News

Ali Larijani was a ‘true insider’ of Iran’s regime and its public face. His killing could prolong the war  CNN

Israel launches ‘targeted’ invasions of Lebanon as world focuses on Iran war  The Real News Network

Israel kills 2 top Iranian officials in another wartime blow to country's leadership  PBS

Israel has ‘won’ war with Iran, Sa’ar says, but goals remain unmet  The Times of Israel

Trump’s Iran war has no ethical or legal grounds | Letters  The Guardian

Thousands of seafarers face dwindling supplies of fuel and water as they wait on board, stranded by the Middle East war, a key shipping body warned Tuesday as it urged governments to help get maritime traffic flowing again. John Stawpert is marine director of the London-based International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), which represents the world's national shipowner associations and over 80 percent of the world merchant fleet.

Trump slams NATO allies for not joining Iran war effort, says U.S. never needed their help  CNBC

Defense: Counterterrorism chief steps down over Iran war  Punchbowl News

US embassy and diplomatic facility in Baghdad targeted by rocket and drone attacks  Rockets and an explosive drone targeted the US embassy in Baghdad, triggering sirens, and an explosion was heard near the compound, security sources said. The attack comes after a series of earlier strikes on the same day.  At least three explosive drones also targeted a US diplomatic facility near Baghdad International Airport, activating C-RAM air defence systems, the sources added. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

Focus must remain on Ukraine despite Iran war, PM says  BBC

US counterterror chief says in resignation letter Israel 'deceived' Trump into attacking Iran Sean Mathews on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 14:53 Joseph Kent's resignation is the highest-profile indictment against Israel by a sitting US official in history Joseph Kent, director of the US National Counterterrorism Center, testifies during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on 11 December 2025 (Saul Loeb/AFP) Off A senior Trump administration official in the directorate of national intelligence has resigned over the war on Iran, saying that the US president was tricked into the conflict by an Israeli and pro-war “echo chamber”. “I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,” Joseph Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, wrote in a resignation letter shared on Tuesday. The National Counterterrorism Center oversees all US government intelligence on threats and falls under the Directorate of National Intelligence, which is run by Tulsi Gabbard. Kent is one of the highest-profile political appointees to resign in decades over a foreign war. Kent’s public broadside against Israel is the first in a resignation letter by a senior presidential administration official in history. Kent, who has top security clearance, accused Israel of misleading President Donald Trump. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); “High-ranking Israeli officials and influential members of the American media deployed a misinformation campaign that wholly undermined your America First platform and sowed pro-war sentiments to encourage a war with Iran,” Kent wrote. “This echo chamber was used to deceive you into believing that Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States, and that should you strike now, there was a clear path to a swift victory,” he wrote. Reacting to Kent's resignation on Tuesday, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that he didn't know Kent very well and thought he was a "nice guy" but "weak on security". "But when I read his statement, I realised that it's a good thing that he's out because he said that 'Iran was not a threat'. Iran was a threat - every country realised what a threat Iran was, the question was whether or not they wanted to do something about it." "When somebody is working with us and says they didn’t think Iran was a threat, we don’t want those people, because there are some people, I guess, that would say that, but they’re not smart people, or they’re not savvy people. Iran was a tremendous threat," Trump added. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Kent was named director of the National Counterterrorism Center in February 2025. Trump posted on Truth Social at the time that it was his "pleasure" to nominate Kent for the director position and credited him with hunting down criminals and "terrorists" his "entire adult life". "Joe will help us keep America safe by eradicating all terrorism, from the jihadists and the World to the cartels in our backyard." Resignations The Biden administration saw a few protests over US support for Israel amid the war on Gaza, but they were mainly low to mid-career-level officials. Kent also has a prestigious US military record. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); He is a former Army Ranger who undertook 11 combat deployments after the 11 September 2001 attacks. In 2018, he became a CIA paramilitary officer. He later ran for Congress as an ardent Trump supporter. 'Suez moment': US missteps in Iran echo across East Asia to the Gulf and Europe Read More » Kent’s wife, Shannon, was a US Navy cryptologist. She was killed in 2019 by a bombing at a restaurant in Manbij, Syria. US troops deployed to Syria to defeat the Islamic State (IS) militant group. Around 1,000 US troops remain in Syria despite IS’s territorial defeat in 2019. Kent said that Israel was also responsible for the US intervention in Syria. “As a Gold Star husband who lost my beloved wife Shannon in a war manufactured by Israel, I cannot support sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people nor justifies the cost of American lives,” Kent wrote. Kent’s resignation was praised on social media by high-profile members of Trump’s Maga movement who have opposed the war. Shawn Ryan, a former Navy Seal and podcaster who backed Trump in the 2024 presidential election, welcomed the resignation. “Sometimes the most impactful statement you can make is a strong resignation.  It's unfortunate it's come down to this.  God speed [Joe Kent], I hope this wakes some people up,” Ryan wrote on X. Kent was a diehard Trump supporter who backed protestors arrested during the 6 January 2021 attack on Capitol Hill. War on Iran News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0

Israel Says It Killed Iranian Security Chief in Strike  Bloomberg.com

Israel claims it has killed the influential Iranian national security chief Ali Larijani in overnight strikes. If confirmed, Larijani’s death would represent a devastating blow to the regime, and the most senior official to die since Ali Khamenei’s death. Lucy Hough speaks to deputy head of international news, Devika Bhat – watch on YouTube Continue reading...

First cyberattacks of war hint at Iran's playbook against U.S.  Axios

Who is Joe Kent, top counterterror official who resigned over Iran War?  The Hill

A man was rescued from under the rubble of a destroyed building in Iran following an Israeli strike.

UN rights office says more than 36,000 Palestinians forcibly displaced in a year due to Israeli settler, army violence.

Watch: Iranians show daily life under air strikes and regime crackdown  BBC

Israel has ‘won’ war with Iran, Israeli foreign minister says  Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Tuesday the country had effectively won its war with Iran, but gave no indication of when the war might end.  Speaking at a news conference, Saar said Israel was seeking to remove "existential threats", but did not say how the government would determine when those goals had been met.  "One must be patient," he said, speaking on the 18th day of a war that has killed more than 2,000 civilians, most of them in Iran and Lebanon, but also in Israel, Iraq and across the Gulf. Saar and other Israeli officials have said the aim is to significantly weaken Iran's ability to carry out attacks against Israel over the long term, while creating conditions inside Iran that could ultimately enable Iranians to overthrow their rulers.

The head of the US National Counterterrorism Center’s departure reflects a growing schism within Trump’s base, where the anti-war wing of the MAGA movement is increasingly angered by the Iran conflict.