Washington: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said NATO and most other allies have rejected his calls to help secure the Strait of Hormuz as the war with Iran rages on.Trump, who has been pressing allies to help safeguard the critical waterway, fumed that the US is not getting support “despite the fact that almost every country strongly agreed with what we are doing, and that Iran cannot” be allowed to secure a nuclear weapon.Iran’s attacks on Gulf nations and its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported, have sparked increasing concerns of a global energy crisis and are unnerving the world economy.A handful of ships have crossed through the strait, and Iran has said the vital waterway technically remains open – just not for the United States, Israel and their allies. About 20 vessels have been struck since the war began.With oil prices rising, Trump said he had demanded that roughly a half-dozen countries send warships to ensure ships can pass through the Strait of Hormuz.But his appeals brought no immediate commitments, with many saying they are hesitant to get involved in a war with no defined exit plan and sceptical that they could do more than the US Navy. APTrump delays China trip until next month to focus on Iran warMarch 17, 2026 10:07 pmWashington: President Donald Trump is delaying a diplomatic trip to China that had been planned for months but began to unravel as he pressured Beijing and other world powers to use military might to protect the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said on Tuesday while meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin in the Oval Office that he would be going to China in five or six weeks’ time instead of at the end of the month. He said he would be “resetting” his visit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, without elaborating. Trump’s visit to China is seen as an opportunity to build on a fragile trade truce between the two superpowers, but it has become tangled in his effort to find an endgame to the war in Iran. APIsrael says it killed Soleimani in combat tentMarch 17, 2026 6:14 pmDubai: Israel says it killed Gen. Gholam Reza Soleimani, the head of the Revolutionary Guard’s all-volunteer Basij force, in a combat tent alongside other Basij commanders. They were using the tent as makeshift headquarters due to concerns their regular bases could be targeted, according to an Israeli military official who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with military guidelines. APRed Cross says Iran civilians pay ‘heavy price’March 17, 2026 6:12 pmDubai: The Red Cross says civilians in Iran are paying “a heavy price” as the US and Israel war against the Islamic Republic shows no sign of abating. Vincent Cassard, head of the Red Cross delegation in Iran, said the war has placed “heavy strain” on Iranians. “The heavy loss of life is alarming,” he said. “Daily life in Tehran has been profoundly disrupted.” He said damaged schools and hospitals, as well as facilities of the Iranian Red Crescent, show “the heavy price that civilians are paying as a result of hostilities.” APIraq in talks with Iran to allow oil tankers through Hormuz Strait, oil minister saysMarch 17, 2026 1:08 pmDubai: Iraq’s oil minister said Baghdad is in contact with Iran to allow some oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the state news agency reported on Tuesday. Iraq is also working to resume exports through the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline to Turkey as it seeks to offset disruptions to shipments caused by the Hormuz crisis, after some vessels were attacked off the Iraqi coast during transfers. ReutersFire at Abu Dhabi’s Shah gas field caused by drone attack, media office saysMarch 17, 2026 11:38 amAuthorities in Abu Dhabi on Monday were dealing with a fire at the Shah gas field caused by a drone attack and said that no injuries had been reported so far, the Abu Dhabi media office reported. The Shah field is one of the world’s largest of its kind and is located 180 km (111.85 miles) southwest of Abu Dhabi. ReutersIranian strikes pressure neighbours and oil marketsMarch 17, 2026 11:33 amDubai: Iran kept up the pressure on the energy infrastructure of its Gulf Arab neighbours, hitting an oil facility in Fujairah, a UAE emirate on the country’s east coast, with the Gulf of Oman that has been repeatedly targeted. State-run WAM news reported that no one had been injured in the blast from the drone strike. AP10 foreign individuals arrested in Iran’s northeast for spying, Tasnim reportsMarch 17, 2026 11:27 amDubai: Ten foreign individuals accused of collecting information on sensitive sites and preparing field operations in Iran’s northeast were arrested by the Revolutionary Guards’ intelligence organisation, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Tuesday. The news report did not give details on the individuals’ nationalities. ReutersIran negotiating with FIFA to move World Cup games to Mexico from USMarch 17, 2026 11:12 amIran’s football federation is in discussions with FIFA about moving their World Cup matches from the United States to Mexico due to concerns about the safety of their players, Iranian football president Mehdi Taj said on Monday. ReutersShrapnel from shot-down drones hits the US Embassy in BaghdadMarch 17, 2026 9:17 amDubai: Incoming fire targeted the US Embassy in Baghdad early Tuesday, with the facility’s air defences shooting down the projectiles, two security officials said. The Iraqi officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters, said the embassy’s C-RAM air defence shot down all four drones targeting the facility. However, shrapnel hit the embassy. The C-RAM, or counter rocket, artillery, and mortar system, sprays 20 mm rounds on incoming fire targeting the facility. Separately, an apparent airstrike targeted a house in the heavily fortified presidential compound in Baghdad’s al-Jadriya area, the officials said. It wasn’t clear who carried out that attack. APTrump was warned of likely Iranian retaliation on Gulf allies, sources sayMarch 17, 2026 9:15 amWashington: President Donald Trump was warned that attacking Iran could trigger retaliation against US Gulf allies despite his claims on Monday that Tehran’s reaction came as a surprise, said a U.S. official and two sources familiar with US intelligence reports. Pre-war intelligence assessments did not say that Iran’s response was “a guarantee, but it certainly was on the list of potential outcomes,” said one source, who like the other two requested anonymity to discuss the issue. ReutersIsrael launches new attacks on Tehran, steps up strikes on BeirutMarch 17, 2026 9:15 amDubai: The Israeli military early Tuesday said it had launched new attacks across Tehran in addition to the Lebanese capital, targeting Hezbollah militants. Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel after US-Israeli attacks on Iran began Feb. 28. Israel’s strikes have displaced more than 1 million Lebanese – or roughly 20 per cent of the population, according to the Lebanese government, which says some 850 people have been killed. Some Israeli troops have pushed into southern Lebanon, and there are fears Israel is preparing a large-scale invasion. Israel also reported two Iranian salvos early Tuesday, fired toward Tel Aviv and an area south of the Sea of Galilee. No injuries were reported. More than 1,300 people have been killed in Iran, according to the Iranian Red Crescent. Israel has carried out some 7,600 strikes on Iran, knocking out 85 per cent of its air defences and 70 per cent of Iran’s missile launchers, Israeli military spokesman Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani said. In Israel, 12 people have been killed by Iranian missile fire. At least 13 US military members have been killed. APUAE briefly closes airspaceMarch 17, 2026 7:47 amDubai: The UAE shut down its airspace early Tuesday as its military reported it was “responding to missile and drone threats from Iran.” The closure was soon lifted, the state-run WAM news agency quoted the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority as saying. Authorities said “the situation stabilised,” allowing flights to resume. Shortly after, authorities sent a missile warning alert to people in Dubai. The sound of explosions could be heard in Dubai as the military worked to intercept the incoming fire. The state-run WAM news agency said a drone attack again sparked a fire in an oil tank farm in Fujairah, a UAE emirate that repeatedly has been targeted on the country’s east coast, with the Gulf of Oman. It said no one had been injured in the blast. AP