LIVE: Pentagon Chief Says US Intensifying Strikes on Iran
By : Agencies
Update: 2026-03-09 00:54 GMT
2026-03-10 06:04 GMT
Trump, Putin Discuss Iran War Over Phone Call: Kremlin
U.S. President Donald Trump had a call Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the war in Iran and other issues, which according to the Kremlin was a “frank and businesslike” conversation that lasted about an hour.
2026-03-10 01:41 GMT
Oil Prices Fall Back Sharply as Trump Claims Iran War Will Be Over ‘Very Soon’
2026-03-09 20:11 GMT
US stocks close higher following a remarkable reversal as oil prices fall from nearly $120 per barrel below $90
- AP
2026-03-09 20:09 GMT
Trump and Putin discuss Iran war during a phone call, Kremlin says
Trump and Putin discuss Iran war during a phone call, Kremlin says
U.S. President Donald Trump had a call Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the war in Iran and other issues, which according to the Kremlin was a “frank and businesslike” conversation that lasted about an hour.
1. Heavy U.S. and Israeli bombardment of Iran has been going on for more than a week , while Iran has launched more attacks on Israel and Gulf countries. Israel is striking Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, while the militant group fires rockets into Israel.
2. Iranian state TV announced early Monday that Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei was named supreme leader, in defiance of threats by Trump. Khamenei is seen as even more hard-line than his father, the supreme leader killed on the first day of the war. He will now be in charge of Iran’s armed forces and any decision about Tehran’s nuclear program.
3. U.S. stocks closed higher following a remarkable reversal as oil prices fell from nearly $120 per barrel below $90.
4. A 26-year-old Army staff sergeant from Kentucky was identified as the seventh U.S. service member killed during the Iran war, after being wounded on a base in Saudi Arabia on March 1. The first six deaths were Army reservists killed the same day at a Kuwaiti port.
5. New footage has raised the likelihood that the U.S. military struck an Iranian elementary school where a blast killed at least 165 people, mostly children .
Here is the latest:
Trump has a call with Putin to discuss the war in Iran and other issues, Kremlin says Putin’s foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov described the conversation as “frank and businesslike” and said it lasted about one hour.
He said the Russian president “voiced a few ideas aimed at a quick political and diplomatic settlement” of the conflict following his conversations with Gulf leaders and Iran’s president.
Trump offered his assessment of the developing situation, Ushakov said, “in the context of the ongoing U.S.-Israeli operation.” The two leaders had a “specific and useful” exchange of views, and they touched on Venezuela “in the context of the situation in the global oil market,” he said.
Tehran residents struggle to find safety from missiles Iran’s capital has no citywide system of shelters or sirens to warn residents of incoming U.S. and Israeli strikes, leaving many to take cover in interior rooms and tape up windows to protect against shattered glass, a 41-year-old resident said. He said the city’s subway hasn’t become widely used as a shelter.
Because of Iran’s ongoing internet shutdown, many people there rely on satellite TV, state media and word of mouth for news about the war, he said, speaking on condition of anonymity out of security fears.
A senior Hezbollah official says fighting Israel is the only option Mohammad Raad, the leader of Hezbollah’s bloc in the Lebanese parliament, also slammed the government for criticizing the militant group’s rocket attacks on Israel.
He made the remarks in a televised statement as top government officials urged the international community for a diplomatic resolution that maintains Lebanon’s commitment to disarming Hezbollah.
“Lebanon today is not choosing between war and peace, as some claim,” Raad said, “but between war and submission to the humiliating conditions that the enemy wants to impose on our government.”
“We will fight the enemy with our teeth and nails until we expel them from our land, in fulfillment of our religious duty,” he said.
Official says at least 7 mariners have been killed around the Strait of Hormuz The head of the International Maritime Organization says they were killed in “recent” attacks on merchant vessels. Arsenio Dominguez spoke earlier Monday and said several other mariners had been injured, “some of them gravely.”
He did not say who was behind the attacks and urged shipping companies to use “maximum caution” in the region. He said all parties must respect the freedom of navigation.
Tom Brady and the Fanatics Flag Football Classic switch from Saudi Arabia to Los Angeles The venue swap for the March 21 inaugural competition featuring numerous NFL players and coaches comes amid the Iran war and travel advisories.
It was slated to be held at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, but instead will relocate to BMO Stadium, which will be the site where flag football makes its Olympic debut at the 2028 LA Games.
Macron proposes a multinational mission to escort tankers once the war stops The French president said he started discussing a French-led initiative that will involve European and non-European nations helping to escort oil and gas tankers with the aim of gradually reopening the Strait of Hormuz off Iran “as soon as possible after the most intense phase of the conflict is over.”
Macron said he talked with some other European nations and India about the proposal, during a visit to Cyprus.
“We are preparing this mission with our partners,” he said. The mission’s purpose would be “strictly peaceful and defensive”, he said and would come only when most strikes stop. “It is essential to our economies and to the global economy” to ensure freedom of navigation and maritime security in the region, he said.
Iran-backed Yemeni group welcomes selection of new ayatollah The leader of Yemen’s Houthi rebels congratulated Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei on being selected as the new supreme leader in Iran, calling it a “significant achievement in these exceptional circumstances.”
In a statement, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi says the group is supporting Iran “against aggression and tyranny” without saying whether the group would join the war.
Iran has long backed Houthis, considered the strongest within Iran’s self-described “Axis of Resistance” that includes Lebanon’s Hezbollah group and Hamas. The Houthis follow a branch of Shiite Islam that is almost exclusively found in Yemen.
A priest is killed by Israeli shelling in southern Lebanon, state media says Just a few days ago, Father Pierre al-Rai had appeared in a widely circulated video saying that he would not leave the village, despite the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah militants in the border area.
“I am ready to die in my home, because it is my home,” he said in the video, adding that “the only weapons we carry are peace, goodness and love.”
There was no Israeli statement on his death. The Israeli military has issued several broad evacuation warnings telling residents in the area south of the Litani River to leave, as it is carrying out heavy bombardment that it says targets Hezbollah sites.
Residents of Qlayaa protested to demand the Lebanese army increase its presence around the town and prevent armed groups from entering the area, the National News Agency reported.
Britain’s defense secretary says UK is conducting air defense to support the UAE John Healey said Typhoon jets successfully took out two drones, one over Jordan and the second heading to Bahrain. He did not give more details.
He also confirmed that the first U.S. bomber aircraft landed at an airbase in England on Friday, after the U.K. gave the U.S. permission to use British bases for specific defensive operations.
Healey added Monday the destroyer HMS Dragon would set sail for the eastern Mediterranean “in the next couple of days,” where it would join U.S. air defense vessels.
To save fuel, Pakistan closes all schools The two-week school closure would affect about 40 million students in a country of roughly 250 million.
In response to soaring global oil prices, Pakistan is also telling half its state employees to work from home and switching colleges and universities to remote classes.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also announced a 50% cut in free fuel allocation for government vehicles for the next two months. Government offices, excluding banks, will operate four days a week.
Footage shows moment an Iranian missile explodes in Israel In the CCTV released by Or Yehuda municipality, a man is seen walking next to a road as a huge explosion occurs. The man is then seen falling down, while another person rushes to help him seconds after. The municipality of Or Yehuda said Monday the man was seriously injured.
Dramatic security camera video shows a man walking next to a road as a huge explosion occurs. He then falls, apparently injured, while another person rushes to help him.
On Monday, Israel said another man was killed by Iranian missile fire in the same area, raising the country’s death toll to 11. This marked the first death from missiles in Israel in a week.
A top Iranian official says economic pain, not diplomacy, will end the war A foreign policy adviser to the office of the supreme leader told CNN on Monday that Iran is prepared for a long war with the United States, ruling out that diplomacy could end the conflict that started over a week ago.
“I don’t see any room for diplomacy anymore,” said Kamal Kharazi in an interview from Tehran. “There’s no room unless the economic pressure would be built up to the extent that other countries would intervene to guarantee (the) termination of aggression of Americans and Israelis against Iran”.
Putin says Russia increases oil and gas supplies to ‘reliable partners’ President Vladimir Putin on Monday said Russia has “repeatedly warned that attempts to destabilize the situation in the Middle East will inevitably jeopardize” the global energy market, raising prices and limiting supplies.
The Russian leader emphasized that Moscow is a “reliable energy supplier” and will continue to supply oil and gas to “countries that themselves are reliable partners,” like those in the Asia-Pacific region or Slovakia and Hungary in Eastern Europe. Moreover, Russia is “increasing supplies” to its reliable partners, Putin said.
He reiterated that Russia was pondering diverting gas supplies from the European Union, where a full ban on Russian gas from 2027 was agreed, to other markets, but added that if “European buyers” change their mind, Moscow was ready to work with them.
Roy Cooper, a Democratic Senate candidate in North Carolina, worries Iran is ‘a forever war’ The former North Carolina governor praised U.S. service members for diminishing the Iranian government while still criticizing the war itself. Yet Cooper sidestepped questions on what he’d do about it in Washington.
When asked how the Senate could limit the war and whether he’d vote for the war powers resolution that failed, Cooper said generally that Congress should “take back constitutional authority, particularly on declaration of war.” He twice expressed concern that Iran could become “a forever war.”
“I fear that there is no exit strategy for this war, and we’ve been told so many reasons why we got into it,” he said, adding that rising oil prices add to already burdensome costs for consumers.
Then he pivoted the question to his campaign to “make stuff cost less.”
“When I get to the Senate,” he said, “I’m going to be focused on costs.”
Turkey summons Iranian ambassador after NATO defenses intercept a missile Turkey requested an “explanation” over the firing of the ballistic missile during the meeting and conveyed its “reaction and concerns,” a Turkish official said.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government regulations.
— By Suzan Fraser
Trump’s news conference will be about Iran, White House says Trump will provide an update on Iran and answer questions from reporters.
He is expected to begin the news conference at approximately 5:30 p.m. EDT. That’s after the markets close and as concerns have risen about high oil and gasoline prices because of the war.
No signs Iran has moved uranium from a key nuclear site, UN watchdog says More than 200 kilograms (440 pounds) of enriched uranium were stored in barrels at Iran’s Isfahan nuclear site, says Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency .
It was enriched up to 60% purity — a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.
“The widespread assumption is that the material is still there,” Grossi said, speaking to reporters in Paris. The IAEA and others that watch the facility through satellite imagery and other means “haven’t seen movement indicating that the material could have been transferred.”
He cautioned that until the IAEA has been able to inspect the facility, “we will not be able to tell you 100 percent.” But he added: “That material was in barrels, in barrels that were sealed by the IAEA. So it remains to be seen whether they are still there, but the widespread assumption is that they are still there.”
Thousands rally in Iran’s capital to show support for the new supreme leader Throngs of people poured into Enghelab, or Revolution, square in Tehran to pledge their backing for the choice of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s former supreme leader, after his father Ali Khamenei was killed in the opening salvoes of the war on Feb. 28.
Demonstrators waved flags of the Islamic Republic and chanted slogans like “Death to America” and “Death to Israel,” 10 days into a devastating war that has engulfed the wider Middle East.
Many shook their fists and held photos of the father and son aloft under blue skies.
“Today we are here to pledge to Grand Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei that we will sacrifice our blood to the leadership,” said demonstrator Assad Assadi. “We also want to tell the criminal America not to interfere in the affairs of Iran and the region.”
Trump says he’s holding a news conference before he leaves Florida, topic unknown Trump announced the news conference in a social media post in which the Republican president laid out his schedule for Monday.
He said it would begin at approximately 5:30 p.m. EDT — after the markets close and with concerns rising about high oil and gasoline prices because of the war. Trump did not say if the news conference would be about a particular topic. The White House had no immediate comment.
Trump was spending Monday at his Miami-area golf club and having “many important meetings and phone calls” while there, according to the post. He said he’s attending a 4 p.m. fundraiser for House Speaker Mike Johnson and will hold the news conference before he returns to the White House.
House Republicans are also meeting there on Monday for a legislative retreat.
Trump arrived in the Miami area on Friday for a summit at the club on Saturday with Latin American and Caribbean leaders.
A second Iranian nuclear site has been struck, UN says However, any damage to the Isfahan site appears to be minor, said Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog.
He didn’t say when the site was struck or by which countries’ forces. Satellite images of Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility have also shown damage to buildings and additional damage across the facility’s complex.
“Since the beginning of this campaign, we’ve seen some impacts in Natanz — a couple — and one in Isfahan. Not a very major one, I should say,” Grossi said, speaking to reporters in Paris.
“What we saw was an impact close to one axis, to one of the tunnels there and this is all we saw,” he said.
France’s Macron orders naval deployment to Mediterranean after Cyprus strike France will deploy eight warships, including the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle and two helicopter carriers, to the Eastern Mediterranean and wider Middle East to bolster security around the European Union’s eastern frontier, President Emmanuel Macron said Monday.
Speaking in Cyprus days after a drone struck the British base on the island — the first attack of the war on European soil — Macron also said France is working on an initiative to escort oil and gas tankers through the Strait of Hormuz once the conflict’s most intense phase eases.
Israeli diplomat says his country will target anyone with ‘radical ideas’ — including Iran’s new leader Israel’s ambassador to the U.N. said Iran’s new supreme leader “is more of the same — same ideology, same radical ideas” as his late father.
“Anyone who will promote those radical ideas against us, we will target them,” Danny Danon told reporters. “We will find them.”
Danon was asked whether Israel supports Trump’s statement that the U.S. president should have a say in choosing Iran’s next leader.
“There is no daylight between the U.S. and Israel,” he said, then added, “I think it’s for the people of Iran to choose their next leadership.”
“We will have to create the conditions for them, and that’s what we are doing now,” the ambassador said. “But eventually they will have to stand up, rise up and choose their own leadership.”
2026-03-09 19:08 GMT
Elevation of Mojtaba Khamenei suggests ultraconservatives steering Iran
Elevation of Mojtaba Khamenei suggests ultraconservatives steering Iran
PARIS, France, March 9, 2026 (AFP) - With the selection of Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father Ali as Iran's supreme leader, the country's ultraconservatives have defied the United States and Israel and signalled their intent to keep the war going, experts told AFP.
Ignoring Israeli assassination threats and the warnings of US President Donald Trump that he must be involved in selecting Iran's new leader, the Assembly of Experts moved to declare Khamenei supreme leader just after midnight on Monday.
"Appointing Mojtaba Khamenei sends one clear message abroad: the system is closing ranks, not collapsing," said Ali Vaez, of the International Crisis Group (ICG) think tank.
Clement Therme, of the International Institute for Iranian Studies, said it was a symbolic choice, adding that conserving the Khamenei name was "very important for the propaganda of the regime".
The new supreme leader, aged 56, embodies continuity for the Islamic republic, despite his father previously rejecting the kind of hereditary leadership brought to an end in Iran by the Islamic revolution of 1979.
"Hatred of Israel and of the United States is part of the DNA, of the ideology of the regime," said Therme, and was not tied to any one individual.
Considered a conservative in the vein of his late father, Mojtaba Khamenei has close ties to the new chief of the Revolutionary Guards, Ahmad Vahidi.
Khamenei's elevation showed that "it's the hardest of hardliners in the Iranian system" who were now in power, said Therme.
Having survived domestically via "fear and violence", he added, they were now using violence abroad to prolong their rule.
- 'Pressure backfires' -
The Iranian authorities cracked down fiercely on anti-government protests in January, with rights groups documenting at least 7,000 deaths and warning the toll could be much higher.
The war with Israel and the United States, in the minds of Iran's hardliners, is the convergence of the fights against internal and external enemies, Therme said.
Both Israel and the US have talked of Iranians using the war as an opportunity to overthrow their government.
Religiously speaking, Mojtaba Khamenei was not an obvious candidate, suggested Bernard Hourcade, an Iran specialist at the CNRS in Paris.
The new supreme leader is "an ordinary mullah" who "does not have an uncontestable religious legitimacy", he said.
That he was chosen anyway showed that the Revolutionary Guards, the ideological arm of Iran's military and orchestrators of the January crackdown, had won a victory, said Hourcade.
Vaez, of the ICG, said the choice was a message to Washington "that all the economic, diplomatic and military pressure that the US has brought to bear on Iran has only replaced one Khamenei with another.
"It's a demonstration that pressure backfires."
- War blocks political change -
Continuing to fight the war with the United States and Israel has become an existential matter for Iran's leaders, said Hourcade.
Ultraconservatives, whose grip was weakened by the January protests, can argue they are merely defending the homeland from US-Israeli aggression.
For now, "the war completely blocks any possibility of political change in Iran", he added.
Therme, meanwhile, said it was too early to know what impact the shock of the war would have on the protest movement within Iran, but pointed out that the recent wave of demonstrations came six months after the previous war with the US and Israel in June last year.
Despite some public shows of support for the new supreme leader, "what we do know is that there is no rallying behind him", said Therme.
Nevertheless, it will be clear to Trump that "he will not be able to play one ayatollah against another".
2026-03-09 18:38 GMT
Here are the Iran war's biggest unknowns, from Tehran's new leader to oil prices
Here are the Iran war's biggest unknowns, from Tehran's new leader to oil prices
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — How long will the Iran war last? What do all sides want to achieve? And how high will oil prices go? Big questions remain as fighting enters week two.
Israel and the United States keep pounding Iran. And Iran keeps carrying out retaliatory attacks against Israel, U.S. military assets in the Middle East and its Arab neighbors.
Here's what we know about the war, and don't.
How long will the war last? The U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, and there is no sign of the fighting ending soon. Iran’s president has said mediation was underway, although he didn't give details.
Iran's new supreme leader is the son of the previous one and seen as more hard-line, with close ties to the Revolutionary Guard, the nation’s most powerful armed force. Mojtaba Khamenei worked closely with his father, who was killed in the war’s opening strikes along with the younger Khamenei’s wife. He has not been seen or heard publicly in his new role, making it difficult to know whether he has interest in talks or in defiance.
Iran's war strategy of causing regional chaos shows no change. Persian Gulf countries still report areas being attacked, including oil facilities and airports, that are well away from U.S. military assets.
The war's length depends in part on Iran's stockpile of missiles and drones and countries' capability to deflect them. Israel's military on Monday said Iran was firing barrages with dozens of missiles in the early days, but now there are less than 10 or 20 at a time.
Israeli army spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani said Iran still has “a significant amount" of missiles. Experts say Iran could be holding missiles in reserve, perhaps hoping that interceptors run low.
Iran has not provided information about military losses. Israel says it is focused on destroying long-range missiles while the U.S. focuses on short-range ones threatening the Gulf. Israel estimates that 60% of both types of launchers have been destroyed.
Israel's military is bulking up. It said about 50 cargo aircraft carrying over 1,000 tons of weaponry, military equipment and munitions have landed in the past 10 days, and cited the U.S. and Germany as partners in an effort that is “expected to scale up."
Ahead of the attacks, the U.S. military built up its largest force of warships and aircraft in the Middle East in decades. The Central Command on Monday said “there is no shortage of American military will.”
The Trump administration and Israel have said the war will go as long as needed, but public frustration over oil prices and other economic pain could intensify pressure to wind down the conflict.
What do all sides want from the war? Iran has said it wants an end to the war, not a ceasefire.
An official with knowledge of the war’s operations said Israel is not in charge of the postwar plan, but the goal is to remove the regime and let Iranians “grasp their fate.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. Israel is also attacking Iranian-backed proxies like Hezbollah.
U.S. President Donald Trump has made conflicting statements . The war has been about Iran's nuclear program and concerns that it could take a short technical step to enrich uranium to weapons grade. But it also has been about eradicating the threat from the country’s ballistic missiles, which Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the U.S. is “well on our way” to achieving.
Trump has also said he doesn't seek regime change, but prioritized taking out several layers of Iran’s top leadership and has encouraged Iranians to “take over” their government.
There is no sign of that happening in Iran, with no strong organized opposition, evidence of high-level defections or street protests. Internet restrictions are complicating views of what's happening.
Will other countries join the fight? Saudi Arabia has issued a sharp statement saying Tehran would be the “biggest loser” if it continues to attack Arab states. Azerbaijan threatened “retaliatory measures” after it said Iranian drones hit its territory.
There is big risk in joining the U.S. and Israel's attacks, and no country has announced taking that step. Already, they have been targeted by hundreds of Iranian missiles and drones.
Iran has exposed the fragility of the global economy by targeting key energy and other infrastructure. A drone strike on a desalination plant in Bahrain underscored the vulnerability of Gulf nations, which rely heavily on such facilities for drinking water.
Meanwhile, France is sending military vessels to the Middle East to help deter Iran's attacks. Britain and Germany also have said they would help reduce Iran's ability to launch them. And Ukraine is sending experts to help in countering drones.
How will it end? This is especially complicated, as both Israel and the United States have threatened whoever Iran puts in charge. Trump called the younger Khamenei “unacceptable” even before his elevation to supreme leader.
It is not clear who would be acceptable, and negotiating the war's end seems out of reach for now.
Trust will be difficult, since this war and last year's were launched during indirect talks between Iran and the United States.
How high will oil prices go? As Iran announced its new supreme leader, crude oil prices were soaring above $100 a barrel. They spiked near $120 before falling Monday.
The Strait of Hormuz off Iran is a choke point, with about 20% of the world's oil supply normally transiting daily. Cargo ships are now backed up there.
Saudi Arabia has intercepted attacks aimed at its vast Shaybah oil field. Bahrain’s national oil company has declared force majeure for shipments, unable to meet obligations because of extraordinary circumstances after an attack on its refinery complex. Iraq, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have cut oil production as storage tanks fill.
Iran's oil facilities are also targets. Israel struck depots over the weekend.
Countries are scrambling. France, currently leading the Group of Seven nations, says they could dip into emergency stockpiles. South Korea says it will cap oil prices. China says everyone has a responsibility “to ensure stable and smooth energy supplies.”
Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro, said it “would not be surprising” if oil prices briefly push above $150 as early as next week.
2026-03-09 18:03 GMT
Hezbollah says targeted Israeli base near Tel Aviv with missiles
Hezbollah says targeted Israeli base near Tel Aviv with missiles
BEIRUT, Lebanon, March 9, 2026 (AFP) - Hezbollah said on Monday that it had targeted the Israeli Home Front Command base in Ramla, near Tel Aviv, with "advanced missiles" as the war between the pro-Iranian group and Israel hit the one-week mark.
In a statement, the group said it had targeted the base with a "salvo of advanced missiles" in response to "the criminal Israeli aggression that has struck dozens of Lebanese cities and towns and the southern suburbs of Beirut".
2026-03-09 17:12 GMT
Joy of Ramzan sapped by destruction of Middle East war
Joy of Ramzan sapped by destruction of Middle East war
BEIRUT, Lebanon, March 9, 2026 (AFP) - For Muslims across the world, Ramzan is synonymous with prayer, spirituality and joyful nighttime gatherings, but across much of the Middle East, the Iran war means evenings no longer have anything festive about them.
The celebrations that usually accompany the holy fasting month have been spoiled by bombing, displacement and cash shortages, all soundtracked by the frequent wail of air raid sirens.
Last week, Zainab El Masry, 40, of Lebanon, was preparing lentil soup and fattoush salad for iftar, the fast-breaking meal taken at sunset, with her family.
Now, after fleeing her home under Israeli bombardment, Masry was sleeping with her husband and their children on the grimy pavement of a Beirut square.
Israel has hammered large parts of Lebanon since last Monday, killing more than 400 people, in response to an attack by Hezbollah, which the group launched to avenge the death of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in the US-Israeli attacks on Iran.
"We have nothing to eat or drink, just a bit of bread," Masry said.
The war has driven half a million people in Lebanon from their homes, but "everyone wants to fast, to pray, to perform their ablutions, and to be able to buy something to cook," said Hala Hawila, 70, as the cries of children echoed through the school turned shelter she had taken refuge in.
"We've almost used up our money," she said. "What will we do next?"
- 'Coffee on the house' -
In Iran, where war has been everywhere since the US-Israeli offensive began, residents expressed a mix of anxiety and frustration at rising prices and fuel shortages.
"Goods have become very expensive. For example, the price of a can of oil has gone from 400,000 tomans ($1.56) to 2.2 million tomans ($8.25)," said Mohammad, 38, an employee at a poultry farm in Bandar Abbas, in the south of the country.
"The bombs no longer seem enough to disrupt our routine," said a cafe manager in the northeastern city of Boukan.
"What amazes me the most is that people insist on sitting out on the terrace to watch the bombardments, as if it were a show," continued Reza, 36.
"Despite the chaos, the shops are still packed... The real problem is money: banks no longer distribute cash and many bank cards are blocked," he said.
"So in my cafe, I made a simple decision: for those who can't pay for their coffee, it's on the house."
The economic situation was no better in Israeli-occupied east Jerusalem, already battered by the collapse in tourism caused by the Gaza war.
Alleys that would usually be packed during Ramadan were almost deserted and Al-Aqsa mosque, Islam's third holiest site, had been closed.
Israeli soldiers posted at entrances to the old city checked ID cards under the state of emergency declared by the authorities.
Merchants usually count on Ramadan to turn a profit.
"The situation is desperate," says 83-year-old Abu Imad, fingering his prayer beads.
"No one from outside is entering the city; only residents have access."
- Shortened prayers -
In the Gulf, worshippers watched anxiously as Iranian missiles and rockets streaked across the sky above their heads.
These wealthy countries, which pride themselves on their stability and economic success, are being hit by reprisals from Tehran because they host US military bases.
"Nothing is as it was before, our daily life has been upended," said Hessa Mohamed, 42, who came to pray in her neighbourhood mosque in Bahrain.
In Bahrain, as in Kuwait, Qatar and Dubai, streets and shopping centres empty as soon as the sirens sounded, while prayers are often shortened or even limited to the last prayer of the day instead of the usual five.
"This Ramadan is marked by mistrust and apprehension," said Niama Hamdi, a teacher in Kuwait.
Everywhere, conversations revolved around the war: "I will never forget this Ramadan; we are living it in terrible conditions that we did not choose," said Bahraini academic Loulwa Hassan.
She recalled the years when "we waited for Ramzan impatiently".
"The current situation deprives us of the joy of seeing our loved ones again," she said, expressing eagerness to "return to a normal life".
Ibrahim Ali Ibrahim, a 15-year-old student in Bahrain, now attends classes remotely. The tiny island nation has been repeatedly targeted by Iran, with another 32 people injured in a drone attack on Monday.
"I've been very tense... As soon as the siren sounds, I lose my concentration," said the teenager.
"This Ramzan is very different from previous years. I miss my classmates and my school."
2026-03-09 16:48 GMT
War in the Middle East: economic impact around the world
War in the Middle East: economic impact around the world
PARIS, France, March 9, 2026 (AFP) - Here are the latest economic events in the Middle East war on Monday:
- Markets -
- Oil prices shot around 30 percent higher in Asian trading. The main international oil contract, Brent crude, is currently up roughly 41 percent from just before the outbreak of the war and up around 68 percent from the start of the year. The main US contract, WTI, is up around 50 percent from the onset of the war and around 75 percent from the start of the year.
- Russia is ready to supply energy to Europe if it asks, President Vladimir Putin said.
- G7 finance ministers -
- France's finance minister said the G7 was "not there yet" in terms of any release of strategic oil reserves as the world's leading industrialised nations held crisis talks on the economic fallout of the Middle East war, even as they stand ready to do so.
- G7 energy ministers are set to meet on Tuesday.
- Transport/tourism -
- President Emmanuel Macron 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.
- Ships anchored in the Gulf or transiting the Strait of Hormuz are changing their tracking data to boast links to China in an attempt to evade Iranian attacks, according to data from shipping tracker MarineTraffic analysed by AFP.
- Lufthansa and Air France extended flight cancellations to Middle East destinations.
- Initial measures-
- Croatia, Hungary, South Korea and Thailand imposed price caps on fuel.
- China asked key refiners in early March to suspend their exports of diesel and gasoline.
- Nigeria's Dangote mega-refinery pledged to prioritise the domestic market to help prevent fuel shortages.
- In Japan, the Nikkei newspaper reported that authorities have asked oil reserves to prepare for their release.
2026-03-09 16:06 GMT
Erdogan warns Iran against 'provocative steps' after second missile intercepted
Erdogan warns Iran against 'provocative steps' after second missile intercepted
ANKARA, March 9, 2026 (AFP) - 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".