US & ‘Israel’ at war with Iran | Day 26 coverage
The 2026 Iran War began on February 28 when the United States and ‘Israel’ launched an operation dubbed Epic Fury by the US and Lion's Roar by ‘Israel’, unleashing nearly 900 airstrikes in 12 hours on Iranian missile systems, air defenses, nuclear facilities, military bases, and leadership targets.
This direct assault followed years of shadow conflict, including the first-ever Iran-‘Israel’ missile exchanges in April and October 2024 and a limited 12-day war in June 2025 that damaged Tehran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and dozens of top officials were killed in the opening salvo, while a US Tomahawk strike on a school adjacent to a naval base near Bandar Abbas killed about 170 civilians, mostly children.
Iran responded within hours by firing hundreds of ballistic missiles and launching thousands of drones at ‘Israel’, US bases in the Gulf, and targets in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait.
Tehran restricted passage through the Strait of Hormuz—through which 20% of global oil flows—disrupting shipping and spiking oil prices.
The retaliation reignited fighting with Hezbollah in Lebanon, prompting ‘Israeli’ strikes there and spreading the conflict regionally while hitting civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, airports, and heritage sites.
Over the next three weeks, US-‘Israeli’ forces conducted sustained air campaigns that destroyed much of Iran’s air-defense network, missile production sites and navy assets.
Iran appointed Mojtaba Khamenei as the new supreme leader, but pragmatic senior official Ali Larijani was assassinated in an ‘Israeli’ strike on March 17.
More than 80,000 civilian sites were hit, including 260 medical facilities and UNESCO-listed buildings, causing widespread blackouts, fuel shortages, toxic pollution, and over 2,000 total deaths across Iran, ‘Israel’, Lebanon, and Gulf states.
The war remained active in its fourth week with ongoing US-‘Israeli’ airstrikes on remaining Iranian targets and Iranian retaliatory barrages, including recent cluster-munition attacks on ‘Israel’ and a failed long-range missile attempt at Diego Garcia.
Trump has threatened to destroy Iran’s power plants unless the Strait of Hormuz reopens fully but has signaled possible winding down or deals, which Tehran denies pursuing.
CENTCOM denies Iranian claims of downing F/A-18 fighter jet
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) on Wednesday rejected claims by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that its air defenses had struck a US F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet over the southern Iranian port city of Chabahar.
The IRGC announcement, first reported by Iranian state media, asserted the jet was hit by newly deployed advanced air-defense systems.
CENTCOM labeled the assertion “FALSE” and stated that “no US fighter aircraft have been shot down by Iran.”
Iranian forces have repeatedly said they carried out successful strikes against US and allied aircraft in recent weeks, many of which have been disputed by American officials.
FALSE: The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a U.S. F/A-18 fighter was struck over Chabahar using new advanced air defense systems.
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 25, 2026
TRUE: No U.S. fighter aircraft have been shot down by Iran. pic.twitter.com/I25QFjYo0l
VIDEO - ‘Israel’ is expanding “buffer zone” in Lebanon: Netanyahu
‘Israeli’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that his forces are expanding a "buffer zone" in southern Lebanon as the war with Hezbollah escalates.
One ‘Israeli’ soldier severely injured from Hezbollah rocket fire
The ‘Israeli’ military said Wednesday that a reserve soldier was “severely injured” due to rocket fire from Hezbollah targeting ‘Israeli’ troops in southern Lebanon.
“The soldier was evacuated to a hospital for medical treatment,” the statement added.
Hebrew media said another two soldiers were lightly injured.
VIDEO - Iran footage of “81st missile wave” targeting ‘Israel’
Images released by the Iranian state broadcaster on Tuesday show what it says is the "81st wave" of missiles launched against ‘Israeli’ targets.
Iran speaker warns “enemies are preparing to occupy” island
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf on Wednesday warned of a potential invasion of one of Iran’s islands, allegedly supported by an unnamed regional country.
Ghalibaf wrote on X that “based on some intelligence reports, Iran’s enemies are preparing to occupy one of Iran’s islands with the support of a regional state.”
He added, “Our forces are monitoring all enemy movements, and if they take any action, all critical infrastructure of that regional country will be targeted with relentless and continuous attacks.”
Arab countries demand Iraq stop attacks by pro-Iran groups from its territory
Several Gulf countries, as well as Jordan, demanded in a joint statement that Iraq act immediately to stop attacks from its territory by armed pro-Iran groups.
The statement was signed by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan.
Some groups in Iraq belonging to the pro-Tehran movement the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claim daily to have carried out "dozens" of drone and rocket attacks against "the enemy" in Iraq and the Middle East, without naming their targets.
US says talks “continue” despite Iran's reported rejection
The United States and Iran are still engaged in peace talks, the White House said Wednesday, despite Iranian state media saying Tehran had rejected Washington's plan to end the war.
"Talks continue. They are productive," Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said when asked about the Iranian report, adding that there were "elements of truth" to media reports on the details of a 15-point US plan setting out demands on Tehran.
Trump to “unleash hell” if Iran doesn't make deal: White House
US President Donald Trump is ready to "unleash hell" on Iran if Tehran does not accept a deal to end the war in the Middle East, the White House warned on Wednesday.
"If Iran fails to accept the reality of the current moment, if they fail to understand that they have been defeated militarily and will continue to be, President Trump will ensure they are hit harder than they have ever been hit before," Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told a briefing.
"President Trump does not bluff and he is prepared to unleash hell. Iran should not miscalculate again."
Russia “deeply outraged” by strike on Iran nuclear plant site
Russia said Wednesday it was "deeply outraged" by a reported strike on the grounds of Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant, which it partially constructed and helps operate.
"We are extremely outraged by this reckless, irresponsible manifestation of a disastrous course," the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement on its website.
A projectile landed within the plant's compound on Tuesday night, Iran's atomic energy organisation said, accusing the United States and ‘Israel’ of being responsible.
Iran says Hormuz Strait closed to “oppressors and their allies”
Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya, the military’s operational command, said Wednesday the status of the Strait of Hormuz “will not return to what it was before the war,” declaring the vital maritime route closed “to oppressors and their allies.”
The command also said it had “firmly rewritten the rules of transit” through the strait, adding that permission for passage is now “in our hands.”
‘Israel’ to expand “buffer zone” in Lebanon: Netanyahu
‘Israeli’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that his forces were expanding a "buffer zone" in southern Lebanon as the war with Hezbollah rages.
"We have created a genuine security zone preventing any infiltration toward the Galilee and the northern border," Netanyahu said in a video statement.
"We are expanding this zone to push the threat from anti-tank missiles further away and to establish a broader buffer zone."
VIDEO - Iran releases footage of missiles fired at US aircraft carrier
Images released by Iranian state TV on Tuesday show what it says are cruise missiles launched by the army at the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier.
Trump says US accomplished “great military achievement” in Iran
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that his country accomplished a “great military achievement” in Iran.
“The Radical Left, Country Hating Democrats are trying to create inner chaos to take away from the great military achievement we are having in Iran,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
“They hate seeing us WIN so completely and decisively, but the American public sees what is going on. AMERICA FIRST! President DJT”
VIDEO - Aftermath of Iranian strike on central ‘Israel’
‘Israeli’ first responders deploy in the central city of Bnei Brak after Iranian strikes on Tuesday night.
The paramedics said they treated three injured people.
VIDEO - Iranian missile lands near power station in north ‘Israel’s’ Hadera
Footage of an Iranian ballistic missile landing near a power station in Hadera, north ‘Israel’.
The ‘Israel’ Electric Corporation said that no damage was caused to its infrastructure following the attack.
VIDEO - Missile fragment lands on Jordan’s Desert Highway
Jordan’s Public Security Directorate said Wednesday that debris from an “explosive object” fell on the Desert Highway in the Al-Rashadiya area, with no injuries or significant damage reported.
The spokesperson for the Public Security Directorate said the relevant authorities are handling the remnants of the explosive object at the site.
He urged the public to comply with instructions issued by security personnel in the area until the incident is fully dealt with.
Iranian military spokesperson mocks US superpower, warns of strategic defeat
In a strong statement, an Iranian military spokesperson declared that "the world’s self-proclaimed superpower faces a resounding strategic defeat."
Speaking from the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, he warned that stability in the region is guaranteed by Iran’s armed forces and will not return to previous conditions until threats against the Iranian nation are fully removed.
He emphasized: “Our first and last word has been, is, and will be: someone like you will not reach a compromise - not now, and not ever. Victory comes only from Allah.”
Iran rejects US peace plan: state TV
Iranian state television, citing an unidentified senior official, said Wednesday that Iran had rejected a peace plan proposed by the United States to end the Middle East war.
"Iran has responded negatively to an American proposal aimed at ending the ongoing imposed war," the official said, according to the English language broadcaster Press TV.
"The end of the war will occur when Iran decides it should end, not when Trump envisions its conclusion."
VIDEO - Bahrain's king visits injured after Iranian attacks
Bahrain's King Hamad bin Issa Al Khalifa and Crown Prince and Prime Minister Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa visit injured people receiving medical treatment in Manama, following Iranian attacks.
VIDEO - Hormuz Strait nears standstill on tracking maps
Iran has said that “non-hostile” ships are permitted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, as the strait’s closure continues to impact international oil supply.
An animated tracker from MarineTraffic shows a few ships sailing into the Strait of Hormuz on March 24, and almost no movement of vessels on March 25.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations said on Tuesday that ships will “benefit from safe passage” through the strait provided they “neither participate in nor support acts of aggression against Iran and fully comply with the declared safety and security regulations.”
The strait handles approximately 20 percent of the world’s oil traffic, amounting to 21 million barrels per day.
