US-Israel-Iran War Live Updates: Trump says 'wouldn’t get bored of continuing the operation'

US Israel Iran War: NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte on Monday praised US and Israeli military action against Iran, saying it was degrading Tehran’s ability to get its hands on nuclear and ballistic missile capability, but he said NATO itself would not be involved.

“It’s really important what the US is doing here, together with Israel, because it is taking out, degrading the capacity of Iran to get its hands on nuclear capability, the ballistic missile capability,” he told Germany’s ARD television in Brussels.

US Israel Iran War: Russian President Vladimir Putin had a phone call on Monday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Kremlin said.

The two discussed “the escalation in the Middle East as a result of American-Israeli armed aggression” against Iran, and both “expressed serious concern over the real risks of the spreading of the conflict, which has already affected several Arab countries and is fraught with catastrophic consequences,” the Kremlin said in the readout of the call.

US Israel Iran War: “I spoke with Turkish President about Iran and the security situation in the region.  We both agree on the importance of NATO’s 360-degree approach to security, and that we are always ready to deter and defend against any threat, from any direction,” says NATO chief in a post on X.

US Israel Iran War: “We could see missiles being constantly intercepted. The airspace is very busy. There was not a very visible impact in Abu Dhabi,” says one of the returnees after Abu Dhabi-Delhi flight landed at IGI airport.

US Israel Iran War: In a brief phone interview with the New York Post, the president said he wasn’t ruling out US forces in Iran if “they were necessary.”

“I don’t have the yips with respect to boots on the ground. Like, every president says, ‘There will be no boots on the ground.’ I don’t say it,” Trump told the newspaper. “I say, ‘Probably don’t need them,’ (or) ‘if they were necessary.’”

Trump has said since the start of U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran that American military casualties were likely, as they are in any war, but he hasn’t committed to having U.S. forces on the ground long term. Before the strikes began, Vice President JD Vance told The Washington Post that there was “no chance” the U.S. would be pulled into a drawn out war in the Middle East.

US Israel Iran War: The United Arab Emirates said it intercepted nine ballistic and six cruise missiles and 148 drones on Monday.

The Defense Ministry said it has repelled hundreds of Iranian drones and missiles since the attacks began on Saturday, in response to U.S.-Israeli bombardment.

No death casualties were reported Monday. Three people were killed in Iranian attacks on Sunday.

US Israel Iran War: At least 15 Etihad flights took off from Abu Dhabi’s airport Monday to help evacuate passengers who have been stranded there.

The flights headed to a variety of destinations, including Islamabad, Paris, Amsterdam, Mumbai, Cairo and London. But regular commercial flights remained canceled.

Read here: Flights restart in Dubai

US Israel Iran War: Loud explosions were heard from the area of a nuclear facility and an air base in the central Iranian city of Isfahan, Iranian news sites reported.

US Israel Iran War: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has visited the site of a deadly Iranian missile attack in central Israel.

Nine people were killed Sunday when a missile slammed into a shelter located in a synagogue in Beit Shemesh.

Netanyahu accused Iran of intentionally targeting civilians and said the country poses a threat to the entire world. He said the world would benefit from the joint Israel-U.S. war against Iran.

US Israel Iran War: Lebanon’s government has decided on an “immediate ban” of Iran-backed Hezbollah’s military and security activity, prime minister Nawaf Salam said Monday, in an unprecedented move as Israel retaliated to rocket fire.

Hezbollah is represented in both the government and parliament and the move came hours after the party announced it had launched rockets and drones towards Israel early Monday, to avenge the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli attacks Saturday.

US Israel Iran War: The Kremlin said that Russian President Vladimir Putin held calls with the leaders of Qatar and Bahrain, in which they voiced concern about the expanding hostilities.

In a call with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, “mutual concern was expressed about the risks of the conflict’s escalation and the danger of third countries becoming involved,” the Kremlin said. It added that the two leaders “expressed hope that Iran’s retaliatory actions will not harm civilians or civilian infrastructure in neighboring countries.”

US Israel Iran War: The Island Kingdom of Bahrain’s National Communication Center says a new wave of Iranian ballistic missiles and drones was intercepted by the Kingdom’s missile air defense system.

Bahrain’s state-run news agency reported that the center said Monday the kingdom successfully repelled 70 missiles and 59 drones, as the war continued to rattle the region.

US Israel Iran War: The US Embassy in Beirut is urging Americans to depart Lebanon immediately while commercial flights remain available, saying that the security situation in the country “is volatile and unpredictable.”

The statement came as Israel carried a new wave of airstrikes on Lebanon that were clearly heard in the capital Beirut and the southern port city of Tyre.

Israel’s military also said that it killed Hezbollah’s intelligence official Hussein Mokalleh in a strike near Beirut earlier Monday.

US Israel Iran War: Iraq's Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said Monday that Iran continues to attack its autonomous Kurdistan region, while the other side of the conflict -- whom he did not identify -- targets the country's south.

Hussein said in a call with Hamish Falconer, UK Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, that "Iraq is now directly affected by the war" in the region.

US Israel Iran War: China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Iranian counterpart on a call Monday that Beijing supports Tehran defending itself against US-Israeli strikes, as war spread across the Middle East.

Wang told Abbas Araghchi that Beijing "cherishes the traditional friendship between China and Iran, supports Iran in defending its sovereignty, security, territorial integrity, and national dignity, and supports Iran in protecting its legitimate rights and interests", state broadcaster CCTV reported.

US Israel Iran War: European gas markets surged on Monday after production disruptions at facilities run by QatarEnergy heightened fears that escalating conflict involving Iran could threaten energy supplies from the Gulf region.

The Dutch TTF natural gas contract — Europe’s benchmark gas price — jumped nearly 45 percent to more than 46 euros, extending earlier gains of over 20 percent as traders reacted to the widening regional conflict.

Read more here

US Israel Iran War: FedEx warned customers that shipments could be delayed after it suspended flights at major airports in the Middle East. The shipping giant operates a hub in Dubai and, in February 2024, it announced a $350 million investment in a facility there.

Pickups and deliveries in Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar and United Arab Emirates “have been temporarily suspended until further notice,” FedEx said, warning that other markets in the area could experience delays.

US Israel Iran War: The Israel Defense Forces announced it killed Hussein Makled, the head of Hezbollah’s intelligence headquarters, in a targeted airstrike in Beirut, saying the operation struck senior command amid escalating fighting on the northern front.

US Israel Iran War: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held telephone conversations with Bahrain’s King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa and Crown Prince and PM of Saudi Arabia Mohammed Bin Salman. The PM condemned the attacks on both these countries and discussed the well being of Indian community in both countries.

US Israel Iran War: Cyprus says two drones moving in the direction of a British air base on the island have been intercepted. Cyprus government spokesman Constantinos Letymbiotis posted on X Monday that the two drones were heading toward RAF Aktotiri Air Base.