live Trump Says US 'Talking To The Right People' In Iran

Qatar's Interior Ministry announced that six people have died after a military helicopter crashed in the country's territorial waters, and a search operation to find the last person is under way.

In the early hours of March 22, Qatari authorities announced that the helicopter had crashed "due to a technical malfunction." Confirming the incident, the Defense Ministry said the helicopter had crashed during a "routine mission."

AFP reported that three of the victims were Turkish citizens.

Turkey's Defense Ministry released a statement on X on March 22 about the incident, saying: "A helicopter belonging to the Qatari Armed Forces, which was conducting training activities within the framework of the Qatar-Turkey Joint Command Force, crashed into the sea on the evening of March 21, reportedly due to a technical malfunction.

The ministry added that "military cooperation and coordination activities" between Turkey and Qatar "continue interrupted."

Over the past few weeks of the US-Israeli war with Iran, energy infrastructure in Qatar, like other countries on the Persian Gulf, has been the target of air strikes. On March 17, the country expelled the military and security attaches of the Iranian Embassy in Qatar.

This is the first reported human loss in Qatar during the war.

The value of the world's 20 largest airlines has fallen by a total of about $53 billion since the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran in late February, the Financial Times reported.

The aviation industry is experiencing its worst crisis since the coronavirus pandemic, the report said, as the war has disrupted major airports across the Persian Gulf and grounded many flights.

Airline executives have also warned of the possibility of fuel shortages, a concern that has been growing as the war continues into its fourth week.

The price of jet fuel, which accounts for about a third of airlines' costs, has almost doubled since the start of the war, The Financial Times said, which could lead to an increase in the price of airline tickets.

A British maritime watchdog announced that an unidentified projectile had exploded near a cargo ship in the waters of the United Arab Emirates on March 22.

The incident occurred about 15 nautical miles north of Sharjah and no crew members were injured, according to the British Maritime Trade Operations Authority.

At the same time, the Saudi Ministry of Defense announced that three ballistic missiles were fired toward the Riyadh region, one of which was intercepted and two others fell in uninhabited areas. Five drones were also intercepted early on March 22.

In another development, Qatari authorities announced that a military helicopter of the country crashed in regional waters due to a technical malfunction. The search operation to find the crew and passengers of the helicopter is ongoing, and details about the number of people on board have not yet been released.

Israel and Iran appeared to intensify risks of a major disaster, with each side striking close to nuclear facilities of the other combatant, raising the rhetoric level in Tel Aviv and Tehran and worrying the UN atomic watchdog.

An Iranian missile on March 21 hit the Israeli town of Dimona, which is home to a nuclear facility, in what Tehran said was in retaliation for strikes on its Natanz uranium enrichment facility earlier in the day.

Israel has never publicly acknowledged that it has a nuclear weapon and the Dimona complex is officially described as a research facility. The site, just outside the main town, is widely believed to possess Israel’s nuclear arsenal, the only such holding in the Middle East.

After the earlier strike on Iran’s Natanz site, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reiterated its call for “military restraint to prevent a nuclear accident.”

The IAEA then repeated the call for “maximum military restraint” following Iran’s missile launch against Dimona.

"The IAEA is aware of reports of an incident in the city of Dimona, Israel, involving a missile impact and has not received any indication of damage to the nuclear research center Negev," the agency said on X.

"Information from regional states indicates that no abnormal radiation levels have been detected," it added.

Read more here.

US President Donald Trump gave Iran 48 hours to "fully open" the crucial Strait of Hormuz, a 33-kilometer-wide waterway through which about one-third of the world's seaborne oil passes.

In a social media post at 7:44 PM Eastern time on March 21, Trump wrote:

"If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP"

Following Trump's post, the Unified Combatant Command of Iran's military was quoted by state media as saying that if Iran's fuel and energy infrastructure is attacked, all energy infrastructure belonging to the United States in the region will be targeted.

Iran has nearly closed the strait located off its coast following the US-Israeli air strikes that began on February 28. Tehran has also fired off missiles at energy sites throughout the Gulf region, targeting allies of the United States.

Trump has demanded that countries that utilize the strait for transport of their energy resources take part in a mission to secure the waterway with military escorts and other means.

Read more here.

The British newspaper The Daily Mail reported that a British ⁠nuclear-powered ‌submarine equipped with Tomahawk ⁠cruise missiles has taken position ⁠in ‌the Arabian Sea.

The report said the deployment of the HMS Anson gives Britain the capability to launch ‌long-range strikes if regional conflict escalates.

The Daily Mail said the submarine traveled some 8,800 kilometers from Australia to await orders. The report could not immediately be verified.

Britain said its Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus would not ⁠be involved in ⁠its new agreement with the United States to use UK bases.

The announcement came on March 21 after a phone call between British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Cypriot President Nikos ⁠Christodoulides.

A day earlier, London gave authorization for US forces to use RAF Fairford in England and Diego Garcia, a joint US-UK base in the Indian Ocean, to carry out defensive strikes on Iranian missile sites attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran on March 21 fired two ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia, although neither reached the site some 4,000 kilometers from Iranian territory.

On March 2, an Iranian-type Shahed drone caused slight damage at the Akrotiri base, while two others were intercepted. No further incidents related to the war have been reported on ‌the island.

Britain retained sovereignty over two bases when it granted Cyprus, its former colony, independence in 1960.

"RAF Akrotiri would not ⁠be involved in the UK's continuation of ‌its agreement with the US to use UK bases in collective self-defense of the region," a spokesperson for Starmer's office said in a British readout of the call with Christodoulides.

With reporting by Reuters

Saudi Arabia has told Iran's military attache and four others of the embassy staff in Riyadh they must leave the kingdom within ⁠24 hours after being declared persona non grata, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said on March 21.

The ministry cited "repeated Iranian attacks" on Saudi territory as the reason for the move.

Saudi Arabia ⁠has come under ‌attack by hundreds of Iranian missiles and drones since the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran on February 28. Most have been intercepted, although falling debris has caused damage and some injuries.

The ministry said that further attacks by Tehran would have "significant consequences" for current and future relations.

Shi’ite-led Iran and Sunni-majority Saudi Arabia have long been rivals in the region competing for influence among neighboring countries. Saudi Arabia is also closely aligned with the United States.

The two countries ‌reestablished diplomatic relations in 2023 as part of an effort to calm tensions following years ⁠of friction.

With reporting by Reuters and AFP

An Iranian ballistic missile hit a building in the southern Israeli city of Dimona, home to the country's nuclear program, as local emergency service said it was treating dozens of people injured in the attack.

According to the emergency response service Magen David Adom, a 10-year-old boy was among the injured, suffering moderate injuries from shrapnel. In its latest report, the service said the number of injured had risen to over 40 people.

Iranian state broadcaster IRIB claimed the attack on Dimona targeted nuclear facilities located in the city. It also described the attack as a response to Israel's earlier attack on Natanz, the site of an Iranian nuclear facility.

It was at least the second time the Natanz facility has been targeted during the ongoing US-Israeli war with Iran that began on February 28. Following the attack, IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi called for "military restraint to prevent a nuclear accident."

Read more here.

The United States has struck more than 8,000 targets in Iran since the beginning of the joint US-Israeli military campaign three weeks ago, US Central Command (CENTCOM) says.

Targets hit by US forces included 130 Iranian vessels, CENTCOM commander Brad Cooper said in a video released on March 21 on X. He described the result as "the largest elimination of a navy over a three-week period since World War II."

Cooper added that the military also remained focused on "dismantling Iran's decades-old threat to the free flow of commerce ithroughout the Strait of Hormuz," adding that the US military has dropped multimple bombs on an underground facility off the coast of Iran earlier this week.

According to Cooper, Tehran's forces used the site "to discreetly store anti-ship cruise missiles, mobile missile launchers, and other equipment that presented a dangerous risk to international shipping."