across the Qatari capital Doha on Wednesday, AFP correspondents reported, as Iran’s retaliatory strikes across the Gulf entered their twelfth day.

War in Middle East LIVE: Iran’s top police commander warned that protesters who support the country’s adversaries will be treated as enemies, amid fears that the ongoing Middle East conflict could trigger fresh anti-government demonstrations.

National police chief Ahmad-Reza Radan said anyone acting in line with the wishes of Iran’s enemies would no longer be considered a protester.

“If anyone comes forward in line with the wishes of the enemy, we will no longer see them as merely a protester, we will see them as an enemy,” he said in remarks aired by state broadcaster IRIB late on Tuesday.

War in Middle East LIVE: Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said it launched multiple new waves of its retaliatory campaign, Operation True Promise 4, targeting what it described as sensitive American and Israeli sites.

The force said the “37th wave” of the operation was carried out late Tuesday night.

According to the IRGC, the latest phase lasted more than three hours and involved continuous, multi-layered missile strikes, including what it described as some of its heaviest missiles.

The group claimed the strikes targeted locations in Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, and military centres in Be'er Ya'akov and Tel Aviv. The IRGC said the attacks used Kheibar Shekan, Qadr and Khorramshahr missiles.

War in Middle East LIVE: The world’s largest liquefied natural gas export facility in Qatar has not shipped any cargo for five days, the longest gap in data going back to 2008, raising concerns of further increases in global gas prices.

According to a Bloomberg analysis of Kpler ship-tracking data, no loaded tanker has departed the Ras Laffan facility during this period. No LNG vessel has also passed through the Strait of Hormuz since Feb. 28, when the United States and Israel began strikes on Iran.

The unprecedented halt at the liquefaction plant, which supplies nearly 20% of the world’s LNG, followed an Iranian drone attack early last week that pushed gas prices higher in Europe and Asia. Although Ras Laffan loaded a few shipments after stopping output, likely using gas from storage tanks, the last cargo was dispatched on Friday.

War in Middle East LIVE: Israel’s military said it had identified missiles launched from Iran and that its air defence systems were working to intercept them.

In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces said the Home Front Command had issued precautionary alerts to residents in affected areas.

“Upon receiving an alert, the public is instructed to enter a protected space and remain there until further notice,” the IDF said in a post on X.

War in Middle East LIVE: Large explosions were seen near Tehran’s Mehrabad airport overnight, according to Al Jazeera.

The video shows successive blasts followed by thick plumes of smoke rising from areas around the airport in the Iranian capital.

There has been no official statement from Iranian authorities on the incident so far.

War in Middle East LIVE: Israeli strike hits central Beirut, state media reported.

War in Middle East LIVE: Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday it intercepted seven drones that were heading towards the strategically important Shaybah oil field, as Iran renewed attacks on Gulf countries and their energy infrastructure.

The defence ministry said two drones approaching the Shaybah oil field were intercepted and destroyed, according to a post on X.

In separate statements, the ministry added that five more drones were also intercepted and destroyed.

The Shaybah oil field, a key component of Saudi Arabia’s oil production, lies near the border with the United Arab Emirates and is operated by state oil giant Aramco, one of the world’s largest companies by market capitalisation.

War in Middle East LIVE: Amid its ongoing war with Iran, Israel is set to expand its defense budget by almost 40 billion shekels ($13 billion), about 2% of its gross domestic product, to fund the war with Iran, Bloomberg reported, quoting Israeli finance ministry official.