US‑Israel war on Iran, Day 21: UK to allow US to use bases against Iran attacks in Strait of Hormuz

UAE residents have received a new mobile alert from authorities confirming that the situation in the country is currently safe following earlier warnings about potential missile threats.

US President Donald Trump on Friday ruled out reaching a ceasefire agreement with Iran, saying Washington has the upper hand in the three-week-old war.

"I don't want to do a ceasefire. You know you don't do a ceasefire when you're literally obliterating the other side," Trump told journalists at the White House.

The UAE Ministry of Defence has issued an urgent alert, advising residents to take immediate shelter due to a potential missile threat.

The message, sent to mobile phones in multiple areas, instructed people to go to the nearest secure building and avoid windows, doors, and open spaces until authorities provide further guidance.

A series of blasts were heard from Jerusalem on Friday after sirens sounded in northern Israel, AFP journalists said, following a warning that Iran had fired missiles.

"A short while ago, the IDF identified missiles launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel. Defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat," the Israeli military said on its official Telegram channel.

Trump was asked while leaving the White House on Friday afternoon about plans to have US forces further target Kharg Island in the Arabian Gulf, which is vital to Iran’s oil network.

He responded, “I may have a plan I may not” but said he wouldn’t tell reporters one way or the other.

“It’s certainly a place that people are talking about. But I can’t tell you that,” Trump added.

British ministers have agreed to allow the US military to use the UK's bases in operations to prevent Iran attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

In a statement, No. 10 Downing Street said ministers met Friday afternoon and “confirmed that the agreement for the US to use UK bases in the collective self-defence of the region includes US defensive operations to degrade the missile sites and capabilities being used to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz.”

British PM Keir Starmer allowed the US to use UK bases in the region for defensive operations a few days after the start of the war, when Iran started launching missiles and drones around the Middle East, notably those on the other side of the Arabian Gulf. Under that agreement, US armed forces could use the bases to target Iran’s missiles and missile facilities.

The Department of the Treasury on Friday designated a network of 16 individuals and entities led by what it called is Hezbollah financier and former public investment official Alaa Hassan Hamieh.

The treasury said these individuals and companies located in Lebanon, Syria, Poland, Slovenia, Qatar, and Canada, have been involved in numerous economic projects and are estimated to have enabled the diversion of over $100 million since 2020.

This network represents a critical source of funding for Hezbollah, it said.

The US Department of State designated Hezbollah as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in 2001, and three years earlier as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation.

Pentagon officials have made detailed preparations for deploying US ground forces into Iran, according to CBS News citing multiple sources.

Senior military commanders have submitted specific requests aimed at preparing for such an option as President Trump weighs moves in the US-Israel-led conflict with Iran, the sources said.

Trump has been deliberating whether to position ground forces in the region, sources said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. It was unclear under what circumstances he would authorise the use of troops on the ground.

Captain Tim Hawkins, the spokesman for US Central Command, told The Associated Press that 232 service members have been injured in the Middle East. 

That’s 30 more than a previous military tally of roughly 200 from Monday.

Hawkins said 207 of the 232 injured have already returned to duty. The number of service members that are considered seriously wounded has remained at 10.

Since the war in Iran began, 13 US service members have been killed.

The United States could "take out" Iran's Kharg island whenever it wanted, the White House said Friday, after a report that President Donald Trump's administration was considering plans to occupy or blockade the oil hub.

Asked about the Axios report, White House Principal Deputy Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly said in a statement to AFP: "The United States Military can take out Kharg Island at any time if the President gives the order."

The United Kingdom has stepped up its military presence in the Middle East, with Royal Air Force Typhoon and F-35 fighter jets continuing defensive air patrols over Jordan, Qatar, the UAE and Bahrain, according to an update released by the UK Ministry of Defence on 20 March 2026.

The aircraft, supported by Voyager air-to-air refuelling tankers, are part of efforts to strengthen regional stability amid heightened security tensions.

The Ministry said Britain now has more combat aircraft deployed in the region than at any point in the past 15 years, with British pilots surpassing 700 operational flying hours. An additional 500 UK personnel have also been deployed to support air defence operations at British bases in Cyprus, while a small number of military planners have been assigned to US Central Command (CENTCOM) to assist with security planning, particularly regarding the protection of maritime routes in the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.

Air India and Air India Express will operate a combined total of 42 scheduled and non-scheduled flights to and from the West Asia region on March 21, 2026. Both carriers will continue their scheduled services to Jeddah and Muscat, including a total of 16 flights between India and Jeddah. Air India will run one return service each from Delhi and two from Mumbai, while Air India Express will operate one flight from Hyderabad. Additionally, Air India Express will conduct eight scheduled flights to and from Muscat, connecting cities such as Delhi, Kochi, Mumbai, and Kozhikode. Beyond these, the two airlines will also operate 26 non-scheduled flights to and from the UAE, subject to slot availability and prevailing conditions, with all necessary approvals secured from Indian and local authorities.

Defense Ministry spokesman Col. Saud al-Atwan said that the country’s air defenses also shot down 15 of 25 more drones fired into Kuwait.

Two of the drones exploded in an oil refinery, igniting a fire that was later extinguished, and there were no casualties, Al-Atwan said.

Al-Atwan said eight other drones exploded in open areas without causing any danger.

He said the missile and the drones were fired into Kuwait over the past 24 hours.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei on Friday said that Iranians had dealt a "dizzying blow" to the country's enemies during the war with Israel and the United States.

By showing unity and resolve, Iranians had "dealt him (the enemy) a dizzying blow so that he now starts uttering contradictory words and nonsense," Khamenei said in a written message for Persian New Year.

He also said Iran and allied forces in the region were "in no way" behind attacks on Oman and Turkey during the war, instead blaming "deception by the Zionist enemy" in reference to Israel.

NATO has pulled its security advisory mission out of Iraq and relocated several hundred personnel involved in the effort to Europe. The move came after a series of attacks from Iran on other troops at British, French and Italian bases in northern Iraq.

NATO’s top commander, General Alexus Grynkewich, confirmed that the last troops left on Friday. He thanked the government of Iraq and allies who helped to safely relocate them, as well as the troops involved, calling them “true professionals.”

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei praised Iranians’ steadfastness in the face of war, saying that US and Israeli attacks were based on an illusion that by killing top leaders they could cause the overthrow of the government.

Khamenei’s written statement marking the Persian New Year, Nowruz, was read on Iranian television.

He commended Iranians for “building a nationwide defensive front and strongholds across cities, neighbourhoods, and mosques, delivering such a bewildering blow that the enemy fell into contradictions and irrational statements.”

Khamenei has not been seen in public since he became supreme leader following the assassination of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at the start of the war.

Asked about Trump’s plans for the additional troops, and reports that the administration is considering plans to occupy or blockade Kharg Island, a White House official said that Trump has said he has “no plans” to send troops into Iran, but retains all options and does not broadcast his military strategy. 

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, said the US military could “take out Kharg Island at any time.”

The US military is deploying three more warships and roughly 2,500 more marines to the Middle East, an official says.

One US official confirmed Friday that the USS Boxer and two other amphibious assault ships, along with roughly 2,500 Marines of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, have deployed from their home port of San Diego and are bound for the Middle East.

Two other US officials confirmed that the ships were deploying, without saying where they were headed. All three officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations.

Britain's Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper warned her Iranian counterpart in a phone call "against targeting UK bases, territory or interests directly", a foreign office statement said Friday.

The statement was response to one issued by Iran's foreign ministry in which it said Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Cooper in the call on Thursday that any US use of British bases would be seen as "participation in aggression" against the Islamic republic.

Cooper told Araghchi "the defensive UK operations in the region were a response to the Iranian aggression against Gulf partners", the UK foreign office said, adding: "She made clear that the UK wants to see a swift resolution to this conflict."

Britain’s top diplomat says the UK is involved only in defensive action, after Iran’s foreign minister said the US use of British bases to attack Iran amounted to “participation in aggression.”

The British government says Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi that “the defensive UK operations in the region were a response to the Iranian aggression against Gulf partners.”

In a call on Thursday she warned Iran against targeting British bases, territory or interests directly, and made clear that the UK wants to see a swift resolution.

Hezbollah said Friday it has targeted Israeli soldiers in six south Lebanon villages, in a series of statements, as Israeli ground forces attempt to push into southern Lebanon.

The pro-Iran armed group said it targeted a "gathering of Israeli enemy soldiers" in each of the six border villages, and a Merkava tank, as its war with Israel neared the three-week mark, having started on March 2 when the group launched rockets towards Israel in retaliation for the US-Israeli attack on Iran that killed Iran's supreme leader.

Smoke was seen rising from an impact site near the walls of Jerusalem's Old City on Friday, Israeli television showed, after AFP journalists heard loud blasts following a warning of Iranian missiles

Israeli media showed footage of a crater in a road that appeared to be close to the Jewish and Armenian quarters of the historic Old City.

Israeli police said they were "conducting searches to locate the impact sites of weapons and munitions or interception fragments within the Jerusalem District".

Shockwaves from airstrikes on Tehran damaged several historic buildings in the Saadabad Palace complex, one of the Iranian capital's most visited sites, state news agencies reported on Friday.

Saadabad Palace is a large former royal complex in northern Tehran that includes an extensive park with separate buildings that have been turned into museums dedicated to the country's cultural history.

Photos and videos published by the IRNA and ISNA agencies showed debris, including shattered windows and pieces of ceiling, scattered across the floor of the Green Palace, one of the most visited pavilions.

It was built under the Pahlavi dynasty deposed in the 1979 revolution that led to the creation of the current Islamic republic.

At least two other buildings were damaged "by the shockwaves from the explosions", according to IRNA

Iran's military threatened on Friday to hunt down officials and army commanders from the United States and Israel even while they were vacationing or visiting entertainment centres.

"We are watching your cowardly officials and commanders, pilots and wicked soldiers," armed forces spokesman Abolfazl Shekarchi said, quoted by state TV.

"From now on, based on the information we have on you, the promenades, resorts and tourist and entertainment centres in the world will not be safe for you either."

President Donald Trump on Friday branded the United States' NATO allies "cowards" for not heeding his demand for military assistance against Iran to control the Hormuz Strait shipping route.

"COWARDS, and we will REMEMBER!" he posted on his Truth Social platform.

US allies "don't want to help open the Strait of Hormuz, a simple military maneuver that is the single reason for the high oil prices. So easy for them to do, with so little risk," he posted.

Iran threatened to target recreational and tourist sites worldwide and insisted it was still building missiles. Friday's show of defiance came nearly three weeks into US-Israeli strikes that have killed a slew of Tehran's top leaders and hammered its weapons and energy industries.

Iran threatens worldwide tourist sites

Iran's top military spokesman warned that "parks, recreational areas and tourist destinations" worldwide won't be safe for Tehran's enemies.

The threat from General Abolfazl Shekarchi renewed concerns that Iran may revert to using militant attacks beyond the Middle East as a pressure tactic.

The General Secretariat of the Arab Interior Ministers Council expressed its strong condemnation and denunciation of the malicious and repeated Iranian aggression against Arab countries, as well as its deliberate hostile practices targeting civilian sites and vital energy and gas facilities in the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom of Bahrain, the State of Qatar, the State of Kuwait, the Sultanate of Oman, and other Arab countries.

In a statement issued today, the General Secretariat said that this aggression constitutes a blatant violation of all international laws, conventions, and principles of good neighborliness, and represents a dangerous escalation that could expose regional and global economic interests to serious risks and threaten international peace and security.

An Israeli warplane broke the sound barrier over Beirut on Friday morning, state media said, as AFP journalists heard loud booms reverberate across the city and in distant mountains.

Lebanon's official National News Agency said "a strong sonic boom, in two successive waves, shook the skies over Beirut and its suburbs" on the morning of the Eid Al Fitr holiday, which marks the end of the Ramadan fasting period.

The incident set social media abuzz.

"On a day without shelling - so far - the Israelis are greeting the people of Beirut and its suburbs with two sonic booms," one internet user, Salah Halawi, wrote on X.

Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2 when Iran-backed Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel after the killing of the Islamic republic's supreme leader.

An Indian national has died in Riyadh following injuries sustained during the recent attacks on March 18, according to a statement issued by the Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia.

The embassy expressed its “deepest condolences” over the tragic loss, without providing further details about the circumstances of the incident.

The mission confirmed it is in contact with the victim’s family as well as Saudi authorities to facilitate necessary procedures and provide support.

Israel's military said Friday it was launching strikes in Iran's Noor region on the shores of the Caspian Sea, as it kept up its bombing campaign after almost three weeks of war.

"The IDF has begun striking targets belonging to the Iranian terror regime," the army said in a statement.

The fresh strikes come after Israel's military said Thursday its jets had hit several Iranian naval vessels in the Caspian Sea.

UAE air defences successfully intercepted four ballistic missiles and 26 drones launched from Iran on March 20, 2026

Since the start of the attacks, the UAE’s air defense systems have dealt with 338 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles, and 1,740 drones targeting the country.

These assaults have tragically resulted in the martyrdom of 2 armed forces members and the death of 6 civilians of Pakistani, Nepalese, Bangladeshi, and Palestinian nationalities. Additionally, 158 people of various nationalities—including Emirati, Egyptian, Sudanese, Filipino, Pakistani, Iranian, Indian, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan, Azerbaijani, Yemeni, Ugandan, Eritrean, Lebanese, Afghan, Bahraini, Comorian, Turkish, Iraqi, Nigerian, Omani, Jordanian, Palestinian, Ghanaian, Indonesian, Swedish, and Tunisian—sustained injuries ranging from minor to severe.

The Ministry of Defense affirmed that it remains on high alert and fully prepared to counter any threats, ensuring the protection of UAE sovereignty, security, and stability while safeguarding national interests and capabilities.

The United States and Israel struck 16 Iranian cargo vessels in port towns on the Gulf on Friday, local media reported, saying the ships were burnt.

"Following the American-Zionist air attack, at least 16 cargo vessels belonging to citizens of the towns of Bandar Lengeh and Bandar Kong were completely burnt in the fire," a local offical from the southern Hormozgan province said, quoted by the Tasnim news agency.

Israeli police said on Friday they had arrested an army reservist who served on the Iron Dome air defence system on suspicion of passing secrets to Iran.

The arrest comes as Israel and the United States are locked in a war with Iran that has spread across the Middle East.

"Raz Cohen, a 26-year-old resident of Jerusalem who served in the reserves in the Iron Dome system, was recently arrested on suspicion of committing security offenses involving contact with Iranian intelligence," Israeli police said.

"Over the course of several months, the citizen maintained contact with Iranian intelligence operatives and, under their instructions, was asked to carry out various security missions, including passing on sensitive security information."

Kuwaiti Air Defenses are currently intercepting hostile missile and drone attacks - If explosion sounds are heard, they are the result of air defense systems intercepting hostile attacks.

Residents are requested to adhere to the security and safety instructions issued by the competent authorities.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his British counterpart Yvette Cooper in a phone call that any US use of British bases would be seen as "participation in aggression" against the Islamic republic.

It was not clear when the call with Cooper took place.

"These actions will certainly be regarded as participation in aggression and will be recorded in the history of relations between the two countries," said Araghchi, according to a statement released Friday by the foreign ministry.

Israeli Army: We attacked Syrian regime infrastructure in southern Syria in response to attacks against the Druze population in Suwayda.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Friday that US-Israeli strikes had killed their spokesman Ali Mohammad Naini.

Naini "was martyred in the criminal cowardly terrorist attack by the American-Zionist side at dawn", the Guards said in a statement on their Sepah News website.

Crude prices dipped Friday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran was being "decimated" and that the war would end earlier than many feared.

Traders also welcomed US President Donald Trump's remarks that Israeli forces would not target any more of Tehran's energy infrastructure, after strikes on a key gas field Wednesday sparked warnings of retaliation against installations across the Gulf.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Friday that the Islamic republic has continued to produce missiles despite the war with Israel and the United States.

"Our missile industry deserves a perfect score... and there is no concern in this regard, because even under wartime conditions we continue missile production," Guards spokesman Ali Mohammad Naini said, quoted by the Fars news agency.

On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that "Iran no longer has the capacity to enrich uranium and manufacture ballistic missiles".

Sri Lanka refused permission to the United States to station two of its warplanes at an airport in the island's south in early March, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake told parliament on Friday.

"They wanted to bring two warplanes armed with eight anti-ship missiles from a base in Djibouti to the Mattala International Airport from March 4 to 8 and we said 'no'," Dissanayake said.

Sri Lanka maintains close ties with the United States, its biggest export market, and Iran which is a key buyer of tea, its main export commodity.

Israel carried out strikes on towns in southern Lebanon, causing multiple injuries, state media reported on Friday.

"Israeli enemy fighter jets struck at dawn, targeting the towns of Bafliyeh and Hanine in the Tyre and Bint Jbeil districts," the official National News Agency (NNA) reported, adding that Israeli forces had hit five other towns in the south of the country.

Civil Defence extinguished the fire in the company warehouse that was caused by the Iranian aggression, after deploying 20 vehicles and 62 officers and personnel. Relevant procedures are being taken at the site.

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (Hrana) has announced that the updated death toll in Iran has reached 3,186 people since war began on February 28.

Of the dead, 1,394 were civilian casualties, including at least 210 children, Hrana says.

It classed 1,153 as military fatalities, while 639 deaths remain undetermined.

Netanyahu agrees to 'hold off' attacks on Iranian gas fields after Trump request.

Qatar's Ministry of Interior said that the Civil Defense had completely controlled a fire in a warehouse in the Birkat Al Awamir area, without any injuries being recorded.

Kuwait said Friday its Mina Al-Ahmadi oil refinery again came under attack by Iranian drones, which sparked a fire at several of its units.

The refinery had been hit Thursday, sparking fires.

Kuwait said firefighters on Friday were trying to control the blazes and there were no immediate injuries from the attack.

Kuwait’s air defence systems are currently intercepting hostile missile and drone threats, according to a statement issued by the General Staff of the Kuwaiti Armed Forces on Friday.

Authorities confirmed that any explosion sounds heard are the result of successful interception operations carried out by air defence units.

The competent authorities in Dubai have confirmed that the sounds heard in several areas across the emirate were caused by successful interceptions carried out by air defence systems.

Officials clarified that the noises reported by residents were the result of defensive measures that successfully intercepted aerial threats. Authorities emphasised that the situation remains under control.

Israel says a 'massive' wave of military strikes targeting Tehran has been launched.

UAE air defences are currently responding to incoming aerial threats from Iran.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) asserts that the sounds heard are the result of the air defence systems intercepting missiles and drones.

The authorities have urged the public not to circulate rumours and to obtain information solely from official sources.

An missile manufacturing and assembly facility in Iran had been razed to the ground following strikes as part of "Operation Epic Fury", as per the US Central Command. In the missile factory hit, satellite imagery shows a before-and-after videos.

The United Kingdom, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Japan have strongly condemned Iran’s attacks on civilian infrastructure, including oil and gas facilities in Gulf states, as well as the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the targeting of commercial vessels.

The UAE has welcomed a resolution adopted by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Council strongly condemning Iranian threats and attacks on shipping, and the purported closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

The decision was adopted during the council’s 36th extraordinary session, with the IMO warning that such actions endanger lives, particularly those of seafarers, and pose serious risks to the marine environment.

The council also condemned Iranian attacks on Gulf Cooperation Council states and Jordan, describing them as violations of international law.

The General Command of the Bahrain Defence Force announced that its air defence systems, since the onset of the hostile Iranian aggression, have intercepted and destroyed 139 ballistic missiles and 238 drones targeting the Kingdom of Bahrain

In a statement carried by Bahrain News Agency (BNA), the General Command emphasised that the use of ballistic missiles and drones to target civilian areas and private property constitutes a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and the United Nations Charter.

The UAE’s State Security Department has announced the dismantling of a terrorist network funded and directed by Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Iran, with its members arrested.

Authorities said the group had been operating within the country under the cover of a fictitious commercial front, seeking to infiltrate the national economy and carry out external agendas that threaten the country’s financial stability.

Day 20: Trump vows to destroy Iran gas field; UAE intercepts threats

Day 19: Iran warns of 'consequences' after gas field hit

Day 18: Iran confirms security chief Ali Larijani killed

Day 17:  Trump urges allies to secure Strait of Hormuz,

Day 16: Trump calls for allies on Strait of Hormuz security

Day 15: Trump threatens Iran’s oil infrastructure after US bombs Kharg

Day 14: Trump vows intense strikes against Iran in coming days

Day 13: US refueling aircraft crashes in Iraq

Day 12: Donald Trump says Iran near point of defeat

Day 11: US says today will be the 'most intense' of attacks

Day 10: UAE intercepts 15 missiles and 119 drones

Day 9: Gulf nations face fresh attacks

Day 8: US forces hit Iran hard, Trump touts battlefield gains

Day 7: Thousands being evacuated from Middle East: Trump

Day 6: Spring break for schools, moved up; some exams cancelled

Day 5: UAE waives overstay fines caused by airspace closure

Day 4: Dubai contains fire near US Consulate

Day 3: Trump lists 'clear' Iran war objectives

Day 2: UAE airlines extend flight cancellations

Day 1: UAE intercepts missiles; regional airspaces closed