State Department tells Americans worldwide to 'exercise increased caution'

The war entered its fourth week on Saturday.

ByKevin Shalvey, Jon Haworth, Nadine El-Bawab, and Meredith Deliso
Last Updated: March 22, 2026, 8:29 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.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among those killed in Tehran on the first day of strikes and his son Mojtaba Khamenei was chosen to succeed him. Iran is responding with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, regional U.S. bases and multiple Gulf nations. Iran is also attempting to block some shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

Israel is also intensifying its long-running strike campaign against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.

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

Key Headlines

Here's how the news is developing.
Mar 19, 2026, 6:23 AM EDT

Drone hits Saudi Red Sea refinery

An Iranian drone struck a Saudi Aramco refinery in Yanbu, on the Red Sea, on Thursday, according to the Saudi Ministry of Defense.

"A drone fell in the Samref refinery and the damage is being assessed," the ministry said in a statement.

This handout satellite image taken by 2026 Planet Labs PBC shows the oil infrastructure at Saudi Arabia's western Red Sea port of Yanbu on March 4, 2026.
2026 Planet Labs PBC/AFP via Getty Images

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had issued warnings for several Gulf energy production sites, including the refinery in Yanbu, after Wednesday’s Israeli strikes on the South Pars Gas Field, the largest in Iran.

Kuwait earlier on Thursday said an Iranian drone had struck one of its refineries.

-ABC News' Lama Hasan and Zoe Magee

Mar 19, 2026, 5:51 AM EDT

Oil, natural gas prices climb in volatile trading

Strikes by Iran on Gulf nations' energy production facilities pushed oil and gas futures higher in volatile trading on Thursday.

The benchmark for European gas surged by about 24% after Iran on Wednesday released retaliatory strikes targeting energy sites in the Gulf.

This April 4, 2009, file photo, shows a gas production facility at Ras Laffan, Qatar.
Maneesh Bakshi/AP

Qatari authorities said Iranian ballistic missile attacks caused fires and "extensive damage" at the Ras Laffan terminal, which carries about a fifth of global liquid natural gas. Kuwait also on Thursday said one of its refineries had been struck by a drone. Those attacks came after Israel on Wednesday targeted Iran's largest gas field.

The Dutch Title Transfer Facility, which is widely seen as the European benchmark for natural gas, saw forward-looking contracts for next month climb about 24% in midmorning trading on Thursday.

Brent crude oil prices, which are also a benchmark for global trading, climbed by about 6%, hitting $116 per barrel for contracts to purchase oil in May.

Mar 19, 2026, 4:50 AM EDT

Hegseth, Caine to address reporters on Iran

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, are scheduled to hold a press conference at 8 a.m. ET on Thursday, according to the Department of Defense.

Mar 19, 2026, 4:30 AM EDT

Iranian drone attack strikes Kuwaiti refinery, state media says

An Iranian drone struck the Mina Al-Ahmadi Refinery in Kuwait on Thursday, resulting in a "limited" fire at the facility, according to the official Kuwait News Agency.

No injuries were reported, the news agency said, citing a statement from the Kuwait National Petroleum Company, which runs the facility.

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