46m agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 2:42pm
We’re ending our live coverage
We’ll wrap up our live coverage here. Thank you for joining us today, and for putting through your questions and comments.
We’ll be back with you tomorrow to bring you all the latest from the region.
Here are a few of the main points from the last few hours:
The first commercial flight to leave the Middle East since the war’s outbreak has landed in Sydney, with passengers “overjoyed”.Israel is entering the south of Lebanon, after warning the entire region to evacuate.Some residents, including the Christian community, are refusing to leave with thousands others already displace.At least 80 have been killed after a US submarine sunk an Iranian Ship off Sri Lanka’s coast.NATO has taken down an Iranian missile headed toward Turkish airspace, but the US does not think it will join the war.The US says it will have complete control of Iranian air space within a week.Israel’s Deputy foreign minister told 7.30 the country would target Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s son if he is chosen as successor.
Read back through the blog for all the details, and read this story next:
51m agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 2:37pmUN probe says US and Israel’s strikes on Iran breach UN Charter
An independent UN probe has condemned the United States and Israel’s attacks on Iran, as well as Tehran’s region-wide retaliatory strikes, saying all of those actions place those countries in breach of the UN Charter.
The UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran released a statement on Wednesday that was deeply critical of both sides in the conflict, saying the Iranian people are now caught between a large-scale war and a government with a long history of human rights abuses.
It also highlighted a missile strike on the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school in southern Iran on Saturday, the first day of the conflict, which left more than 160 children dead, according to other reports cited by the UN.
Most of the victims were schoolgirls aged between seven and 12, the report said.
58m agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 2:31pm
Iran ‘will target Israeli embassies worldwide’ if IDF attacks Beirut embassy
An Iranian armed forces spokesman is being cited by Iranian media as saying Iran will target Israeli embassies worldwide if Israel attacks Iran’s embassy in Beirut, Lebanon’s capital.
It comes as Israeli forces make their way into southern Lebanon as part of Israel’s war against Hezbollah, after warning residents of the entire region to evacuate.
Two Israeli soldiers were injured after being struck with anti-tank munitions on Wednesday, the IDF said.
1h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 2:26pm
US to strike inland in Iran: Top general
The top US general says the aim is to expand strikes inside Iran.
He says to date they have hit 2,000 targets and destroyed 20 naval vessels and “effectively neutralised Iran’s major naval presence in theatre”.
“We will now begin to expand inland striking progressively deeper into Iranian territory, and creating additional freedom of manoeuvre for US forces,” General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the news briefing at the Pentagon.
“Iran, on other hand, has been indiscriminate and more imprecise in their attacks.
“They fired more than 500 ballistic missiles and more than 2,000 drones striking innocent civilian targets throughout the region.
“Our partners are answering the call to defend themselves right alongside us.
“Jordan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait are all defending their people with their own combat capability with precision and restraint.
“Jordanian air defence crews recently intercepted a cluster of Iranian one way attack drones headed to Amman.”
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also said there was no sense that NATO’s destruction of a ballistic missile fired from Iran toward Turkish airspace would trigger NATO’s Article 5 collective defence clause.
1h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 2:19pmIAEA says no risk of nuclear leak in Iran
The UN nuclear watchdog IAEA says that it sees no damage to facilities containing nuclear material in Iran and no radiological release risk at this time, based on the latest available satellite imagery.
Damage was visible at two buildings near the Isfahan nuclear site in Iran, it said, but that there was no damage to facilities containing nuclear material.
It added there was “no additional impact detected at Natanz after previously reported damage at entrances, and no impact at other nuclear sites, including Bushehr NPP”.
The IAEA’s director general Rafael Grossi has called for “maximum restraint to help avoid any danger of radiological incident”, the agency added.
“IAEA remains in constant contact with national nuclear safety regulators in the Middle East.
“So far, no elevation of radiation detected. The nuclear power plant in UAE and research reactors in Jordan and Syria continue to operate normally.”
1h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 2:03pmHegseth confirms US hit Iranian ship which killed at least 80
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has confirmed that a US submarine sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka.
“In the Indian Ocean … an American submarine sunk an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters, instead it was sunk by a torpedo.
“Quiet death.
“The first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War II.”
At least 80 people were killed in the attack, Sri Lanka’s deputy foreign minister told local television.
The ship was heading back to Iran from an eastern Indian port, he said.
Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath had earlier told parliament 180 people were on board the Iranian vessel, which he identified as the IRIS Dena.
1h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 1:53pm
‘We will not leave our land’: Lebanese priest
Father Najib, a prominent priest based in Rmeish, has told the ABC that the main Christian municipalities along the Israel-Lebanese border — Rmeish, Ain Ebel, Alma Shaeb and Debel — had collectively decided not to comply with IDF evacuation orders despite the high risk involved in staying.
“This is holy land, where Jesus Christ once walked. We have been protected for centuries. We will not leave our land; it is our right to remain here.
“We did not leave before, and we will not leave now. The main Christian towns on the border have taken a united decision to stay.
“God will help us.”
The Israeli military said it had begun a wave of attacks in Southern Lebanon, following its warnings for the entire region to evacuate.
1h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 1:45pmIran running out of weapons: Hegseth
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says Iran’s military capabilities are reducing:
“Our air defences and that of our allies have plenty of runway.
“We can sustain this fight easily for as long as we need to… we set the terms.
“Now, you may not see much of it because the IRGC shut off the internet to the entirety of the country.
“They blind their people on purpose.
“Much was made of the volume of missiles Iran was able to shoot in the first few days.
“Sadly, as we projected, a few got through and killed six of our best.
“We will avenge them, no doubt.”
He adds that Iran has run out of moves and does not know what to do next.
“Iran’s senior leaders are dead.
“The so-called governing council that might have selected a successor — dead, missing or cowering in bunkers too terrified to even occupy the same room.
“Senior generals, mid-level officers, enlisted ranks can’t talk or communicate, let alone mount a coordinated and sustained offensive.
“That’s not great for morale.”
1h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 1:34pmNATO takes down Iranian missile headed toward Turkish airspace
Türkiye says NATO air defences destroyed a ballistic missile fired from Iran as it headed into Turkish airspace, marking the first time the alliance member has been drawn into the expanding Middle East conflict.
It was unclear where the missile was headed, but a NATO spokesperson says the transatlantic defence bloc condemned Iran’s targeting of Türkiye and it stood firmly with all allies.
The Turkish defence ministry says the missile passed over Iraq and Syria before it was downed by NATO air and missile defence systems stationed in the eastern Mediterranean.
There was no immediate comment from the United States, which has air forces stationed at Incirlik base in Türkiye’s south.
The base is in a province bordering Hatay province, where Turkish authorities says debris from the intercepting NATO missile has fallen.
“We warn all parties to refrain from actions that would lead to further escalation of conflict in the region. In this context, we will continue to consult with NATO and our other allies,” the defence ministry says, adding there were no casualties or injuries.
“All necessary steps to defend our territory and airspace will be taken resolutely and without hesitation. We remind all parties that we reserve the right to respond to any hostile actions against our country,” it added.
Reporting with Reuters
1h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 1:31pm’More waves are coming’: Hegseth
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says their supply of weapons is nearly unlimited:
“More and larger waves are coming. We’re just getting started.
“We are accelerating, not decelerating.
“Iran’s capabilities are evaporating by the hour while American strength grows fiercer, smarter, and utterly dominant.
“More bombers and more fighters are arriving just today.
“With complete control of the skies, we will be using 500 pounds, thousand pound, and two thousand pounds, GPS and laser guided precision gravity bombs, of which we have a nearly unlimited stockpile.”
He says the US no longer needs to use exquisite standoff munitions, but their stockpiles and those of Patriots are “extremely strong.”
2h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 1:24pm’This is not a fair fight’: Hegseth
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth continues:
“We’re playing for keeps.
“Our war fighters have maximum authorities granted personally by the president and yours truly.
“Our rules of engagement are bold, precise and designed to unleash American power, not shackle it.
“This was never meant to be a fair fight, and it is not a fair fight.
“We’re punching them while they’re down. Which is exactly how it should be.”
2h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 1:17pm’Complete control of Iranian skies’: Hegseth
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is speaking at the Pentagon.
He says in under a week the US and Israel will have complete control of Iran’s airspace.
“The two most powerful air forces in the world will have complete control of Iranian skies. Uncontested airspace,” he said.
“It means we will fly, all day, all night, day and night, finding, fixing and finishing the missiles and defence industrial base of the Iranian military.
“Finding and fixing their leaders and their military leaders.
“Flying over Tehran, flying over Iran, flying over their capital, flying over the IRGC. Iranian leaders, looking up and seeing only US and Israeli air power.
“Every minute of every day until we decide it’s over.
“And Iran will be able to do nothing about it.
… Death and destruction from the sky, all day long.”
2h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 1:02pm
US carried out strike on Iranian warship
The strike that hit an Iranian warship off Sri Lanka’s coast was carried out by the US military, three officials told Reuters
One of the officials, who was speaking on condition of anonymity, said it was carried out by a US military submarine.
Sri Lankan authorities confirmed today that an Iranian vessel had sunk in the Indian Ocean near the country’s southern coast.
Navy teams rescued 32 sailors and recovered several bodies from the water.
180 people were reported to being on board.
Earlier today Sri Lanka’s navy and defence ministry rejected reports the ship was attacked by a submarine.
2h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 12:50pm
📹: Smoke and destruction in Azadi Square, Tehran
The ABC has been able to verify some of the images emerging from inside Iran as the country continues to be pummelled by US and Israeli strikes.
Footage from Iranian broadcaster Press TV and verified by the ABC, gives us a glimpse of what is unfolding on the ground in Tehran.
The footage shows Azadi Square, but we have not been able to determine exactly when this vision was captured.
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2h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 12:37pm
Drone strikes Iranian Kurdish arms depot in northern Iraq
Reuters is reporting a drone has struck an arms depot belonging to an Iranian Kurdish militant group in northern Iraq, wounding two fighters.
Iran has repeatedly targeted the group’s bases in Iraq’s autonomous northern Kurdish region, accusing it of taking part in cross-border attacks against the Islamic Republic — and accusing the regional government of providing shelter to the group and others like it.
Iranian Kurdish militias have reportedly been in discussions with the US in recent days about whether to attack Iranian security forces in the western part of the country.
3h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 12:15pmChristian Lebanese refuse to evacuate
Christian villages south of the Litani River are refusing to evacuate despite fresh “IDF evacuation orders” issued on X by the Israeli army’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Avichay Adraee.
The president of the municipality of Alma al-Shaab, located just 500 metres from the Israel–Lebanon border, Chadi Sayah, told the ABC that “more than 200 men are staying in the village to protect it.”
“We have enough supplies to remain in our homes. It is our fundamental right to stay in our village.”
A house destroyed in Alma al-Shaab in 2025. (ABC News: Chérine Yazbeck)
In a video that went viral on social media on Monday night, the bells of Our Lady Church rang out; not for Mass, but in defiance.
After the evacuation warning was issued, residents gathered in the church square at the centre of town.
Instead of driving out of the region, many stood shoulder to shoulder beneath the church’s stone façade, insisting they would not leave. The ringing bells were meant to alert neighbours and signal solidarity.
A resident of Ain Ebel, another border locality, told the ABC: “We will remain here because we won’t allow Hezbollah fighters to enter our village and trigger Israeli retaliation that would destroy our churches, monasteries, and schools. We have survived wars and occupation before. This time, we are ready to die on our land.”
An IDF control tower seen from Alma al-Shaab, March 2025. (ABC News: Chérine Yazbeck)
The Rmeish village drew international attention when its parish priest posted a video alongside fellow residents declaring they would stay despite the war. In the video, published on October 3, 2024, the priest says, “We have received assurances, including from the Vatican, that no one will harm us.”
Speaking anonymously, a resident told the ABC: “If we leave our village, we may never return. We know that some of the destroyed Shia villages around us are angry and grieving, and there are fears of reprisals or occupations of empty homes. We want to stay out of this conflict.”
In Christian villages such as Qlayaa, many residents say they refuse to leave because they fear displacement could become permanent.
3h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 12:00pmBreaking: Nearly 150 missing after Iranian warship sinks off Sri Lanka
Nearly 150 people are missing and several dead after an Iranian warship sank on Wednesday off Sri Lanka following what crew members reported as an explosion, local officials have said.
Sri Lanka’s navy rescued 32 sailors from the frigate IRIS Dena but hopes were fading for 148 other sailors, the island’s foreign minister and defence officials said.
The source was unclear of the reported explosion involving the frigate, which was travelling after reportedly attending a military exercise in India’s eastern port of Viskhapatnam. Earlier reports that a submarine had been involved in the sinking were later retracted.
Iris Dena is pictured berthed in Rio de Janeiro’s port in 2023. (Reuters)
The frigate issued a distress call at dawn on Wednesday and within less than an hour a rescue vessel reached the area about 40 kilometres south of the southern port of Galle, the minister said.
The frigate had completely sunk and only an oil patch remained when the navy rescue boats approached.
Navy spokesman Buddhika Sampath said bodies had been found during the search operation.
“We responded to the distress call under our international obligations, as this is within our search and rescue area in the Indian Ocean,” Sampath told AFP.
“We have found a few bodies from the area where the ship had gone down,” Sampath.
Sri Lanka has remained neutral and repeatedly urged dialogue to resolve the conflict in the Mideast.
Reporting with AFP
3h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 11:48am📷: Emirates flight lands in Sydney
Here are some pictures of the flight landing into Sydney Airport.
(ABC News)
(ABC News)3h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 11:35amFirst flight out of Dubai lands in Sydney
An Emirates flight from Dubai has landed in Sydney.
It’s the first flight to depart the UAE for Australia since airspace was closed and travel was halted due to the conflict in the Middle East.
The flight left Dubai’s International Airport 13 hours ago, according to flight tracking website flightradar24.
(flightradar24.com)
(flightradar24.com)
4h agoWed 4 Mar 2026 at 11:24am
Israel enters Lebanon, local media reports
Lebanon’s state news agency is reporting that Israeli forces have entered the southern Lebanese town of Khiyam.
Israel earlier warned everyone in Southern Lebanon (south of the Litani River) to evacuate.
Israeli military vehicles at the Israel-Lebanon border as seen from northern Israel. (Reuters: Shir Torem)
Smoke and dust rise amid explosions in Lebanon as seen from the Israel-Lebanon border in northern Israel. (Reuters: Shir Torem)