(260318) -- ADANA, March 18, 2026 (Xinhua) -- Turkish Defense Ministry Spokesperson Rear Admiral Zeki Akturk speaks at a press briefing in Incirlik Air Base in the southern province of Adana, Trkiye, on March 18, 2026.
The Israeli military said on Wednesday that it had killed Esmaeil Khatib in an airstrike. Iran did not immediately comment.
Israeli gas strike 'carried out with US support and approval' A senior Israeli official said that the attacks on the largest natural gas site in Iran was carried out in with US approval and coordination, according to Israeli journalist Barak Ravid . On his Truth Social platform, US President Donald Trump posted after the strike: "Remember, for all of those absolute 'fools' out there, Iran is considered, by everyone, to be the NUMBER ONE STATE SPONSOR OF TERROR. We are rapidly putting them out of business!
According to information obtained by IranWire, suppressive forces began firing from street level around 9:00 PM on the evening of Januar ...
'We are crazy radicals': Israel's anti-war protesters struggle against ruling consensus Submitted by Jared Hillel on Wed, 03/18/2026 - 12:21 Israel's political and media class back the war on Iran, with the public following suit Protesters hold placards during a Stop The War demonstration, amid the US-Israel war on Iran, in central Tel Aviv, Israel, 7 March 2026 (Dylan Martinez/Reuters) Off On Saturday night, as the war on Iran entered its third week, a small group of Israelis assembled in central Jerusalem. “One, two, three four, we don’t want your fucking war,” chanted protesters, some dressed in orange jumpsuits and donning masks bearing the face of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Earlier that day, a protest with similar aims had been held in Tel Aviv.
Iran orders evacuation of Gulf energy faculties in response to Israel strike Fars News Agency reports that Iran intends to respond to strikes on its gas faculties by targeting “enemy infrastructure that was previously thought to be safe”, citing Iranian military sources. The Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has posted an “urgent warning” for people to evacuate five energy facilities in the Gulf. Its targets include: the Samref refinery, the al-Jubail petrochemical complex and Masaiid Holding Company in Saudi Arabia, the al-Hosn gas field in the United Arab Emirates and the Ras Laffan refinery in Qatar.
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) warned members of the public to stay clear of oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar.
Israeli air force hits Iranian gas infrastructure Israeli jets hit natural gas facilties in Iran, according to Israeli officials and Iranian state media. South Pars is the world’s largest natural gas field and is located in the Bushehr province, southern Iran. The facility is now on fire and rescue and fire departments have arrived at the scene, according to Fars News Agency.
Tehran [Iran], March 18 (ANI): A funeral ceremony is underway in Tehran on Wednesday for top security official, Ali Larijani, and head of the Basij forces, Major General Gholamreza Soleimani, according to the Iranian state media Press TV. According to Press TV, Iran is holding funerals for Ali Larijani and Gholamreza Soleimani, as well as for the slain sailors of the Iranian naval vessel IRIS Dena.
Israeli strikes on Lebanon leave a classroom of children dead or wounded every day, UN says Submitted by Fleur Hargreaves on Wed, 03/18/2026 - 11:58 Unicef says Israeli attacks killing or wounding 30 children daily, the equivalent of a classroom A child sleeps alongside family belongings in a makeshift encampment along the waterfront in Beirut on 10 March 2026 (AFP) Off Israel ’s war on Lebanon has killed or wounded the equivalent of an entire classroom of children daily, according to a top official of the UN children’s agency. Lebanon’s health ministry reported that Israeli strikes have killed at least 111 children and wounded 334 since Israel expanded its attacks on Lebanon two weeks ago. “That’s a classroom of children every day since the beginning of the war that’s either killed or injured in Lebanon,” Unicef Deputy Executive Director Ted Chaiban told Reuters in Beirut on Tuesday.
Iran tells Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE to evacuate energy facilities after Israel hits gas plant Submitted by MEE staff on Wed, 03/18/2026 - 13:22 Warning comes shortly after strike on natural gas field in Iran Off Iran has issued an order to the Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and UAE to evacuate their petrochemical facilities, implying an impending attack. The warning, issued from state media, comes shortly after a US-Israeli attack on the South Pars gas field in Iran. More to follow...
Sky News 'to end ties with UAE-based Sky News Arabia' over Sudan war Submitted by Alex MacDonald on Wed, 03/18/2026 - 11:33 Sky staff say outlet became 'mouthpiece' for UAE and whitewashed RSF atrocities in Darfur Emiratis stand in front of the Sky News Arabia logo during the launch of the network in Abu Dhabi on 6 May 2012 (AFP/Marwan Naamani) Off Sky News is set to sever ties with its UAE-based Arabic sister channel over the broadcaster's coverage of the war in Sudan . According to the Daily Telegraph, the company will withdraw Sky News Arabia’s licence to use its brand next year after it was accused of whitewashing human rights abuses carried out by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan. The group has been accused of genocide and mass sexual violence in Darfur.
Responding to the arrest in Norway of humanitarian worker and founder of the NGO Aegean Boat Report, Tommy Olsen, who is being prosecuted in Greece alongside fellow human rights defender Panayote Dimitras, of the NGO Greek Helsinki Monitor, on charges related to their work defending the rights of refugees and migrants, Dinushika Dissanayake Amnesty International’s […] The post Norway: Release human rights defender Tommy Olsen and reject his extradition to Greece appeared first on Amnesty International .
WASHINGTON -- Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur has called for unity between the United States and its European allies as US President Donald Trump signals frustration with NATO members after several resisted his calls to help Washington during its military action in Iran.
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi sounded a warning that any participation in the US-Israeli war of aggression against the Islamic Republic will be tantamount to complicity in war crimes.
Esmail Khatib said to be third senior Iranian figure killed in 24 hours as Israel authorises military to kill targeted officials Middle East crisis – live updates Israel claimed on Wednesday to have killed a third senior Iranian figure in 24 hours, stating that its forces had “eliminated” Tehran’s intelligence minister, Esmail Khatib, in an overnight strike. If confirmed, his death would follow those of Ali Larijani , the head of the supreme national security apparatus, and the commander of the Basij militia, Gholamreza Soleimani. Continue reading...
Will Israel and Trump force the ICC to drop the Netanyahu arrest warrant? Submitted by Sondos Asem on Mon, 02/16/2026 - 22:32 In a wide-ranging interview, Professor Kevin Jon Heller explains the turbulent 15-year history of the Palestine probe, Israel’s challenge to Netanyahu's arrest warrant, and what US sanctions mean for the court's future " class="video-embed-field-lazy container-element"> Off The arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-Defence Minister Yoav Gallant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 2024 have unleashed a ferocious campaign of threats and sanctions against the court by Israel and the United States, primarily aimed at pressuring it to drop the war crimes investigation. To unpack the 15-year process that led to the warrants, Middle East Eye sat down with ICC expert Kevin Jon Heller for the latest episode of the Expert Witness podcast, filmed on 5 February.
Russia condemns the 'murder' of Ali Larijani Russia has condemned the killing of Iranian officials including security chief Ali Larijani, following Israeli strikes that targeted Tehran’s leadership. Speaking on Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov condemned the attacks a day after Iran confirmed the death of the Supreme National Security Council secretary, Ali Larijani. “We strongly condemn actions aimed at causing harm to the health, or especially the murder and liquidation, of representatives of the leadership of sovereign Iran … as well as other countries.
Esmail Khatib, killed in overnight strikes, mattered not because he ran spies but because he helped redraw the line between politics and security, turning dissent into an intelligence battlefield and recasting protest as hybrid war.
'Act of domination': Top Tory MP criticised for attack on Muslims praying in Trafalgar Square Submitted by Imran Mulla on Wed, 03/18/2026 - 11:22 The shadow justice secretary suggested Muslims praying at the interfaith Open Iftar event was 'straight from the Islamist playbook' The Open Iftar in Trafalgar Square last weekend was organised by the Ramadan Tent Project (Screengrab/X) Off Conservative shadow justice secretary Nick Timothy has been widely condemned by fellow parliamentarians for criticising Muslims praying in Trafalgar Square at an "Open Iftar" event and accusing them of an "act of domination". The event over the weekend in London's iconic landmark reportedly attracted people of many different faiths and was attended by London Mayor Sadiq Khan , who hailed it as the "biggest iftar in the western world". Khan said in an address to the crowd that he had met Christians, Jews, Hindus, Sikhs and atheists attending the event.
