Commander of Iran's paramilitary Basij force killed, Iranian state media says Gholamreza Soleimani, the commander of Iran's paramilitary Basij force, was killed in US-Israel attacks, Iran's state media said on Tuesday. Earlier on Tuesday, Israel had said it killed Soleimani.
Projectile hits area near Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant A projectile hit the area near Iran's Bushehr Nuclear power plant on Tuesday, Iran's Tansim news agency reported, citing the country's Atomic Energy Organisation. No damage had been reported, according to the Atomic Energy Organisation. The projectile hit the vicinity of the nuclear power plant in the port city of Bushehr at around 7 pm local time, the news agency added.
Seven drones intercepted in 'past several hours', Saudi Arabia says Saudi Arabia’s defence ministry said on X that seven drones were intercepted and destroyed “in the past several hours” in the country’s oil-rich eastern region.
Leqaa Kordia, longest-detained pro-Palestine protester, freed from ICE custody Submitted by MEE staff on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 15:13 A US immigration judge set her bond at $100,000, despite her not being a flight risk Leqaa Kordia poses for a photo after her release from the Prairieland detention facility in Alvarado, Texas, on 16 March 2026 (Gazamom/X) Off After spending two consecutive Ramadans behind bars, Leqaa Kordia was freed from US immigration detention on Monday, in what her lawyers have described as a "staggering" $100,000 bond. Her legal team said the bond was "nonetheless... paid immediately".
Ali Larijani: What does the death of philosopher security chief mean for Iran? Submitted by Rayhan Uddin on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 17:00 Tehran loses versatile operator across military, legislative and cultural spheres, but analysts say the Islamic Republic is 'designed to absorb' it Ali Larijani attends a ceremony held by Hezbollah to commemorate the first anniversary of their late leader Hassan Nasrallah's killing by Israel, on the outskirts of Beirut, Lebanon, on 27 September 2025 (Reuters/Mohamed Azakir) Off Ali Larijani, a politician, security chief and philosopher, was Iran ’s renaissance man. The 67-year-old, whom Israel says it killed overnight, was one of the state’s most versatile figures, holding decades of experience in the military, legislative and cultural spheres.
Unrealistic to expect controlled regime change in Iran, Germany says Germany's Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on Tuesday said it was not realistic to expect controlled regime change in Iran and said the war could not have a military solution. "There will be no military solution. And to have a controlled regime change, is, I would say, a hypothetical idea, which is not realistic," he said, speaking alongside his French counterpart Jean-Noël Barrot in Berlin at an event hosted by the ZEIT media group.
US counterterror chief says in resignation letter Israel 'deceived' Trump into attacking Iran A senior Trump administration official in the directorate of national intelligence has resigned over the war on Iran , saying that the US president was tricked into the conflict by an Israeli and pro-war “echo chamber”. “I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,” Joseph Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Centre, wrote in a resignation letter shared on Tuesday.
US embassy and diplomatic facility in Baghdad targeted by rocket and drone attacks Rockets and an explosive drone targeted the US embassy in Baghdad, triggering sirens, and an explosion was heard near the compound, security sources said. The attack comes after a series of earlier strikes on the same day. At least three explosive drones also targeted a US diplomatic facility near Baghdad International Airport, activating C-RAM air defence systems, the sources added.
US counterterror chief says in resignation letter Israel 'deceived' Trump into attacking Iran Submitted by Sean Mathews on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 14:53 Joseph Kent's resignation is the highest-profile indictment against Israel by a sitting US official in history Joseph Kent, director of the US National Counterterrorism Center, testifies during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on 11 December 2025 (Saul Loeb/AFP) Off A senior Trump administration official in the directorate of national intelligence has resigned over the war on Iran , saying that the US president was tricked into the conflict by an Israeli and pro-war “echo chamber”. “I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,” Joseph Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, wrote in a resignation letter shared on Tuesday.
UAE could join international effort to secure Strait of Hormuz, says adviser Anwar Gargash, a diplomatic adviser to the president of the UAE, said on Tuesday that his country could join an international effort led by the US to ensure the safety and security of the Strait of Hormuz. Speaking in an online event organised by American think tank the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), Gargash said that the UAE does not currently have active talks with Iran. Iran moved to close the strait last week in response to Israel and US attacks on the country, blocking a passage where more than 20 percent of the world’s oil and gas supply moves through.
Israel has ‘won’ war with Iran, Israeli foreign minister says Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Tuesday the country had effectively won its war with Iran, but gave no indication of when the war might end. Speaking at a news conference, Saar said Israel was seeking to remove "existential threats", but did not say how the government would determine when those goals had been met. "One must be patient," he said, speaking on the 18th day of a war that has killed more than 2,000 civilians, most of them in Iran and Lebanon, but also in Israel, Iraq and across the Gulf.
Turkiye calls Israel’s killings of Iran leaders ‘illegal’ Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has lashed out at Israel after it claimed to have killed Iran’s powerful national security chief Ali Larijani, denouncing its targeting of Tehran’s leaders as “illegal”. “Israel’s political assassinations, especially those targeting Iranian statesmen and politicians, are truly illegal activities outside the normal laws of war,” Fidan told a news conference. Larijani’s death has not been confirmed by Iran.
Al-Aqsa Mosque closure heralds a dark new chapter for Palestinians Submitted by Lubna Masarwa on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 15:36 Israel is using the Iran war as a pretext to empty the complex of worshippers, as it pushes to exert full control over the holy site Palestinian Muslims pray outside the Old City of Jerusalem during Ramadan on 15 March 2026, as the nearby Al-Aqsa Mosque remains closed by Israel (Ahmad Gharabli/AFP) Off It’s the last Friday of Ramadan, and the Old City of Jerusalem is a ghost town. Al-Wad, the main street that leads to Al-Aqsa Mosque , is empty, and the shops selling sweets, herbs and clothes are all closed. Even the pharmacies and the famous Abu Khadija’s coffee shop have been forced to shut their doors.
Israel 'assessed Iranians would be slaughtered' if they rise up against Islamic Republic Submitted by MEE staff on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 15:47 Israeli officials reportedly say Iran's ruling establishment 'not cracking' and would defeat popular uprising despite calls from US, Israel and Pahlavi An Iranian woman holds an image of the new supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei as she takes part in the Al-Quds Day rally (AFP) Off Israel has privately assessed that Iranians would be "slaughtered" if they took to the streets against the Islamic Republic, despite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeatedly calling for them to do so. According to a State Department cable reviewed by the Washington Post, a number of Israeli officials privately admitted to their US counterparts that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had the "upper hand" and would quickly overwhelm them. In spite of boasts from both the US and Israel, the officials conceded that the Islamic Republic was "not cracking” and was willing to “fight to the end" and any attempt by anti-government activists to take control would likely be a disaster.
Israeli press review: Confusion over army's plan in Lebanon Submitted by Nadav Rapaport on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 15:45 Meanwhile, Israel's closed gas rigs are proving costly, while interceptor production capacity is limited Smoke rises from an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon, 17 March 2026 (AFP) Off Confusion over Israeli army plan in Lebanon On Monday, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said the army had launched “a ground manoeuvre in Lebanon to remove threats and protect” the residents of northern Israel . Katz said that “hundreds of thousands of Shiite residents of southern Lebanon who have fled or are fleeing their homes will not be allowed to return south of the Litani area until the security of the northern residents is ensured. ” But the Israeli media is reporting what appears to be a conflict between public statements regarding the nature of the operation and the operation’s actual intentions.
US pushes for Syria to send troops into Lebanon, Damascus hesitant: Report The US has pushed for Syria to consider sending forces into eastern Lebanon, but Damasus is reluctant to be drawn into the conflict, Reuters is reporting citing five sources briefed on the matter. According to the sources -two of whom are Syrian officials- the idea was first discussed by US and Syrian officials last year. They said the proposal was raised again by US officials around the time of the launch of US-Israeli attacks on Iran.
Palestinian Islamic leader issues fatwa calling for Eid prayers outside Al-Aqsa Mosque Submitted by Lubna Masarwa on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 13:02 Ekrima Sa'id Sabri issues religious edict after Israel forces closure of Al-Aqsa during Ramadan An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man prays in front of the closed Western Wall overlooking the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in the Old city of Jerusalem on 13 March 2026 (Olympia De Maismont/AFP) Off A leading Palestinian Islamic cleric has issued a fatwa calling for Eid prayers outside Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, after access to the site was blocked by the Israelis . Ekrima Sa'id Sabri, a preacher at the mosque and a member of the Islamic Waqf Department, said all Muslims should attend the Friday event and pray at the nearest possible location to the site, considered one of the holiest in Islam. “It has become clear to everyone that the closure of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque since the beginning of the war on Iran carries Israeli political goals and agendas, related to an attempt to exploit this major regional event in order to push Judaisation plans on the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque,” said Khaled Zabarqa, Sabri’s lawyer, speaking to Middle East Eye.
One killed, one wounded in Israeli attack on southern Lebanon One person has been killed and another wounded in an Israeli attack between the southern Lebanese towns of Abba and Jebchit, the country's National News Agency is reporting. According to the report, the air stike hit a car near a school. The Lebanese Ministry of Public Health reported that 912 people have been killed in Israeli attacks on the country since 2 March.
At least 912 people killed in Israeli attacks on Lebanon At least 912 people have been killed in Israeli attacks on Lebanon since 2 March, the country's Ministry of Public Health is reporting. It added that another 2,221 have been wounded since Israel renewed its assault.
The UN investigates strike on Iranian girls' school Submitted by MEE staff on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 13:39 Initial investigations by US and independent groups point to US responsibility Coffins on the day of the funeral of victims of a reported strike on a school in Minab, Iran, 3 March 2026 (Amirhossein Khorgooei/ISNA/WANA/Reuters) Off A UN fact-finding group has begun investigating an air strike that hit Shajareh Tayyebeh primary school in the southern city of Minab on the first day of the US-Israeli war on Iran. The attack, which killed at least 175 people, most of them children, is also being probed by US military investigators, with preliminary findings saying the US military was responsible for the attack, Reuters reported. The New York Times reported that officers at US Central Command had created the target coordinates for the strike using outdated data provided by the Defense Intelligence Agency, citing people briefed on the investigation.
