War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

Ben Gurion Airport will be partially operating this evening to repatriate Israelis stranded abroad, Transport Minister Miri Regev has said, Al Jazeera reports.

Sri Lanka sent ships and aircraft to rescue 30 Iranian sailors aboard the Iranian frigate Iris Dena which was sinking just ouside the island’s territorial waters, Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath said, reports AFP.

He told parliament that 30 injured sailors were being brought to a hospital in the island’s south from the 180-crew frigate was sinking from dawn.

The Dubai and Abu Dhabi stock exchanges reopened sharply lower after a two-day trading suspension over Iran’s missile and drone attacks across the Gulf, AFP reports.

The Dubai bourse was down 4.7 per cent and the Abu Dhabi’s ADX was 3.5 lower shortly after markets opened.

The Reuters news agency reports that an oil ⁠tanker sailed through the Strait of Hormuz en route to a United Arab Emirates ⁠port to load crude in a rare voyage since the Iran war disrupted shipping in the Gulf region.

Reuters reports that the tanker, Pola, switched off its AIS tracker late on March 2, when it approached the Strait, ‌and the vessel re-appeared on Tuesday off Abu Dhabi, according to sources and ship tracking data.

The tanker is heading to the port of Jebel Dhanna to load Abu Dhabi Murban crude for Thailand, two trade sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

A drone was shot down near Baghdad’s international airport, a day after a similar attack on the facility, two security sources told AFP.

“A drone was downed near Baghdad airport, with no casualties or material damage reported,” an Iraqi security source said. Another security source in Baghdad confirmed the incident.

The airport includes a military base that hosts a US diplomatic facility and previously housed US-led coalition troops.

Indian shares extended their slump on Wednesday, with the rupee falling to a record low, as escalating US-Israel clashes with Iran pushed oil to a 19-month high and dragged global markets lower on fears of a prolonged Middle East conflict.

The Nifty 50 fell 2.25 per cent to a 10-month low of 24,305.4 and the BSE Sensex shed 2.24pc to an 11-month low of 78,443.2 as of 10:10am IST.

Domestic markets were closed on Tuesday for a local holiday. The benchmarks have lost about 2.5pc each over the past two sessions.

Other Asian markets slid 4.3pc, while Wall Street closed lower overnight on worries that a wider Mideast war could deliver an energy shock that raises inflation and delays rate cuts.

Myanmar’s junta announced the launch of a sweeping fuel rationing system for private vehicles on Wednesday, blaming disruptions to the global energy supply chain caused by escalating hostilities in the Middle East.

The country’s National Defence and Security Council (NDSC) said the new regulations, effective March 7, 2026, were a response to “global political situations” and armed conflicts in the Middle East, which have obstructed oil shipments.

Under a new “even-odd” licensing scheme, even-numbered plates will only be allowed to drive on even dates, and odd-numbered plates on odd dates, the announcement said. Electric vehicles and electric motorcycles are exempt.

The NDSC warned businesses and individuals not to hoard fuel for resale at inflated prices, saying that violators would be prosecuted.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they control the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route for oil and gas, and any vessels seeking to pass through the waterway risk damage from missiles or stray drones, AFP reports.

“Currently, the Strait of Hormuz is under the complete control of the Islamic Republic’s Navy,” said Guards Navy official Mohammad Akbarzadeh in a statement issued on Fars news agency.

Missiles launched from Iran triggered air raid sirens across large parts of Israel, with the military saying it was “operating to intercept the threat”, AFP reports.

The order to seek shelter covered Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and other areas across the country.

It was lifted after several minutes, with no immediate reports of any direct impact.

Israel’s emergency medical service Magen David Adom said it had received no reports of casualties.

Iran’s Press TV releases satellite images showing the scale of damage to US military bases in the region following missile and drone strikes.

Lebanese state media said that four people were killed and six more were wounded in an Israeli strike on a building in Baalbek in eastern Lebanon, AFP reports.

“The initial toll is four killed and six wounded, and work is underway to rescue families from under the rubble,” Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said.

Bahrain’s Ministry of Interior said the Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Bridge is closed in both directions.

The bridge is part of a 6.4 km strategic highway link in Bahrain, connecting Hidd to Manama and the King Fahad Causeway.

The US Embassy in Qatar said it was “actively preparing options” to assist American citizens in the Middle East.

It also asked US nationals to register with the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP).

Saudi defence ministry says two cruise missiles were intercepted and destroyed over Al-Khurj.

The Pakistan Embassy in the UAE announced that it is suspending in-person consular services from today until further notice as a precautionary measure.

“The temporary measure has been taken in the interest of the safety and well-being of community members and Embassy staff alike,” said a post by the mission on X.

The US State Department has given its non-emergency personnel and their families in Saudi Arabia and Oman permission to leave, the US embassies in both Gulf states said Tuesday, as Iran launches retaliatory strikes in response to US-Israeli air raids, AFP reports.

The department “authorized non-emergency US government employees and US government employee family members to leave” Saudi Arabia and Oman “due to safety risks,” the US embassies in Riyadh and Muscat said in advisories on their websites.

Oman, which played a mediation role in talks between the United States and Iran, has called for a ceasefire in the war, while Riyadh has condemned Iranian salvos, including an attack on the US embassy in Riyadh which forced it to close on Tuesday.

Lebanon’s health ministry said on Wednesday that Israeli strikes on two towns south of Beirut killed six people and wounded eight, AFP reports.

In a statement, the ministry said that “the Israeli enemy’s attacks on the areas of Aramoun and Saadiyat” killed six people and wounded eight others “in a preliminary toll”.

The United States updated its travel advisory for Oman to “reflect the authorised departure of non-emergency US government personnel and family members of government personnel”.

A Kuwaiti F/A-18 fighter jet was responsible for the friendly fire incident, which downed three US F-15 jets, reports The Wall Street Journal.

An Israeli strike hit a hotel in the Beirut suburb of Hazmieh on Wednesday, Lebanese state media reported, the first recent such attack on the predominantly Christian area, AFP reports.

The state-run National News Agency said that “an Israeli airstrike targeted a hotel in Hazmieh” adding that “ambulances were dispatched to the scene”.