U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday he has demanded about seven countries send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open as fears of a global energy crisis persist. Iranian strikes on commercial ships in and around the strait, and even just the threat of attacks, have slowed shipping there to a trickle.
The U.S. and Israel have kept pummeling what they describe as military targets in Iran's capital, and Israel stepped up its campaign against Iran-backed militants in Lebanon. More than 1 million people have been displaced in Lebanon — roughly 20% of the nation's population — as U.N. peacekeepers say Israel is massing ground troops along the border.
Iran has retaliated with persistent drone and missile attacks on neighboring countries, including oil fields in Iraq and the United Arab Emirates, where a drone strike temporarily closed Dubai's airport, a crucial travel hub.
The war has killed at least 1,300 people in Iran, at least 880 in Lebanon and 12 in Israel, according to officials in those countries. The U.S. military says 13 U.S. service members have been killed and about 200 wounded.
Here is the latest:
Israel launches attacks on Tehran and Beirut
Israel's military said it has begun a "wide scale wave of strikes" across Tehran, minutes after sounding the alarm about the second incoming missiles launch from Iran since midnight Monday into Tuesday.
Israel's military added that it was also striking Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut overnight.
Missile warning in Dubai
Shortly after reopening the UAE's airspace, authorities sent a missile warning alert to people in Dubai.
The sound of explosions could be heard in Dubai as the military worked to intercept the incoming fire.
Sirens sound in Israel
Sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and to its north as Israel's military said early Tuesday morning its air defenses were working to intercept a second launch of missiles from Iran.
Israel's emergency services said no casualties or missile impacts were known to have occurred in the latest launch of missiles from Iran early on Tuesday.
UAE lifts brief airspace closure
The United Arab Emirates lifted a brief airspace closure Tuesday morning after the country faced incoming Iranian attacks.
The state-run WAM news agency quoted the UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority as saying the closure had ended.
Earlier Tuesday, Dubai authorities said "sounds heard in various areas of the city are the result of successful interceptions." They did not elaborate.
The authorities said "the situation stabilized," allowing flights to resume.
The snap announcement early Tuesday showed the balancing act Emirati authorities face in trying to keep their long-haul carriers Emirates and Etihad flying as Iranian attacks continue to target the country.
On Monday, an Iranian drone attack set a fuel tank ablaze at Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest for international travel.
UAE closes airspace as military reports 'missile and drone threats from Iran'
The United Arab Emirates on Tuesday said it temporarily closed its airspace as its military reported it was "responding to incoming missile and drone threats from Iran."
It wasn't immediately clear how long the closure would last and if it was immediately related to the incoming fire from Iran early Tuesday.
The UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority said it made the decision to close its airspace as "an exceptional precautionary measure aimed at ensuring the safety of flights and air crews, and safeguarding the UAE's territory."
The decision comes after an Iranian drone attack set a fuel tank ablaze Monday at Dubai International Airport, the home of the long-haul carrier Emirates and the world's busiest airport for international travel.
400 people killed in Pakistan strike on Afghanistan hospital, Afghan officials say
Afghanistan on Monday accused Pakistan's military of targeting a hospital that treats drug users with airstrikes that Afghanistan's deputy government spokesman says killed 400 people.
In a post on X, Hamdullah Fitrat said a further 250 people have been reported injured.
Pakistan dismissed the accusation that the hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan's capital, was targeted, saying the strikes — which were also conducted in eastern Afghanistan — did not hit any civilian sites.
The alleged attack came hours after Afghan officials said the two sides exchanged fire along their common border, killing four people in Afghanistan, as the deadliest fighting between the neighbors in years entered a third week.
Israel's military says Iran has launched a new salvo of missiles toward Israel
Sirens sounded just south of the Sea of Galilee.
No injuries were reported in the first missile launch of the day from Iran that Israel's military announced very early on Tuesday.
Family of American man held in Iran says he's been designated as wrongfully detained
Kamran Hekmati, a jeweler from Long Island, traveled to Iran last year to visit family but was detained and has been held there since. He is currently imprisoned in the notorious Evin Prison and is believed to be among a half dozen Americans detained in Iran.
The family says the State Department notified them on Monday that Hekmati has been designated as wrongfully detained. Such a designation moves supervision of a detained American's case to the Special Presidential Office of Hostage Affairs, which functions as the U.S. government's chief hostage negotiator.
The State Department last week designated Iran as a state sponsor of wrongful detention, accusing the country of engaging in hostage diplomacy.
Trump asks to delay his upcoming meeting with China's president because of the Mideast war
Trump said he's asked to push off the meeting by a "month or so" because of the war.
"I want to be here," Trump said at the White House. "I have to be here, I feel."
A trip by Trump to China to meet with President Xi Jinping has been scheduled for the end of March and early April.
"I think it's important that I be here. And so it could be that we delay it a little bit" Trump said.
US stocks climb to their best day since the Iran war began after oil prices ease
A drop in oil prices on Monday helped send the U.S. stock market to its best day since the war in Iran began. And for all its dramatic swings over the last couple weeks, including several that struck hour to hour, the S&P 500 is only 4% below its all-time high.
The S&P 500 climbed 1% on Monday for its biggest gain in five weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 387 points, or 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 1.2%.
The driver for markets once again was the price of oil.
A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude fell 5.3% to settle at $93.50, easing some pressure off the economy after topping $102 earlier in the morning. Brent crude, the international standard, fell 2.8% to $100.21 per barrel after earlier getting as high as $106.50.
It's a reprieve, for now at least, after oil prices spiked from roughly $70 before the war.
No reports of Israeli casualties after latest salvo of missiles from Iran
This was the seventh time the Israeli public was warned about incoming Iranian missiles on Monday.
These alerts cause Israelis to head to shelters and disrupt daily life, even as most of the missiles are intercepted. And heavy pieces of debris from intercepted missiles can fall on populated areas.
Earlier Monday, shrapnel fell in and around Jerusalem's Old City, home to some of the world's most revered religious sites.
Sometimes fire by Hezbollah militants in nearby Lebanon, especially targeting northern Israel, comes without those warnings.
Vance is again pressed on past views of military intervention
U.S. Vice President JD Vance showed some irritation at a reporter who asked whether Vance was fully on board with Trump's strategy in Iran, considering his past views on military intervention.
"I know what you're trying to do Phil," JD Vance told the reporter, Phil Wegmann of RealClearPolitics. "You're trying to drive a wedge between members of the administration, between me and the president."
Vance stressed that Trump has said for more than a decade that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, and "I agree with him."
"I think all of us, whether you're a Democrat or a Republican, should pray for success and pray for the safety of our troops," Vance continued. "That's the approach I've taken and make it as successful as possible."
Trump also added: "JD's been great."
Schumer says Trump is 'flailing' over Iran strategy
The Senate Democratic leader criticized the president's claim that he knew all along that Iran could weaponize the Strait of Hormuz in wartime.
"Well, if that's true, he's done a terrible job planning if advance for how to stop it from being used as a weapon," Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York said in a Senate speech. He added that Trump "continues to do a terrible job containing the damage now occurring."
A hotel in Baghdad's Green Zone is struck by a drone
A prominent hotel in central Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone was struck by a drone Monday, officials said.
Two Iraqi security officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, said the strike hit the top floor of the Rasheed Hotel, which houses diplomatic delegations and international organizations, causing damage but no casualties. Security forces cordoned off the area. No group immediately claimed responsibility.
Earlier Monday, the Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia announced that Abu Ali Al-Askari, a prominent security official with the group, had been killed without giving details on the circumstances. In recent days, a number of airstrikes have targeted facilities of the Iraqi militias.
Also Monday, six fighters with the Popular Mobilization Forces, a paramilitary group, were killed in a strike on a checkpoint in western Iraq's Anbar province and two others were killed in a separate strike on a headquarters on a PMF brigade in the same area.
Qatar urges Iran to take a 'clear decision' to stop attacks on Gulf countries
At a news conference in Doha, Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari said Qatar has distanced itself from the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.
"The matter is very simple," he said, "what is required is to stop the attacks on countries that have not targeted Iran."
Qatar hosts Al Udeid Air Base, a sprawling desert facility that serves as a major regional military hub for American forces.
He said Iranian strikes have targeted civilian residential areas and key facilities like Hamad International Airport. He said the Gulf region speaks "one voice" that rejects "Iranian aggression" and calls for de-escalation.
Israel brings journalists to the Old City holy site damaged by shrapnel
Near the roof of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem's Old City, where shrapnel from an intercepted Iranian missile fell Monday, Israel's Foreign Ministry spokesman Oren Marmorstein accused Tehran of targeting holy sites and trying to "escalate" the conflict.
Shrapnel also fell near the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray, and within the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, the third-holiest site in Islam.
Missile strikes on Jerusalem in the past have been rare, apparently because of the presence of the mosque and the nearby golden Dome of the Rock.
Qatar reports missile and drone attacks without casualties
Qatar's Defense Ministry said it intercepted all of the drones — without saying how many — and 13 missiles, while one missile landed in an uninhabited area.
No casualties were reported, it said.
No casualties were reported after the drone hit the Shah oil field Monday evening in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, according to the sheikhdom's media office.
It's the second attack on an oil facility in the UAE on Monday, after a fire broke out in the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone following a drone attack.
Moments later, sirens sounded in parts of central Israel and the West Bank
Kuwait's Defense Ministry says air defense systems were responding to missile and drone attacks Monday evening. It said explosions could be heard amid the interception operations.
The military's chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, said the Isareli army is "determined to deepen the operation until all of our objectives are achieved."
Speaking on a visit to the northern border, Zamir said "We are preparing for what comes next and reinforcing the Northern Command with additional troops in order to strengthen the forward defensive posture, deepen the damage to Hezbollah, and push the threat away from the communities in the north."
The army said in a statement that Zamir approved plans for "continued limited, targeted operations."
A military spokesman said earlier on Monday that the army had deployed additional ground troops into Lebanon for what it calls a "limited and targeted operation."
A Tehran resident said workers paid by the day were struggling especially hard because of the war. The internet blackout also has hammered businesses that normally rely on online sales.
"Money has become scarce, people cannot buy things, and businesses are being damaged," the resident said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals from the government.
The streets were busier than at the beginning of the war, he said, because people were growing desperate and needed to earn money.
Stores still had food. Fuel was not in short supply. Utilities were still functioning. And people could still withdraw money from banks, he said. But he said people were deeply anxious as the attacks persisted.
Even before the war, Iran's economy had been crippled by international sanctions.
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric raised speculation about an eventual U.N.-led initiative after saying the global impact of restrictions or closure of the vital Strait of Hormuz "cannot be underestimated."
He referred to behind-the-scenes negotiations that led to the July 2022 deal that allowed Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Sea after Russia's invasion, saying "silence was the better half of valor."
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres "remains very much engaged and in frequent contact with senior officials in the region and beyond," he said, "but we're not going to be feeding the speculation."
Dujarric said Guterres will head to Brussels on Tuesday for meetings with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and other EU officials.
As the Iran war sends energy costs higher across the 27-nation European Union, Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen said EU energy ministers met Monday in Brussels to discuss targeted, temporary steps to lower bills for businesses and vulnerable households.
Over the longer term, he said the EU will double down on clean energy and domestic production to reduce reliance on volatile global markets, referencing the EU's push to cut dependence on Russian energy after Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
"Now Europe faces again an existential choice: Stay dependent on volatile global energy markets, or finally take control of our own energy future," he said.
About 200 U.S. troops have been wounded since the start of the Iran war though more than 180 service members have returned to duty, Capt. Tim Hawkins, the spokesman for U.S. Central Command, told The Associated Press.
Hawkins said 10 service members are considered seriously wounded.
The previous update released last week by the Pentagon put the number of wounded personnel at around 140 and eight as "severely injured."
CENTCOM has not said when or where those troops were wounded, or given details on the type of injuries.
Since the war in Iran began, 13 U.S. service members have been killed.
A resident of Tehran was driving Monday when an airstrike destroyed a police station in the Iranian capital and heavily damaged neighborhood shops nearby. It appeared the police station had been abandoned days ago.
"The blast was so strong it shook our eardrums. The cars in front of me were almost completely destroyed," the resident said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals from the government.
He quickly drove in reverse to get away. Others abandoned their cars, he said.
The government sealed off the area and detained anyone trying to photograph it.
"The situation felt like the end of the world," he said.
Two Iraqi security officials said that the Majnoon oil field in Iraq's southern Basra province was targeted by two drones Monday.
No casualties were reported, and it was not immediately clear if there was damage to the facilities.
Iraq's oil industry has been severely impacted by the American-Israeli war with Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil trading corridor.
Another security official said that air defenses shot down a drone that attempted to target a U.S. logistics support center near the Baghdad airport. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.
Iran and Iran-backed Iraqi militias have launched dozens of attacks against U.S. facilities in Iraq since the beginning of the war.
There's an "evident" buildup of Israeli troops inside Lebanese territory in at least six locations near the Blue Line, the border with Israel, said the U.N. peacekeeping force spokesperson Kandice Ardiel.
UNIFIL peacekeepers have also seen clashes around the villages of Odaisseh and Khiam in the region. In some cases, she said, Israeli ground incursions reached at least 5 kilometers (3 miles) into Lebanese territory, although forces have not established permanent positions that deep.
The Israeli military has said it is moving more troops into Lebanon as it attempts to push Hezbollah away from the border but has not given numbers.
U.N. peacekeepers have not been able to move around or monitor the situation fully because of the current fighting, Ardiel noted.