A UN fact-finding mission to Iran says it has reasonable grounds to believe US forces carried out two strikes in February that amounted to war crimes.
One of the strikes targeted a primary school in Minab, where more than 150 people were reportedly killed, including about 120 children, and another hit a sports centre in Lamerd that killed or injured 22 civilians.
“The US directed the strikes at the building of the school while being aware of a substantial risk of striking a civilian object and acting recklessly as regards the possibility that this would happen,” the mission.
The report, which also found that Iranian authorities committed crimes against humanity during their deadly crackdown on anti-government protests, will be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump told reporters that the US is “hopefully toward the end” of its war with Iran, adding that he has spoken with Tehran “directly”.He also repeated his claim that Tehran was seeking a deal, despite Iranian officials declaring only hours earlier that peace talks will not resume until all of their conditions are met.
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Key Points
- UN fact-finding mission on Iran says US may have committed war crimes
- Iran committed crimes against humanity during protest crackdown, UN finds
- Donald Trump says US ‘hopefully’ nearing end of war with Iran
- Oil prices fall as Saudi Arabia offers extra crude via Oman
- Top Democrat opposes sale of 2,000 bombs to Israel
- China asked Iran to help rein in Houthis after Saudi Arabia appeal, sources tell Reuters
The Iran war is driving clean energy development. It's not enough to help the planet, yet
17:00 , Maira ButtCountries are embracing clean power and taking steps to use less energy because of the war against Iran, but it is not yet enough to help address climate change.
When the U.S. and Israel launched the war in February, some backers of renewables opined it could drive a green transition as oil and gas prices spiked. So far, more than 30 governments have enacted policies to move away from fossil fuels or improve energy efficiency. Yet at the same time, global emissions of greenhouse gases increased slightly and investments in clean energy fell compared to the same period last year.
The Associated Press talked to a dozen experts who said that while the Iran war appears to be helping the adoption of clean energy, the world is still heavily dependent on fossil fuels. They said it will take more time for new policies to show results.
The Iran war is driving clean energy development. It's not enough to help the planet, yet
UN experts level explosive war crimes accusation at US over Trump’s Iran strikes
16:30 , Maira ButtThe United States has been accused of committing war crimes during two military strikes in Iran this year, including a devastating attack on a primary school which killed hundreds of children.
The two strikes being investigated resulted in the deaths of at least 178 civilians, including women and children, in February this year.
The killings of thousands of protestors across Iran were also documented in the report, in which at least 221 children were reportedly killed, some as young as two years old.
UN experts level explosive war crimes accusation at US over Trump’s Iran strikes
Watch: Trump says Iran conflict ‘hopefully’ nearing end and claims to be in direct talks with Tehran
16:00 , Maira ButtChina asked Iran to help rein in Houthis after Saudi Arabia appeal, sources tell Reuters
15:30 , Maira ButtSaudi Arabia asked China to ask Iran to rein in the Houthi rebels in Yemen, according to three Iranian sources familiar with the matter who told Reuters.
China has publicly called for restraint but in private it apparently pushed harder in an effort to restore safe navigation after the group made advances along the Red Sea coast and around the Bab el-Mandeb strait.
Netanyahu says Iran's desire to 'destroy' Israel has not disappeared
15:00 , Maira ButtPrime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Iran and its proxies’ desire to “destroy the State of Israel” remains despite claims that the war has “severely damaged” its abilities to do so.
“The desire to destroy the State of Israel by Iran and its proxies has not disappeared. It has simply weakened,” he said.
“The ability to carry this out has essentially been severely damaged. We have done our duty, but there is still more work to complete, and we will complete it.”
Pakistan announces austerity measures to conserve fuel
14:30 , Maira ButtPakistan has announced austerity measures on Thursday in a bid to cut costs amid a fuel crisis caused by the Iran conflict affecting oil supplies in the Gulf.
The country said the measures would include a cut in fuel for official vehicles, bans on vehicle purchases by the state, foreign visits by officials, and official dinners, as part of a slew of austerity measures in a bid to conserve energy as fuel prices spike due to the Gulf conflict.
Iran sports centre was also hit in 'war crime', UN says
14:00 , Sam RkainaThe UN experts reached a similar conclusion over a strike on a sports centre in Lamerd.
The report said the attack damaged nearby residential buildings and a school and killed and injured 22 civilians.
It concluded that the strike was indiscriminate and therefore constituted a war crime.
US Central Command said in a statement in March that US forces did not launch any strikes into the city of Lamerd on that day.
One dead after drone intercepted in Saudi Arabia
13:45 , Sam RkainaOne person has been killed and two others injured in a drone interception in Saudi Arabia's southwest governorate of Taif, Saudi state TV said.
The death, of a Yemeni resident, is the first announced in the kingdom this month since the Iran-backed Houthis in neighbouring Yemen intensified their attacks on Saudi Arabia.
Trump said 'nobody' attacked Iran school on purpose
13:08 , Sam RkainaIn June US President Donald Trump said that ‘nobody’ purposefully attacked the girls' school, citing an investigation into the incident.
Reuters first reported that an initial internal US military investigation showed US forces were likely responsible for the fatal strike in Minab.
The Pentagon has since elevated the probe but it has not published any preliminary findings.
Iran committed crimes against humanity during protest crackdown, UN finds
12:21 , Sam RkainaThe same UN report also found that Iranian authorities committed crimes against humanity during their deadly crackdown on anti-government protests.
The probe found the Iranian authorities carried out a widespread and systematic attack against civilians during protests that erupted in late December last year, involving unlawful killings, torture, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances and severe restrictions on freedom of expression.
Rights groups say bystanders were among those killed during the biggest crackdown since Shi'ite Muslim clerics took power in the 1979 revolution.
Tehran blamed "terrorists and rioters" backed by exiled opponents and foreign foes the US and Israel.
The probe said it could not independently verify the death toll, but that it believed the number of dead and injured was likely far higher than official figures which say 3,038 people were killed, and 25,000 people injured.
The government's response to the protests - including violence and killings, cutting off the internet and use of the death penalty, marked a significant escalation from previous patterns of suppressing dissent, the report said.
UN fact-finding mission on Iran says US may have committed war crimes
10:46 , Maroosha MuzaffarThe UN fact-finding mission on Iran said it had reasonable grounds to believe US forces carried out two strikes in Iran in February that amounted to war crimes – one on a primary school in Minab, where more than 150 people were reportedly killed, including about 120 children, and another on a sports centre in Lamerd that killed or injured 22 civilians.
The report will be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
The mission said the US had intelligence that a senior Iranian commander was at the school but failed to adequately verify the information, and found no evidence the school was being used for military purposes.
It also said the Lamerd strike was indiscriminate.
“The US directed the strikes at the building of the school while being aware of a substantial risk of striking a civilian object and acting recklessly as regards the possibility that this would happen.”
South Korea says no decision made on military deployment to Strait of Hormuz
10:00 , Maroosha MuzaffarSouth Korean foreign minister Cho Hyun said on Thursday that no decision had been made on any military deployment to the Strait of Hormuz.
Cho was speaking to reporters before departing for Washington, where he is due to hold talks with US secretary of state Marco Rubio.
Earlier this month, it was reported that South Korea was considering deploying military assets to the Strait of Hormuz as it faced growing pressure from the US to do more in the Middle East.
Later, Seoul said that the military deployment was an option but clarified that nothing had been decided yet.
China calls on Iran and US to revive diplomatic process
09:30 , Maroosha MuzaffarChinese foreign minister Wang Yi has called on Iran and the US to “rebuild the negotiation mechanism based on the consensus reached so far” and revive their stalled diplomatic process.
“We urge all parties to take effective measures to reopen the Strait of Hormuz at an early date” to safeguard the stability of international energy transport and supply chains Wang said, according to China’s foreign ministry, adding that China “does not want to see regional tensions to spill over further into Yemen and the Red Sea”.
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araqchi, who was on a one-day visit to Beijing, said that Tehran was “fully prepared to powerfully defend its national sovereignty and territorial integrity and safeguard its security... against aggressors” and that it “welcomes diplomatic solutions that ensure the rights of the Iranian nation”.
Wang said: “The current situation once again demonstrates that the existing security architecture in the Middle East is inadequate and needs to be reformed and strengthened.”
US military helping to keep Strait of Hormuz open to commercial shipping, Centcom says
09:00 , Maroosha MuzaffarDespite an ongoing blockade of Iranian maritime trade and attacks by Iran’s military on commercial ships, the US military has said its forces have kept the Strait of Hormuz open to commercial shipping.
The US also claimed that they are helping facilitate the movement of hundreds of millions of barrels of oil through the strategic waterway.
On Wednesday, US Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for US Central Command, said traffic through the strait “continues to flow”, rejecting suggestions that Iran controls the waterway.
“Since early May, we have assisted commercial vessels moving more than 900 million barrels of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz to the global energy market,” Hawkins told Al Jazeera.
The US and Iran have continued to make competing claims over who has greater control of the critical Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf.
Iran’s threat of acquiring a nuclear weapon ‘taken care of’, US house speaker says
08:30 , Maroosha MuzaffarUS house speaker Mike Johnson has said the threat of Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon has been “taken care of”.
Johnson made the remarks during a press conference in which he announced that the House would adjourn until after the midterm elections, CBS reported.
“Iran will not have a nuclear weapon,” Johnson said, adding that preventing Iran from acquiring one had been “an important objective of American foreign policy for the last half-century”.
“That’s taken care of, and now we got to get gas prices down,” he said.
Iran’s national security chief says ‘no trust whatsoever’ in US
07:52 , Maroosha MuzaffarIran’s national security chief Mohsen Rezaei has said that Tehran has no trust in the United States, urging Washington to take practical steps to rebuild confidence.
He said Iran had “no trust whatsoever” in the United States.
This comes as Donald Trump told reporters that the US is “hopefully toward the end” of its war with Iran, adding that he has spoken with Tehran “directly”.
Iran’s foreign minister backs Xi’s plan and hails China talks
07:05 , Maroosha MuzaffarIranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi called talks with Chinese officials “successful”, saying Tehran values the strategic partnership it has built with Beijing.
He wrote on X: “Successful consultations in China with our partners. Iran values strategic partnership we have built over time.
“Today’s decisions will decide future strategic balance in the region, with immeasurable knock-on effects.
“4 principles for peace outlined by President Xi are key.”
Xi has called for peaceful coexistence, respect for national sovereignty, adherence to international law, and coordination between development and security to promote peace and stability in the Middle East.
Trump says US ‘hopefully’ nearing end of war
06:50 , Maroosha MuzaffarPresident Donald Trump told reporters that the US is “hopefully toward the end” of its war with Iran, adding that he has spoken with Iran “directly”.
He also repeated his claim that Tehran was seeking a deal.
He told the crowd in North Carolina that gas and oil prices will “come down very quickly” after the war ends in Iran.
US House approves bill imposing sanctions on Iran and Russia
06:00 , Maroosha MuzaffarThe US House of Representatives has passed a bill named after the late Senator Lindsey Graham, voting 262-159 to impose sweeping sanctions and tariffs aimed at increasing economic pressure on Iran and Russia, Reuters reported.
The Lindsey O Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, introduced by Graham himself, was approved by the Senate last month in an 86-11 vote.
While the legislation primarily targets Russia, it also extends the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996, signed by then-president Bill Clinton.
The 1996 law was due to expire in 2026 but has now been extended for another five years.
Dozens of Democratic representatives joined most Republicans in backing the bill, sending it to president Donald Trump to be signed into law.
Oil prices fall as Saudi Arabia offers extra crude via Oman
05:47 , Maroosha MuzaffarOil prices fell in early trading on Thursday, extending losses from the previous session after reports that Saudi Arabia was offering additional crude cargoes through Oman eased concerns over potential supply disruptions in the Middle East.
Brent crude futures fell $1.24, or 1.2 per cent, to $104.59 a barrel by 00:49 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures declined $1.14, or 1.1 per cent, to $101.29.Both contracts dropped by about $3 on Wednesday.
South Korea says no decision made on military deployment to Strait of Hormuz
05:20 , Maroosha MuzaffarSouth Korean foreign minister Cho Hyun said on Thursday that no decision had been made on any military deployment to the Strait of Hormuz.
Cho was speaking to reporters before departing for Washington, where he is due to hold talks with US secretary of state Marco Rubio.
Earlier this month, it was reported that South Korea was considering deploying military assets to the Strait of Hormuz as it faced growing pressure from the US to do more in the Middle East.
Later, Seoul said that the military deployment was an option but clarified that nothing had been decided yet.
Trump says US ‘hopefully’ nearing end of war with Iran
05:00 , Maroosha MuzaffarUS military helping to keep Strait of Hormuz open to commercial shipping, Centcom says
04:40 , Maroosha MuzaffarDespite an ongoing blockade of Iranian maritime trade and attacks by Iran’s military on commercial ships, the US military has said its forces have kept the Strait of Hormuz open to commercial shipping.
The US also claimed that they are helping facilitate the movement of hundreds of millions of barrels of oil through the strategic waterway.
On Wednesday, US Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for US Central Command, said traffic through the strait “continues to flow”, rejecting suggestions that Iran controls the waterway.
“Since early May, we have assisted commercial vessels moving more than 900 million barrels of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz to the global energy market,” Hawkins told Al Jazeera.
The US and Iran have continued to make competing claims over who has greater control of the critical Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf.
UN chief urges de-escalation and return to diplomacy in Middle East
04:20 , Maroosha MuzaffarUN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has called for de-escalation and a return to diplomacy as tensions mount across the Middle East, including mounting hostilities between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
“At this critical moment in the Middle East, de-escalation must be a priority,” Guterres said.
“Any actions that harm civilians must stop. Humanitarian operations must proceed safely and without obstruction. Navigational rights and freedoms must be fully restored & respected.
“The only path forward is de-escalation, diplomacy and dialogue,” he said.
Trump says US ‘hopefully’ nearing end of war
03:55 , Maroosha MuzaffarPresident Donald Trump told reporters that the US is “hopefully toward the end” of its war with Iran, adding that he has spoken with Iran “directly”.
He also repeated his claim that Tehran was seeking a deal.
He told the crowd in North Carolina that gas and oil prices will “come down very quickly” after the war ends in Iran.
Watch: US Air Force officer recalls 'free-falling' to ground with damaged parachute after plane was shot down over Iran
03:00 , Alex CroftBuilding collapse in Gaza kills 16 as perilous conditions persist
01:30 , James ReynoldsA building housing half a dozen families gave out in Gaza City overnight into Wednesday, killing sixteen people as they slept and leaving rescuers digging through rubble for dozens more who'd been sheltering inside the structure.
The sudden collapse of the building, which was known to be unstable due to damage from Israeli strikes earlier in the war, underscored how perilous and desperate living conditions have grown for the majority of the enclave’s population as a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas stalls.
The sixteen dead include at least twelve women and children, according to Zaher al-Wahidi, a spokesperson for the Gaza Health Ministry. The toll was expected to rise as more bodies were recovered from the wreckage.
Building collapse in Gaza kills at least 21 seeking shelter inside
Recap: Houthi rebels accused of targeting Mecca with drone as Saudi Arabia warns of ‘red line’
Thursday 17 September 2026 00:01 , James ReynoldsSaudi Arabia says its air defences destroyed an incoming Houthi drone south of Mecca before it entered prohibited airspace over the holy city.
The drone, intercepted on Tuesday, marked the second Houthi attempt to target Mecca after a ballistic missile launch in 2017, a spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition said, warning that the security of holy sites was a “red line”.
Saudi Arabia issued security alerts for Mecca - along with Taif and Jeddah - but Houthi political bureau member Mohammed al-Farah denied the group had targeted the holy city, calling the allegation “an outright lie”.
Read the full story:
Saudi coalition accuses Houthis of targeting holy city of Mecca as fighting flares
Catch up: Russia is secretly helping Iran to develop supersonic cruise missiles, says report
Wednesday 16 September 2026 23:00 , James ReynoldsRussia has been helping Iran to develop supersonic cruise missiles in secret for years, including through the US-Iran war, according to a report.
Moscow has enlisted some of its most experienced specialists to help Iran to develop a new class of missile capable of threatening US aircraft carriers and warships stationed in the Middle East, according to an investigation by the Financial Times.
The programme’s central objective was to help Iran to develop a special ‘ramjet’ propulsion system that would allow its cruise missiles to fly at several times the speed of sound, the report said.
Russia is secretly helping Iran to develop supersonic cruise missiles, says report
Top Democrat opposes sale of 2,000 bombs to Israel
Wednesday 16 September 2026 22:00 , Alex CroftThe top Democrat on the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, Gregory Meeks, has said he will not support the sale of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel over concerns the munitions would not be used in accordance with international law.
President Donald Trump's administration is planning to sell to Israel a munitions package worth $2.8 billion, which will include tens of thousands of highly destructive 2,000-pound bombs, according to a US official familiar with the sale.
The leaders of congressional committees review sales under an informal process, but Meeks' objection alone is not enough to prevent the president from going ahead with the sale.
US Treasury pushes to advance Iran sanctions
Wednesday 16 September 2026 21:00 , Alex CroftThe US Treasury has said that its Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has called a meeting of global financial institutions to advance Operation Economic Outcast, a pushisolate Tehran and limit its ability to fund the war in the Middle East.
"The event armed financial institutions with the information they need to shut down revenue streams and procurement networks tied to the Iranian regime," the Treasury said in a statement.
Catch up: Blow for Trump as Congress votes again to curb his powers over $38bn war
Wednesday 16 September 2026 20:00 , James ReynoldsThe US House of Representatives voted to end the war in Iran for the third time late on Tuesday, approving a war powers resolution that would halt president Donald Trump's ability to continue military action without congressional approval.
The result – 220 votes to 204 – was similar to earlier efforts this summer, with a few more Republicans joining most Democrats voting to bring an end to the conflict.
None of the resolutions have made it to the president's desk, where president Trump would almost certainly veto the measure.
The vote comes as a defence department report revealed that Trump’s “Operation Epic Fury” assault on Iran cost $38bn in its first four months and has resulted in a munitions shortfall.
US defense chiefs warn of munitions shortfall as Iran war costs hit $33bn
Wednesday 16 September 2026 19:00 , James ReynoldsPresident Donald Trump’s “Operation Epic Fury” assault on Iran cost $33.4 billion in its first four months and has resulted in a munitions shortfall, according to a report by the Department of Defense’s inspector general.
The 44-page report to Congress states that, between February 28 and June 30, the joint U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran saw the Trump administration spend $22.3 billion on munitions alone.
The onslaught “has resulted in strategic inventory shortfalls and revealed industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply,” Inspector General Platte B Moring III concludes.
US defense chiefs warn of munitions shortfall as Iran war costs hit $33bn
What escalating Saudi-Houthi war means for Trump in Iran
Wednesday 16 September 2026 18:00 , James ReynoldsWashington has largely ignored the lingering disruption created by the Houthis around the Red Sea. But a wider conflict with Saudi Arabia could force them to intervene.
Here’s what the developments in Yemen mean for Donald Trump’s war with Iran:
What the escalating war between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis means for Trump in Iran
Nearly 70 per cent of people say the world has got worse over the past year
Wednesday 16 September 2026 17:00 , James ReynoldsA new poll of over 35,000 people worldwide shows continued support for global cooperation and rising trust in international institutions, but less comfort with the United States or China taking leadership roles.
In fact, many view both as a threat.
The survey, commissioned by the Rockefeller Foundation and conducted in 34 countries from July 21 to August 5, reflected a grim view of economic developments and security challenges, with nearly 70% saying the world had gotten worse over the past year.
Only 38% of those surveyed felt their national economies would improve over the next five years, with optimism down sharply in two of the largest economies. Optimism fell 26 percentage points in India to 50% and 16 points in China to 56%.
Despite widespread pessimism, 57% of those surveyed said countries should cooperate to solve global challenges such as security even if it means compromising on some national interests. That's up from 55% in last year's survey.
Iranian state actors using spyware to target dissidents
Wednesday 16 September 2026 16:20 , James ReynoldsBritish intelligence has issued a warning after finding Iranian spies have targeted dissidents with spyware that can enable tracking of their movements.
Dissidents, activists and journalists were targeted by state actors that impersonated their contacts on messaging apps to trick them into downloading spyware called Chosen Brick, the National Cyber Security Centre, part of GCHQ, warned.
The malware gave agents access to the person’s contacts, emails and social media messages as well as a device’s microphone and content on the screen.
What it means:
Iranian state actors targeting dissidents and activists with spyware
US defense chiefs warn of munitions shortfall as Iran war costs mount
Wednesday 16 September 2026 15:40 , James ReynoldsPresident Donald Trump’s “Operation Epic Fury” assault on Iran cost $33.4 billion in its first four months and has resulted in a munitions shortfall, according to a report by the Department of Defense’s inspector general.
The 44-page report to Congress states that, between February 28 and June 30, the joint U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran saw the Trump administration spend $22.3 billion on munitions alone.
The onslaught “has resulted in strategic inventory shortfalls and revealed industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply,” Inspector General Platte B Moring III concludes.
In full:
US defense chiefs warn of munitions shortfall as Iran war costs hit $33bn
US pilot survived two days in Iran with broken back after plane downed
Wednesday 16 September 2026 15:00 , James ReynoldsThe American air force colonel whose fighter jet was downed over Iran in April has shared how survived for two days behind enemy lines with a broken back, arm and shoulder while waiting for help to arrive.
‘Bravo’ was the weapons-system officer in a two-man crew flying over Iran on 3 April when their F-15E Strike Eagle was hit by Iranian fire. The pilot in the front - ‘Alpha’ - ejected successfully, but Bravo came down in the mountains.
In his first public account of what happened, he told CBS News’ 60 Minutes how he free-fell to the ground at speeds of up to 100mph with a damaged parachute, torn up by an Iranian shoulder-fired missile.
Read the full story:
US pilot survived for two days in Iran with broken back after plane shot down
