{"id":319408,"date":"2026-03-03T10:14:18","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T10:14:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/319408\/"},"modified":"2026-03-03T10:14:18","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T10:14:18","slug":"israel-hits-beirut-tehran-with-fresh-strikes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/319408\/","title":{"rendered":"Israel hits Beirut, Tehran with fresh strikes"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76195386\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section Nearly 800 people have been killed in US-Israeli strikes on Iran, Red Crescent Society says<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026Nearly 800 people have been killed in US-Israeli strikes on Iran, Red Crescent Society says<\/p>\n<p><img data-format=\"MASTER_LANDSCAPE\" data-id=\"76194170\" data-url=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76194170_${formatId}.jpg\" data-aspect-ratio=\"16\/9\" alt=\"An Iranian flag is placed amids rubble and debris next to a destroyed residential building near Ferdowsi square in Tehran on March 3, 2026.\" style=\"padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; max-height: 0;\"\/>Death tolls from inside Iran range from nearly 800 to over 1,500Image: Atta Kenare\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>At least 787 people have been killed in Iran since the start of the US-Israeli air strikes on Saturday, the Iranian Red Crescent Society said Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>In a post on Telegram, the aid organization said air strikes had hit 153 cities across Iran.<\/p>\n<p>The death toll is likely to increase further, as search and rescue operations were ongoing in many locations, the group said.<\/p>\n<p>Hengaw, a human rights organization based in Norway, on Monday said\u00a0more than 1,500 people had been killed since the escalation began four days ago.<\/p>\n<p>Around 1,300 of those fatalities were members of the armed forces, while about 200 were civilians.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>According to reports in Israeli media citing Israeli intelligence, the joint US-Israeli campaign has killed more than 1,000 members of Iran&#8217;s Revolutionary Guard since the strikes began on Saturday.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59htq<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76194942\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section France has Rafales over UAE, plans to send anti-drone systems to Cyprus<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026France has Rafales over UAE, plans to send anti-drone systems to Cyprus<\/p>\n<p><img data-format=\"MASTER_LANDSCAPE\" data-id=\"72546319\" data-url=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/72546319_${formatId}.jpg\" data-aspect-ratio=\"16\/9\" alt=\"Rafale jet being refueled in midair\" style=\"padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; max-height: 0;\"\/>French Rafale jets have been deployed over the UAEImage: Nicolas-Nelson Richard\/ECPAD\/ABACAPRESS.COM\/picture alliance<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/france\/t-19065412\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">France<\/a> has deployed Rafale fighter jets over the <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/united-arab-emirates\/t-67582701\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">United Arab Emirates<\/a> to protect its naval and air bases against Iranian attacks, with one base already targeted by a drone,\u00a0Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;These Rafales and their pilots are mobilized to ensure the security of our facilities,&#8221; Barrot told the BFMTV broadcaster.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;They have carried out operations to secure the airspace above our bases,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>According to the minister,\u00a0&#8220;a hangar at a French base in the United Arab Emirates was hit by a drone&#8221; on Sunday.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, the semi-official Cyprus News Agency (CNA) has reported that France is planning\u00a0to send anti-missile and anti-drone systems, as well as \u200ca frigate, to the island\u00a0after a British air base there was attacked by drones.<\/p>\n<p>CNA said French President Emmanuel Macron had\u00a0communicated the intention to Cypriot President<br \/>Nikos Christodoulides early on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/cyprus\/t-38380392\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Cyprus<\/a> is the EU member state that is closest to the Middle East, with its city of Larnaca situated just some129 miles (208 km) from the closest point in Lebanon.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59hmg<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76194251\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section Debris from intercepted drone sparks fire at UAE oil site<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026Debris from intercepted drone sparks fire at UAE oil site<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0A fire broke out at an oil industry zone in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on Tuesday, caused by falling debris from an intercepted drone.<\/p>\n<p>The incident comes as Tehran steps up its response to the joint US-Israeli attacks against Iran and its proxy group Hezbollah in Lebanon.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Relevant authorities in the Emirate of Fujairah responded to a fire that broke out this morning in the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone (FOIZ), resulting from falling debris following the successful interception of a drone by air defence systems,&#8221; the Fujairah Media Office said.<\/p>\n<p>The statement added that no injuries were reported from the incident, that the fire has been put out, and normal operations have resumed.<\/p>\n<p>Iran&#8217;s retaliation campaign has seen it target countries in the Middle East that were previously considered safe havens, in particular the UAE.<\/p>\n<p>Two Amazon data\u00a0centers in the country were &#8220;directly struck&#8221; on Monday, the tech giant said, which caused disruptions for its cloud services in parts of the region.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59hbX<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76193995\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section German tourism group TUI to start repatriation flights for stranded customers<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026German tourism group TUI to start repatriation flights for stranded customers<\/p>\n<p>German tourism group <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/tui\/t-19098323\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">TUI<\/a> is to offer flights back home to customers who have been stranded in the Middle East by the <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-israel-war-with-iran\/t-76168615\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">current conflict,<\/a> starting on Tuesday, its CEO has said.<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian Ebel said \u200cTUI was working with \u200cairlines \u200bEtihad, Emirates and Qatar Airways and that it expected to carry out the first flights on Tuesday with those companies.<\/p>\n<p>He cited figures from\u00a0the German Travel Association that\u00a0suggest around <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/iran-war-tens-of-thousands-of-german-travelers-stranded\/a-76183772\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">30,000 tourists are unable to fly home to Germany,<\/a> saying 10,000 of them were TUI customers.<\/p>\n<p>Ebel said the speed\u00a0of the repatriations would\u00a0depend on the security situation, which remained\u00a0difficult to predict, but that\u00a0the process was expected to take several days.<\/p>\n<p>The widening conflict triggered by the US-Israeli offensive against Iran has led to airspace closures across the Middle East region, while\u00a0cruise ships have also remained in port.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59hXP<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76193779\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section Fresh strikes reported in Tehran on fourth day of conflict<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026Fresh strikes reported in Tehran on fourth day of conflict<\/p>\n<p><img data-format=\"MASTER_LANDSCAPE\" data-id=\"76192905\" data-url=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76192905_${formatId}.jpg\" data-aspect-ratio=\"16\/9\" alt=\"Plumes of smoke rise following reported explosions in Tehran on March 3, 2026. \" style=\"padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; max-height: 0;\"\/>Plumes of smoke were seen over the Iranian capital again on Tuesday morningImage: Atta Kenare\/AFP<\/p>\n<p>The Iranian capital, Tehran, again came under heavy bombing on Tuesday morning, according to state media.<\/p>\n<p>Local reports also say around 12 missiles struck the suburb of Pardis.<\/p>\n<p>Images of plumes of smoke rising over the Alborz mountain range outside the capital\u00a0were shared on social media.<\/p>\n<p>It was not clear what targets were struck, or who launched the strikes, but Israel&#8217;s military said in a post on X that it was &#8220;conducting simultaneous targeted strikes against military targets in Tehran and Beirut.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Explosions were also reported in Karaj city outside the capital, and in Isfahan in the center of the country.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59hTv<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76193229\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section READ MORE: Middle East conflict affects key shipping route<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026READ MORE: Middle East conflict affects key shipping route<\/p>\n<p>Shipping through the\u00a0Strait of Hormuz, one of the world&#8217;s most important transport routes for oil, gas and fertilizer, has been severely disrupted by the conflict in the Middle East.<\/p>\n<p>If the situation continues, economies around the world could be negatively impacted, as you can read in this article:\u00a0<a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/hormuz-strait-iran-israel-war-global-oil-supplies-persian-gulf-china-v2\/a-72952336\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Strait of Hormuz halts after US\u2011Israel attack on Iran<\/a><\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59hL3<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76192908\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section Israeli military say soldiers active in southern Lebanon<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026Israeli military say soldiers active in southern Lebanon<\/p>\n<p>The Israeli military has said its soldiers are \u201coperating in southern <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/lebanon\/t-19131661\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Lebanon<\/a>&#8221; as Israel continues strikes against the Iran-backed <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/hezbollah\/t-41508807\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Hezbollah<\/a> militia in the neighboring country.<\/p>\n<p>It said troops had been deployed at several locations near the border to help increase security for residents of border areas in\u00a0northern Israel.<\/p>\n<p>In a statement, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said: &#8220;To prevent the possibility of direct fire targeting Israeli communities, Prime Minister <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/benjamin-netanyahu\/t-19234066\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a> and I have authorized the IDF to advance and secure additional strategic areas in Lebanon, and from there to defend the border communities.&#8221;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The announcement comes as Hezbollah has said it has targeted three Israeli military bases with drone or\u00a0rocket strikes in reponse to <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/lebanon-israel-trades-fire-with-hezbollah-in-south-and-east\/a-76183883\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Israel&#8217;s &#8220;criminal&#8221; attacks on its strongholds in Lebanon,<\/a> including in <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/beirut\/t-38446502\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Beirut<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>It said its fighters had attacked the Ramat David air base and the Meron base in northern Israel with drones, and a a base in the <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/un-votes-to-tell-israel-to-leave-gaza-west-bank-golan-heights\/a-74996403\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">occupied Golan Heights<\/a> with rockets.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59hFs<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76192281\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section Picking new supreme leader &#8216;won&#8217;t take long&#8217; \u2014 Iranian source<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026Picking new supreme leader &#8216;won&#8217;t take long&#8217; \u2014 Iranian source<\/p>\n<p>A new Iranian supreme leader will be chosen in the very near future, according to the clerical body tasked with electing someone to the position.<\/p>\n<p>Choosing a successor to <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/ayatollah-ali-khamenei-the-man-who-wanted-to-destroy-israel\/a-76169184\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Ayatollah Ali Khamenei<\/a>, who was killed on Saturday amid the <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-israel-war-with-iran\/t-76168615\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">US-Israeli offensive<\/a>, &#8220;won&#8217;t take long,&#8221; said a member of the Assembly of Experts, cited by the ISNA news agency.<\/p>\n<p>Iran&#8217;s supreme leader possesses\u00a0the highest religious and political authority in the country, above the president.<\/p>\n<p>Only two people have so far held the position since the Islamic Republic of Iran was founded in 1979 by Ayatollah\u00a0Ruhollah Khomeini, who was the first to take the office.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59h5l<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76192263\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section German police warn of airline hotline scams amid Mideast conflict<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026German police warn of airline hotline scams amid Mideast conflict<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/german-police\/t-73225100\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">German police<\/a> have warned travellers affected by the <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-israel-war-with-iran\/t-76168615\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Iran war<\/a> to be wary of fraudulent\u00a0airline service hotlines when trying to rebook flights amid disruption caused by the conflict.<\/p>\n<p>The warning comes after a women from the southern state of\u00a0Bavaria was tricked into paying\u00a0\u20ac2,500 ($2,920) for what she thought was a valid booking.<\/p>\n<p>Bavaria&#8217;s State Criminal Police Office (BLKA) urged consumers to obtain hotline numbers only from the official website of their booking portal or airline and not to rely on paid search engine advertisements.<\/p>\n<p>It said\u00a0booking changes should be made exclusively through official customer accounts and called on people to report cases\u00a0suspected fraud to authorities without delay.<\/p>\n<p>The German Travel Association has said that <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/iran-war-tens-of-thousands-of-german-travelers-stranded\/a-76183772\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">as many as 30,000 people from Germany might be stranded in the Middle East<\/a>amid the widening conflict triggered by the US-Israeli offensive against Iran.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59h5T<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76192107\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section Melania Trump chairs Security Council meeting on education during conflicts<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026Melania Trump chairs Security Council meeting on education during conflicts<\/p>\n<p><img data-format=\"MASTER_LANDSCAPE\" data-id=\"76190629\" data-url=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76190629_${formatId}.jpg\" data-aspect-ratio=\"16\/9\" alt=\"Melania Trump, blonde woman in gray suit with 'United States' sign in front of her, other people sitting behind her\" style=\"padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; max-height: 0;\"\/>Melania Trump was considered an unusual choice to chair the meetingImage: Timothy A. Clary\/AFP<\/p>\n<p>The wife of US President Donald Trump, <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/emine-erdogan-appeals-to-melania-trump-over-gazas-children\/a-73745251\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Melania Trump<\/a>, has chaired a meeting of the UN Security Council in New York that focused on children, technology and <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/education\/t-45017946\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">education<\/a> in conflict situations.<\/p>\n<p>The meeting came after unconfirmed reports that dozens of children have been killed at a girl&#8217;s school in southern Iran amid Israeli and US strikes, while several schools across the Middle East have been closed amid the widening conflict, with pupils moving to remote learning.<\/p>\n<p>Although Melania Trump did not mention the <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-israel-war-with-iran\/t-76168615\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">US-Israeli offensive launched on Saturday against Iran,<\/a> she\u00a0offered her condolences to the &#8220;families who have lost their heroes, who sacrificed their lives for freedom&#8221; as she opened the session.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The US stands with all of the children throughout the world. I hope soon, peace will be yours,&#8221; she said.<\/p>\n<p>In her remarks, the US first lady stressed that\u00a0education was vital for preventing conflict, saying that if countries make it a priority, it &#8220;leads to something powerful \u2014\u00a0to greater understanding, moral reasoning \u2014\u00a0and tolerance of others. Peace.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I implore you to build a future generation of leaders who embrace peace through education,&#8221; she told council members.<\/p>\n<p>It was the first time the spouse of a world leader has chaired a Security Council meeting.<\/p>\n<p>President Trump and his administration have\u00a0<a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/trumps-un-speech-no-laughing-matter-as-body-language-shows\/a-74121719\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">often criticized the UN as ineffective and corrupt.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59h2x<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76192100\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section &#8216;Take over your govenment&#8217; Trump tells Iranians as US officials insist they are not seeking regime change<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026&#8217;Take over your govenment&#8217; Trump tells Iranians as US officials insist they are not seeking regime change<\/p>\n<p>Despite calls for new leadership in Iran before strikes began on Saturday, several top US officials have now stressed that regime change is not the goal for the conflict.<\/p>\n<p>Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/marco-rubio\/t-73598020\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Marco Rubio<\/a>\u00a0and Vice President <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/jd-vance\/t-70177094\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">JD Vance<\/a> have stressed that destroying Iran&#8217;s nuclear program is the main objective.<\/p>\n<p>In an interview with Fox News, Vance said that, &#8220;in a perfect world,&#8221; there would be a new leader in Tehran who would be willing to deal more directly with Washington, but that Trump&#8217;s purpose is to &#8220;make sure the Iranian terrorist regime does not build a nuclear bomb.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0&#8220;Obviously, the president and I would prefer that you have a friendly regime in Iran &#8230; but fundamentally, so long as we achieve the president&#8217;s objective to make it clear that Iran can&#8217;t build the bomb, I think the president will be happy with the outcome.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>His statements came despite Trump tearing up <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/iran-says-its-no-longer-bound-by-nuclear-deal-limits\/a-74409512\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">the JCPOA\u00a0agreement<\/a> with Iran during his previous administration. Under the deal with Western allies, Tehran had agreed to major curbs on its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.<\/p>\n<p>In a video message, Trump called on Iranians to &#8220;take over your government&#8221; when the US and Israeli strikes finished.<br \/>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59h2q<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76192105\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section US evacuates non-emergency personnel from Iraq, Bahrain, and Jordan, closes Kuwait embassy &#8216;indefinitely&#8217;<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026US evacuates non-emergency personnel from Iraq, Bahrain, and Jordan, closes Kuwait embassy &#8216;indefinitely&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>The US State Department\u00a0has said it will evacuate\u00a0all non-critical personnel and their families from its embassies and consulates in Iraq, Bahrain and Jordan after its embassy in Riyadh was hit by a drone attack, causing what officials categorized as &#8220;minor damage&#8221; without providing further details.<\/p>\n<p>Later, they also added Qatar to the list of countries where staff were being evacuated, as well as the United Arab Emirates.<\/p>\n<p>This comes a day after the US Embassy in Kuwait was also hit. On Tuesday it was closed indefinitely over &#8220;regional tensions,&#8221; officials said.<\/p>\n<p>The State Department has also issued a warning to US citizens to leave Iran and\u00a0several other Middle Eastern countries, including Israel, Egypt, and Lebanon.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59h2v<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76192020\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section Iran accuses US of entering a war &#8216;on behalf of Israel&#8217;<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026Iran accuses US of entering a war &#8216;on behalf of Israel&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>Iran&#8217;s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi has said that comments by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio showed that the United States &#8220;entered a war of choice on behalf of Israel.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>In a post on X, Araghchi said that &#8220;Mr\u00a0Rubio admitted what we all knew: [The] US\u00a0has entered a war of choice on behalf of Israel. There was never any so-called Iranian &#8216;threat&#8217;.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Earlier, on Monday, Rubio said that US attacks on Iran were for the United States&#8217; own protection ahead of an &#8220;imminent threat.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;There absolutely was an imminent threat, and the imminent threat was that we knew that if Iran was attacked, and we believed they would be attacked, that they would immediately come after us,\u201d Rubio told reporers in Washington.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe knew that there was going to be an Israeli action,&#8221; he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We knew that that would precipitate an attack against American forces. And we knew that if we didn\u2019t preemptively go after [Iran) before they launched those attacks, we would suffer higher casualties,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59h1Y<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76191905\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section Iran war won&#8217;t be &#8216;endless&#8217;: Netanyahu<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026Iran war won&#8217;t be &#8216;endless&#8217;: Netanyahu<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/israel\/t-19067044\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Israel<\/a>&#8216;s Prime Minister <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/benjamin-netanyahu\/t-19234066\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a>\u00a0said the <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-israel-war-with-iran\/t-76168615\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">US-Israel\u00a0war with Iran<\/a> won&#8217;t be &#8221; endless&#8221; in an interview with Fox News.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;You&#8217;re not going to have an endless war,&#8221; Netanyahu said in the interview broadcast on Monday. &#8220;This is going to be a quick and decisive action.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>He later qualified that the conflict &#8220;may take some time, but it&#8217;s not going to take years.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Netanyahu also claimed Israel and the United States had to act because Iran had been building new <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/nuclear-weapons\/t-63414896\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">nuclear weapon<\/a> sites that would have been impossible to attack within months.<\/p>\n<p>Netanyahu alleged that Iran had been working on new weapons sites since June 2025 when the US and Israel launched coordinated strikes on the Islamic republic.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;They started building new sites, new places, underground bunkers that would make their ballistic missile programs and their atomic bomb programs immune within months,&#8221; Netanyahu said.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59gzh<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#post-liveblog-post-76191750\" class=\"q1knotlb b14agbwd quick-item\">Skip next section Trump suggests US could retaliate &#8216;soon&#8217; over strike on embassy<\/a><\/p>\n<p>03\/03\/2026March 3, 2026Trump suggests US could retaliate &#8216;soon&#8217; over strike on embassy<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-president-donald-trump-russia-ukraine-israel-gaza-tariffs-trade-war\/t-19434433\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">President Donald Trump<\/a> has suggested that the <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/united-states-of-america\/t-19065189\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">United States<\/a> would retaliate &#8220;soon&#8221; for the attack on its embassy in Riyadh and for the killing of six US military personnel\u00a0in Iranian strikes.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking to the US cable network NewsNation on Monday, Trump reportedly said &#8220;you&#8217;ll find out soon&#8221; how the US would respond, without providing further detail.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He added\u00a0that he didn&#8217;t &#8220;think boots on the ground [in Iran] will be necessary,&#8221; according to\u00a0NewsNation White House correspondent.<\/p>\n<p>US Central Command\u00a0on Monday afternoon that six service members had been killed.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59gxC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Skip next section Nearly 800 people have been killed in US-Israeli strikes on Iran, Red Crescent Society says&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":319409,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[85,46,43],"class_list":{"0":"post-319408","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-israel","8":"tag-il","9":"tag-israel","10":"tag-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319408","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=319408"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319408\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/319409"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=319408"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=319408"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=319408"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}