4 injured by Hezbollah rocket strike on Kiryat Shmona | Haifa oil refinery hit by Iranian missile shrapnel | El Al to launch flights from Israel to 12 major cities next week
| Published: March 19, 2026
19:04 – Fire Authority: Full control over fire at Haifa oil refinery after missile fragment impact
A fire at Haifa’s Bazan oil refinery, which was caused by the impact of falling missile fragments after the interception of an Iranian strike, was brought under control, the National Fire and Rescue Authority said.
Energy Minister Eli Cohen stressed that “no significant damage to infrastructure sites” was caused in the attack, while the Environmental Protection Ministry said that a leak of hazardous materials has been ruled out as well.
12 fire and rescue teams operated at the scene, carrying out extensive scans and extinguishing a fire.
17:44 – Four people wounded by Hezbollah rocket attack on Kiryat Shmona
Four people were wounded, including a man who is in serious condition, by a rocket strike launched by Hezbollah on the northern city of Kiryat Shmona, Magen David Adom said.
Another woman in moderate condition with a head injury, and two men were lightly hurt by a blast.
17:13 – El Al announces new flight schedule from Israel to 12 major cities
Israel’s national airline, El Al, announced it will launch a new, war-restricted flight schedule to 12 major cities in the US, Europe, and Asia starting from next week, subject to IDF Home Front Command restrictions.
Flights are scheduled for the week ahead of Passover, March 21 to 28, and will be limited to 130 passengers per aircraft, according to restrictions by the Transportation Ministry.
Target cities include New York, Miami, and Los Angeles, Bangkok, Phuket, Tokyo, Paris, London, Milan, Madrid, Munich, and Athens.
“The flights will operate to 12 selected destinations, to allow as many passengers as possible to depart Israel, in accordance with demand and operational capacity under the restrictions,” El Al said in a statement.
“If Home Front Command restrictions for flight operations at Ben Gurion Airport will be eased, allowing for an expansion of the scope of air operations, El Al will add additional flights already during the coming week, so that more customers can leave Israel.”
16:34 – Europeans & Japan are ready to ‘contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage’ in Hormuz
After rejecting US requests to help open the Hormuz Strait through military means, leaders of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan said they are ready to contribute to safe passage in the waterway, without going into detail.
“We express our readiness to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage through the Strait. We welcome the commitment of nations who are engaging in preparatory planning,” they said in a joint statement.
“We welcome the International Energy Agency decision to authorise a coordinated release of strategic petroleum reserves. We will take other steps to stabilise energy markets, including working with certain producing nations to increase output,” the countries said.
15:46 – IDF stresses warnings were published after journalist narrowly escapes strike on Lebanon bridge
After a journalist filmed himself narrowly escaping an Israeli strike on a bridge over the Litani River in southern Lebanon, the IDF emphasized that several warnings of impending strikes had been published.
“Prior to the strikes, in order to reduce harm to civilians, warnings were published to ensure that they distance themselves from the crossings,” the IDF stressed.
“In footage released in the past few hours, a journalist is seen at the ‘Qasmiya’ crossing. An explicit warning had been issued regarding this area. The crossing was struck after sufficient time had passed since the warnings. The crossing was again targeted today (Thursday) at 12:30.”
“The IDF calls on the residents of Lebanon to heed the warnings published on various platforms. The IDF does not target civilians or journalists and operates in accordance with international law,” the military said, reiterated that the bridges were used by Hezbollah “for both terrorist movement and to transfer thousands of weapons, including rockets and rocket launchers.”
14:54 – Hegseth: Iran regime’s leadership positions are ‘temp jobs’
U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth provided an update on Operation Epic Fury on Thursday, warning that senior leadership positions in Iran are effectively “temp jobs,” a reference to the long string of regime leaders eliminated in the campaign.
“The last job anyone in the world wants right now? Senior leader for the IRGC or Basij. Temp jobs, all of them,” he said.
Hegseth criticized the Iranian regime for terrorizing “the United States and our interests” for 47 years, adding, “Their core industries are not steel or agriculture, tourism; their core industries are state-sponsored terrorism, proxy militias, underground networks, ballistic missiles and a violent messianic Islamist ideology chasing some sort of apocalyptic end game.”
He also defended U.S. President Donald Trump’s policies toward Iran, saying the world—including “ungrateful allies in Europe”—should be thanking him for “doing the work of the free world.”
14:22 – Pregnant Palestinian woman succumbs after Iranian strike
A fourth victim of an Iranian strike using cluster munitions succumb to her wounds on Thursday: Asil Samir Masalmeh, 32, who was six months pregnant.
Three Palestinian women were killed and 13 others were seriously injured when missile fragments fell on a women’s hair salon in the town of Beit Awwa, southwest of Hebron, the Palestinian Authority’s official Wafa News reported.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) identified the three women as Mais Ghazi Masalmeh, 17, Sahira Rizq Masalmeh, 50, and Amal Sobhi Abdel Karim Matawa Masalmeh, 36.
The four victims are the first Palestinian casualties of Iranian missile strikes in the recent war.
13:47 – Iran arrests 97 ‘traitors’ working for ‘Zionist regime’
Iran has arrested 97 “traitors of the Zionist regime” seized with firearms and ammunition, regime-affiliated Fars News Agency claimed.
The report added that multiple “terrorist cells” allegedly directed by U.S. and Israeli interests were also dismantled.
These operations, it said, were “carried out in memory of the martyred Minister of Intelligence, Esmaeil Khatib.”
The Israeli Air Force struck and killed the Iranian terrorist regime’s Minister of Intelligence, Esmaeil Khatib, in a precise overnight strike in the capital, Tehran, the IDF announced on Wednesday.
13:15 – WATCH: U.S. forces destroy Iranian naval targets along the Hormuz Strait
CENTCOM has released footage of U.S. forces destroying Iranian naval targets threatening international shipping along the Strait of Hormuz.
In a statement released on Wednesday, CENTCOM said its forces had “employed multiple 5,000-pound deep penetrator munitions on hardened Iranian missile sites along Iran’s coastline near the Strait of Hormuz,” noting that “the Iranian anti-ship cruise missiles in these sites posed a risk to international shipping in the strait.”
12:53 – Oil and gas prices spike as Iran strikes major Qatar gas complex
Global oil and natural gas prices are climbing again after Iranian strikes across the Gulf, with Brent crude rising above $116 per barrel from under $73 before the war, as supply concerns intensify.
The escalation follows Israeli Air Force strikes on Iran’s South Pars and Asaluyeh energy facilities on Wednesday, after which Iran targeted a major gas facility in Qatar and two oil refineries in Kuwait.
12:27 – IDF continues strikes on Basij militia and infrastructure
The Israeli Air Force killed a Basij soldier guarding the entrance to a Basij force post, the IDF Spokesperson said in a statement on Thursday.
The strike is part of what the IDF described as a concerted effort to target Basij Force infrastructure.
“The IDF will continue to monitor, locate, and strike Iranian regime operatives, including the Basij Forces, wherever they operate,” the statement said.
1:50 – IDF kills senior Hamas intel commander who took part in Oct 7 massacre
“Yesterday (Wednesday), the IDF and [Shin Bet] struck and eliminated Muhammad Abu Shaleh, the Military Intelligence Commander of Hamas’ Khan Yunis Brigade,” the IDF stated.
“Throughout the war, Shaleh served as the intelligence officer for senior brigade officials and took part in planning the October 7th massacre in the Khan Yunis Brigade.”
“More recently, Shaleh operated in violation of the ceasefire agreement to rehabilitate the organization’s capabilities in the Gaza Strip and planned to carry out terror attacks against IDF troops and the State of Israel.”
The IDF noted that “Prior to the strikes, measures were taken to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians, including the use of precision munitions and aerial surveillance.”
11:23 – Saudi Arabian Red Sea port attacked by Iranian drones & missile
A drone crashed into Saudi Arabia’s Samref refinery at the Red Sea port of Yanbu, where damage is still being assessed, the Ministry of Defense said.
In the past few hours, Saudi Arabia also intercepted eight drones heading to the country and a ballistic missile launched toward Yanbu port.
After attacks on energy facilities in the east of the country and the Iranian closure of the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia had piped oil to Red Sea ports like Yanbu to export from there.
10:50 – China criticizes Israeli decision to change strike authorizations
China says it is concerned by reports that Israel changed its authorization procedures, allowing the killing of senior Iranian and Hezbollah figures without requiring prior approval by the poltical echelon, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Thursday.
“We have been opposed to the use of force in international relations, and the killing of Iran’s national leaders and attacks on civilian targets are even more unacceptable,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said.
10:07 – Israeli Air Force destroys Iranian MI-17 Helicopter at Sanandaj Airport
The Israeli Air Force has destroyed an Iranian MI?17 helicopter at Sanandaj Airport in Hamadan, Iran, the IDF announced.
The Russian?designed helicopter was operated by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Air Force, whose military capabilities the IDF said it targeted, aiming to expand aerial superiority in western Iran.
09:35 – Fire at Kuwait National Petroleum Company refinery caused by Iranian drone
An Iranian drone strike targeted the Mina Al-Ahmadi and Mina Abdullah refineries of Kuwait’s National Petroleum Company, sparking a fire. Emergency response teams have been dispatched to contain the fire.
On Wednesday, Kuwait’s Ministry of Defense said that within the past 24 hours they detected and intercepted four ballistic missiles, and destroyed 20 of 23 drones launched toward the country, the remainder or which fell in open areas without causing damage.
08:45 – IDF says over 20 Hezbollah fighters killed in operations Wednesday
Over 20 Hezbollah operatives were killed in ground operations in southern Lebanon yesterday, the IDF said this morning.
The Hezbollah fighters were killed by troops of the 36th Division and in IAF airstrikes.
The 36th Division is one of four IDF divisions conducting ground operations in southern Lebanon.
08:35 – Saudi oil refinery on Red Sea targeted by Iran
Saudi Aramco’s SAMREF refinery in the Red Sea port of Yanbu was targeted in an aerial attack, Reuters reports, citing an industry source.
There was reportedly minimal impact at the site.
The attack appears to be an attempt by Iran to prevent oil exports through the Red Sea, after effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz to shipping.
08:25 – U.S. considering sending more troops to Middle East
U.S. President Donald Trump is considering deploying thousands of U.S. troops to reinforce its operation in the Middle East, as the U.S. military prepares for possible next steps in its campaign against Iran, Reuters reports, citing an anonymous U.S. official.
The deployment would provide the U.S. with additional options for the next stages of the conflict, including possible escorts for ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, or seizure of Iran’s Kharg Island.
07:40 – 6th Iranian ballistic missile launch towards Israel since midnight
The IDF said it detected another ballistic missile attack from Iran, making it the sixth since midnight.
05:15 – FBI investigating recently resigned counterterrorism official over possible leaks
The FBI is investigating Joe Kent, who resigned his position as a top counterterrorism official this week in protest of the Iran war, over potential leaks of classified information, the Associated Press reports.
According to a source familiar with the matter, the investigation precedes Kent’s resignation Tuesday from his role as director of the US government’s National Counterterrorism Center.
05:00 – Qatar reports ‘extensive’ damage to natural gas hub
Qatar’s state-run energy firm said recent strikes on the Gulf nation’s main gas hub caused “extensive” damage.
QatarEnergy said “several of its liquefied natural gas facilities were the subject of missile attacks, causing sizable fires and extensive further damage” after the previous Iranian attack on the Ras Laffan site.
04:45 – Trump says Israel won’t strike Iran oil field again, but US will if Qatar attacked again
U.S. President Donald Trump promised that Israel would not strike Iran’s major South Pars gas field again, but warned that if Iran attacked Qatar again, the U.S. would retaliate and “massively blow up the entirety” of the field in a post to social media.
“NO MORE ATTACKS WILL BE MADE BY ISRAEL pertaining to this extremely important and valuable South Pars Field unless Iran unwisely decides to attack a very innocent, in this case, Qatar – In which instance the United States of America, with or without the help or consent of Israel, will massively blow up the entirety of the South Pars Gas Field at an amount of strength and power that Iran has never seen or witnessed before,” Trump posted to his Truth Social account.
04:00 – Qatar says Iranian missile attacks damaged liquefied natural gas sites
An Iranian missile attack damaged Qatar’s main liquefied natural gas facility on its north coast, the Qatari defense ministry announced.
“The Ministry of Defense of State of Qatar announces that [the] State of Qatar was attacked [with] ballistic missiles, from Iran, which targeted Ras Laffan Industrial City and caused damages,” the ministry posted to X.
03:00 – UAE calls Iranian attacks on gas facilities a ‘dangerous escalation’
The United Arab Emirates denounced Iranian attacks targeting its Habshan gas facility and Bab field as a “dangerous escalation.”
Authorities in Abu Dhabi say the gas operations were temporarily shut down following interceptions over the sites.
02:45 – Saudi Arabia says it has right to take military action against Iran following attacks
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said the kingdom reserves the right to take military actions “if deemed necessary” following Iranian attacks on several Gulf states.
“What little trust there was before has completely been shattered,” bin Farhan said after a meeting of Gulf Arab countries in Riyadh.
02:25 – Vessel struck off UAE coast
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said a vessel was struck in the Gulf of Oman off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, causing a fire onboard.
00:30 – Kuwait arrests 10 Hezbollah members for plot to target ‘vital installations’
Kuwaiti authorities arrested 10 terrorists affiliated with the Lebanese Hezbollah terror group, accusing them of plotting “terrorist” actions against vital infrastructure, the interior ministry says.
The arrest marks the second time this week that members of a Hezbollah cell have been arrested in the Gulf state.
“The State Security Agency has successfully thwarted a plot for a terrorist operation targeting vital installations,” the interior ministry said in a statement. “Ten citizens, members of a terrorist group affiliated with the banned Hezbollah terrorist organization were apprehended.”
00:10 – Foreign worker killed in latest Iranian missile attack
A foreign worker in Israel was declared dead by Magen David Adom emergency services following the latest Iranian ballistic missile attack, which landed in central Israel. According to reports and videos of the attack, the missile used a cluster warhead.
Magen David Adom said it treated the man for critical injuries before being forced to declare his death.
An earlier attack, also using cluster munitions, killed three Palestinian women in the town of Beit Awwa, southwest of Hebron, the Palestinian Authority’s official news agency WAFA reported.
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