Israel strikes Iran and Lebanon as Tehran hits back at Tel Aviv and Arab Gulf

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Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Monday declared his support for his Lebanese counterpart Joseph Aoun in the latter's effort to disarm Hezbollah, state media reported.

"We stand alongside Lebanese president Joseph Aoun in disarming Hezbollah," Sharaa said during a video conference with top European officials.

The Syrian army has bolstered its troop deployments on the country's borders with Lebanon and Iraq, a Syrian government source told AFP on Wednesday.

"We have reinforced our defensive forces along the border as a precaution to prevent the repercussions of the conflict from spilling over onto Syrian territory, and to combat cross-border organisations and prevent them from using Syrian soil," Sharaa said.

Kuwait's emir on Monday condemned Iran's attacks on his country, where 12 people have been killed so far, as Tehran strikes out at the Gulf in response to US-Israeli attacks.

"Our country has been subjected to a brutal attack by a neighbouring Muslim country, which we consider a friend, even though we have not permitted the use of our land, airspace, or coasts for any military action against it, and we have repeatedly informed them of this through our diplomatic channels," said Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah in a televised speech.

He also insisted on Kuwait's "full and inherent right to self-defence", speaking for the first time since Iran's attacks began on February 28.

US President Donald Trump said he would hold a news conference Monday, his first formal question-and-answer session with reporters since launching military operations against Iran.

Trump said on his Truth Social network that the news conference would take place at around 5:30 pm in the ballroom of his Doral golf club near Miami, where he spent the weekend, before returning to Washington.

France's Emmanuel Macron said Monday that "profound" changes to Iranian leadership could not occur "through American-Israeli bombings alone", adding that war in the Middle East could continue for "several weeks".

"I don't think you can achieve profound regime change or changes in the political system through bombings alone," Macron said aboard France's Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier currently stationed in the Mediterranean.

The war triggered by US-Israeli strikes on Iran, "in this intense phase", could last "several days, perhaps several weeks", he said.

Israel said Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei is a "tyrant" will continue with his regime's brutality.

The EU's top diplomat called Monday for a 2024 ceasefire to be upheld to prevent Lebanon from "sliding into chaos," saying Israel's "heavy-handed" response to Hezbollah attacks was further destabilising the region.

"Israel should cease its operations in Lebanon," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in a statement after crisis talks with a dozen Middle East leaders including Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.

She likewise called for Hezbollah to "disarm and cease all actions against Israel," saying: "Diplomacy and a return to the ceasefire offer the best chance of averting Lebanon from sliding into chaos."

The toll from Israeli strikes on Lebanon rose to 486 people killed and 1,313 wounded since the start of fighting last week, the Lebanese health ministry said Monday.

"The toll of the Israeli aggression from dawn on Monday, March 2, until Monday afternoon, March 9, has risen to 486 martyrs and 1,313 wounded," the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry had previously reported a death toll of 394.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday again warned Tehran against taking "provocative steps" after NATO defence systems intercepted a second Turkey-bound ballistic missile launched from Iran.

"Despite our sincere warnings, extremely wrong and provocative steps continue to be taken that will jeopardise Turkey's friendship. One should not engage in such behaviour," he said, adding: "Persistence and stubbornness in wrongdoing should be avoided".

President Emmanuel Macron on Monday warned that an attack on Cyprus was an attack on all of Europe and said France and its allies were preparing a "defensive" mission to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as the Middle East war entered its second week.

Speaking during a visit to Cyprus to discuss regional security, Macron said the mission would be aimed at escorting container ships and tankers in order to gradually reopen the Strait of Hormuz "after the end of the hottest phase of the conflict".

"This is essential for international trade, but also for the flow of gas and oil, which must be able to leave this region once again," said Macron in Paphos on the southwestern coast of Cyprus.

Speaking alongside Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Macron said a "purely defensive, purely support mission" will be put together by European and non-European states.

The European Union on Monday said it was ready to "enhance" its operations to protect maritime traffic in the Middle East.

The United Arab Emirates ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva called on Monday for a de-escalation of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran and a return to negotiations.

"De-escalation, de-escalation, de-escalation. This is a standing position we have, and we will continue to offer that," Ambassador Jamal Jama al Musharakh told reporters in Geneva.

The UAE is among the six Gulf states that have been subjected to Iranian drone and missile strikes since the war began. There have been more than 1,400 attacks on the UAE in recent days that killed four civilians and injured 114 others, the ambassador said.

The targeting by Iran of UAE civilian infrastructure, including desalination plants and energy facilities, was of concern and unacceptable, the envoy said.

"We are also fully prepared to protect these vital locations," he added. But UAE bases would not be used for attacks against Iran, he said, despite his country being targeted in an "unwarranted manner."

Israel's U.N. ambassador Danny Danon on Monday said the new supreme leader of Iran, Mojtaba Khamenei, had the same radical ideas as in the past and Israel would target anyone who promoted radical ideas against it. He made his remarks while speaking to reporters at the United Nations.

Israel announced on Monday that its military had killed the head of Hezbollah's Nasr unit operating in part of southern Lebanon during renewed fighting with the Iran-backed armed group.

Defence minister Israel Katz "was briefed on the elimination of the commander of Hezbollah's Nasr Unit", Abu Hussein Ragheb, during an overnight strike, a statement from the defence ministry said.

The Nasr unit operates in an eastern sector south of Lebanon's Litani River and opened Hezbollah's cross-border attacks on Israel following Hamas' attack in October 2023.

A south Lebanon parish lost its priest on Monday when Father Pierre al-Rai of Al-Qlayaa died of wounds sustained from Israeli tank fire, according to state media and a medical source.

The National News Agency (NNA) reported that a house in the Christian town was "hit twice in succession by artillery shelling from a hostile Merkava tank" on Monday.

The first strike wounded the homeowner and his wife, according to NNA. After several neighbours, including Rai, and Red Cross paramedics rushed to the scene, the house was hit a second time, wounding Rai and three others.

The priest later died of his wounds, a medical source told AFP.

The border village had not previously been caught up in the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, and its residents - like all Christian towns along or near the border  - are trying to stay out of the confrontation.

US President Donald Trump on Monday told the New York Post he was "not happy" with the appointment of Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei to replace his slain father as Iran's supreme leader

"Not going to tell you. I'm not happy with him," Trump told the Post from his Doral golf club near Miami, when asked about his plans for the younger Khamenei.

The United Arab Emirates decried Monday that it was being targeted "in a very unwarranted manner" in the Middle East war, stressing it would "not partake in any attacks against Iran".

"We've been very clear before and leading up to the current events we are witnessing in the region that as the UAE we will not partake in any attacks against Iran from our territory, and that we will not be involved in such a conflict," the UAE ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva Jamal Al Musharakh told reporters.

Iran's security chief Ali Larijani said Monday that security in the strategic Strait of Hormuz cannot be restored as long as the war with the United States and Israel continues.

"It is unlikely that any security can be achieved in the Strait of Hormuz amid the fires ignited by the United States and Israel in the region," said Larijani in a post on X, after France said it and its allies were preparing a "defensive" mission to reopen the waterway.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Monday accused Hezbollah of working towards the "collapse" of the state for the sake of Iran's interests, a week after it launched an attack on Israel, starting a new war in Lebanon.

"Whoever launched those missiles wanted to bring about the collapse of the Lebanese state, plunging it into aggression and chaos... all for the sake of the Iranian regime's calculations," Aoun told top European officials in an online meeting.

Aoun described Hezbollah as "an armed group outside the state, which places no value on the interests of Lebanon or the lives of its people", calling for "direct negotiations under international auspices" with Israel to stop the war.

Ukraine has received 11 requests from countries neighbouring Iran, as well as from the U.S. and Europe, for help downing drones fired by Tehran, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday after a week of conflict in the Middle East.

"There is clear interest in Ukraine's experience in protecting lives, relevant interceptors, electronic warfare systems, and training," Zelensky said on X after a national security meeting.

"Ukraine is ready to respond positively to requests from those who help us protect the lives of Ukrainians and the independence of Ukraine."

He added that some requests have been met with "concrete decisions and specific support", without providing further details.

I held a Staff meeting. Our primary focus was the destabilization caused by the war in Iran and the corresponding risks for global markets, the countries of the region, and Ukraine’s closest partners who support us in defending against Russian aggression. The issue is complex –… pic.twitter.com/ibFpnGH15i

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) March 9, 2026

The human rights group Human Rights Watch said in a report Monday that the Israeli military “unlawfully” hit a village in southern Lebanon with shells containing white phosphorus, a controversial incendiary munition.

Through geolocating and verifying seven images, Human Rights Watch said Israel fired white phosphorus using artillery at residential areas in the south Lebanese village of Yohmor. It happened hours after the Israeli military warned the residents of the village and dozens of others in southern Lebanon to evacuate.

Human Rights Watch said it couldn’t independently identify if any residents were still in the area or if anyone was harmed.

"The Israeli military’s unlawful use of white phosphorus over residential areas is extremely alarming and will have dire consequences for civilians," said Ramzi Kaiss, Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed deep concern about the impact of the regional crisis on Lebanon.

Von der Leyen also announced the mobilisation of ReliefEU emergency stocks to support around 130,000 people in Lebanon, adding that the first relief flight is planned for Tuesday.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Iran of taking the world hostage through its retaliatory strikes and insisted that the United States was on track with its war objectives.

"I think we are all seeing right now the threat this clerical regime poses to the region and to the world. They are trying to hold the world hostage," Rubio said at an event at the State Department.

"They are attacking neighboring countries, their energy infrastructure, their civilian population," he said.

"The objective of this mission is to destroy their ability to continue to do that, and we are well on our way to achieving that."

Falling shrapnel killed one man and seriously wounded another in central Israel on Monday, first responders said, as blasts rocked the area after the military said missiles were fired from Iran.

Paramedics said the victim was working on a building site in a town just north of Israel's main airport when a barrage of shrapnel tore through the location.

An AFP journalist at the scene saw a newly installed escalator riddled with impact holes that emergency workers said were caused by munitions.

"After performing resuscitation efforts, we had to pronounce the death of a man, approximately 40 years old," the Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency response organisation said in a statement.

Another man was seriously injured and evacuated to hospital for treatment, the rescuers added.

"It was a difficult scene. The two casualties were lying unconscious and suffering from severe shrapnel injuries to their bodies," MDA paramedic Liz Goral was quoted as saying by her organisation.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Monday the government was monitoring the economic fallout of the US and Israel's war in Iran, as energy prices soared due to supply disruptions.

"The longer this goes on, the more likely the potential for an impact on our economy, impact into the lives and households of everybody and every business," Starmer said, speaking at a community centre in London.

"Our job is to get ahead of that, to look around the corner, assess the risk, monitor the risks, and work with others in relation to that."

Hezbollah on Monday welcomed the selection of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran's new supreme leader, pledging allegiance after his predecessor and father Ali Khamenei was killed in US-Israeli attacks.

"We in Hezbollah extend our warmest congratulations and blessings on this occasion. We renew our pledge of loyalty to this blessed approach and our steadfastness on the path of allegiance," the group said in a statement.

Hezbollah entered the Middle East war a week ago by attacking Israel in response to Ali Khamenei's killing.

Ankara on Monday confirmed a second ballistic missile was shot down by NATO defences in Turkish airspace, as Washington urged all of its citizens to leave southeast Turkey over security concerns.

More to follow

At least 16 people were killed Monday in Israeli strikes on south Lebanon, while one person was confirmed killed in strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs.

The health ministry said nine people were killed and 17 wounded in Tayr Debba, while seven were killed and 23 wounded in Jwayya in the Tyre district.

In Dahiyeh - the suburbs south of Beirut - the ministry said one person was killed and 12 wounded in Israeli strikes.

Israel has conducted at least a dozen strikes on Dahiyeh since the start of Monday.

Jordan, Egypt, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Armenia, Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Oman were represented at a videoconference with EU institutional leaders on Monday: European Council president spokesperson

An air strike hit a base of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi near the northern city of Mosul on Monday, according to two officials from the former paramilitary organisation now integrated into the country's regular forces.

One of the officials blamed the strike on the United States, saying it hit a base in the Bartella area of Iraq's Nineveh province.

بالفيديو …المشاهد الاولية للقصف الجوي الذي استهدف مقر لواء ٣٠ للحشد الشعبي في سهل نينوى#الموصلية_HD_التردد_V11137#الموصل #نينوى #العراق pic.twitter.com/9X1NokrkuW

— قناة الموصلية الفضائية (@ALMawsleyaTV) March 9, 2026

The Israeli military said it had launched new "wide-scale" strikes on Tehran, Isfahan and southern Iran Monday, shortly after one man was killed in Israel following missile launches from Iran.

"The IDF has just begun a wide-scale wave of strikes against infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime across Tehran, Isfahan, and southern Iran," the military said in a statement.

The UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine-Hennis Plasschaert began an official visit to Israel on Monday for discussions with senior officials amidst escalating hostilities in Lebanon, according to a statement.

Beirut has expressed willingness to begin direct talks with Tel Aviv to end the war, which resumed a week ago when Hezbollah fired missiles into northern Israel after Ali Khamenei's killing in Iran.

The Lebanese Parliament has extended its term for two years due to Israel's war on the country and the regional conflict with Iran.

There had been reports before the military escalation that the elections, which were due in May, would be postponed due to differences among political parties regarding the electoral law and voting rights for expats.

Lebanon has legislative elections every four years.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun says he has informed the UN and the international community of Lebanon's readiness to resume negotiations with Israel to stop the escalation against his country.

Israel has said it will not stop attacking Lebanon before it dismantles Hezbollah militarily, as it has warned that the entrie country will pay a heavy price if the Lebanese government does not curb the Iran-backed militants. 

The Lebanese health ministry has said two medics were killed in Israeli strikes on south Lebanon.

"The Israeli enemy continues its systematic targeting of ambulance teams, having struck two Civil Defense points: the first near the municipality of Tayr Debba, where one paramedic was killed and two others were injured; and the second in Jwayya, where one paramedic was killed and four others were wounded," the ministry said in a statement.

The statement added: "The toll continues to rise as more paramedics are added to the list of the dead and wounded in this war, in which the Israeli enemy disregards all international laws, treaties, and agreements, making paramedics a direct target..."

It stressed that "the international community bears a major responsibility to put an end to this continuing impunity, which constitutes a clear threat and paints a very dark outlook for the international system."

European countries helped create conditions for US and Israeli strikes, Iran said Monday.

Israel's first responders said one person was killed by shrapnel as several blasts rocked central Israel Monday, shortly after the military reported detecting new missiles launched from Iran.

"After performing resuscitation efforts, we had to pronounce the death of a man, approximately 40 years old," Magen David Adom said in a statement, adding that the death occurred at a construction site in central Israel.

It added that another man was seriously injured and evacuated for treatment, with both casualties having sustained "several shrapnel injuries to their bodies."

Israel on Monday renewed its strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanese state media reported, after Israel warned it would target branches of a financial firm linked to Hezbollah.

Footage on AFPTV's live broadcast showed large plumes of smoke rising from the area, where the Iran-backed group holds sway.

Earlier on Monday, the Israeli military warned it would strike branches of Al-Qard al-Hassan, a financial firm mainly operating in Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon's Shia-majority south, Beirut's southern suburbs, and some eastern areas.

Roads leading to one of Al-Qard al-Hassan's branches in Beirut were closed on Monday, according to witnesses. In Lebanon's southern city of Sidon - an area outside of Hezbollah's traditional strongholds - an AFP correspondent saw ambulances and civil defence vehicles gather around another branch.

غارة على فرع القرض الحسن في الصفير في الضاحية الجنوبية pic.twitter.com/pbwskthjXj

— LebanonFiles (@lebanonfile) March 9, 2026

Heavy explosions rocked the Iranian capital on Monday, AFP journalists said, as the war with Israel and the United States raged.

It was not immediately clear what was targeted in Tehran but the blasts were heard across several parts of the city, the reporters said.

Lebanon's Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine on Sunday said Israeli strikes on Lebanon killed 394 people over the past week, including 83 children and 42 women.

Social affairs minister Haneen Sayed later said 517,000 displaced people had registered their names on a website affiliated with the ministry.

Qatar has detained 313 people accused of spreading misleading information and rumours online, according to the country’s Interior Ministry.

In a statement issued on Monday, the ministry said the Department for Combating Economic and Cybercrime at the General Directorate of Criminal Investigation had arrested 313 individuals of various nationalities.

They are accused of filming and sharing video clips, as well as publishing misleading information and rumours that could incite public opinion, in violation of instructions issued by the relevant authorities.

The ministry said legal and administrative measures had been taken against those involved as part of ongoing efforts by security agencies to monitor and address violations linked to the misuse of social media.

In the same statement, the Interior Ministry stressed the importance of refraining from filming, publishing or circulating videos and rumours related to the current situation, urging the public to obtain information only from officially approved sources.

A senior official in the pro-Iran Iraqi Al-Nujaba Movement armed group has claimed that "Israeli forces entered Iraq and killed a number of Iraqi forces."

"The goal is to send aircraft to target other countries to create confusion and blame us," the head of the group’s political council, Ali Al-Assadi, said in comments to RT Arabic on Sunday.

He said there was a joint operations room among "resistance factions" in Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen and Iran.

"Ansarallah [Yemen’s Houthi rebels] will have a very important role and will join the war within days, launching missile strikes in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab," Assadi said.

Yemen’s Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV said on Monday that the announcement of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s third supreme leader marked a "significant political event" and described it as "a slap in the face of the criminal Trump and the US-Zionist system."

The outlet said the development was being closely watched in the United States and that Khamenei’s appointment signalled "a new Iranian phase of resistance and steadfastness" at a highly sensitive moment, amid what it described as "escalating aggression and pressure against the Islamic Republic."

Al-Masirah also said the speed with which Khamenei was named reflected "a keenness to fill any leadership vacuum at a pivotal moment" and sent a clear political message to Washington.

The Houthis have not so far signalled any clear intention to join the conflict or resume attacks on US or Israeli maritime interests in the Red Sea.

Gulf countries have reported damage and casualties following fresh Iranian attacks hours after Mojtaba Khamenei was named Iran’s new supreme leader.

Al Jazeera said on Monday morning that "sounds of interceptions" were heard in Doha, citing a statement by Qatar’s Interior Ministry which said that "the level of threat is high."

The UAE’s defence ministry announced that its air defences were responding to missile and drone threats launched from Iran, according to the state news agency.

Bahrain’s health ministry said a "sinful Iranian drone attack" targeting the Sitra area south of Manama early on Monday had left 32 civilians injured.

The ministry said the wounded were receiving treatment according to approved medical protocols, including four "serious cases," among them children who required surgical intervention.