MARCH 3, 2026
An evacuation warning was issued for people in the Esteghlal Industrial Zone, marked in red on this map, in Tehran. (Israel Defense Forces)
Iran launched a drone strike on the U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia’s capital early Tuesday, escalating attacks across the region as the United States and Israel intensified airstrikes on Iranian targets.
Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry said two drones targeted the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh, causing “limited fire” and minor damage. The embassy urged Americans to avoid the compound. The strike followed an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait, which closed indefinitely on Tuesday.
The intensity of the attacks, the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the lack of any apparent exit plan set the stage for a prolonged conflict with far-reaching consequences. Places deemed safe havens in the Middle East, like Dubai, have seen incoming fire, energy prices have shot up and U.S. allies have pledged to help stop Iranian missiles and drones.
President Donald Trump said military operations could last four to five weeks but warned he was prepared “to go far longer than that.” He added that the U.S. has a “virtually unlimited supply” of munitions and pre-positioned “high-grade weaponry.”
The conflict has left hundreds dead. The Iranian Red Crescent Society said at least 787 people have died in Iran since fighting began, and six U.S. service members have been killed, according to U.S. Central Command.
Trump ‘felt strongly’ that Iran would attack first
Trump told reporters on Tuesday the U.S. led the decision to attack Iran over the weekend, and that he “might have forced [Israel’s] hand” as a result.
“I thought we were going to have a situation where we were going to be attacked,” Trump told reporters.
He said he was very upset with Spain and the United Kingdom. Spain’s president has called the United States’ actions illegal, and the U.K. initially refused the U.S. access to a base that could have made logistics easier.
“Not Winston Churchill we’re dealing with,” Trump said.
China warns of ‘great repercussions’ after attacks on Iran
Beijing condemned the strikes on Iran and called for an immediate cessation of military operations to prevent the conflict from escalating.
That’s the message from Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, according to a readout of their call Tuesday published by the state-run Xinhua news agency. The call was at Sa’ar’s request, Xinhua said.
Wang said China had always advocated for a political settlement of the Iran nuclear issue and that recent talks between Iran and the U.S. had been making clear progress before being disrupted by the military strikes.
Wang asked Sa’ar to ensure the safety of Chinese citizens in Israel.
Ukraine offers to swap drone interceptors for missiles
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine is prepared to provide its domestically produced interceptor drones to Middle Eastern countries in exchange for the American-made air defense missiles it needs.
Ukraine needs U.S. PAC-3 missiles to counter cruise and ballistic missile attacks by Russia’s invading forces in their more than four-year war. Kyiv has also developed cheap and efficient interceptors to combat Russia’s Iranian-designed Shahed drones.
Countries in the Middle East are using the same surface-to-air U.S. missiles to defend against Iranian attacks.
“If they give them (air defense missiles) to us, we will give them our interceptor. This is an equivalent exchange,” Zelenskyy said at a briefing Tuesday.
No coordination between Iran and Hezbollah over strikes against Israel
Ali Bahreini, Iran’s top envoy to U.N. institutions in Geneva, said the Islamic Republic doesn’t need help from outside Iran: “We are capable of defending our country.”
He told reporters on Tuesday, “There hasn’t been any coordination between Iran and Hezbollah,” and said of the Lebanese group, “They decide independently and act independently.”
In a statement posted Monday on social media, the Israeli military said, “Hezbollah is operating on behalf of the Iranian regime, opening fire against the Israeli civilians, and bringing ruin to Lebanon.”
The Iranian-backed militant group fired missiles at Israel on Monday, prompting Israel to retaliate. Israel’s military said its soldiers were operating in southern Lebanon on Tuesday as it continues strikes against Hezbollah.
UAE repels hundreds of missiles and drones
The United Arab Emirates said it possesses all defense capabilities and ammunition stockpiles to protect itself “regardless of the time frame and the length of the escalation period in the region.”
The country’s defense ministry said in a briefing Tuesday that it has repelled hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones. It said a total of 186 missiles and 812 drones were fired toward the country since the weekend.
Ministry spokesperson Abdel Nasser al-Hameedi said injuries stemming from the Iranian attacks and what he called “minor damages” were the result of shrapnel from interception efforts, not a result of successful attacks against the country.
Israeli military issues evacuation order for Tehran ahead of strikes
Israel’s military issued an urgent evacuation warning Tuesday for people in Tehran ahead of planned airstrikes.
The Israeli Defense Forces said it has been attacking the Iranian regime’s military infrastructure in the Tehran region in recent days, and will continue to operate in the area in the coming hours.
“For your safety and health, we ask that you immediately leave the designated area indicated on the map,” the IDF wrote on social media. “Your presence in this area puts your life at risk.”
Qatar condemns Iranian attack on US embassies
Qatar condemned Iran’s drone strike that hit U.S. embassies in Riyadh and Kuwait, deeming them a “blatant violation” of international conventions and law.
“The Iranian attacks on the two embassies contravene international agreements and diplomatic norms that criminalize assaults on diplomatic missions and grant immunity to their premises and staff,” Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
The ministry affirmed Qatar’s “full solidarity” with Saudi Arabia and Kuwait in measures taken to “safeguard their security and the safety of their territories.”
Lawmakers increase push for war powers resolution
Some U.S. lawmakers are pushing back on whether the U.S. military operation in Iran was justified and questioning whether the Trump administration has a plan for the next steps in Iran.
Trump officials are expected on Tuesday to brief the House and Senate on the operation. Key leaders of congressional committees were briefed Monday, and some lawmakers walked away unsatisfied.
“There was no imminent threat to the United States of America by the Iranians,” said Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee. “There was a threat to Israel, but if we equate a threat to Israel as the equivalent of an imminent threat to the United States, then we’re in uncharted territory.”
The House and Senate are expected to convene this week to vote on a war powers resolution.
Israeli air force strikes senior Iranian terror regime commander
The Israeli Air Force struck a senior commander of the Iranian terror regime in Tehran on Tuesday, the Israeli military said.
Israel says Iranian leadership compound destroyed
The Israeli Defense Forces confirmed Tuesday the Iranian leadership’s command center was “dismantled.”
The IDF said the central headquarters was “one of the most heavily secured assets in Iran.”
“The compound that housed the regime’s most senior forum was struck by the IAF overnight using precise intelligence,” the IDF said. “The leaders behind this terror regime, and the headquarters in which they sat, have been eliminated.”
An image of the Iranian terror regime’s leadership command. (Israel Defense Forces)
Americans urged to immediately leave Middle East
The U.S. State Department urged the evacuation of nonemergency personnel and family in Kuwait, as well as Bahrain, Iraq, Qatar, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates as a precaution.
U.S. citizens were urged to leave due to safety risks, though with much of the airspace closed, many remain stranded.
The U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia said it was under attack from Iranian drones on Tuesday and urged Americans to avoid the diplomatic post for the time being.
The Saudi Defense Ministry on early Tuesday said the embassy was attacked by two drones.
Saudi Arabia condemns Iranian drone strike against US embassy
Saudi Arabia condemned Iran’s drone strike that hit the U.S. embassy in Riyadh.
“The brutal Iranian behavior … will push the region into further escalation,” the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement, which reiterated the nation’s right to protect Saudi territories and interests, including “the option of responding to the aggression.”
The Saudi Defense Ministry said the U.S. embassy came under attack from two drones early Tuesday.
Footage aired by the Saudi-owned satellite news channel Al Arabiya showed fire damage to part of the embassy’s roof.
Hezbollah official says it will fight ‘open war’ with Israel
A senior Hezbollah official said that after more than a year of abiding by the ceasefire as Israel’s strikes continued on Lebanon, the group’s patience has ended, leaving it with no option “but to return to resistance” and fight an open war with Israel.
Mohamoud Komati said Tuesday that Hezbollah exercised patience since a ceasefire ended the Israel-Hezbollah war in November 2024, hoping the government’s diplomatic efforts would yield positive results in ending Israeli strikes.
In the comments released by Hezbollah’s media office, Komati blasted the Lebanese government for calling Hezbollah’s actions illegal and demanded it hand over its weapons, saying it did not act to stop Israel’s airstrikes that continued on a nearly daily basis for nearly 15 months.
“The Zionist enemy wanted an open war, which it has not stopped since the ceasefire agreement,” Komati said. “So let it be an open war.”
Israeli military strikes Hezbollah in Beirut
The Israeli military struck a building just after midnight Monday in a southern suburb of Beirut housing Hezbollah’s TV and radio station, causing heavy damage.
The strike came after a warning by the Israeli military to evacuate the building. Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV was interrupted for about an hour before the station resumed its programs.
During the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, Al-Manar TV and al-Nour Radio station were both struck but continued broadcasts from secret locations.
Israeli military says airstrikes hit Iran’s presidential office
The Israeli military said Tuesday it had struck Iran’s presidential office and the building of the country’s Supreme National Security Council.
It said the airstrikes happened overnight.
“In addition, the gathering site of the regime’s most senior forum responsible for security decision-making was targeted, as well as the institution for training Iranian military officers and additional key regime infrastructure,” it added.
Iran did not immediately acknowledge the strikes.
Lebanese army evacuates near Israel
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said the Lebanese army is evacuating some of its positions along the border with Israel.
The agency said the troops are redeploying to other posts.
The report comes after Israel’s military said it is conducting operations inside Lebanon along the border with Israel.
Netanyahu defends Trump’s decision to attack
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on late Monday defended the decision to go to war, contending in an interview on Fox News that Iran was rebuilding “new sites, new places” that would make “their ballistic missile program and their atomic bomb program immune within months,” without providing evidence.
Satellite photos analyzed by the Associated Press showed limited activity at two nuclear sites in Iran before the war, with analysts saying it was likely Tehran was trying to assess damage from American strikes in June and possibly salvage what remained there.
Courtesy/Source: AP / News Nation
