Latest developments in the Middle East war

Smoke rises from the Shahran Oil Refinery in Tehran on March 8, 2026, following an air strike overnight. (EPA Images pic)
PARIS: As the raging war in Iran entered its ninth day, Tehran was preparing to reveal its new supreme leader, after US-Israeli air strikes destroyed fuel dumps and triggered fires that choked much of the capital in a thick blanket of smoke.
Here are the latest events in the Middle East war on Sunday:
Iran targets Israel, Jordan
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had launched missiles towards the Israeli cities of Tel Aviv and Beersheva, as well as an airbase in Jordan.
AFP journalists heard blasts over Tel Aviv after the army identified new missiles from Iran.
Lebanon toll climbs
Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed 394 people in the past week, including 83 children and 42 women, the country’s health minister said.
He said nine rescue workers were among the dead, condemning attacks on medical teams and ambulances.
Iranians leave Beirut
More than 100 Iranians, including some diplomats, were evacuated from Beirut overnight on a Russian plane, a Lebanese official told AFP.
It comes after Lebanon on Thursday banned any activity by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards — a main backer of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Khamenei successor
Iran’s clerical body tasked with choosing the country’s next supreme leader has agreed on a candidate but the name is yet to be announced, members said.
Iranian officials have rejected US President Donald Trump’s demand he have a say in selecting a successor.
Israel’s military vowed to target “any successor and anyone seeking to appoint one”.
Fuel depots hit
Fuel distribution in the Iranian capital has been temporarily halted after US-Israeli strikes on depots, an official said.
Huge fires burned after the strikes on five facilities in and around Tehran, casting a dark haze across the city as morning broke, AFP journalists said.
Blasts across Iran
Explosions hit Iran’s central Yazd province on Sunday, state media said.
It was not immediately clear what was struck but the official IRNA news agency said the blasts occurred on the periphery of Yazd city.
Earlier explosions were reported in other parts of the country including the capital Tehran and the central Isfahan province.
Israel pounds Lebanon
Lebanon said an Israeli strike on a Beirut hotel killed four people.
The Israeli military said it carried out a “precise strike” in Beirut targeting commanders from the foreign operations arm of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, the Quds Force.
In southern Lebanon, where Israel has been fighting the Iran-backed group Hezbollah, the health ministry said eight people were killed in strikes on more than 20 towns and villages.
Missing crew
Three Indonesian crew members are missing after a UAE-flagged tugboat was hit by a blast and sank in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, Jakarta’s foreign ministry said.
Of the ship’s seven crew members, one survivor was receiving burn treatment in Oman, and search missions continue for the missing three.
Attacks on Gulf states 
Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain all reported new attacks.
In Kuwait, two border guards were killed while on duty, the interior ministry said. The military said fuel tanks at the country’s international airport were targeted in a drone attack.
Saudi Arabia’s defence ministry reported intercepting 15 drones, including an attempted attack in the diplomatic quarter of the capital Riyadh.
Bahrain said three people were wounded by falling missile debris and that a water desalination plant was damaged.
The UAE said its air defences detected 17 ballistic  missiles on Sunday — destroying 16, while one fell into the sea.
IRGC: we can fight six months
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said the country’s forces can fight an “intense war” for six months, with a spokesman saying more advanced missiles would be used in the coming days.
Iran ‘forced’ to respond
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said his country “will be forced to respond” to any attack or invasion attempt from a neighbouring country.
“Responding does not mean we have disputes with that country or wish to harm its people — we would be responding out of necessity,” he said in remarks broadcast on state TV.
A day earlier, Pezeshkian apologised to neighbouring countries hosting US military bases for attacks on their territory.
Trump blames Iran for school strike
US President Donald Trump blamed Iran for a deadly strike on an Iranian primary school that Iranian officials say killed at least 150 people.
“We think it was done by Iran. Because they are very inaccurate, as you know, with their munitions,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.
A New York Times investigation has found the US military was most likely responsible.
AFP has not been able to access the site to verify the circumstances surrounding the incident or to independently confirm the toll.