US-Israel attack Iran highlights: US embassies in Riyadh, Kuwait 'struck by drones'; Americans asked to leave 14 nations

Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the US expected to have additional losses.

“We grieve with you, and we will never forget you," he said of the family members of those killed.

Hegseth said on Monday that the war against Iran is not an effort to build democracy in the Islamic Republic.

"No stupid rules of engagement, no nation-building quagmire, no democracy-building exercise. No politically correct wars. We fight to win, and we don't waste time or lives," Hegseth told a news conference.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Monday that military operations against Iran would not lead to an "endless war" and that the aim was to destroy Tehran's missiles, Navy and other security infrastructure.

"We're hitting them surgically, overwhelmingly and unapologetically," Hegseth said during a press conference at the Pentagon.

U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a press briefing that the Operation in Iran is not an Iraq war.

“It is not an endless war,” he told the media.

China on Monday denied reports of finalising a deal with Iran to sell CM-302 supersonic anti-ship missiles before the joint US-Israeli airstrikes on the country.

If delivered, the missiles would be among the most advanced military hardware to be transferred to Iran by China in recent years, according to media reports.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that the report of the deal is part of a disinformation campaign.

"The report is not true. As a responsible major country, China always abides by its international obligations. China opposes ill-intentioned association and the spread of disinformation, and hopes relevant sides will choose the course of action conducive to de-escalating the tense situation," she said.

Etihad Airways has resumed some flight operations in the UAE amid the escalating war in the region.

According to a Reuters report, citing flight radar and Etihad website data, some flight operations have resumed in the UAE, despite the airline previously saying it was cancelling operations until at least March 3.

A fourth US service member who was wounded during Iran's initial attacks has "succumbed to their injuries", the US Central Command says.

Apparent Iranian strikes have been reported across the region. The US does not say where the attack in which this service member was injured took place.

Qatar Energy, one of the world’s top natural gas producers, announced it had halted production of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and associated products.

A concerted attack by Iran on Saudi oil infrastructure could trigger a military response from the kingdom, a source close to the Saudi government told AFP on Monday.

Saudi Arabia would target "Iranian oil facilities if Iran mounts a concerted attack on Aramco", the source told AFP, referring to the state oil giant.

The World Health Organisation said on Monday that a hospital in Iran's capital has been evacuated after explosions nearby and that it is working to verify reports that three other medical centres in the country had been hit since the start of the U.S.-Israeli air war against Iran on February 28.

"We understand patients were moved due to nearby explosions that caused collateral damage to the hospital," said a WHO spokesperson, referring to the Gandhi Hospital in Tehran.

Witnesses told Reuters on March 1 that the hospital had been hit by Israeli strikes.

The WHO spokesperson said it is working to verify reports of alleged damage to the Motahari Hospital in Tehran and to emergency medical centres in Sarab, in northwestern Iran, and another in the western province of Hamadan.

Two Iranian drones targeted a facility at Ras Laffan, QatarEnergy's onshore gas processing base, and a separate power plant, the Qatari defence ministry said, on the third day of Iranian retaliatory strikes against countries in the region.

One drone "targeted an energy facility in Ras Laffan Industrial City, belonging to QatarEnergy", the ministry said in a statement, referring to the complex 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of Doha.

Another "targeted a water tank belonging to a power plant in Mesaieed", the statement said, referring to an area 40km south of the Qatari capital, which is also a key base for Qatar's natural gas production.

There were no reports of casualties, it added.

Iran’s president has appointed Revolutionary Guards general Majid Ebnelreza as acting defence minister after his predecessor was killed in Israeli-US strikes.

“By order of President Masoud Pezeshkian, Revolutionary Guards general Majid Ebnelreza has been appointed as acting defence minister,” said deputy for presidential communications Mehdi Tabatabaei on X.

A British sovereign base in Cyprus was being evacuated on Monday after sirens sounded, AFP reported.

About 70 cars were seen leaving the Akrotiri base area on the southern coast of the Mediterranean island, the report said, adding that most of them bore civilian license plates.

In addition to British and other military personnel, the base also houses civilians working there.

Israel's military said it was extending the closure of educational establishments and workplaces until 8:00 pm (local time) on Wednesday, as the joint US-Israeli attack against Iran entered its third day.

"Following a fresh assessment amid the conflict with Iran, the (Israeli military) Home Front Command says restrictions imposed nationwide remain unchanged until Wednesday night. All gatherings, educational activities, and workplaces, except for essential sectors, will remain prohibited," a military statement said on Monday.

The Lebanese PM has said that the country is banning Hezbollah's military activities.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said only the state decides whether to go to war or peace. He added on Monday that all of Hezbollah’s military activities are banned and Hezbollah should only work in politics.

The government called on security agencies to prevent the firing of missiles or drones and detain those behind it.

US military said that all six aircrew of the 3 downed F-15s ejected safely, have been safely recovered, and are in stable condition.

The US military has said that Kuwait “mistakenly shot down” 3 American F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft during combat in the operation against Iran.

Loud explosions were heard on Monday in several parts of the Iranian capital, AFP reported, on the third day of war with Israel and the United States.

The ongoing blasts shook apartment buildings in central Tehran and were also felt in the city's east, the journalists reported. It was not immediately clear what the target was.

A passenger air terminal in Paphos, Cyprus, was evacuated on Monday after a suspect object was picked up on radar, the Cyprus state broadcaster reported.

Paphos Airport on the western coast of the island lies within the territory of the Republic of Cyprus. It is about 60 kilometres (37 miles) from Britain's RAF Akrotiri, which was hit by an unmanned drone overnight. Just after midday Monday (local time), sirens sounded at the British base, and aircraft took off.

A bomb-carrying drone boat struck a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman on Monday, killing one mariner on board, Oman said.

The state-run Oman News Agency reported the attack in the Gulf of Oman off the coast of Muscat, the sultanate's capital. It identified the vessel as the MKD VYOM. It said the dead crew member was from India.

Iran has been threatening vessels approaching the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, and is believed to have launched multiple attacks as the war in the Mideast continues after Israel and the United States started a major airstrike campaign targeting the Islamic Republic.

Chevron says it has been instructed by Israel’s Energy Ministry to temporarily shut production at the giant Leviathan gas field, where it is in the process of expanding capacity to about 21 billion cubic metres a year as part of a $35bn export deal to Egypt, according to Reuters.

A spokesperson for Chevron, which also operates the Tamar gas field offshore Israel, said its facilities were safe, the news agency reported.

IDF has given an all-clear to people across Israel to leave protected spaces

“Following the situational assessment, the Home Front Command published that it is now permitted to leave protected spaces in all areas across the country and to remain near them. The public is requested to continue to follow the instructions of the Home Front Command and the instructions sent to you,” it said in a statement.

A British Royal Air Force (RAF) base in Cyprus was hit by an Iranian one-way attack drone during the ongoing US and Israeli strikes launched on Tehran over the weekend, confirmed by Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides on Monday.

The UK's Ministry of Defence (MoD) said RAF Akrotiri sustained "minimal damage" on Sunday at around midnight local time, with no casualties reported.

It came hours after Prime Minister Keir Starmer's video statement announcing the UK's decision to allow the United States permission to use British bases for "limited defensive" operations to protect British lives and interests in West Asia.

"Our base and personnel continue to operate as normal protecting the safety of Britain and our interests," an MoD spokesperson said.

Iran attacked the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, AzerNEWS reported, citing the Public Relations Department of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Additionally, Iran claims to have targeted a location where the commander of the Israeli Air Force was present.

The status of Netanyahu remains unclear, according to the report.

US Iran war Live updates: A slew of mixed reactions, though not so much grief, flooded social media platforms as videos of Iranian women crying and dancing in joy after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's death in the recent US-Israeli strikes went viral.

Several Iranian women purportedly started what social media is calling the "Trump dance" trend, a set of dance moves supposed to be an ode to the US President for the strikes that took out the Iranian supreme leader.

In contrast, thousands of Iranians were seen gathering in the squares of Tehran to mourn their leader, shedding tears for "martyr" Khamenei. Read more here.