passengers have been stranded around the world<\/a> as carriers based in the Gulf grounded flights. Long-haul carriers Etihad and Emirates restarted limited flights.<\/p>\nIran says nuclear site was targeted<\/p>\n
Reza Najafi, Iran\u2019s ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, told reporters that airstrikes targeted the Natanz nuclear enrichment site.<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir justification that Iran wants to develop nuclear weapons is simply a big lie,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Israel and the US have not acknowledged strikes at the site, which the US bombed in the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June. Israel has said that it is targeting the \u201cleadership and nuclear infrastructure\u201d.<\/p>\n
Iran has said it has not enriched uranium since June, though it has maintained its right to do so while saying its nuclear program is entirely peaceful.<\/p>\n
Iran\u2019s government news outlet said that Tehran\u2019s Golestan Palace, a UNESCO-listed heritage site, was damaged in US\u2013Israeli strikes on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Hezbollah fires on Israel, prompting a massive response<\/p>\n
Hezbollah said it fired missiles on Israel in response to Khamenei\u2019s killing and \u201crepeated Israeli aggressions\u201d. It was the first time in more than a year that the militant group had claimed an attack.<\/p>\n
There were no reports of injuries or damage.<\/p>\n
Israel retaliated with strikes on Lebanon, killing at least 31 people and wounding 149 others, according to Lebanon\u2019s Health Ministry. Associated Press journalists in Beirut were jolted awake by loud explosions that shook buildings and shattered windows.<\/p>\n
Lt Gen Eyal Zamir, the Israeli army chief of staff, said the military would not end its offensive against Hezbollah \u201cbefore the threat from Lebanon is eliminated\u201d.<\/p>\n
![\"Mourners](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/mourners-take-cover-while-air-raid-sirens-warn-of-incoming-m-YONV7JA4NVAQDGKCYFNZ6DWODM.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Mourners take cover while air-raid sirens warn of incoming missiles launched by Iran toward Israel during the funeral of Sarah Elimelech and her daughter Ronit who were killed in an Iranian missile attack, in Beit Shemesh, Israel, Monday, March 2, 2026. (Source: Associated Press)<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will end this campaign with not just Iran being struck but with Hezbollah suffering a devastating blow,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Rescue services in Israel said several locations have been hit by Iranian missiles, including Jerusalem and a synagogue in Beit Shemesh. In all, 11 people have been killed.<\/p>\n
In Iraq, the Iran-allied militia Saraya Awliya al-Dam claimed a drone attack Monday targeting US troops at the airport in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. It claimed another drone attack on Sunday against a US air base in Iraq\u2019s north.<\/p>\n
No end in sight to the US-Israeli campaign<\/p>\n
The US military said B-2 stealth bombers struck Iran\u2019s ballistic missile facilities with 2000-pound bombs. Trump said on social media that nine Iranian warships had been sunk and that the Iranian navy\u2019s headquarters had been \u201clargely destroyed\u201d.<\/p>\n
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Monday that the US is not engaged in a nation-building effort in Iran, and there is a clear mission. \u201cThis is not Iraq. This is not endless,\u201d Hegseth said.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not completely clear what the US objectives are. In announcing the initial strikes, Trump referred to the threat posed by Iran\u2019s nuclear and missile programs. But he also listed various grievances dating back to Iran\u2019s 1979 Islamic Revolution and urged Iranians to \u201ctake over\u201d their government.<\/p>\n
There have been no signs yet of any such uprising.<\/p>\n
The American leader, however, has also signalled he would be open to dialogue with Iran’s new leadership, which could be chosen soon.<\/p>\n
In an indication that the conflict could draw in other nations, Britain, France and Germany said Sunday they were ready to work with the US to help stop Iran\u2019s attacks.<\/p>\n
Early Monday, Cyprus said a drone \u201ccaused limited damage\u201d when it hit a British air base there.<\/p>\n
The morning’s headlines in 90 seconds, including why Trump says the Iran war isn\u2019t \u201cboring\u201d, and Liam Lawson\u2019s new lessons for the F1 season. (Source: Breakfast)<\/p>\n
Tehran’s streets are deserted<\/p>\n
Tehran\u2019s streets have been largely deserted with people sheltering during airstrikes. The paramilitary Basij force, which has played a central role in crushing recent nationwide protests, set up checkpoints across the city, according to witnesses.<\/p>\n
In the northern Iranian city of Babol, a student, speaking anonymously over concerns of retribution, told the AP that armed riot police were on the streets Saturday night and into the early hours of Sunday after the death of Khamenei.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know whether to be happy about the elimination of the criminals who oppress us or to remain silent in the face of the US and Israel\u2019s war against the country and its interests and the terror that is taking place,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The war in the Middle East spiralled further as Israel and the US pounded Iran in a campaign…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":310161,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[65,42,5107,43,64,40,38,41,39],"class_list":{"0":"post-310160","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-donald-trump","9":"tag-headlines","10":"tag-middle-east","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-north-america","13":"tag-top-news","14":"tag-top-stories","15":"tag-topnews","16":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=310160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310160\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/310161"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=310160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=310160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=310160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/a-bird-flies-by-a-plume-of-smoke-rising-after-a-strike-in-te-I4SJ3UUQVJDNFKPVK2K2BF5DJY.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"People](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/people-walk-past-buildings-damaged-during-a-strike-on-a-poli-2BMEKSTPPRDGNNOLBO7RB4W6SM.jpg\")
<\/p>\n