Israeli soldiers work at the scene of damage after Iranian missile barrages struck residential buildings in Arad, amid the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran, in southern Israel, March 22, 2026. REUTERS

Cairo: Iranian missiles struck two communities in southern Israel late on Saturday, leaving buildings shattered and dozens injured in dual attacks not far from Israel’s main nuclear research centre, while President Donald Trump warned the US will “obliterate” Iranian power plants if it doesn’t fully open the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours.

Trump — who is facing increasing pressure at home to secure the strait as oil prices soar — issued the ultimatum in a social media post while he spent the weekend at his Florida home.

Trump said he’s giving Iran 48 hours to open the vital waterway or face a new round of attacks. He said the US would destroy “various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!”

The Iranian strikes in Israel came after Tehran’s main nuclear enrichment site at Natanz was hit earlier in the day.

Israel’s military said it was not able to intercept missiles that hit the southern cities of Dimona and Arad, the largest near the centre in Israel’s sparsely populated Negev desert. It was the first time Iranian missiles penetrated Israel’s air defence systems in the area around the nuclear site.

“If the Israeli regime is unable to intercept missiles in the heavily protected Dimona area, it is, operationally, a sign of entering a new phase of the battle,” Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on X before word of the Arad strike spread.

Projectile hits close to a vessel off UAE coast

March 22, 2026 11:05 am

Cairo: A projectile struck close to a bulk carrier off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, causing an explosion, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre said early on Sunday. The attack occurred about 15 nautical miles north of Sharjah in the UAE. The UKMTO said the ship’s crew was safe. AP

Saudi air defenses intercept missiles, drones

March 22, 2026 11:04 am

Cairo: Air defences early on Sunday tracked the launch of three ballistic missiles towards Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, intercepting one, while the other two fell in an uninhabited area, according to the Defence Ministry. The ministry said it downed six drones headed towards the kingdom’s eastern region, one of its least densely populated areas near Iran and home to major oil installations. No casualties or damage were immediately reported. AP

Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants clash in Lebanon

March 22, 2026 10:13 am

Cairo: Israel’s military said it was conducting a “targeted ground operation” in southern Lebanon and at least four militants were killed. Hezbollah said its fighters clashed with troops in the southern village of Khiam. Israeli strikes targeting Hezbollah have killed more than 1,000 people and displaced more than 1 million, according to the Lebanese government. Hezbollah’s civilian assets also have been targeted. AP

Global pressure increases to get shipping back on track

March 22, 2026 10:11 am

Cairo: As Iran threatens shipping on the Strait of Hormuz, the United Arab Emirates joined 21 other countries including the UK, Germany, France and Japan in expressing “readiness to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage”. The Trump administration announced it was temporarily lifting sanctions on Iranian oil that was already loaded on ships as of Friday, but that does not increase oil production, a central factor in surging prices. The oil ministry of Iran, which has evaded sanctions for years, replied that it “essentially has no crude oil left in floating storage”. AP

US can use Diego Garcia base to protect Strait of Hormuz

March 22, 2026 10:11 am

Cairo: UK officials did not give details of the strike that targeted the Diego Garcia base on Friday, which was unsuccessful. Britain’s Ministry of Defence described Iran as “lashing out across the region”. It’s unclear how close the missiles came to the island. Iran previously asserted that it has limited its missile range to below 2,000 kilometres. But military experts said Iran may have used its space launch vehicle for an improvised firing. “If you’ve got a space program, you’ve got a ballistic missile program,” said Steve Prest, a retired Royal Navy commodore. AP

Israel had denied responsibility for attack on Natanz

March 22, 2026 10:09 am

Cairo: Israel on Saturday denied responsibility for the strike on the Natanz nuclear facility, nearly 220 kilometres southeast of Tehran. The Iranian judiciary’s official news agency, Mizan, said there was no leakage. The International Atomic Energy Agency has said the bulk of Iran’s estimated 970 pounds (440 kilograms) of enriched uranium is elsewhere, beneath the rubble at its Isfahan facility. It said on X it was looking into the strike. The Pentagon declined to comment on the strike on Natanz, which was also hit in the first week of the war and in the 12-day war last June. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said such strikes posed a “real risk of catastrophic disaster throughout the Middle East”. Iran retaliated hours later. AP

A dangerous new direction in the war

March 22, 2026 8:55 am

Cairo: “The war is not close to ending,” Israel’s army chief, Gen Eyal Zamir, said. Iran also targeted the joint UK-US Diego Garcia military base in the Indian Ocean about 2,500 miles away, suggesting that Tehran has missiles that can go farther than previously acknowledged – or that it had used its space program for an improvised launch. The US and Israel have offered shifting rationales for the war, from hoping to foment an uprising that topples Iran’s leadership to eliminating its nuclear and missile programs and its support for armed proxies. There have been no signs of an uprising, while internet restrictions limit information from Iran. The war’s effects are felt far beyond the Middle East, raising food and fuel prices. AP