US Iran war highlights: Fresh explosions heard in Tehran; North Korea backs new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei

US-Iran War LIVE: Fresh Israeli strikes hit Beirut's southern suburbs and south Lebanon on Tuesday after the Israeli army warned people to evacuate and the United Nations said 100,000 people had been displaced in a single day.

Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war last week when Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah attacked Israel in response to the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli strikes.

Israel, which kept up strikes targeting Hezbollah despite a 2024 ceasefire, has since launched waves of attacks across Lebanon and sent ground troops into border areas. (AFP)

US-Iran War LIVE: US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on Tuesday cautioned Russia against intervening in the ongoing conflict in West Asia amid rising tensions involving Iran with the US and Israel.

His remarks came during a Pentagon briefing, following questions about a recent telephone call between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Hegseth described the call as a "strong call" that reaffirmed the possibility of peace in Russia's war with Ukraine and underlined that Russia should not become involved in the Iran conflict.

"The [US] president, as I've said before, maintains strong relationships with world leaders, which creates opportunities and options for us in very dynamic ways. The President said it was a good call. I was not on it, but those who were said it was a strong call reaffirming, hopefully, the opportunity for some peace in Russia and Ukraine and also a recognition that, as it pertains to this conflict, they should not be involved," Hegseth said.

Earlier, Russia's Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed the March 9 call between the two leaders, describing it as "businesslike, candid and constructive." (ANI)

US-Iran War LIVE: The Pentagon said it’s conducting the most intense day of attacks against Iran and won’t give up until the Islamic Republic is defeated, striking a more aggressive tone after President Donald Trump’s suggestion the war could end soon.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made the comments during a press conference Tuesday. They suggested the US-Israeli campaign that began on Feb. 28 may still have some way to run, creating further disruption in the oil industry and global markets.

Asked whether he would be willing to talk to the Iranians, Trump said it would be possible but was non-committal, Fox News reported. Iranian officials have pushed back against that idea, with Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf saying the country is “absolutely” not seeking a ceasefire. (Bloomberg)

US-Iran War LIVE: Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth accused Iran of "moving rocket launchers into civilian neighborhoods, near schools, near hospitals to try to prevent our ability to strike," saying "that's how they operate."

He did not directly address a strike early in the conflict that hit an elementary school in the southern city of Minab, but said that "no nation takes more precautions to ensure there's never targeting of civilians than the United States of America."

US-Iran War LIVE: Iran launched new attacks on Tuesday at Israel and Gulf Arab countries as it kept up pressure on the Middle East in a war started by Israel and the United States that has rattled world markets and shows no signs of a letup.

In Bahrain, authorities said an Iranian attack hit a residential building in the capital, Manama, killing a 29-year-old woman and wounding eight people. Saudi Arabia said it destroyed two drones over its oil-rich eastern region, and Kuwait's National Guard said it shot down six drones.

In the United Arab Emirates, firefighters battled a blaze in the industrial city of Ruwais - home to petrochemical plants - after an Iranian drone strike. No injuries were reported.

US-Iran War LIVE: A top US general said on Tuesday that while Iranian forces were fighting, they were not more formidable than the United States had thought.

"I think they're fighting, and I respect that, but I don't think they're more formidable than what we thought," General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters

US-Iran War LIVE: Iran launched new attacks on Tuesday at Israel and Gulf Arab countries as it kept up pressure on the Middle East in a war started by Israel and the United States that has rattled world markets and shows no signs of a letup.

In Bahrain, authorities said an Iranian attack hit a residential building in the capital, Manama, killing a 29-year-old woman and wounding eight people. Saudi Arabia said it destroyed two drones over its oil-rich eastern region and Kuwait's National Guard said it shot down six drones.

In the United Arab Emirates, firefighters battled a blaze in the industrial city of Ruwais — home to petrochemical plants — after an Iranian drone strike, officials said. No injuries were reported. (AP)

US Iran war news LIVE: The top US general said on Tuesday that the United States was carrying out strikes against Iranian mine-laying vessels.

The war has effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for global oil and liquefied natural gas transport, leaving tankers unable to sail for more than a week and forcing producers to halt pumping as storage fills.

"(US Central Command) continues today to hunt and strike mine-laying vessels and mine storage facilities," General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters.

Caine added that in the first 10 days of the campaign against Iran, the U.S. had sunk or destroyed more than 50 naval ships.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to escalate the war with Iran if it blocked oil shipments from the Middle East, even as he predicted a quick end to the conflict. (Reuters)

US Iran war news LIVE: US and Israeli strikes have hit an airport in southern Iran, damaging part of the site as well as aircraft, local media reported on Tuesday.

"Following an American-Zionist attack on Kerman Airport, part of it was damaged and two old, out-of-service aircraft were hit," Iran's Tasnim news agency said, quoting a statement from the governor's office in the southern province of Kerman.

It is not clear whether there are any military facilities at or near the site.

On Monday the Israeli military said it had completed a "wave of strikes against six military airfields" in Iran, hitting planes and runways as well as defence and detection systems. (AFP)

US Iran war news LIVE: A top Iranian security official has threatened US President Donald Trump in an online message.

Ali Larijani wrote the message on X Tuesday after Trump threatened to attack Iran "TWENTY TIMES HARDER" if Tehran stopped oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz.

Larijani wrote: "The sacrificial nation of Iran doesn't fear your empty threats. Even those bigger than you couldn't eliminate Iran. Be careful not to get eliminated yourself."

Iran has been accused of plotting attempts to kill Trump in the past. (AP)

US Iran war news LIVE: The CEO of Saudi Aramco said it is “absolutely critical” that oil shipping resumes through the Strait of Hormuz.

US Iran war news LIVE: Iran fired drones and missiles at Israel and Gulf states Tuesday as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed his country will keep striking the Islamic Republic, saying the aim of the campaign was the popular overthrow of its government.

"Our aim is to bring the Iranian people to cast off the yoke of tyranny; ultimately, it depends on them," Netanyahu said during a meeting with Israel's hospital and health system leaders. "But there is no doubt that with the actions taken so far, we are breaking their bones."

US President Donald Trump sent contradictory signals about how long the war could last, fueling uncertainty that is causing markets to swing.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf dismissed any suggestion that Tehran sought a ceasefire in the war and would keep fighting.

Trump late Monday told Republican lawmakers that the war was likely to be a "short excursion," but hours later threatened in a social media post that the US would dramatically increase attacks if Iran tried to close the Strait of Hormuz. (PTI)

US Iran war news LIVE: Iran vowed on Tuesday that not one litre of oil would be exported from the Gulf while its war with the United States and Israel continues, in a stark rebuke to President Donald Trump's boast that the conflict was all but over.

Trump's argument that the war would be "ended soon" helped reverse the Monday's spike in oil prices, which have surged since Iranian attacks on shipping closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to the US-Israeli strikes that killed its supreme leader.

The price increase also followed strikes on oil depots in Iran and after attacks on oil infrastructure in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

After Trump's comments, European gas prices opened 15 percent lower, and Asian stock markets recovered from Monday's slump and their European counterparts opened higher. But concern remains high.

Qatar, which has suspended LNG exports and sent European energy prices sky-high, said Iranian attacks on its civilian infrastructure were continuing, and the Israeli military announced a new wave of attacks on Tehran. (AFP)

US Iran war news LIVE: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel can help enable Iranians to "cast off the yoke of tyranny", but any political change in the country would ultimately be up to its people.

Speaking during a visit to the National Health Command Centre on Monday as the regional conflict entered its 11th day, Netanyahu said Israel's campaign was weakening the Iranian leadership.

"Our aspiration is to enable the Iranian people to cast off the yoke of tyranny; ultimately, it is up to them. But there is no doubt that through the actions taken so far, we are breaking their bones and we are still active," he said.

Netanyahu said that if Israel succeeded together with the Iranian people, it could bring about lasting change.

"If we succeed together with the Iranian people, we will bring about a permanent end to the extent that such things exist in the lives of nations. We will bring about change, and we are already bringing about a massive shift in Israel's international standing," he said.

The prime minister visited the National Health Command Centre along with Health Minister Haim Katz as part of briefings on the healthcare system's functioning during Operation Roaring Lion, Israel's military campaign against Iran, according to a press statement. (PTI)

US Iran war news LIVE: The oil price spike caused by the war in the Middle East has sparked unrest in Bangladesh and exasperation at petrol pumps around Asia, where many economies are heavily dependent on fossil fuel imports.

Even as governments move to limit the impact on fuel prices, lines have formed at petrol stations in countries including Vietnam, Pakistan and the Philippines, although the situation remains stable elsewhere.

In Bangladesh -- which imports 95 percent of its oil and gas needs -- the military has been deployed at major oil depots, as police patrol in and around filling stations.

"We haven't received supply from the depot, but the bike riders weren't convinced and vandalised the station," said petrol station worker Ashrafuzzaman Dulal told AFP, describing violence on Sunday.

On Tuesday his station Shahjahan Traders, one of the oldest in the capital Dhaka, had hung a banner apologising because its stock had run out.

The South Asian nation of 170 million people has started fuel rationing, sent students home and scrapped celebratory light displays over the energy crunch. (AFP)

US Iran war news LIVE: Iran launched new attacks on Tuesday at Israel and Gulf Arab countries as it kept up pressure on the Middle East in a war that has impacted the region and beyond, sent oil prices surging and stunned global economies.

Sirens warned of incoming missiles in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, and in Bahrain, while Saudi Arabia said it destroyed two drones over its oil-rich eastern region and Kuwait's National Guard said it shot down six drones.

Later in the morning, sirens also sounded in Jerusalem, and sounds of explosions could be heard in Tel Aviv as Israel's defense systems worked to intercept incoming fire, not long after the military said it detected an Iranian missile launch. (AP)

US Iran war news LIVE: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was exerting heavy pressure on Iran, stating that actions taken so far were “breaking their bones”.

Speaking during a visit late Monday to Israel’s National Health Emergency Operations Center, Netanyahu said Israel’s campaign was continuing and warned that more action could follow.

He added that the future of Iran’s leadership ultimately depended on the Iranian people, saying Israel hoped they would “throw off the yoke of tyranny.”

US Iran war news LIVE: Egypt has raised domestic fuel prices by up to 30 percent, citing “exceptional” global energy pressures triggered by the ongoing war, which has disrupted oil supplies and shipping routes.

The Petroleum Ministry said the increases apply to petrol, diesel and natural gas used in vehicles.

US Iran war news LIVE: Five people were killed and several others injured after a US-Israeli air strike hit a residential building in the western Iranian city of Arak, according to a report by Iran’s ISNA news agency.

US Iran war news LIVE: Iran says drones targeted Israel's Haifa refinery, fuel storage in retaliation for attacks on oil depots, according to Tasnim News Agency.

US Iran war news LIVE: The UAE has reduced its oil output by about 500,000 to 800,000 barrels a day, Kuwait by roughly 500,000 barrels a day, and Iraq by around 2.9 million barrels a day, according to a report by Bloomberg News.

US Iran war news LIVE: Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the country is acting in self-defence as it attacks US military bases across the Middle East, warning that Tehran would target American facilities in the region if Washington launches strikes on Iran.

“We have already warned everybody in the region that if the US attack us, since we cannot reach American soil, we have to attack their bases in the region, their facilities, their installations, their assets,” Araghchi said.

“What we are doing is only defending ourselves. We are facing an act of aggression, which is absolutely illegal.”

US Iran war news LIVE: "Urgent warning to the residents of Tyre and Sidon. The IDF will soon attack military infrastructure belonging to the terrorist organisation Hezbollah," one of the military spokesmen, Avichay Adraee shared on X.

"We urge residents of the buildings marked in red on the two attached maps and the nearby buildings: you are located near buildings used by Hezbollah. For your safety, you must evacuate immediately and move at least 300 metres away," he added.

US Iran war news LIVE: Iran’s Foreign Minister Araghchi has told PBS News, “They promised us that they don’t have any intention to attack us, and they wanted to resolve Iran’s nuclear question peacefully and find a negotiated solution,” Araghchi said. “Still, they decided to attack us.

“I don’t think the question of talking with the Americans… once again would be on the table.”

US Iran war news LIVE: Israel’s Ministry of Health said 191 people were admitted to hospital in the past 24 hours due to the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran, according to The Times of Israel.

Those hospitalised included both soldiers and civilians, the report said. At least one person was in critical condition and three others were in serious condition.