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Several U.S. allies rebuffed Donald Trump’s telephone connected Monday (March 16, 2026) to nonstop warships to escort tankers done the Strait of Hormuz, drafting disapproval from the U.S. President, who accused Western partners of ingratitude aft decades of support.
The U.S.-Israeli warfare connected Iran is successful its 3rd week with nary extremity successful sight. The captious Strait of Hormuz, done which 20% of the world’s lipid and liquefied earthy state flow, remains mostly closed off, raising vigor prices and fears of inflation.
The struggle has already imposed economical costs connected U.S. allies, who were not consulted earlier the airstrikes connected Iran and who person endured months of harsh disapproval and bellicose threats from Mr. Trump since helium returned to office.
Iran-Israel war updates connected March 16, 2026
A fig of U.S. partners, including Germany, Spain and Italy, said they had nary contiguous plans to send ships to assistance reopen the strategical waterway, which Iran has efficaciously unopen with drones and naval mines.
“We deficiency the mandate from the United Nations, the European Union oregon NATO required nether the Basic Law,” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said successful Berlin, adding that Washington and Israel had not consulted Germany earlier launching the war.
Mr. Trump, speaking astatine a White House lawsuit successful Washington, said galore countries had told him they were prepared to help, but voiced vexation with immoderate long-standing allies.
“Some are precise enthusiastic astir it, and immoderate aren’t,” helium said, without offering specifics. “Some are countries that we’ve helped for many, galore years. We’ve protected them from horrible extracurricular sources, and they weren’t that enthusiastic. And the level of enthusiasm matters to me.”
Israel inactive has thousands of targets successful Iran
Israel said connected Monday (March 16, 2026) it had drawn up elaborate plans for astatine slightest 3 much weeks of warfare arsenic it pounded sites crossed Iran overnight, portion Iranian drone attacks temporarily unopen Dubai airdrome and deed a cardinal lipid installation successful the United Arab Emirates.
Israel troops pushed into caller parts of confederate Lebanon, portion of an expanding cognition aft Hezbollah fired rockets astatine Israel successful retaliation for the sidesplitting of Iran’s ultimate leader.
In a associated statement, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Britain warned that immoderate “significant Israeli crushed violative would person devastating humanitarian consequences and could pb to a protracted conflict,” and that specified an cognition “must beryllium averted.”
Israel has said it wants to weaken Iran’s capableness to endanger it, striking ballistic rocket infrastructure, atomic facilities and the information apparatus, and that it inactive has thousands of targets to hit.
“We privation to marque definite that they are arsenic weak arsenic possible, this regime, and that we degrade each their capabilities, each parts and each wings of their information establishment,” Israeli subject spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it would people U.S. concern facilities successful the Middle East and urged radical surviving adjacent U.S.-owned plants to leave.
Iran besides responded to Trump’s menace that helium mightiness onslaught lipid facilities connected Kharg Island, the country’s main lipid hub, if Tehran does not reopen the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. forces destroyed subject targets connected Kharg connected Friday.
A spokesperson for the equipped forces, Abolfazl Shekarchi, said Iran would people lipid and state facilities successful immoderate state from which U.S. attacks were launched connected Kharg Island.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Tehran had not asked for a ceasefire oregon exchanged messages with the U.S., according to Iran’s semi-official Student News Network.
In a station connected X, Araqchi besides said immoderate “neighbouring states” that big U.S. forces and licence attacks connected Iran were actively encouraging the sidesplitting of Iranians.
He said 200 children were among the hundreds of Iranian civilians killed successful U.S. oregon Israeli bombings.
Rescue workers successful Tehran worked to propulsion radical from the wreckage of a gathering successful what an Iranian Red Crescent assistance idiosyncratic said was an wholly residential alleyway.
Israel claims strikes connected Iran’s Space programme
Israel said its aerial unit had struck sites linked to Iran’s abstraction program, including destroying a probe installation successful Tehran progressive successful processing a outer launched successful 2024.
One Tehran nonmigratory told Reuters that determination had been nary net overnight and Iranians felt isolated from the world.
“People are being killed,” Shahnaz, 62, said via WhatsApp. “Just days earlier Nowruz (Iranian New Year, connected March 20), but radical are not successful the temper to celebrate. When volition this end?”
Asked if she supported the Islamic Republic, Shahnaz said: “No, I don’t. How tin I? They killed my granddaughter successful [January’s] protests. We privation this authorities to go. We want this misery to end.”
In Tel Aviv, aerial raid sirens sounded precocious into the night, informing of incoming Iranian missiles and underscoring that, aft much than 2 weeks of war, Tehran inactive retained the capableness to transportation retired long-range attacks. The IRGC said earlier that Iran had launched strikes connected areas successful Tel Aviv, the U.S. Al Dhafra Air Base successful Abu Dhabi, the U.S. naval basal successful Bahrain and Bahrain’s Sheikh Isa Air Base.
On the UAE’s seashore on the Gulf of Oman, lipid loading operations astatine the larboard of Fujairah partially resumed aft an Iranian drone strike. Fujairah is simply a cardinal exit constituent for the UAE’s Murban crude - a measurement equivalent to astir 1% of planetary demand.
Flights astatine Dubai International Airport, 1 of the world’s busiest, were suspended for respective hours aft a drone onslaught connected a adjacent substance retention installation sent plumes of achromatic fume into the sky. Saudi Arabia intercepted 34 drones successful its eastbound portion successful 1 hour, authorities media said. No injuries were reported successful either incident.
Despite the turbulence, lipid prices , which had been supra $100 a barrel, fell and stocks rallied aft U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC the U.S. was “fine” to fto immoderate Iranian substance vessels done the strait, and believed Indian and Chinese tankers had besides passed through.
