48 Hours Before Hell Will Rain Down: Trump Reminds Iran Of Hormuz Deadline

The Gulf nation of Bahrain, which holds the presidency of the U.N. Security Council this month, postponed the vote on a resolution aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz that had been watered down significantly because of opposition from Russia and China, two U.N. diplomats said.

The diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity because council consultations have been private, said the vote will now be held sometime next week.

The Bahrain-sponsored draft resolution that had been expected to be put to a vote on Saturday would authorise defensive measures — not offensive action that Gulf nations and the United States initially supported — to ensure vessels can safely transit the waterway where one-fifth of the world’s oil typically passes.

Bahrain has sought support from all 15 council nations, and the postponement of the vote indicates that the watered-down draft is still not acceptable to Russia and China.

A U.S. A-10 aircraft has been hit by Iranian air defenses, Iranian state media reported, citing Iran’s Army public relations office.

Earlier it was reported thatr that a second U.S. Air Force combat aircraft had gone down in the Middle East on Friday.

No other information was immediately known including the whereabouts of the pilot. The Pentagon and White House did not immediate comment.

The A-10, also known by the nickname Warthog, is a single-seat aircraft.

Authorities in Dubai said the facades of two buildings were damaged by debris from intercepted drones, including one belonging to U.S. tech firm Oracle. No injuries were reported.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has threatened to attack Oracle and 17 other U.S. companies after accusing them of being involved in “terrorist espionage” operations in Iran.

Previous Iranian drone strikes caused damage to three Amazon Web Services facilities in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

On Saturday, the Israeli military reported that its air force conducted strikes on Friday against important infrastructure located in Iran's capital city.

The targets included storage facilities for anti-aircraft systems and ballistic missiles, along with sites involved in weapons manufacturing and research and development activities.

This information was shared directly in the official statement from the Israeli military.

According to an Iraqi source speaking to Al Jazeera Arabic, one member of Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces was killed while another was injured during an assault on the group’s headquarters in the town of Al Qaim.

Previously, reports had emerged of an air strike targeting the headquarters of the PMF’s 34th Brigade located in Mosul.

The Popular Mobilisation Forces, referred to as Hashd al-Shaabi in Arabic, operates as an official component of Iraq’s state security forces and includes several factions that maintain close ties with Iran.

The Israeli military announced that it conducted a wave of air strikes on Friday, targeting regime aerial defence sites. These included an IRGC aerial defence site that stored missiles intended to target aircraft.

The Israeli military also reported striking a military site responsible for protecting the regime’s weapons research and development facilities.

In addition, the statement noted that a site used for storing ballistic missiles was hit, along with further weapons production, research and development sites.

The Fars news agency reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps used its advanced modern air defence systems to shoot down an MQ-1 drone over the province of Isfahan.

This development follows Iranian forces’ announcement that they had shot down two US military warplanes — one over southwestern Iran and another near the Strait of Hormuz.

Sami Puri, a visiting lecturer at King’s College London, described the mission to rescue the missing US pilot as highly challenging because rescue teams will face the ongoing threat of fire from Iranian forces.

He pointed out that satellites and similar technologies have clear limitations in locating one individual crew member from the downed F-15E aircraft across a wide region that features both mountainous and desert landscapes, according Al Jazeera.

According to Puri, US forces would likely need to conduct low-level flights to get a precise fix on the pilot’s location, which would heighten the danger to those involved in the effort.

He added that much of the operation would demand close-range aerial surveillance, exposing aircraft to the possibility of additional enemy fire. Puri noted that successfully shooting down a third American plane in a short time would be a major accomplishment for Iran.

Al Jazeera reported, Puri also mentioned that the incident of the jet being shot down would prove deeply embarrassing for the US military, particularly in view of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s prior assertion that the United States maintained complete air superiority in Iran.

The United Nations Information Centre in Jakarta stated that the three peacekeepers who were injured near the town of Adaisseh in Lebanon on Friday are from Indonesia.

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) reported that two of them suffered serious injuries.

The origin of the explosion that caused the injuries is not yet known.

This event took place only days after another incident in southern Lebanon in which three Indonesian peacekeepers lost their lives.

The commander of the Joint Headquarters of the National Air Defence announced that Iranian forces are fully prepared to ambush enemy fighter jets and drones using modern indigenous techniques and equipment built specifically to target fifth-generation aircraft and advanced unmanned aerial systems.

In a statement released through the IRNA news agency, Brigadier General Alireza Elhami said Iranian air defence units have already taken down several advanced fighter jets, dozens of cruise missiles, and more than 160 drones, including Hermes and Lucas unmanned aircraft.

He added that these successes were achieved through new tactics and innovative defence systems, which have caused significant confusion among the enemy.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has categorically denied any involvement in the drone attack on the US embassy in Riyadh on March 3, claiming that Israel was behind the strike.

The denial was issued after The Wall Street Journal published a report alleging that the damage from the attack was much more severe than what Saudi authorities had publicly acknowledged.

According to the Journal, while the Saudi Defence Ministry had described the incident as causing only a limited fire and minor damage, the fire had actually raged for several hours and inflicted extensive destruction.

The IRGC condemned the Wall Street Journal report and declared that the attack “has absolutely nothing to do with the Iranian armed forces.” It further asserted that, in line with Israeli strategy in the region, the operation was “certainly carried out by Zionists.”

In the same statement, the IRGC warned Muslim countries about the “Zionist regime’s sedition” in the region and stressed the need for neighbouring nations to stay vigilant against what it called the American-Zionist movement’s attempts to destabilise and destroy the area.

Explosions were heard at the Mahshahr Petrochemical Special Economic Zone in southern Iran's Khuzestan province.

Iran’s Fars News Agency reported the blasts, noting that smoke was seen rising from the area where the explosions occurred.

The incident took place in the petrochemical zone located in the southern part of the country.

One person has been killed following an Israeli air strike on the fishermen’s port in Tyre, southern Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA).

The NNA also reported that Israeli forces continue to blow up houses in several southern front-line villages and towns, including Ayta al-Shaab and Ramyah.

Iran has shifted all university courses nationwide to virtual format, according to the country's semiofficial Tasnim news agency.

The Ministry of Science and Technology announced that classes will resume in virtual mode and this arrangement will stay in effect until further notice.

Finance ministers from Germany, Spain, Italy, Austria, and Portugal are pushing for a windfall tax on energy companies that are seeing boosted profits due to surging energy prices caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

According to Reuters, the ministers argued in a letter that the tax would help recoup some of those gains and send a clear message that those profiting from the consequences of the war must do their part to ease the burden on the general public.

Mousa Ahmadi, chairman of Iran’s Parliament Energy Commission, says the country’s oil exports are increasing while authorities remain fully prepared for any emergency scenarios.

In an interview with ISNA news agency, Ahmadi added that domestic fuel supply is running smoothly without any interruptions.

The governor of Khuzestan province in Iran has claimed that the explosions at the Mahshahr Petrochemical Zone were caused by a joint US-Israeli strike targeting the Fajr 1 and Fajr 2 petrochemical companies along with other nearby facilities, Fars News Agency reported.

He added that these attacks are part of a growing pattern in recent days where industrial sites across Iran are being increasingly targeted.

Iran’s Mehr News Agency reports that an airstrike has struck the Bandar Imam petrochemical complex in southern Khuzestan, causing damage to the facility.

Connectivity watchdog NetBlocks reports that Iran’s internet has now been down for 36 days, totaling 840 hours.

Iran’s Tasnim news agency is reporting that a projectile hit near the Bushehr nuclear facility in southwest Iran, killing one person.

Hezbollah claims its fighters carried out two attacks on Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel using rocket barrages.

The group also stated that it targeted the area around a helicopter landing pad established by Israeli forces for casualty evacuation in the border town of Maroun al-Ras.

The Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) has issued a statement accusing the US and Israel of launching an air strike on its headquarters in the Iraqi town of al-Qaim.

The group reported that one fighter was killed and four others were wounded in the attack, in addition to a member of the Defence Ministry.

An Iraqi source informed Al Jazeera that one PMF member died and another was injured during the strike on the headquarters.

India’s Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has confirmed that domestic refiners continue to receive stable crude oil supplies despite ongoing volatility and disruptions in the Middle East.

In a statement shared on X, the ministry stated that Indian refiners have successfully secured their crude oil requirements, including supplies from Iran.

The ministry further clarified that there are no payment hurdles for importing Iranian crude, dismissing rumours suggesting otherwise.

This assurance comes amid escalating tensions in the region, aiming to ease concerns over potential supply disruptions for India’s energy needs.

A US-Israeli attack struck the vicinity of Iran’s Bushehr nuclear site this morning, resulting in the death of one person, according to Iran’s Tasnim news agency.

The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran confirmed that the deceased was a member of the plant’s security staff and reported damage to one of the facility’s side buildings.

Tasnim further stated that the attack has not caused any radiological danger at the site.

This incident adds to the escalating tensions in the Middle East region.

Israel is unlikely to succeed in its goal of disarming Hezbollah, according to Heiko Wimmen of the International Crisis Group.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, the ICG’s Iraq, Syria and Lebanon Project Director stated, “We know that [disarming] Hezbollah is not on the cards, and so we’re seeing an open ended occupation evolving before our eyes.”

Hezbollah joined the conflict on Iran’s side following the US-Israeli attack that killed former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Wimmen noted that while Hezbollah has a strong presence in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley and southern regions, removing the group from these areas would not mean completely eliminating the organisation.

Iran has executed two men convicted of membership in the banned opposition group, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).

The executions of Abolhassan Montazer and Vahid Baniamerian took place on Saturday morning, following the Supreme Court’s upholding of their earlier sentences. They were convicted of PMOI/MEK membership and “armed rebellion through involvement in multiple terrorist acts”.

The Iranian judiciary website, Mizan Online, confirmed that the two were hanged after trial and confirmation of their sentences by the Supreme Court.

The hangings represent the latest action against dissidents amid the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran.

Iran’s embassy in Austria has criticised EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas for hypocrisy regarding the Strait of Hormuz crisis.

The embassy issued the response after Kallas told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi that restoring “toll-free freedom of navigation” in the strait was “an urgent priority” and blamed Iranian attacks on shipping for bringing traffic to a near halt.

In two posts, the embassy accused Kallas of ignoring “the aggressive attacks by the American-Israeli evil coalition against Iran” while condemning what it said were Tehran’s “purely defensive actions.”

It also challenged her on legal grounds, noting that Kallas had urged Iran to respect the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which Iran is not party to.

“What kind of advisors surround her? A batch of spineless “yes-men” puppets, no different from the sycophants who surround Trump?” the embassy wrote.

The embassy added that Iran had honoured the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, yet its “peaceful, safeguarded nuclear facilities were still attacked.”

Iran’s Fars News Agency reports that a Red Crescent humanitarian worker was killed in Mobarakeh, Isfahan, by an American-Israeli attack.

The Israeli army has announced that it has conducted another wave of strikes on Iran’s capital, Tehran.

Further details are awaited as the situation develops.

Iranian authorities have issued permits allowing vessels carrying basic goods and humanitarian aid to transit the Strait of Hormuz, according to Tasnim news agency.

The authorisation specifically applies to ships destined for Iranian ports or those located in the Sea of Oman, the report said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has clarified that US media is misrepresenting Iran’s stance, while emphasizing that the government remains deeply grateful to Pakistan and has never refused to visit Islamabad.

He stated that Iran’s primary focus is securing the terms for a conclusive and lasting end to the “illegal war” currently being imposed upon the country.

In a post on X, Araghchi said, “What we care about are the terms of a conclusive and lasting END to the illegal war that is imposed on us.”

Gas supplies from Iran to southern Iraq have been completely halted, Al Jazeera Arabic reports, citing a statement from the Iraqi electricity ministry.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has told Al Jazeera Arabic that Tehran remains open for bilateral diplomacy with regional neighbours.

In the interview, he stated:

• We have prepared for this confrontation and proven our ability to defend ourselves.

• This war is Israel’s war, and the resulting security breakdown and losses have affected the world.

• Iran was forced to target American bases and interests in the region in order to preserve its presence.

• Escalating tensions against Iran will be met with a decisive and broad response against American interests in the region.

• Maintaining the region’s security is in the interest of its countries, and sustainable security is our priority.

• The countries of the region can secure their interests through bilateral and multilateral security agreements without foreign interference.

• The main drivers of insecurity in the region must be removed, and security must be built without the United States and Israel.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said the Bushehr nuclear site was struck four times by the US and Israel, according to Al Jazeera.

In another post on X, Araghchi warned that the strikes near the Bushehr nuclear plant today pose significant risks to both Iran and the wider GCC region.

He criticized what he described as a lack of concern for its safety—especially when compared to the attention given to Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

“Attacks on our petrochemicals also convey real objectives,” he said.

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni reviewed regional developments in a high-level meeting in Doha today and called for de-escalation, according to Al Jazeera.

Both sides stressed the importance of political dialogue and diplomatic channels to contain the Middle East crisis.

A statement from the Emiri Diwan said the leaders noted the crisis’s impact on energy and supply chains, underscoring the need to protect regional energy security.

The Israeli military says a new wave of missiles has been launched from Iran towards Israel, according to Al Jazeera.

In a statement, the military said air defence systems are operating to intercept the attack.

Pakistan has welcomed Iran’s clarification regarding its position on efforts to end the war, according to Al Jazeera.

Earlier today, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi corrected what he described as US media reports that had “misrepresented” Iran’s stance on Pakistani mediation efforts.

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar welcomed the clarification.

The UAE Ministry of Defence has announced that its air defence systems responded to 23 ballistic missiles and 56 drones launched from Iran in a single day, according to Al Jazeera.

In a statement posted on X, the ministry provided a cumulative update, noting that its systems have responded to a total of 498 ballistic missiles, 23 cruise missiles, and 2,141 drones since the start of the war.

The statement confirmed that these Iranian attacks have resulted in the deaths of two Emirati soldiers and one Moroccan contractor. Additionally, ten civilians from Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Palestine, India, and Egypt have been killed, with a further 217 people wounded since hostilities began.

A senior Iranian figure, Mohsen Rezaee, has suggested in a post on X that Donald Trump should be dismissed instead of his generals, according to Al Jazeera.

US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth has dismissed a number of senior military figures in the US, including the chief of staff.

[Translation: They had said Iran’s air defenses had been destroyed. As always, they lied. Perhaps instead of removing military commanders, Trump himself should be removed. We have been preparing for this battle for years, and the surprises continue…] according to Al Jazeera.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni met with Qatari leader Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani today to discuss the energy crisis sparked by the ongoing war in the West Asia.

Ms. Meloni arrived in Qatar after a visit to Saudi Arabia, where she had talks with de facto leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Her trip to the Gulf, which has been targeted on a daily basis by Iranian missile and drone attacks in retaliation for U.S.-Israeli strikes, was not announced in advance.

According to a statement from her office, Ms. Meloni and the Qatari emir “tackled energy issues... and discussed possible measures to mitigate the shocks suffered”.

The Italian Prime Minister also said her country was ready to “contribute to the rehabilitation of Qatari energy infrastructure, which is essential to energy security on a global scale”.

-AFP

Iran used ‌a new air ⁠defence system yesterday ‌to target ‌a ‌U.S. ⁠fighter ⁠jet, Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya joint military ‌command said on today.

A ‌spokesperson for the joint military ⁠command said ‌the country would “definitely achieve full control” ‌over its airspace, according to Iranian ⁠State media.

-Reuters

Indonesia received the bodies of three peacekeepers today that were killed on deployment in Lebanon, as it branded an explosion that injured three other of its blue helmets as “unacceptable”.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said three peacekeepers were wounded in a blast that occurred inside a UN facility near El Adeisse last afternoon, and were rushed to the hospital.

Two were seriously wounded.

-AFP

The U.S. military was racing on Saturday to find an American airman who ejected from a fighter jet that was shot down over Iran, as Israel launched a heavy wave of airstrikes on Tehran, shaking homes and leaving residents desperately seeking shelter.

One member of the two-person crew of the U.S. F-15E fighter jet was rescued after it was destroyed, according to U.S. officials. Iranian forces were also pursuing the missing American, Iranian officials said, speaking anonymously to discuss ongoing operations. The status of the airman was unknown as of midday Saturday.

Russia today condemned an “evil” U.S.-Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear plant in Bushehr, which hosts Russian staff, and urged an immediate end to attacks on atomic facilities.

“We strongly condemn this evil deed, which resulted in loss of life,” said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

“Strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, including the Bushehr nuclear power plant, must cease immediately,” she added.

-AFP

Israel’s military renewed its strikes on the southern Lebanese city of Tyre today after issuing evacuation warnings, following attacks on nearby buildings that damaged a hospital in the city.

Israel has carried out strikes across Lebanon and launched a ground invasion in the south after Hezbollah entered the war in the Middle East on the side of its backer Iran on March 2.

The Israeli army struck three buildings it had warned people to evacuate, according to Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA).

An AFP correspondent said that a missile hit an 11-storey building northeast of Tyre, completely destroying it and reducing it to a pile of rubble that covered a nearby gas station.

-AFP

Two family members of slain Iranian general Qassem Soleimani have been arrested in the United States after their residency permits were rescinded, the U.S. State Department said today.

“Last night, the niece and grand niece of deceased Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Major General Qassem Soleimani were arrested by federal agents following Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s termination of their lawful permanent resident (LPR) status,” a department statement said.

Mr. Soleimani, who led the IRGC’s foreign operations arm, was killed in a US drone strike while he was in the Iraqi capital Baghdad in January 2020.

-AFP

Iran’s Khatam ‌al-Anbiya joint military command ⁠said Iraq would ‌be exempt ‌from ‌any ⁠restrictions on ⁠transit through the Strait ‌of Hormuz, Iranian media ‌reported today, signalling preferential ⁠treatment for ‌Baghdad as Tehran tightens control over ‌the strategic waterway.

-Reuters

“The situation is evolving; you’ve got a pilot shot down in enemy territory, and it’s a race against time”, Patrick Bury, defence and security specialist at the University of Bath, tells Al Jazeera.

“The search-and-rescue teams are really well prepared,” he said, referring to images released on social media of US refuelling aircraft helping Apache helicopters, Black Hawks, which have Air Force Special Forces who are “trained specifically for … identifying and extracting targets”, Bury, who is a former British Army officer, explained.

He added that the pilot might have been trained in SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Extraction) techniques.

Whether the Iranians will capture the pilot depends on a number of variables, including “whether their homing beacon is working, where they’ve landed, geographically, what the population density is there … whether the pilot is able to buy off the actual locals with cash and gold they often have in their survival equipment kit,” he said.