A police colonel and commissioner were killed and five police officers were wounded in an attack in Mosul, north of Baghdad, today, the Iraqi Interior Ministry said, condemning the "Zionist-American aggression."
The five wounded police officers "were targeted in a second attack while trying to save their colleagues who were hit in the first attack," a statement posted on social media said, adding that the attack hit a police station in central Mosul.
Iraq has been increasingly drawn into the conflict in the Middle East, which began with US-Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28 and later spread with Iran's response with attacks on the US presence in the region, and Israeli attacks on Lebanon.
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Iran has agreed to allow passage through the Strait of Hormuz for an additional 20 Pakistani-flagged vessels, with two ships allowed to pass through daily, Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said, Reuters reports.
Reza Pahlavi, the son of the last Shah of Iran, who lives in exile in the United States of America (USA), received a standing ovation today from American conservatives gathered at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, Le Monde reported in Paris.
"President (US) Donald Trump is making America great again, and I intend to make Iran great again," Pahlavi said to applause from the audience.
Pahlavi (65) presented the war in his homeland as a historic opportunity to overthrow the Iranian regime, imagining a future in which Iran would go from being America's number one enemy to becoming its ally.
The son of the last Shah, who has not returned to Iran since the 1979 revolution that toppled the monarchy, leads one of many opposition movements based abroad and presents himself as an alternative in the event of the fall of the current Iranian authorities.
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At least two Iraqi police officers were killed and two others were wounded in an airstrike targeting the headquarters of the Popular Mobilization Forces in Mosul, which was located next to a police facility, Reuters reported, citing security sources.
The Popular Mobilization Forces, known in Arabic as Hashd al-Shaabi, are an umbrella group of mostly Shiite paramilitary factions that is formally integrated into Iraq's state security forces and includes several groups linked to Iran.
The World Health Organization said nine medical workers were killed and seven others wounded in five separate attacks on healthcare facilities in southern Lebanon, Reuters reported.
The latest incidents have affected medical teams in five villages, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a post on social media.
He added that the repeated attacks have severely disrupted health services in southern Lebanon. Four hospitals and 51 primary health care centers are now closed, while several other facilities are operating at reduced capacity.
Three Lebanese journalists were killed in an Israeli attack on a car in southern Lebanon, Lebanese television Al Manar reported.
Al Manara reporter Ali Shaib and journalist Fatima Ftouni, from Al Mayadeen television, were killed when their vehicle was hit. Lebanon's information minister later said Fatima's brother, cameraman Mohamed Ftouni, was also killed in the attack, Reuters reported.
Al Manar is controlled by the Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, while Al Mayadeen is widely seen as a media outlet whose editorial policies are aligned with Iran's allies and supporters in the region.
The Israeli military said in a statement that it had “eliminated” Shaib, whom it described as a “terrorist” from a Hezbollah intelligence unit who had been reporting on the locations of Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon.
They accused him of “incitement” against Israeli soldiers and civilians.
The military statement made no mention of other deaths, nor did it provide evidence to support the claim that Shaib was a member of Hezbollah, Reuters reports.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun described them in a post on X as "civilians who were carrying out their professional duty."
"This is a brazen crime that violates all agreements and norms under which journalists enjoy international protection in war," he said.
Al Manar described Shaib as an "icon of resistance reporting."
Al-Mayadeen said that Ftouni stood out for her courageous and objective reporting.
"The enemy's problem is that they want to kill the narrative," said the director of Al Mayadeen in Beirut. "You can never shoot a word."
The killings followed the death of Hussein Hamoud, a Lebanese freelance journalist who worked for Al Manar, who the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said on the X network was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Wednesday.
At least three more reporters across the Middle East have been killed in airstrikes since the war with Iran began late last month, CPJ said Thursday. The U.S. military did not respond to a request for comment.
Five medical workers and 46 rescue workers have been killed in Israeli airstrikes since the start of the war on March 2, Lebanese Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine said today.
He said at a press conference that nine rescuers were killed today alone, French media reported.
Nassereddin added that four of the rescuers belonged to the Islamic Health Authority, linked to Hezbollah, while the other five were members of the Risal scout group, linked to the Shiite Amal party, an ally of Hezbollah.
They were all on rescue missions when they were attacked, according to the minister.
The ministry has recorded 75 attacks on emergency services and health services since March 2, Naseredin said.
Lebanon has been the target of Israeli attacks since March 2. Israel claims it is attacking strongholds of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement.
The attacks are part of a broader crisis in the Middle East that began on February 28 when US and Israeli forces launched airstrikes on Iran, which responded with strikes on sites with a US presence in the region.
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One of the world's largest shipping companies, Maersk, has suspended operations at the port of Salalah in Oman after a drone attack.
"In the early hours of Saturday, March 28, 2026, a security incident occurred at the Port of Salalah in Oman. According to available information, the incident involved drone activity and explosions were reported. We are pleased to confirm that all Maersk crew members are safe and sound and that no Maersk vessels or cargo were affected. Following the incident, which damaged one terminal crane, the port was immediately evacuated and operations at the entire facility were temporarily suspended. The Port of Salalah is fully cooperating with the relevant authorities and Maersk's current assessment is that operations will be suspended for approximately 48 hours," Maersk said in a statement.
The official Omani news agency reported this morning that the port was targeted by two drones, injuring one foreign worker and damaging a crane.
This was followed by a statement from an Iranian military spokesman, who claimed that Iranian forces had targeted a US "military support ship" at a "considerable distance" from the Omani port. The statement added that Tehran respects the "national sovereignty of the brotherly and friendly state of Oman."
The situation at Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant continues to deteriorate, and the attacks pose a direct threat to nuclear safety, the head of Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom said on Saturday after another strike near the facility.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on Friday that Iran had informed it of a new attack near Bushehr, the third such incident in the past 10 days, with no damage to the operating reactor or radiation leaks, Reuters reports.
Iran said it had targeted a US "military support ship" near the commercial port of Salalah in Oman, following an earlier announcement by the Omani government that the port had been targeted.
"A logistics ship supporting the aggressive US military was targeted by the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran at a considerable distance from the port of Salalah in Oman," said Lieutenant Colonel Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesman for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Command, which coordinates the army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), in a statement carried by state media.
The official Omani news agency reported this morning that the port was targeted by two drones, injuring one foreign worker and damaging a crane.
Oman was the mediator between the United States and Iran in three rounds of nuclear talks held in the weeks before the conflict began last month. Earlier this month, Oman said the US had "lost control of its own foreign policy" and accused Israel of persuading Donald Trump to go to war with Iran, the Guardian reports.
"As we have previously stated, the Islamic Republic of Iran respects the national sovereignty of the brotherly and friendly state of Oman," Zolfaghari added in a statement.
At least 20 American soldiers were wounded in Iranian attacks on a Saudi air base last week, sources told the AP news agency.
Iran fired six ballistic missiles and 29 drones at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia in an attack on Friday that injured at least 15 US troops, including five seriously, according to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The base was attacked twice earlier this week, including in an incident that wounded 14 American soldiers, according to people familiar with the matter.
The air base is located about 96 kilometers from the Saudi capital, Riyadh, and is operated by the Royal Saudi Air Force but is also used by American troops.
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Yemen's Houthis, allies of Iran, have confirmed that they have carried out an attack on Israel for the first time since the beginning of the current Israeli-American war against Iran, thereby joining the conflict and further increasing the possibility of a wider regional confrontation.
Israel previously announced that it was working to intercept a rocket launched from Yemen.
The group said the attack, carried out by a barrage of rockets, followed continued strikes on infrastructure in Iran, Lebanon, Iraq and the Palestinian territories, adding that their operations would continue until "aggression" on all fronts ceased, Reuters reported.
The United States and Iraq will "intensify cooperation" to prevent pro-Iranian attacks and ensure that Iraqi territory is not used to carry out attacks on American facilities, the US Embassy in Baghdad said.
"The Iraqi and American sides have decided to intensify cooperation to prevent terrorist attacks and ensure that Iraqi territory is not used as a launching pad for any aggression against the Iraqi people, Iraqi security forces, Iraqi strategic facilities and resources, as well as against American personnel, diplomatic missions, and the Global Coalition," the US Embassy in Baghdad said in a statement posted on the X network.
Five people were injured and two fires broke out in Abu Dhabi due to falling debris after a ballistic missile was intercepted, the emirate's media office said.
Abu Dhabi authorities responded to fires near the Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi (KEZAD), part of the economic zones and free zones operating under the AD Ports Group.
The Israeli military said it had registered a rocket launch from Yemen, the first such incident since the outbreak of the war.
The launch came hours after Yemen's Houthis, allies of Iran, said on Friday that they were ready to act if what they called the escalation against Iran and the "axis of resistance" continued, but they did not specify what form any possible intervention would take.
The Houthis' entry into the war increases the risk of a wider regional confrontation, especially given their ability to strike targets far beyond Yemen and disrupt sea routes around the Arabian Peninsula and the Red Sea, which they already did in support of Hamas in Gaza after October 7, 2023.
Iran's Shiite allies in Lebanon and Iraq have already become involved in the conflict in the region, which was sparked by US and Israeli attacks on Tehran four weeks ago.
Donald Trump has said that the United States "doesn't have to be there for NATO," reopening questions about the US president's willingness to stick to the mutual defense commitments that are at the heart of the transatlantic alliance.
Speaking at an investment forum in Miami, Trump said he was unhappy that European NATO members had refused to provide material support to the US as its ongoing war against Iran approached its fourth week.
European allies were not consulted when the US decided to attack Iran late last month, and many leaders within the Alliance opposed the action.
"We would always be there for them, but now, based on their actions, I guess we don't have to be, do we?" Trump told the audience.
"Sounds like breaking news? Yes, sir. Is that breaking news? I think we have breaking news right now, but it's a fact. I've been saying it for a long time. Why would we be there for them if they weren't there for us? They weren't there for us."
Trump is known for his changeable attitude towards the Alliance, and has repeatedly made statements that have raised questions about his willingness to respect NATO's Article 5, according to which an attack on one member is considered an attack on all, Reuters reminds us.
During the 2024 election campaign, Trump conspicuously encouraged Russian President Vladimir Putin to attack European NATO members that, in his opinion, do not spend enough on defense.
However, his relationship with several European leaders seemed to improve during 2025.
But relations between Washington and Brussels deteriorated again in 2026, after Trump stepped up threats to invade Greenland, which is an overseas territory of Denmark.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed the possibility of a diplomatic solution to the war in Iran with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi, the Russian ministry said.
"The ministers discussed in detail the most serious military-political crisis in the Middle East, which erupted as a result of the unprovoked US-Israeli aggression against Iran," a statement published on the ministry's website said.
"Opinions were exchanged on the prospects for redirecting the conflict towards a political-diplomatic solution based on international law and respecting the legitimate interests of all countries in the region."
The statement also said Lavrov provided details about Russia's latest humanitarian aid delivery to Iran.
Russia and Iran have signed a strategic partnership agreement that encompasses political, economic, military and energy cooperation, but does not include a mutual defense alliance.
Russia is using Iranian-designed drones in its four-year war in Ukraine.
European foreign ministers on Friday, at a G7 meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, highlighted allegations that Russia is helping Iran target US forces in the war in the Middle East.
Two Western security sources and a regional official close to Tehran told Reuters that Moscow was providing Iran with satellite imagery and had helped upgrade Iranian drones to resemble versions used by Russia against Ukraine.
Yemen's Houthis, who are allies of Iran, have said they are ready to intervene militarily if other countries join the United States and Israel in a war against Iran, or if the Red Sea is used to attack the Islamic Republic.
"We confirm that our fingers are on the trigger for direct military intervention" if any new alliances join Washington and Israel against Iran and its allies, or if the Red Sea is used for "hostile operations" against Iran, the group's military spokesman Yahya Sari said in a televised address.
Sari also said that the Houthis were ready to act if what he called the escalation against Iran and the "axis of resistance" continued, but did not specify in what form any possible intervention would take.
The warning raises the possibility of a wider regional confrontation, especially given the Houthis' ability to strike targets far beyond Yemen and disrupt sea routes around the Arabian Peninsula, Reuters writes.
Iran's Shiite allies in Lebanon and Iraq have already become embroiled in a regional war sparked by US and Israeli strikes on Tehran. The Houthis have so far not declared direct entry into the war, despite their military capabilities and geographic position on the Red Sea.
In his address, Sari also said the group would not allow the Red Sea to be used to carry out "hostile operations" against Iran or any Muslim country. He warned against any further tightening of what he described as the "blockade of Yemen."
Sarri called for an immediate end to US and Israeli attacks on Iran and allied countries, including the Palestinian territories, Lebanon and Iraq, and demanded the implementation of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
Following the Palestinian militant group Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which triggered the Gaza War, the Houthis began attacking international shipping traffic in the Red Sea, claiming to be acting in support of the Palestinians.
The group has also launched drones and missiles toward Israel, prompting retaliatory airstrikes by Israel and US strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen.
The Houthis suspended these attacks after a US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in October 2025.
A heavy water production facility in Khondab, Iran, was hit on Friday, Iran told the International Atomic Energy Agency.
"There is no radiation risk, as the facility contains no declared nuclear material," the United Nations nuclear watchdog said on the X network.
Iran also reported that a steel plant in Khuzestan, which uses radioactive sources, was attacked on Friday, the IAEA added, noting that there was no release of radiation off-site, Reuters reports.
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