A barrage of Iranian missiles killed two people in Israel as Tehran vowed revenge for the assassination of security chief Ali Larijani amid reports that Iran's sole nuclear energy plant was hit by an unidentified projectile.
Iranian authorities confirmed late on March 17 that Larijani, the country's powerful security chief, had been killed, the highest-profile official to die since Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on the first day of US and Israeli air strikes on February 28.
Tehran then fired several missiles into Israel overnight, killing two people near Tel Aviv, saying the attacks were to "honor" Larijani's death.
The nighttime attack on a neighborhood near densely populated areas of Tel Aviv, which also houses important military installations, brought the death toll in the war in Israel to at least 14.
A statement read by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps on state television said the attacks used Khoramshahr-4 and Qadr missiles, both of which carry multiple warheads.
Israel has accused Iran of repeatedly using cluster munitions, which split into several smaller bombs midflight and spread over a wide area, making them difficult to intercept.
Iranian media on March 18 reported strikes in Lorestan Province and Hamedan city, both in the west of Iran, as well as the southern Fars Province.
Israel also intensified its strikes on targets it said are related to Iranian-backed Hezbollah -- which the United States has deemed a terrorist organization -- in Lebanon. Several people were reported dead in the attacks, which are bolstering concerns of a broadening of the conflict throughout the Middle East.
Meanwhile, Rosatom, the Russian operator of the Bushehr nuclear power plant in western Iran, said a projectile hit an area near the facility on March 17, though no damage or injuries or release of radiation were reported.
In response, the International Atomic Energy Agency called for "maximum restraint."
"IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi reiterates the call for maximum restraint during the conflict to prevent risk of a nuclear accident," the nuclear watchdog said in a post on X.
Bushehr is Iran's sole nuclear power plant. Located on the coast of the northern reaches of the Persian Gulf, it is fueled by uranium produced in Russia, not Iran, and is monitored by the IAEA.
Several explosions were also heard in Jerusalem on March 18, following the Israeli military's announcement that it had detected a new wave of missiles fired from Iran.
Larijani was killed along with his son Morteza, his deputy Alireza Bayat, and several bodyguards, the Secretariat of Iran's Supreme National Security Council said in a statement late on March 17. Larijani was secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.
Separately, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) confirmed the death of Gholamreza Soleimani, commander of Iran's paramilitary Basij force, giving few details. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had said Soleimani and Larijani were killed in the same series of strikes on March 16.
On March 18, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the country's military also killed Iranian Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib. While there has been no confirmation from Iran regarding Khatib's death, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said he was "eliminated" in a targeted strike in Tehran.
"Khatib played a significant role during the recent protests throughout Iran, both with regards to the arrest and killing of protestors," IDF statement published on Telegram.
Katz added that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Defense Ministry had previously authorized the Israeli military to target any senior Iranian official without requiring additional approval.
The US-Israeli offensive on Iran, now in its third week, has shown no signs of letting up, with air raid sirens heard in several locations around the Middle East on March 18.
Several loud explosions were heard in Dubai early on March 18 as Emirati officials announced that air defense systems were countering the threat of missiles and drones fired by Iran.
The United Arab Emirates said the country's air defense systems had intercepted 13 ballistic missiles and 27 drones launched by Iran on March 18.
According to Emirati officials, more 2,000 drones and missiles have been fired at the country by Iran since the start of the war.
The US military announced that it had attacked Iranian missile positions near the strategic Strait of Hormuz using so-called bunker-busting bombs.
US Central Command said in a statement on the social media platform X on March 17 that US forces had successfully deployed "multiple 5,000-pound deep penetrating bombs" against fortified Iranian missile sites on the coast near the Strait of Hormuz.
The message added that "the anti-ship cruise missiles deployed at these sites posed a threat to international shipping in this strategic passageway."
Despite continuing strikes miring the region, US President Donald Trump, speaking from the White House on March 17, insisted that the war isn't going to take much longer.
Speaking of his administration's military operation against Iran, he said, "We had to do a short mission to deal with nuclear weapons that were in the hands of a few crazy people; but other than that, it will be over in a week or two and it won't take long."
Trump stopped short of providing a more specific timeframe, adding that "everything is moving very quickly" and that "we are well ahead of schedule."
He also said that the United States had been informed by most of its NATO allies that they don't want to get involved with the country's military operation in Iran.
Trump had called for help securing shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which Tehran has effectively shut down with attacks on vessels and threats of more.
Some countries had said they'd consider such a move, but many others rejected getting involved.
A senior official of the United Arab Emirates said the country is considering joining the US naval initiative.
Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the UAE president, said negotiations are continuing in this regard, but a final decision has not yet been made, and emphasized that ensuring trade and energy security is the shared responsibility of major countries.
Iran's targeting of crude oil and gas producing nations around the Gulf has pushed energy prices up sharply in many countries.
