Iran war: PM Modi, Sri Lankan President discuss energy security

Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that he spoke with Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to review the evolving situation in West Asia and its impact on global energy security. The leaders discussed ongoing initiatives to strengthen India–Sri Lanka energy cooperation and enhance regional stability. 

Mohsen Rezaei, recently appointed as a senior military adviser by Mojtaba Khamenei, has delivered a strong statement. Speaking on state media, Rezaei warned that Iran could “paralyse” the United States and “sink” its ships in the Arabian Gulf if further military action is taken against Tehran. In a televised interview, Rezaei said that time is running out for the US to avoid wider conflict, suggesting there is a “final deadline” for Washington to act wisely and avoid disaster. He said Iran would go beyond tit‑for‑tat retaliation and inflict strategic damage if its infrastructure were targeted. Read full story here. 

France has warned Israel against sending troops into southern Lebanon, citing the risk of serious humanitarian consequences. Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told AFP that France is calling on Israel “to refrain from such ground operations, which would have major humanitarian consequences and would worsen the already dire situation.” The warning comes after Israel announced plans to take control of an area in southern Lebanon up to the Litani River, roughly 30 km from the border.

A child has reportedly been killed after Israeli forces opened fire on a tent in al-Mawasi in southern Gaza Strip. In a separate incident, a Palestinian was injured by gunfire in an area east of Khan Younis. Reports from the ground also say that artillery shelling continues in eastern Gaza City and Khan Younis, while naval forces have been firing towards the western parts of the Gaza Strip.

US President Donald Trump spoke with Prime Minister Modi. "They discussed the ongoing situation in the Middle East, including the importance of keeping the Strait of Hormuz open," posted US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor on X. 

Iranian media reports say loud explosions have been heard in parts of Tehran, especially in central and western areas, as well as in Isfahan.

Iran has named Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr as the new head of its top security body. He replaces Ali Larijani, who was killed in an attack last week. The decision was announced by the government and reported by state media. Zolghadr will now lead the country’s Supreme National Security Council. Read full story here. 

UAE says it has intercepted five ballistic missiles and 17 drones coming in from Iran today.

Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of militias backed by Iran, says 15 militiamen were killed in an airstrike in western Iraq. The dead included Saad Dawai al-Baiji, who commands PMF operations in the province of Anbar, the PMF said in a statement.

Sirens have sounded in southern Israel, including Dimona and nearby towns, after Israel’s army said it detected a new wave of Iranian missiles fired towards the country, according to Israeli media reports.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday chaired a review meeting in the wake of recent global and regional security events, and also to review India's defence preparedness. CDS General Anil Chauhan, Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, General Upendra Dwivedi, Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Chairman Samir Kamat, and others were also present at the meeting.

At least six people have been killed and nine injured after a US-Israeli strike hit one of the residential areas of East Azerbaijan Province, the Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA) says. ISNA quoted provincial officials as saying that the strike hit the Shahid Mofatteh region of the province, located northwest of Iran near the border with Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkiye.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi since Monday has been discussing the conflict with some of his counterparts. Araghchi is speaking with officials from Azerbaijan, Egypt, Oman, Pakistan, Russia, South Korea, Turkey and Turkmenistan, his office confirmed.

The number of children killed in Iran since the US-Israeli war began on February 28 has risen to 208, the head of Iran's emergency service said.

An Israeli strike early Tuesday on a residential apartment in Bchamoun, around 10 kilometers (6 miles) southeast of Beirut, killed at least two people, according to an initial toll from the Lebanese Health Ministry. The strike wounded five others, the ministry added.

A leading scholar and professor at a science university in Tehran has been killed, alongside his two children, in a US-Israeli attack targeting his residence north of the Iranian capital, according to local media. Iran's English-language news channel Press TV identified the victim as Saeed Shamaghdari, who teaches at the engineering department of the Iran University of Science and Technology. According to Press TV, his son, Mohammad, and daughter, Reyhaneh, were also killed in the attack.

The US Embassy in the northwest African nation of Mauritania has issued an elevated threat notice for US citizens and embassy staff based in the country, citing a recent threat against the embassy. Possible targets include the embassy building in the capital, Nouakchott, and places where American citizens are known to congregate, the notice said.

Japan will release another part of its strategic oil reserves from Thursday, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Tuesday, after Tokyo began to tap stockpiles last week. "In order to secure 'the necessary amount for the whole of Japan' ...we will release the state (oil) reserve from 26th March this week," she said in a post on X.

A commander in the Popular Mobilization Forces, Saad Dawai al-Baiji, was killed along with several others in an airstrike that targeted its command headquarters in the western province of Anbar, the Shiite group said in a statement early Tuesday. The PMF, which is formally placed under the control of the Iraqi military but in practice still operates with significant autonomy, accused the US of carrying out the strike.

The Israeli military says more missiles have been launched from Iran towards Israel’s territory. In a statement, the military said air defence systems are operating to intercept the attack.

Kuwait's energy ministry said early Tuesday that seven high-voltage power lines were damaged by shrapnel from air defense operations, causing partial outages in several areas. Crews are working to restore electricity, the statement added.

Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry said early Tuesday that it destroyed at least 19 drones in the kingdom’s oil-rich Eastern Province.

Bahrain activated its missile alert sirens early Tuesday as Kuwait said its air defenses were trying to shoot down incoming fire.

A semiofficial Iranian news agency close to Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard reported early Tuesday that two energy sites had been struck by airstrikes. The report by the Fars news agency appeared timed to call into question comments by US President Donald Trump, who extended his deadline for Tehran to halt its attacks that have effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf. Trump had threatened to strike Iranian power plants. Fars claimed an attack struck natural gas infrastructure in Isfahan, while another "targeted" a gas pipeline for the Khorramshahr power plant. Neither Israel nor the US had claimed strikes in the area on Monday, though both countries don't always acknowledge their attacks. It also wasn't immediately clear if those sites had been specifically targeted or damaged in strikes hitting other sites in the area.