Missile and drone attacks continued in Iran, Israel and neighbouring countries of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain as the conflict that began on February 28 entered its ninth day on Sunday, March 8.
The "war" in Iran started with the US and Israel launching joint strikes in Tehran and other parts of the Islamic Republic after their nuclear talks failed. Iran retaliated by launching missiles and drones towards Israel and other Gulf countries. It also struck several US embassies in the region.
The conflict hit flight operations across the Middle East. However, several airlines have now resumed limited flights for rescue purposes. Dubai International Airport was shut down on Saturday amid missile threats.
Here's all the latest you need to know about the US-Israel, Iran war:
1. Israel launched a fresh wave of attacks on Iran, after it said it was targeting Tehran’s energy resources. A CNN team in Tehran reported blackened rainwater fell Sunday morning after fuel storage sites were hit.
2. The talks to choose Iran's Supreme Leader have been reportedly taking place after the killing of the former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Assembly of Experts member Ayatollah Mohammadmehdi Mirbaqeri said on Sunday, according to Mehr news agency, that a majority consensus over a successor has more or less been reached. He said, though, that "some obstacles" need to be resolved regarding the process.
3. Meanwhile, the UAE' Ministry of Defence and the Kuwait Army confirmed that their national air defences are currently engaged in responding to “incoming missiles and drones from Iran.”
Kuwait's defense ministry said it confronted missile and drone attacks early Sunday, with the army reporting that drones targeted fuel tanks at the country's international airport.
4. Air raid sirens also sounded in parts of Bahrain, its Ministry of Interior posted on X. Bahrain's interior ministry said on Sunday an Iranian drone attack had damaged a water desalination plant.
Bahrain also said that three people were wounded in Bahrain from shrapnel following a missile attack. The ministry informed that the shrapnel fell over a university building in Muharraq city in Bahrain Sunday morning. The Interior Ministry said fragments of a missile also caused material damage.
5. The UAE, which pumped more than 3.5 million barrels a day as OPEC’s third-biggest producer in January, started cutting oil production at its offshore fields. Kuwait, OPEC’s fifth-biggest producer, reduced oil and refinery production, citing the “ongoing aggression” by Iran.
6. Israel struck southern Lebanon and Beirut again early Sunday and killed 12 more people, the Lebanese health ministry was quoted by the Associated Press as saying, as the war in the Middle East keeps escalating.
7 Israel also targeted Iran’s F-14 fighter jets. Israel’s military said its air force struck Iranian F-14 fighter jets at Isfahan airport during a broad wave of airstrikes on Saturday.
The fighter jets were purchased by pre-revolutionary Iran from the United States. The fleet of F-14s parked at Isfahan Airport was said to be a pillar of the Iranian air force and historically used to defend its airspace. The Israeli military did not say whether the jets were destroyed.
8. Israeli Defence Forces said on Sunday that the strikes targeted commanders of the Lebanese branch of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised “many surprises” for the next phase of the conflict.
9. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian insisted Iran sought good relations with neighboring countries, even as retaliatory strikes continued, Iran International reported, citing state TV.
Pezeshkian said Tehran had repeatedly made clear that it viewed neighbouring states as brothers and wanted strong ties with them.
But he reportedly said Iran was compelled to respond to attacks launched from another country’s territory, adding that such retaliation did not mean Tehran had a dispute with that country or wanted to upset its people.
He accused the “enemy” of trying to sow division between Iran and its neighbours.
His statement came after US President Donald Trump said Iran had apologised to its Middle Eastern neighbours and pledged to stop attacking them following ongoing US and Israeli military operations.
10. White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said there may still be room for a diplomatic deal with what remains of Iran’s government but stressed that Washington is “not looking to settle”.
He said Iranian officials took a hard line in previous talks, insisting they had an “inalienable right to enrich” uranium.
"They bragged about having, 60% enriched fuel, enough for eleven bombs. They told me and Jared [Kushner], 'We're not gonna give you diplomatically what you couldn't take militarily'," Witkoff told reporters as he stood next to President Donald Trump aboard Air Force One.
"I think they're gonna need a change of attitude... we have a lot of negotiating leverage, maybe maximum, but we're not looking to settle. They'd like to settle. We're not looking to settle.
Witkoff 'strongly' told Russia not to help Iran.
11. The US Embassy said commercial flights are currently operating out of Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dhahran, and Saudi airspace remains open with occasional operational pauses.
In another advisory focused on the United Arab Emirates, the US said limited commercial flights are currently operating out of international airports in the UAE.
"There are overland routes to Oman and Saudi Arabia where commercial options to depart the region are operating, but there are reports of congestion," it said.
"Passengers are advised not to travel to the airport unless they hold a confirmed ticket and have been explicitly advised by their airline to do so," the embassy said.
"Americans should strongly consider departing on one of these flights if they believe it is safe to do so. Visit airline websites to find information about flight availability and purchasing tickets," the Embassy said in its latest advisory on Sunday.
12. The United States and Israel discussed sending special forces into Iran to seize its highly enriched uranium stockpiles at a later stage of the war, Axios reported citing four sources with knowledge of the discussions.
13. The Indian Embassy in the UAE issued an advisory against unauthorised filming of incident sites or prohibited areas or inside the airport(s).
14. Iran has so far reported 1,332 deaths in the war, alongside widespread destruction. Scores of others were killed elsewhere in the region and the US has said six service members lost their lives in the conflict.
15. Trump said on Saturday the war would continue “for a little while” and oil prices would come back down.
He told reporters on Air Force One on Saturday there would have to be a “very good reason” for the US to deploy ground troops to Iran, adding that Iranian forces would likely have to be so decimated they wouldn’t be able to resist.
The US president also said he had ruled out the idea of armed Kurdish forces entering Iran to join the fight.
