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US President Donald Trump late on March 18 warned Tehran with dire consequences if it again retaliated for an Israeli attack on Iran's massive South Pars gas field. Iran hit Qatar's Ras Laffan gas hub twice, causing "extensive damage." (See post below)
US President Donald Trump late on March 18 warned Tehran with dire consequences if it again retaliated for an Israeli attack on Iran's massive South Pars gas field. Iran hit Qatar's Ras Laffan gas hub twice, causing "extensive damage." (See post below)

live Trump Warns Of Dire Consequences As Iran Hits Qatari Gas Hub Again

As the US-Israeli war with Iran continues to impact and shape the region, journalists from RFE/RL deliver ongoing updates and analysis.

Key Takeaways:

  • US President Donald Trump has warned Tehran of dire consequences if it again retaliated for an Israeli attack on Iran's massive South Pars gas field, an important part of the country's Gulf energy infrastructure.
  • Oil prices surged and global stocks fell sharply on March 19 as escalating attacks on Persian Gulf energy infrastructure heightened fears of supply disruptions.
  • Following an attack on the South Pars gas field on March 18, subsequent incidents have disrupted energy infrastructure across the Middle East.
  • Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian has confirmed the death of the country's intelligence minister Esmail Khatib, whom Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said had been killed in an overnight strike on March 18.
  • Saudi Arabia's foreign minister says the kingdom "reserves the right" to act militarily against Iran after Riyadh was targeted by Iranian ballistic missiles.
  • Iran's only atomic-energy plant was hit by an unidentified projectile, the Russian plant operator said, causing no injuries or release of radiation. It is the first time that the Bushehr nuclear power plant has been hit since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran.
  • Israeli media are reporting that the country's air force has targeted Iranian naval vessels in the Caspian Sea for the first time.
00:08 18.3.2026

Trump: We Are Ahead Of Schedule In Iran

In a meeting with Irish Prime Minister Michael Martin at the White House, US President Donald Trump spoke of his administration's military operation against Iran and reiterated it is not going to take much longer. "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 said on March 17. He stopped short of providing a more specific timeframe, adding that “everything is moving very quickly” and that “we are well ahead of schedule.” March 17 marked day 18 of the US and Israeli military operations against Iran, which the Pentagon calls Operation Epic Fury and Israel calls Operation Roaring Lion.

23:10 17.3.2026

Wall Street Journal: Russia Expands Support For Iran In Targeting US Forces

Russia is “providing satellite imagery and improved drone technology” to help Iran target US forces in the Middle East, The Wall Street Journal reported on March 17, citing people it did not name but said were familiar with the matter.

The technology Russia is providing includes components that are intended improve communication, navigation, and targeting of modified Shahed drones, the newspaper reported.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told British lawmakers on March 17 that Kyiv has “clear evidence that Iranian Shaheds used in the Middle East contain Russian components.”

The Wall Street Journal also said that based on its experience deploying drones in its war against Ukraine, Russia has been offering tactical guidance on how many drones should be used in operations and what altitudes they should strike from.

Additionally, it said Russia has recently provided satellite imagery directly to Iran.

The reported cooperation goes beyond the support first described by The Washington Post, which said Moscow passed along the locations of US military assets in the Middle East and Persian Gulf region.

The Wall Street Journal reported that its sources, who included a senior European intelligence officer and a Middle Eastern diplomat, said the Russian support is believed to have helped Iran carry out recent strikes on US radar systems in the Middle East.

22:20 17.3.2026

Ali Larijani Confirmed Killed

Ali Larijani, one of Iran’s most powerful figures and a close confidant of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been confirmed dead.

Read our obituary here.

20:17 17.3.2026

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy Calls Russia And Iran 'Brothers In Hatred'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy lashed out at Russia and Iran in a speech to the British Parliament, calling their governments “brothers in hatred” and “terrorist regimes” that are helping each other fight wars.

Russia has used Iranian-supplied Shahed drones in its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and has also used Iranian technology to manufacture its own drones. Zelenskyy said that Russia has also provided components for drones Iran has been using as it strikes targets in the region in response to the US-Israeli attacks that began on February 28.

“Iran taught Russia how to launch [Shaheds] and gave [Russia] the technology to produce them. Russia then upgraded them, and now we have clear evidence that Iranian Shaheds used in the Middle East contain Russian components,” Zelenskyy said. “So what is happening today around Iran is not a faraway war for us.”

“The regimes in Russia and Iran are brothers in hatred and that is why they are brothers in weapons, and we want regimes built on hatred to never win in anything,” said Zelenskyy, who also met on March 17 with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and King Charles.

He said he had sent military experts to the Middle East “at the request of our partners, including the United States," in part to help them defend against drone attacks.

Zelenskyy visited Paris last week and heads to Madrid on March 18 as Kyiv and its European supporters seek to keep a spotlight on Russia’s war against Ukraine at a time when the US is focused on Iran and the conflict there threatens to deprive Ukraine of weapons for its defense against Russia.

16:52 17.3.2026

Trump Says NATO Allies Reject Participating In Iran Operation

President Donald Trump says the United States ‌has 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 said in a social media post on March 17 that "we have had such Military Success [against Iran], we no longer 'need,' or desire, the NATO Countries’ assistance."

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.

16:08 17.3.2026

US Counterterrorism Chief Kent Quits Citing Iran Conflict, White House Rejects Claims

Joseph Kent, the ‌head of the United States' National Counterterrorism Center, said he is resigning over the Iran military operation.

Kent said in a letter to President Donald Trump, which he posted on X on March 17, that the United States was deceived into "believing that Iran was an imminent threat" by Israeli officials and "influential members of the American media. He added that while he supported the values and foreign policy Trump talked about during all three of his presidential campaigns, he could not continue given the current situation with Iran.

"I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran," said Kent, a combat veteran whose navy cryptologist wife died in Syria in 2019.

Kent added that he hoped Trump would reverse course and "chart a new path for our nation."

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement on X that Kent made "many false claims" in his letter, including that Iran posed no imminent threat to the United States.

She also called the assertion that Trump was influenced by others "absurd."

"President Trump has been remarkably consistent and has said for DECADES that Iran can NEVER possess a nuclear weapon," she said.

Kent, who was nominated by Trump and confirmed to the post by the Senate, is the highest ranking official in the administration to have stepped down specifically because of the Iran war.

12:32 17.3.2026

In Photos: Iranian Kurds Watch And Wait As Tehran's Air Strikes Hit Region

After initially voicing support, US President Donald Trump says he doesn't want Iran's Kurds to enter the military operation against Tehran -- at least for now. Still, one group of exiled Kurds is "preparing for war" just in case, according to a photographer who visited one stronghold of Iranian Kurds.

Photojournalist Sedat Suna gained access on March 12 to a mountain base of the Komala -- Reform Faction, an armed political entity of Iranian Kurds based in the northeastern region of Iraq that has recently been targeted by Iranian drone strikes.

To see the full photo story, click here.

12:13 17.3.2026

Explosions Rock Baghdad As Drone Strikes Target US Embassy

Witnesses recorded explosions in Baghdad on March 17 as drone strikes targeted the US Embassy compound in the heavily fortified Green Zone in Iraq's capital city.

Footage recorded on mobile phones showed smoke and fire as air defenses intercepted several drones.

Explosions Rock Baghdad As Drone Strikes Target US Embassy Explosions Rock Baghdad As Drone Strikes Target US Embassy
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10:56 17.3.2026

Iran Security Chief Ali Larijani Killed In Strike, Claims Israel

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has claimed that Iran's security chief, Ali Larijani, was killed in an air strike on Tehran.

There was no evidence presented to back up the claim.

Iran appeared to try and refute the statement, showing what it said it was a handwritten note by Larijani from March 17. A photo of the note was also posted on Larijani's X account.

The news on Larijani came just after the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) claimed they had killed Gholamreza Soleimani, commander of Iran's paramilitary Basij force, in the same wave of air strikes on Tehran on March 16.

"Yesterday, the IDF targeted & eliminated Gholamreza Soleimani, who operated as commander of the Basij unit for the past 6 years," it said in the claim, made on March 17.

That report has been neither denied nor confirmed by Iranian authorities.

To read the full report, click here.

07:26 17.3.2026

Women's Soccer Team Heads Home To Iran After 5 Members Give Up Asylum Claims In Australia

Seven members of the Iranian women's soccer team sought asylum in Australia after they declined to sing Iran's national anthem ahead of an Asian Cup game, sparking a backlash on Iranian state media. But five of them later withdrew their asylum claims and joined the rest of the team as they traveled through Malaysia en route to Iran. Two remained behind in Australia as rights advocates raised fresh concerns that some team members were returning home under intense government pressure.

Women's Soccer Team Heads Home To Iran After 5 Members Give Up Asylum Claims In Australia Women's Soccer Team Heads Home To Iran After 5 Members Give Up Asylum Claims In Australia
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