March 2, 2026
Hezbollah: No justification for Lebanese government ban
28 minutes ago
Mohammad Raad, a member of the Lebanese parliament representing Hezbollah, has said there is no justification for the government's ban on his movement's military and security activities.
Following a cabinet meeting, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam announced a total and immediate ban on Hezbollah's military and security activities and called on Hezbollah to hand over its “illegal” weapons to the state and remain a political party.
The move came after Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel, which Israel has responded to with a wide wave of air strikes that have killed at least 31 people so far.
Responding to the ban, Raad, who had been incorrectly declared dead by The Jerusalem Post earlier on Monday, said Hezbollah understood "the Lebanese government's impotence in the face of the brutal Zionist enemy", as well as its "right to decide on war and peace, and its inability to implement and enforce this decision against the enemy".
"However, given this clear weakness and deficiency, we see no justification for President Salam and his government to take such aggressive measures against the Lebanese who reject the occupation, accusing them of violating a peace that the enemy has disregarded and refused to uphold for a year and four months."
Raad said that Israel had "imposed a state of daily war on the Lebanese people" and that the Lebanese government had been unable to stop this.
"The Lebanese were expecting a resolution to prohibit aggression, but instead, they are faced with a resolution prohibiting resistance to aggression," he said.
Raad concluded by saying that Hezbollah's resistance was "a clear rejection of the path of submission and the deception of the Lebanese people into believing that reconciliation with the enemy and submission to its conditions is the only way to achieve the illusory Lebanese security and peace".
The Jerusalem Post erroneously reported on Monday that Raad was killed by Israel.
Trump says US 'knocking the crap'
out of Iran
47 minutes ago
US President Donald Trump told CNN on Monday that his military is "knocking the crap" out of Iran and that the "big wave" is yet to come.
“I think it’s going very well. It’s very powerful. We’ve got the greatest military in the world and we’re using it," the president said, referring to the attacks Israel and the US have launched on Iran.
In a video posted to his social media accounts earlier, Trump said the US and Israel had hit "hundreds of targets" in Iran and "knocked out" nine Iranian ships, "plus their naval building".
The US president said of the military campaign that "nobody has seen anything like it". He said that Iranian military personnel were "calling by the thousands", seeking immunity.
Trump acknowledged the deaths of American servicemen and said, "Sadly, there will be more".
"America will avenge their deaths," he said.
On how long the war might last, Trump told CNN: “I don’t want to see it go on too long. I always thought it would be four weeks. And we’re a little ahead of schedule.”
He said that the "biggest surprise" had been Iran's attacks on US allies in the Gulf.
Iranian missiles kill two Bangladeshis in UAE and Bahrain
1 hour ago
Bangladesh's foreign ministry said Iranian missiles had killed two Bangladeshi nationals and wounded several others across the Gulf.
Bangladeshi officials confirmed that Saleh Ahmed, a truck driver from Sylhet in north-east Bangladesh, was killed in the United Arab Emirates, after being struck by debris from an Iranian drone that fell onto civilian infrastructure.
In Bahrain, Bangladeshi embassy officials confirmed that SM Tareq from the island of Sandwip died in the Salman Industrial Area after debris from an intercepted missile struck the area.
Two other Bangladeshis were wounded in the same incident and treated at a local hospital, embassy officials said.
In Kuwait, four Bangladeshi nationals sustained injuries following a drone attack near the country’s main airport. The Bangladeshi foreign ministry said all were receiving medical care and reported to be in a stable condition.
The ministry added that it plans to repatriate the bodies of those killed once commercial flights resume.
Qatar shot down aircraft coming from Iran
1 hour ago
Qatar shot down two SU24 aircraft coming from Iran, the Qatari defence ministry said on Monday. It did not provide further details on the incident, Reuters reported.
Iran 'has prepared itself for a long war', says Larijani
1 hour ago
Ali Larijani, the top Iranian official who has emerged as a key powerbroker in the wake of the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, has said that Iran, "unlike the United States, has prepared itself for a long war."
In a statement posted to his X account, Larijani said: "As in the past 300 years, Iran did not start this war and our brave Armed Forces have not engaged in any attacks except in defence."
"We will fiercely defend ourselves and our 6000-years old civilisation regardless of the costs and will make the enemies sorry for their miscalculation," Larijani, a former military officer, said.
Earlier in the day, Larijani tweeted: "TRUMP HAS BETRAYED 'AMERICA FIRST' TO ADOPT ISRAEL FIRST."
IRGC: We have attacked over 500 US and Israeli targets
1 hour ago
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says it has targeted over 500 US and Israeli sites.
“Since the start of the conflict, the brave soldiers of the Iranian armed forces have attacked 60 strategic targets and 500 American military targets and targets of the Zionist regime [Israel],” the IRGC said in a statement.
It said it had launched more than 700 drones and hundreds of missiles.
Starmer: Trump disagreed with decision not to get involved with initial strikes
1 hour ago
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said US President Donald Trump had "expressed his disagreement with our decision not to get involved in the initial strikes" on Iran.
"But it is my duty to judge what is in Britain's national interest, that is what I've done and I stand by it," Starmer told Britain's parliament on Monday.
The prime minister said that Iran's "outrageous response" to US and Israeli attacks launched on it on Saturday has become a threat to "our people, our interests and our allies".
Iran has launched thousands of missiles and hundreds of drones at countries that did not attack them, Starmer said.
Cyprus source says Hezbollah likely behind UK base drone attack
2 hours ago
An official Cypriot source said that "all indications" suggest drones that targeted British bases on the Greek island were launched by Hezbollah from Lebanon.
The source, cited by Reuters, did not provide further details on the drone attack, which hit the UK's Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus overnight. The UK and Cyprus said the damage was limited and there were no casualties.
The airbase has been used by Britain's Royal Air Force for intelligence-gathering flights over Gaza and other parts of the Middle East.
Hezbollah launched missiles and drones towards Israel on Monday. Israel has responded with crushing air strikes, already killing at least 31 people in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Beirut residents: 'We are very tired of wars'
2 hours ago
Residents in Beirut's southern suburbs have talked to Middle East Eye about fleeing Israeli strikes on the Lebanese capital overnight.
After Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel, Israeli strikes on Lebanon killed at least 31 people. "Everyone was screaming, in the streets, fleeing," one mother in Dahiyeh, southern Beirut, said.
Multiple residents described fleeing their homes and heading to the seaside. “We are very tired of wars, we are really tired. We want safety, we really want safety," one said.
"I grabbed the children quickly and ran," a father said. "We headed towards the airport road. There were so many people, it felt like judgement day."
US defence secretary says aim of Iran attacks to target missiles
3 hours ago
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth told a press conference at the Pentagon on Monday that the aim of the military campaign against Iran is to destroy missiles and other security infrastructure.
Hegseth declined to a give a timeline for the duration of the assault, saying that President Donald Trump will decide its length.
But he said that the military campaign will not become an "endless war".
Addressing reports that four US service members had been killed, Hegseth said the operation would involve casualties and warned that Washington will pursue and kill those responsible for their deaths.
Speaking at the same conference, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine acknowledged that there will be "additional losses", and that the operation will not be a "single overnight mission".
"Our mission is to protect ourselves and our regional partners, prevent Iran from the ability to project power from outside of its borders and be ready for follow on actions as appropriate," Caine said.
"To those who would test our resolve or threaten the United States or its allies understand clearly, we can reach you, we can sustain the fight and we can scale the fight and we will prevail," he added.
According to the Red Crescent, at least 555 people have been killed in the US-Israeli atacks on Iran which were launched on Saturday. This figure includes at least 165 people who were killed in an attack on a school in southern Iran. Most of the victims were young girls.
Israeli army issues expulsion orders for 18 Lebanese towns
3 hours ago
The Israeli army has issued expulsion orders for 18 Lebanese villages and towns, claiming they are being used by Hezbollah. These include locations in the Nabatieh area, Tyre district and the Beqaa valley.
The move comes after Israel bombarded Beirut’s southern suburbs, following Hezbollah’s overnight attacks on Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Health officials reported that Israeli attacks have killed over 30 people and wounded 149 more in Lebanon since the resumption of hostilities.
European gas prices nearly double as Qatar halts production
3 hours ago
Gas prices have surged as Qatar halted natural gas production at the world’s largest export facility after it was targeted by Iranian drone strikes.
QatarEnergy’s Raf Laffan plant supplies about a fifth of global liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies.
While mostly Asian countries buy LNG supplied by the Middle East, the disruption will send prices soaring worldwide, as competition will increase for alternative supplies.
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key energy shipping route through which around a fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas exports travels, is compounding the disruption.
US and Israel drop more munitions on Iran in last 48 hours than in single operation in June attacks: Report
4 hours ago
Israel and the US have bombarded Iran with more munitions in the last 48 hours than in a single operation during Israel's assault on country in June, a senior security official told the Ynet news outlet.
According to the official, the Israeli air force has dropped over 2,300 munitions in two days, while the US has dropped 1,500.
Cyprus says seeking UK guarantees that bases be used solely for humanitarian purposes
4 hours ago
Cyprus said on Monday it would seek guarantees that British bases on the island would not be used for anything other than humanitarian purposes, following drone threats.
Government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis told reporters that Cyprus would seek explicit guarantees that the bases "under no circumstances would be used for any purpose other than humanitarian".
Iranian media says strike targeted rescue service's Tehran headquarters
4 hours ago
The Iranian news agency ISNA on Monday said that strikes had targeted the headquarters of Tehran's emergency services, on the third day of the US-Israeli bombardment of the country.
"The main building of the Provincial Emergency Services Organisation, located on Iranshahr Street in the centre of Tehran, was attacked," the agency said, quoting the organisation's spokesman Shervin Tabrizi.
"Several of our colleagues were slightly injured," Tabrizi was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, Israeli attacks kill
at least 31 people in Lebanon
Key Points
- Fire breaks out at a Saudi Arabian oil refinery after two drones are intercepted
- Trump hints war could last up to a month
- Israel closes all Gaza crossings
Hezbollah: No justification for Lebanese government ban
28 minutes ago
Mohammad Raad, a member of the Lebanese parliament representing Hezbollah, has said there is no justification for the government's ban on his movement's military and security activities.
Following a cabinet meeting, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam announced a total and immediate ban on Hezbollah's military and security activities and called on Hezbollah to hand over its “illegal” weapons to the state and remain a political party.
The move came after Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel, which Israel has responded to with a wide wave of air strikes that have killed at least 31 people so far.
Responding to the ban, Raad, who had been incorrectly declared dead by The Jerusalem Post earlier on Monday, said Hezbollah understood "the Lebanese government's impotence in the face of the brutal Zionist enemy", as well as its "right to decide on war and peace, and its inability to implement and enforce this decision against the enemy".
"However, given this clear weakness and deficiency, we see no justification for President Salam and his government to take such aggressive measures against the Lebanese who reject the occupation, accusing them of violating a peace that the enemy has disregarded and refused to uphold for a year and four months."
Raad said that Israel had "imposed a state of daily war on the Lebanese people" and that the Lebanese government had been unable to stop this.
"The Lebanese were expecting a resolution to prohibit aggression, but instead, they are faced with a resolution prohibiting resistance to aggression," he said.
Raad concluded by saying that Hezbollah's resistance was "a clear rejection of the path of submission and the deception of the Lebanese people into believing that reconciliation with the enemy and submission to its conditions is the only way to achieve the illusory Lebanese security and peace".
The Jerusalem Post erroneously reported on Monday that Raad was killed by Israel.
47 minutes ago
US President Donald Trump told CNN on Monday that his military is "knocking the crap" out of Iran and that the "big wave" is yet to come.
“I think it’s going very well. It’s very powerful. We’ve got the greatest military in the world and we’re using it," the president said, referring to the attacks Israel and the US have launched on Iran.
In a video posted to his social media accounts earlier, Trump said the US and Israel had hit "hundreds of targets" in Iran and "knocked out" nine Iranian ships, "plus their naval building".
The US president said of the military campaign that "nobody has seen anything like it". He said that Iranian military personnel were "calling by the thousands", seeking immunity.
Trump acknowledged the deaths of American servicemen and said, "Sadly, there will be more".
"America will avenge their deaths," he said.
On how long the war might last, Trump told CNN: “I don’t want to see it go on too long. I always thought it would be four weeks. And we’re a little ahead of schedule.”
He said that the "biggest surprise" had been Iran's attacks on US allies in the Gulf.
Iranian missiles kill two Bangladeshis in UAE and Bahrain
1 hour ago
Bangladesh's foreign ministry said Iranian missiles had killed two Bangladeshi nationals and wounded several others across the Gulf.
Bangladeshi officials confirmed that Saleh Ahmed, a truck driver from Sylhet in north-east Bangladesh, was killed in the United Arab Emirates, after being struck by debris from an Iranian drone that fell onto civilian infrastructure.
In Bahrain, Bangladeshi embassy officials confirmed that SM Tareq from the island of Sandwip died in the Salman Industrial Area after debris from an intercepted missile struck the area.
Two other Bangladeshis were wounded in the same incident and treated at a local hospital, embassy officials said.
In Kuwait, four Bangladeshi nationals sustained injuries following a drone attack near the country’s main airport. The Bangladeshi foreign ministry said all were receiving medical care and reported to be in a stable condition.
The ministry added that it plans to repatriate the bodies of those killed once commercial flights resume.
Qatar shot down aircraft coming from Iran
1 hour ago
Qatar shot down two SU24 aircraft coming from Iran, the Qatari defence ministry said on Monday. It did not provide further details on the incident, Reuters reported.
Iran 'has prepared itself for a long war', says Larijani
1 hour ago
Ali Larijani, the top Iranian official who has emerged as a key powerbroker in the wake of the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, has said that Iran, "unlike the United States, has prepared itself for a long war."
In a statement posted to his X account, Larijani said: "As in the past 300 years, Iran did not start this war and our brave Armed Forces have not engaged in any attacks except in defence."
"We will fiercely defend ourselves and our 6000-years old civilisation regardless of the costs and will make the enemies sorry for their miscalculation," Larijani, a former military officer, said.
Earlier in the day, Larijani tweeted: "TRUMP HAS BETRAYED 'AMERICA FIRST' TO ADOPT ISRAEL FIRST."
IRGC: We have attacked over 500 US and Israeli targets
1 hour ago
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says it has targeted over 500 US and Israeli sites.
“Since the start of the conflict, the brave soldiers of the Iranian armed forces have attacked 60 strategic targets and 500 American military targets and targets of the Zionist regime [Israel],” the IRGC said in a statement.
It said it had launched more than 700 drones and hundreds of missiles.
Starmer: Trump disagreed with decision not to get involved with initial strikes
1 hour ago
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said US President Donald Trump had "expressed his disagreement with our decision not to get involved in the initial strikes" on Iran.
"But it is my duty to judge what is in Britain's national interest, that is what I've done and I stand by it," Starmer told Britain's parliament on Monday.
The prime minister said that Iran's "outrageous response" to US and Israeli attacks launched on it on Saturday has become a threat to "our people, our interests and our allies".
Iran has launched thousands of missiles and hundreds of drones at countries that did not attack them, Starmer said.
Cyprus source says Hezbollah likely behind UK base drone attack
2 hours ago
An official Cypriot source said that "all indications" suggest drones that targeted British bases on the Greek island were launched by Hezbollah from Lebanon.
The source, cited by Reuters, did not provide further details on the drone attack, which hit the UK's Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus overnight. The UK and Cyprus said the damage was limited and there were no casualties.
The airbase has been used by Britain's Royal Air Force for intelligence-gathering flights over Gaza and other parts of the Middle East.
Hezbollah launched missiles and drones towards Israel on Monday. Israel has responded with crushing air strikes, already killing at least 31 people in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Beirut residents: 'We are very tired of wars'
2 hours ago
Residents in Beirut's southern suburbs have talked to Middle East Eye about fleeing Israeli strikes on the Lebanese capital overnight.
After Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel, Israeli strikes on Lebanon killed at least 31 people. "Everyone was screaming, in the streets, fleeing," one mother in Dahiyeh, southern Beirut, said.
Multiple residents described fleeing their homes and heading to the seaside. “We are very tired of wars, we are really tired. We want safety, we really want safety," one said.
"I grabbed the children quickly and ran," a father said. "We headed towards the airport road. There were so many people, it felt like judgement day."
US defence secretary says aim of Iran attacks to target missiles
3 hours ago
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth told a press conference at the Pentagon on Monday that the aim of the military campaign against Iran is to destroy missiles and other security infrastructure.
Hegseth declined to a give a timeline for the duration of the assault, saying that President Donald Trump will decide its length.
But he said that the military campaign will not become an "endless war".
Addressing reports that four US service members had been killed, Hegseth said the operation would involve casualties and warned that Washington will pursue and kill those responsible for their deaths.
Speaking at the same conference, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine acknowledged that there will be "additional losses", and that the operation will not be a "single overnight mission".
"Our mission is to protect ourselves and our regional partners, prevent Iran from the ability to project power from outside of its borders and be ready for follow on actions as appropriate," Caine said.
"To those who would test our resolve or threaten the United States or its allies understand clearly, we can reach you, we can sustain the fight and we can scale the fight and we will prevail," he added.
According to the Red Crescent, at least 555 people have been killed in the US-Israeli atacks on Iran which were launched on Saturday. This figure includes at least 165 people who were killed in an attack on a school in southern Iran. Most of the victims were young girls.
Israeli army issues expulsion orders for 18 Lebanese towns
3 hours ago
The Israeli army has issued expulsion orders for 18 Lebanese villages and towns, claiming they are being used by Hezbollah. These include locations in the Nabatieh area, Tyre district and the Beqaa valley.
The move comes after Israel bombarded Beirut’s southern suburbs, following Hezbollah’s overnight attacks on Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Health officials reported that Israeli attacks have killed over 30 people and wounded 149 more in Lebanon since the resumption of hostilities.
European gas prices nearly double as Qatar halts production
3 hours ago
Gas prices have surged as Qatar halted natural gas production at the world’s largest export facility after it was targeted by Iranian drone strikes.
QatarEnergy’s Raf Laffan plant supplies about a fifth of global liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies.
While mostly Asian countries buy LNG supplied by the Middle East, the disruption will send prices soaring worldwide, as competition will increase for alternative supplies.
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key energy shipping route through which around a fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas exports travels, is compounding the disruption.
US and Israel drop more munitions on Iran in last 48 hours than in single operation in June attacks: Report
4 hours ago
Israel and the US have bombarded Iran with more munitions in the last 48 hours than in a single operation during Israel's assault on country in June, a senior security official told the Ynet news outlet.
According to the official, the Israeli air force has dropped over 2,300 munitions in two days, while the US has dropped 1,500.
Cyprus says seeking UK guarantees that bases be used solely for humanitarian purposes
4 hours ago
Cyprus said on Monday it would seek guarantees that British bases on the island would not be used for anything other than humanitarian purposes, following drone threats.
Government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis told reporters that Cyprus would seek explicit guarantees that the bases "under no circumstances would be used for any purpose other than humanitarian".
Iranian media says strike targeted rescue service's Tehran headquarters
4 hours ago
The Iranian news agency ISNA on Monday said that strikes had targeted the headquarters of Tehran's emergency services, on the third day of the US-Israeli bombardment of the country.
"The main building of the Provincial Emergency Services Organisation, located on Iranshahr Street in the centre of Tehran, was attacked," the agency said, quoting the organisation's spokesman Shervin Tabrizi.
"Several of our colleagues were slightly injured," Tabrizi was quoted as saying.
No comments:
Post a Comment