An Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian attack on Tel Aviv, Israel, early Sunday, March 15, 2026.
Ohad Zwigenberg/AP
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Ohad Zwigenberg/AP
As the conflict in the Middle East entered its third week, Israel announced a new wave of attacks in western Iran on Sunday, while the US Defense Department released the names of six service members killed when their military refueling plane crashed.
Iran’s regional Gulf neighbors continue to face attacks, with Saudi Arabia saying it has downed 26 Iranian drones over its territory and the United Arab Emirates reporting missile strikes. Air raid sirens went off in Tel Aviv, Bahrain and Israel.
In Tehran, The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps According to Iran’s state-affiliated Mehr news agency, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to “follow through.”
Meanwhile, President Trump told NBC News He was unsure whether Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was still alive, saying “no one has been able to show him so far.” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Friday that Khamenei — who was appointed a week ago after Israeli strikes killed his father early in the war — was injured.
Trump told the network that several U.S. allies have responded to his call for help protecting the Strait of Hormuz, a key economic waterway, though he did not name any and none have publicly agreed to help.
Here are more detailed updates on the conflict:
Six deceased US service members have been identified
The Department of Defense has identified the six American service members who died when their KC-135 refueling plane crashed in western Iraq on March 12.
The Pentagon said the loss of the Stratotanker plane was caused by hostile or friendly fire and said the incident was under investigation. An Iranian proxy group claimed responsibility.
A bulldozer clears debris from the ruins of buildings destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Lebanon, a southern suburb of Beirut, Sunday, March 15, 2026.
Hassan Ammar/AP
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Hassan Ammar/AP
Three of the dead were from MacDill Air Force Base in Florida and Major John A. Klinner, 33, of Auburn, Ala.; Captain Ariana G. Savino, 31, of Covington, Wash.; and Tech. Sergeant Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Ky.
The other three were assigned to Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base, Columbus, Ohio. They are: Captain Seth R. Koval, 38, of Mooresville, Ind.; Captain Curtis J. Angst, 30, of Wilmington, Ohio; and Tech. Sergeant Tyler H. Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio.
The crash brings the US military death toll to 13, seven of whom were killed by enemy fire. Eight US service members were seriously injured, according to the Pentagon.
IDF launches new attacks on Iran, Lebanon
“IDF Launches Widespread Wave of Strikes in Western Iran Targeting Iranian Terrorist Regime Infrastructure” Israeli Defense Forces posted on his official X account on Sunday.
He said the IDF was also hit Hezbollah targets In Lebanon on Saturday, note: “The Air Force hit several launch sites of the terrorist organization Hezbollah in the Al-Qatarani region, from which the organization’s terrorists plan to conduct launches in the immediate time frame.”
“The headquarters of the terrorist organization Hezbollah’s ‘Radwan Force’ unit in Beirut was attacked and destroyed,” it said.
Allies are not bound by Trump’s request for help
President Trump on Saturday urged foreign powers to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz. Iran is blocking a major shipping route through which most of the world’s oil supplies normally pass.
“China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK and others affected by this artificial blockade will send ships to the area so that the Strait of Hormuz is no longer threatened by a completely decapitated nation,” he wrote on Satya Social.
So far, no country has heeded Trump’s call. The UK’s Ministry of Defense said it was exploring its options.
Since the beginning of the war, Iran has blocked some oil tankers and attacked cargo ships trying to pass through the strait, leading to a huge rise in global oil prices.
About one-fifth of the world’s oil supply normally passes through this major oil export route.
The waters off Iran’s coast have become a strategic battleground in the war, and the US bombed military targets on Iran’s Kharg Island on Saturday.
Trump said the US could strike the island again, citing it as “just for fun” if Iran continued to interfere with ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Arezou Rezwani and Kate Bartlett in Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq, contributed to this report.
