The attack came hours after Donald Trump threatened to âobliterateâ Iranâs energy plants and oil wells unless it opened the strait of Hormuz. Plus, Israel to give death penalty to Palestinians convicted of lethal attacksGood morning.Iran attacked and set alight a fully loaded crude oil tanker anchored at Dubai port, causing damage to the vesselâs hull, in the latest strike on merchant vessels in the Gulf and the strait of Hormuz. The fire was extinguished within hours and no injuries were reported.What has Trump said about the warâs end? He has continued to give mixed messages, threatening to destroy Iranâs energy facilities unless it agrees to peace terms â while simultaneously claiming diplomatic progress in ending the war the US started together with Israel. Iran has accused the US of using diplomacy as a smokescreen to prepare for more attacks.Which countries are most vulnerable to economic shocks? The Philippines, which imports almost all of its crude oil from the Middle East, is particularly exposed to surging prices, which have triggered protests and widespread anger.Why now? The government of Iran, which the US has attacked, is a prolific and sophisticated disinformation actor, while Russian and Chinese influence operations continue to target US allies globally.How would the embassies do it? They have been told to use local influencers, academics and community leaders abroad to make US-funded narratives feel more organic. Continue reading...
Dubai officials said a fire on the Al Salmi tanker had been extinguished and all crew members were safe after drone strikeMiddle East crisis â live updatesHow could US forcibly reopen strait of Hormuz and what are the risks? Iran attacked and set ablaze a fully loaded crude oil tanker at Dubai portâs anchorage, with the strike damaging the vesselâs hull and raising concerns about a possible oil spill.Dubai authorities said the drone attack caused a fire on board that was extinguished early on Tuesday, hours after the attack was first reported. The attack came hours after Donald Trump warned that the US would obliterate Iranâs energy plants and oil wells if it does not open the strait of Hormuz. Continue reading...
Kuwait says fire broke out after Iranian attack on giant tanker and warns of possible oil spill in surrounding watersHello and welcome to our continuing live coverage of the US-Israel war on Iran and its impact on the region, the world and the global economy.Iran attacked and set ablaze a fully loaded crude oil tanker off Dubai on Monday while Donald Trump warned the US would obliterate Iranâs energy plants and oil wells if it did not open the strait of Hormuz.Blasts were heard in Tehran and power cuts hit some areas of the capital, Iranian media reported on Tuesday. Israel earlier carried out missile strikes on what it called military infrastructure in Tehran and infrastructure used by Iran-backed Hezbollah in Beirut, leaving black smoke hanging over the Lebanese capital.Two successive Iranian missile launches targeted central Israel, the Times of Israel reported, quoting the emergency service as saying it had not received any reports of injuries.Turkey reported a ballistic missile launched from Iran had entered Turkish airspace before being shot down by Nato air and missile defences.Oil prices were headed on Tuesday for a record monthly rise while Asian shares were headed for their steepest fall since 2022, capping a tumultuous month as the war fanned fears of higher inflation and slower growth. Bonds were headed for their largest decline in months, while the dollar recorded its strongest gain in eight months.The US national average retail price of fuel crossed $4 a gallon for the first time in more than three years on Monday, data from price-tracking service GasBuddy showed, as tightening global supplies pushed US crude prices above $101 a barrel.Three UN peacekeepers from Indonesia were killed in two separate incidents in southern Lebanon.Thousands of soldiers from the US Armyâs elite 82nd Airborne Division have started arriving in the Middle East, two US officials told Reuters. , as part of a reinforcement that would expand Trumpâs options to include the deployment of forces inside Iranian territory, even as he pursues talks with Tehran.The White House later said talks with Iran were progressing and Trump wanted to reach a deal with Tehran before a 6 April deadline he set last week after extending an earlier deadline he had set for Iran to open the largely blocked strait of Hormuz oil route.Trump had told aides he is willing to end the military campaign against Iran even if the strait or Hormuz remains largely closed and leave a complex operation to reopen it for a later date, the Wall Street Journal later reported.Iran said on Monday it had received US peace proposals via intermediaries and that they were âunrealistic, illogical and excessiveâ. Continue reading...
⢠The United Arab Emirates reported heavy explosions in Dubai early Friday as its air defenses intercepted incoming Iranian fire over the city.
⢠Kuwait reported two oil refineries on fire and Saudi Arabia disclosed that its Samre refinery came under attack, indicating Iran's widening campaign against Gulf energy infrastructure.
⢠The attacks represent Iran's strategic effort to target regional economic assets and disrupt global energy supplies as the conflict escalates beyond direct military engagements.
Trump warns Nato faces âvery badâ future if US allies fail to assist in opening the vital oil route; Israel says thousands of targets in Iran remain â follow it liveHow have you been affected by the latest Middle East events?Donald Trump is said to be working to build a coalition of countries that will attempt to reopen the strait of Hormuz.The US president hopes to unveil the list later this week, Axios reported, citing four unnamed sources.Donald Trump has warned that Nato faces a âvery badâ future if US allies fail to assist in opening up the strait of Hormuz, the Financial Times has reported. He also said on Sunday that he has demanded about seven countries send warships to keep the strait of Hormuz open, but his appeals have brought no commitments as oil prices soar during the Iran war. The president declined to name the countries heavily reliant on Middle East crude that the administration is negotiating with to join a coalition to police the waterway where about one-fifth the worldâs traded oil normally flows. Australia and Japan have declined to send their navies to the strait.Flights were temporarily suspended at Dubaiâs airport, previously one of the worldâs busiest, after a âdrone-related incidentâ sparked a fire nearby, city authorities said on Monday. The incident impacted a fuel tank, the Gulf financial hubâs media office said, later adding authorities had extinguished the blaze that broke out. The office said no injuries had been reported.Israel said that its military remains focused on thousands of potential targets within Iran, even as Tehran issued a stern warning to neighbouring nations against further involvement in the rapidly expanding regional war.Oil prices have climbed again amid mounting supply fears after the US struck Iranâs vital Kharg Island oil hub and Trump demanded allies help reopen the strait of Hormuz. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 1.8% to $104.98 per barrel during early trading on Monday. Another weekend of violence across the Middle East compounded concerns over the conflict, and its ramifications for global energy markets.British prime minister Keir Starmer discussed the need to reopen the strait of Hormuz to end disruption to global shipping with Trump, a Downing Street spokeswoman said on Sunday. Starmer also spoke with Canadian prime minister Mark Carney, with the leaders discussing the impact of the straitâs continued closure on international shipping, the spokeswoman told Reuters.Italyâs military said there had been a drone attack on the Ali Al Salem airbase in Kuwait hosting Italian and US forces, but said all its personnel were safe. âThis morning, Ali Al Salem base in Kuwait was the target of a drone attack that hit a shelter housing a remotely piloted aircraft of the Italian Task Force Air (TFA), which was destroyed,â the chief of the defence general staff, Luciano Portolano, said in a statement.UN peacekeepers said they were fired upon âlikely by non-state armed groupsâ in south Lebanon on Sunday, while a Hamas source said an Israeli strike killed an official from the Palestinian militant group.A rocket attack on Baghdad international airport in Iraq, which houses a US diplomatic facility, wounded five people, Iraqi authorities said. The Iraqi governmentâs security media cell said âfive rockets targeted Baghdad International Airport and its surrounding area, injuring four airport employees and security personnel, and an engineerâ.US energy secretary Chris Wright said that there was âa very good chanceâ gas prices could drop below $3 a gallon by summer, though that is contingent on the Iran conflictâs end. Wright told NBCâs Meet the Press that while US drivers âare feeling it right nowâ at the pump and âwill feel it for a few more weeksâ, once the Iran war is over âweâll go to a world more abundantâ and âmore affordableâ in energy.Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a brief video to mock viral social media rumours suggesting he had been killed. Taking a sip from a steaming cup at a cafe near Jerusalem, he jokingly posted to his official X account, âIâm dead for coffee,â utilizing a Hebrew slang term that equates being âdeadâ for something with loving it.The World Health Organisation said on Sunday it had released $2 m from its Contingency Fund for Emergencies (CFE) to support the health response in Lebanon, Iraq and Syria amid the Middle East crisis. Continue reading...
⢠Iran warned the United Arab Emirates to begin evacuating its population from major port zones including Abu Dhabi and Dubai on March 15, 2026, escalating threats in the Persian Gulf region.
⢠The warning follows intensive military exchanges between Israel and Iran overnight, with missile and drone interceptions reported across Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar.
⢠The threat to UAE ports signals Iran's willingness to target critical regional infrastructure and commerce, raising concerns about disruption to global shipping and energy supplies vital to international economies.