Heated exchanges between Iran and the U.S. continued unabated over the weekend, whereas Iranian missiles rained down on Gulf states and Israel attacked essential infrastructure in Tehran.
U.S. President Donald Trump warned, “At this time Iran can be hit very laborious!” and Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that “many surprises” lay forward for the following section of the week-old battle. A high Iranian official responded: “We don’t welcome the struggle, however aggressors needs to be punished.”
Airstrikes on Iran continued on Saturday, one week after the U.S. and Israel launched their joint marketing campaign to rid Tehran of its nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities and push for regime change.
U.S. forces struck greater than 3,000 targets in its first week of Trump’s “Operation Epic Fury,” the U.S. Central Command stated in an X publish. The Israel Protection Forces stated in a Saturday publish on X that it has accomplished “one other wave of assaults in Tehran,” with its Air Drive fighter jets having launched roughly 230 munitions towards a number of army websites of the regime.
Flames rise from an oil storage facility south of the capital Tehran as strikes hit town through the U.S.–Israeli army marketing campaign, Iran, on Saturday, March 7, 2026.
Vahid Salemi | AP Picture
One of many assaults struck a southern Tehran oil facility, Iranian state media confirmed. It gave the impression to be the primary time a civil industrial facility has been focused within the struggle, in response to the Related Press. State media blamed “an assault from the U.S. and the Zionist regime” on the facility that provides the capital and neighboring provinces within the north.
In the meantime, Tehran’s energy-rich neighbors within the Gulf stated they intercepted extra Iranian missiles and drones headed for his or her airspace.
Earlier Saturday, Iran stated it struck a U.S. air base within the United Arab Emirates, shortly after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated his nation would cease attacking Gulf international locations. Iran’s Tasnim Information company stated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ navy drone unit attacked the Al Dhafra air base south of Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates.
The UAE’s Ministry of Defence stated in a publish on X that it detected 121 unmanned aerial autos on Saturday and intercepted 119 of them, whereas two fell inside the UAE’s territory. The UAE’s Ministry of International Affairs didn’t instantly reply to a CNBC request for remark.
Ali Larijani, a high Iranian safety chief, stated that “we don’t welcome the struggle, however aggressors needs to be punished.” He additionally referred to as for unity amongst Iranian officers.
Larijani’s assertion follows an apologetic one by Pezeshkian on Saturday, by which he stated his nation doesn’t intend to assault others.
“I apologize to the neighboring international locations,” Pezeshkian stated. “We don’t intend to invade different international locations. Allow us to put aside all of the disagreements, issues, and resentments we’ve got towards one another. At this time, allow us to defend our personal soil to deliver Iran out of this disaster with dignity.”
Addressing calls for for give up, Pezeshkian, through Iran’s nationwide information company’s Telegram social media channel on Saturday, stated the U.S. can “take their desires to the grave; we is not going to give up unconditionally.” His feedback got here after Trump on Friday demanded Iran’s “unconditional give up.”
Trump adopted up his calls for early Saturday by taunting Iran with a publish on his Fact Social account: “Iran, which is being beat to HELL, has apologized and surrendered to its Center East neighbors, and promised that it’s going to not shoot at them anymore. At this time Iran can be hit very laborious!”
Pezeshkian’s apology additionally prompted pushback from hardliners in Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and clerical elite. In one of the open criticisms of Pezeshkian, hardline cleric and lawmaker Hamid Rasai addressed the president on social media, saying: “Your stance was unprofessional, weak and unacceptable.”
Gulf area beneath menace
States within the Gulf are launching air defenses to fend off Iranian assaults, a lot of that are within the type of one-way drones corresponding to its low-cost Shaheds.
Iran has focused a number of radar and air defenses within the Center East — in Qatar, the U.A.E., Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia — in retaliation towards U.S. and Israeli assaults, The Wall Avenue Journal reported, citing U.S. officers, army analysts and commercially out there satellite tv for pc photos.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Protection has stated it intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles launched in direction of Prince Sultan Air Base, an energetic United States Air Drive Air Expeditionary Base in Saudi Arabia. The nation intercepted 9 of 10 Iranian drones launched at it on Friday.
Saudi Arabia has advised Iranian officers that whereas it favors a diplomatic settlement to Iran’s battle with the U.S., continued assaults on the dominion and its vitality sector might push Riyadh to reply in type, sources advised Reuters. The message was conveyed earlier than Pezeshkian made his apology, Reuters reported.
Elsewhere, the UAE’s largest metropolis, Dubai, issued an alert urging residents to hunt rapid shelter in safe buildings and steer clear of home windows, doorways and open areas.
In Dubai, a number of blasts have been heard Saturday morning and the federal government stated it had activated air defenses. Passengers ready for flights at Dubai Worldwide Airport have been ushered into practice tunnels.
The preventing has killed at the least 1,230 folks in Iran, greater than 290 in Lebanon and 11 in Israel, in response to officers in these international locations. Six U.S. troops have been killed.
Strait of Hormuz transit slows to trickle
Visitors is sort of nonexistent within the Straight of Hormuz, in the meantime, as oil tankers stay fearful that their vessels can be caught within the struggle’s crossfire.
Information from the Maritime Info Middle revealed that the variety of vessels transiting by the Strait every day has fallen to the one digits. Solely 4 industrial transits have been confirmed up to now 24 hours, the info confirmed.
Iran’s Larijani stated that whereas Iran has not closed down the Strait of Hormuz, the Strait is successfully closed due to the struggle.
Kuwait, the fifth-largest oil producer in OPEC, stated it’s reducing oil manufacturing attributable to “Iranian threats towards secure passage of ships by the Strait of Hormuz.”
Escalating struggle disruptions to world gasoline provides have despatched the worth of U.S. crude oil skyrocketing, recording its largest weekly acquire in futures buying and selling historical past. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude soared 35.63% for the largest weekly acquire within the historical past of the futures contract courting again to 1983. World benchmark Brent crude jumped about 28% for its largest weekly acquire since April 2020.
The worth of U.S. crude has risen almost 60% because the begin of this 12 months.
Name to call new supreme chief
Two influential Iranian clerics referred to as for the swift number of a brand new supreme chief, Iranian state media reported.
One of many clerics, Naser Makarem Shirazi, a grand ayatollah who instructions a broad following for his non secular rulings, stated an appointment was wanted swiftly to “assist higher manage the nation’s affairs,” state media reported.
The calls counsel that at the least some within the clerical institution are uncomfortable with leaving a three-man council in cost — even briefly beneath constitutional guidelines — after the killing of Supreme Chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Trump has argued the U.S. ought to have a job in selecting the brand new chief, a requirement Iran has rejected.
— CNBC’s Emma Graham, Spencer Kimball, Terri Cullen, Reuters and the Related Press contributed reporting
