US Iran war news highlights: Trump says oil prices ‘small price to pay’, Iran names new leader

A United Arab Emirates senior official on Sunday denied to The Jerusalem Post that the country was involved in a strike against an Iranian desalination facility.

Reportedly, the official said the UAE would not strike a civilian target to enter the war, but would target a military site. The IDF has also denied involvement in the strike.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Agachi has told NBC News that the country's new Supreme Leader "will be elected soon".

Blasts heard over Tel Aviv after Israeli army identified new missiles from Iran, AFP reported.

Israel's military said it struck Iranian commanders in the Lebanese capital early on Sunday, expanding the scope of strikes to the heart of Beirut after days of strikes that have left nearly 400 people dead.

The drone strike was the first within the city limits of Lebanon's capital since Israel-Hezbollah hostilities resumed last week, and came amid heavy bombardment on Beirut's southern suburbs and the country's south and east.

Israel said it targeted key commanders of Iran's elite Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards but did not name them.

Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed 394 people in the past week, including 83 children and 42 women, the country's health minister said Sunday.

Rakan Nassereddine also said at a press conference that nine rescue workers were among the dead, condemning attacks on medical teams and ambulances.

A previous toll announced on Saturday by the minister had put the number of dead at 294 since Lebanon was drawn into the regional war last Monday between Iran, Israel and the United States.

The Israeli army has said that it identified missiles launched from Iran.

“Defence systems are working to intercept the threat,” the military said in a statement.

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani says 20,000 Italians have been repatriated from West Asia since the start of the war.

The returns were made possible by the coordinated efforts of 200 officers from the Gulf Task Force, who have been operating around the clock to assist Italians stranded in the region, the minister said.

Iran's players sang the national anthem and saluted before bowing out of the Women's Asian Cup with defeat in their last group match on Sunday in Australia.

When Iran faced South Korea on Monday in their opening game, the players stood motionless, two days after the US and Israel began a war against the country.

But on Thursday in their second game, against hosts Australia, all the Iranian players saluted and sang the anthem on the Gold Coast.

Against the Philippines on Sunday, they again sang and saluted as the rain came down on Queensland's Gold Coast.

They went on to lose the encounter 2-0, ending their hopes of reaching the next round.

No public reason was given for the players' original stance over the pre-game national anthem.

But coach Marziyeh Jafari has said her team have "so much concern" about their families as the conflict raged and that players felt "fully disconnected" from their loved ones.

Pope Leo said on Sunday that deeply troubling news continued to arrive from Iran and across the Middle East, urging an end to the violence and renewed efforts to open space for dialogue.

Speaking at the Angelus prayer in St. Peter’s Square, the pope said the conflict was fuelling fear and hatred and raised concerns that it could spread further, dragging other countries, including "dear Lebanon".

"Let us raise our humble prayer to the Lord that the roar of bombs may cease, that weapons may fall silent, and that space may be opened for dialogue in which the voices of peoples can be heard", Pope Leo said.

An explosion on Sunday outside the U.S. embassy in Oslo may be linked to the ongoing security situation, but no suspects have been identified, Norwegian police said.

"It's natural to see this in the context of the current security situation and that this could be an attack deliberately targeting the U.S. embassy," police spokesperson Frode Larsen told a news conference.

The United Arab Emirates says Iran has launched 16 ballistic missiles and over 117 drones in new barrages on Sunday.

The UAE's Defence Ministry says it intercepted all 16 missiles, while a 17th fell into the sea. It says it intercepted most of the drones, but four fell in UAE territory. The ministry said it is ready to "firmly confront" the threats.

Iran's president earlier Sunday threatened to increase attacks on US targets across the region in the face of ongoing Israeli and US strikes.

The Emirati statement did not specify the locations of Sunday's attacks.

A Lebanese official has said that 117 Iranians, including diplomats, have been evacuated from Lebanon on a Russian plane.

The UAE's defence ministry said in a statement on Sunday that the death toll due to Iranian attacks on the country has now reached 4.

The United States and Israel have broken international law with their attacks on Iran, Swiss Defence Minister Martin Pfister said in an interview published on Sunday, the latest European leader to raise concerns about the conflict.

Legal experts have said that many countries will consider the attacks unjustified under the United Nations Charter, which requires member countries to refrain from using force or the threat of force without UN authorisation or unless acting in self-defence.

"The Federal Council is of the opinion that the attack on Iran constitutes a violation of international law," Pfister told SonntagsZeitung, referring to the Swiss cabinet.

"In our view, it constitutes a violation of the prohibition of violence," he added, calling on all parties involved to halt the fighting to protect the civilian population.

The body tasked with selecting Iran’s new supreme leader has reached a decision, members say, although the name has yet to be announced.

“The most suitable candidate, approved by the majority of the Assembly of Experts, has been determined,” said Mohsen Heydari, a member of the selection body who represents Khuzestan province, according to Iran’s ISNA news agency.

Another member, Mohammad Mehdi Mirbagheri, confirmed in a video carried by Iran’s Fars news agency that “a firm opinion reflecting the majority view has been reached”.

Pakistan is in coordination with Emirati authorities to repatriate two Pakistani nationals who were killed by missile debris in Dubai, the country’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said.

“Our diplomatic missions in the UAE are closely coordinating with Dubai authorities to provide necessary assistance and facilitate the repatriation of the bodies,” Sharif said on X.

More than 20 people have been killed and 50 others injured in a US-Israeli double-tap missile attack in Iran’s central city of Najafabad, according to the Fars news agency.

The report quoted an unnamed police officer as saying that rescue workers and common residents were helping the injured after a missile attack in the city when the second missile hit the same spot minutes later.

Two Kuwaiti interior ministry officers have been killed while “performing duties,” the ministry said in a post on X Sunday.

The ministry did not provide further details about the circumstances of their deaths.

Fuel distribution in Tehran has been disrupted after intense overnight strikes on storage tanks, according to the governor of the Iranian capital.

Mohammad Sadegh Motamedian said “the problem is being resolved,” according to state news agency IRNA.

There was no shortage of fuel, Motamedian said, but complete restoration of the network might take some time. He appealed to people to “manage their fuel consumption.”

President Donald Trump said on Saturday Britain was giving "serious thought" to sending two aircraft carriers to the Middle East, but added that the U.S. does not need them to win the war with Iran, in the latest clash between the military allies.

Trump has repeatedly criticised British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, suggesting this week that he helped "ruin" the countries' historically close relationship after London blocked initial U.S. use ‌of British bases to attack Iran.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he "will remember" the lack of British support during the conflict with Iran.

"The United Kingdom, our once Great Ally, maybe the Greatest of them all, is finally giving serious thought to sending two aircraft carriers to the Middle East," Trump said.

"That’s OK, Prime Minister Starmer, we don’t need them any longer — But we will remember. We don’t need people that join Wars after we’ve already won!"

Qatar's Ministry of Interior has urged its residents to follow instructions from official authorities and rely only on verified sources when handling information and updates, Khaleej Times reported.

British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper says it is important to learn the lessons from the Iraq war after ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair said the UK should have backed the US over Iran from day one.

“I just disagree. There are some people in politics who think that we should always agree with the US, whatever,” she told the country’s Sky News broadcaster.

“There are other people in politics who think we should never take action with the US again, whatever the circumstances. I don’t think either of those positions is in the UK national interest, and it is the responsibility of Keir Starmer to act in the UK’s national interest for British citizens.”

Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported that Israel has killed at least 19 people, including children, in an attack on a three-storey building in the southern Lebanese village of Sir el Gharbiyeh.

Civil defence and rescue teams are working to remove the rubble and retrieve the bodies, the report said.

The Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) says at least 9,669 civilian units have been destroyed in US-Israeli attacks on Iran.

The statistics provided by the relief NGO included 7,943 residential and 1,617 commercial units.

US Iran war news LIVE updates: Oman Air cancelled flights to nine destinations including Amman, Dubai, Bahrain, Doha, Dammam, Kuwait, Copenhagen, Baghdad and Khasab.

The cancellations will be in place from March 9 to March 15 due to regional airspace closures, the airline said.