Trump calls Strait of Hormuz 'something that we don't need'

Trump told reporters that he is talking to countries about policing the Strait.

Last Updated: March 15, 2026, 9:09 PM EDT

President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israel strikes attack targeting military and government sites, officials said.

Iranian state television confirmed that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among those killed in Tehran on the first day of strikes. His son Mojtaba Khamenei was chosen on Sunday to succeed him.

Iran is responding to the operation with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, regional U.S. bases and multiple Gulf nations. Israel is also intensifying its long-running strike campaign against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.

(Read previous Iran live updates here.)

Watch special coverage on Nightline, "War with Iran," each night on ABC and streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.

Mar 14, 2026, 9:40 PM EDT

Pentagon identifies 6 Air Force airmen killed in KC-135 refueling aircraft crash

The Pentagon identified the six service members killed when a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq on Thursday.

Three of the Air Force airmen were assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing, MacDill Air Force Base in Florida.

  • Maj. John A. Klinner, 33, of Auburn, Alabama
  • Capt. Ariana G. Savino, 31, of Covington, Washington
  • Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Kentucky

The other three airmen were assigned to the 121st Air Refueling Wing at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Columbus, Ohio.

  • Capt. Seth R. Koval, 38, of Mooresville, Indiana
  • Capt. Curtis J. Angst, 30, of Wilmington, Ohio
  • Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio

The crash, which involved another KC-135 tanker, is still under investigation.

The aircraft was lost while flying over friendly airspace in western Iraq March 12 during Operation Epic Fury, according to U.S. Central Command.

Mar 14, 2026, 4:58 PM EDT

3 injured after drones target air base in Kuwait

Two drones targeted Ahmed Al-Jaber Air Base in Kuwait on Saturday "resulting in some material damage in the vicinity of the base, and three members of the armed forces sustained minor injuries," the Kuwaiti army said.

Those injured are currently in stable condition, according to the army.

Mar 14, 2026, 4:13 PM EDT

Trump repeats calls for other countries to help with Strait of Hormuz

President Donald Trump is repeating his calls for other countries to step in and assist with the escalating crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, arguing that it "should have always been a team effort" and insisting that this will lead to "Everlasting Peace."

In a new post on his social media platform, Trump claimed that "the Countries of the World that receive Oil through the Hormuz Strait must take care of that passage" and that the United States will "help."

The president promised that the U.S. will "coordinate" with assisting countries.

The president’s previous post named the United Kingdom as one of the countries that he wishes to see send ships to the Strait. Exactly one week ago, the president appeared to reject possible assistance from the U.K. after they initially refused to allow the U.S. to use British military bases.

"That’s OK, Prime Minister Starmer, we don’t need them any longer — But we will remember. We don’t need people that join Wars after we’ve already won!" Trump said last week.


-ABC News' Emily Chang

Mar 14, 2026, 2:52 PM EDT

At least 826 killed in Lebanon, including 106 children

At least 826 people have been killed in Lebanon, including 106 children, and over 2,000 have been injured since the start of the war, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

Saturday alone, 53 people were killed and 76 wounded. The health ministry also said five hospitals have been forced to close, there have been 37 attacks on emergency services and 31 health sector workers have been killed.

A man stands atop the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli airstrike as a bulldozer clears debris in Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, March 14, 2026.
Hassan Ammar/AP

MedGlobal, a leading medical organization providing aid in Gaza, has condemned a new airstrike that killed at least 12 medics in Southern Lebanon, amid repeated attacks on healthcare in the country.

“They hit a clinic with all its staff,” MedGlobal’s Lebanon Country Director Dr. Tania Baban said in a statement.

MedGlobal said it condemns the Lebanon clinic bombing, calling it a brazen disregard for the protection of healthcare.

An overnight Israeli airstrike targeted the Haret Hreik neighbourhood in Beirut's southern suburbs, on March 14, 2026.
AFP via Getty Images

“It’s an alarming and brutal pattern,” said MedGlobal’s executive director Joseph Belliveau. “Repeatedly bombing clinics and hospitals is tantamount to declaring war on civilians; parties to conflict must show greater restraint and live up to their own legal obligations to protect medical spaces.”

The Israel Defense Forces issued a statement claiming Hezbollah was using ambulances for "military use" and that if the group did not stop, Israel would act against those ambulances.

The IDF did not provide corroborating evidence for this claim.

-ABC News' Ghazi Balkiz and Tom Soufi Burridge

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