Here's the latest
• Strike threat: US President Donald Trump threatened to “hit and obliterate” Iran’s power plants if the Strait of Hormuz does not “fully open” within 48 hours. Iran will retaliate by striking US infrastructure in the region, according to state media.
• On the ground: Saudi Arabia ordered Iran’s military attaché and several embassy staff to leave the country, as Tehran continued launching strikes on its Gulf neighbors. And in Israel, police and bomb disposal experts were handling munitions “impacts” in Tel Aviv district.
• US-UK base targeted: Iran’s attempt to strike the Diego Garcia military base in the Indian Ocean has renewed questions about Tehran’s military capabilities and how far its missiles can reach.
Six killed in Qatar helicopter crash
Six people on board a helicopter in Qatar were killed when it crashed Sunday morning, according to the country’s Interior Ministry.
A seventh person has not yet been found, the ministry said, and the search was continuing.
Earlier, the Qatari Defense Ministry said the helicopter had crashed in regional waters due to a “technical malfunction” while on routine duty.
Strait of Hormuz open to all but "enemies," Iran media says
The Strait of Hormuz remains open to all except Iran’s “enemies,” the country’s representative to the UN maritime agency said in remarks published on Sunday shortly after US President Donald Trump gave Tehran 48 hours to open the waterway.
Iran has effectively blocked the narrow strait where ships carrying 20% of the world’s oil supply normally pass through, triggering a spike in fuel prices.
“The Strait of Hormuz is open to everyone except ‘enemies’,” Ali Mousavi, Iran’s representative to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) said, according to the semi-official Mehr news agency, adding that the “safety of ships and their crews requires coordination with Iranian authorities
Mousavi said Tehran is ready to coordinate with IMO and other countries to improve maritime safety and protect seafarers.
Mousavi said diplomacy remains Iran’s priority, but “a complete cessation of aggression and mutual trust and assurance are more essential.”
Driver found dead in vehicle after direct missile strike in Israel
A man trapped in a vehicle was found dead after a direct missile hit on an Israeli community on the border with Lebanon.
Fierce flames engulfed two vehicles blocking a road in the northern kibbutz of Misgav Am, seen in footage released Sunday by Israel’s emergency services.
“We arrived at the scene and saw two vehicles on fire,” an emergency responder from Magen David Adom said, adding that the man was found in the driver’s seat with “no signs of life.”
Separately on Sunday, the Israeli military reported “a launch from Lebanon toward a community along the northern border.” CNN has not confirmed if the incidents are related.
Japan could consider minesweeping strait if ceasefire reached, says minister
Japan could consider deploying its military for minesweeping in the Strait of Hormuz if a ceasefire is reached in the war, its foreign minister said.
“This is purely hypothetical, but if a ceasefire is in place and mines are causing problems, I suppose that’s something we’d have to consider at that point,” Toshimitsu Motegi told a Fuji TV program Sunday.
Japan imports more than 90% of its crude oil from the Middle East, a reliance that deepened after it sharply reduced imports of Russian energy following Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Fuel prices have already climbed to multi-year highs, with average prices hitting 190.9 yen ($1.20) per liter this week, and broader inflationary pressure expected to follow.
While Japan has maintained strategic oil reserves equivalent to more than 254 days of consumption, Tokyo has already begun tapping those reserves to stabilize supply, prices, and public sentiment.
Hanako Montgomery contributed to this report.
Iranian media says Tehran will target US infrastructure in the region if its power plants are attacked
Tehran will retaliate against the US by striking its infrastructure in the region if US President Donald Trump follows through on his threat to attack its power plants, Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency reported, citing a military spokesperson.
“If Iran’s fuel and energy infrastructure is attacked by the enemy, all energy, information technology, and desalination infrastructure belonging to the United States and the regime in the region will be targeted,” a spokesperson for Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said, Mehr reported on Sunday.
Hours earlier, Trump threatened to “hit and obliterate” Iranian power plants if Tehran does not reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours.
Trump posted his warning on Truth Social at 7:44 p.m. ET on Saturday, which means his deadline expires at 7:44 p.m. ET on Monday (3:14 a.m. on Tuesday in Tehran).
Munitions "impacts" reported at several locations in central Israel
Police officers and bomb disposal experts are working to secure and isolate “impact sites of munitions” in central Israel, police said Sunday.
“The Israel Police received reports a short while ago regarding the fall of munitions within the Tel Aviv District,” they said.
“At this stage, there are no casualties,” they added.
It came just hours after Iranian strikes on the cities of Arad and Dimona, wounding dozens, after the missiles appeared to have pierced Israel’s defense array.
Iran’s national broadcaster had said the attack on Dimona was in response to what Tehran called a US-Israeli strike on the Natanz nuclear facility.
The Israeli military said it was “not familiar” with a strike on Natanz. The US carried out a strike on Natanz during the 12-day war in June.
Inside a Hezbollah tomb in Lebanon
This indoor shrine in Beirut holds the bodies of many deceased Hezbollah fighters, most of whom died in the last conflict with Israel in 2024. Many of the tombstones carry a picture of the late Iranian supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.
CNN’s Nick Paton Walsh visited the tomb and saw families gathering to pay respects:
This shrine in a Hezbollah stronghold of Beirut is filled with bodies of civilians and fighters, many of whom died in the previous conflict with Israel in late 2024. Some graves carry a picture of the late Iranian supreme leader, Ali Khamenei. CNN’s Nick Paton Walsh saw families visiting to mourn their dead.
As fuel costs rise, US business owners say they can’t raise prices even if they wanted to
Shirley Modlin was in meetings all day Thursday searching for costs to cut. Her small manufacturing facility in Powhatan, Virginia, relies on carbide tools made of tungsten to make precise cuts.
The chemical element is used in armor-piercing artillery. So carbide tool prices have more than doubled in the past two weeks, Modlin says.
Modlin, owner of 3D Design and Manufacturing, said customers won’t tolerate increased prices to cover the rising tool costs.
Modlin offers her staff competitive benefits and raises every year to retain and attract new workers. But last year, tariffs rocked the US manufacturing industry, sending the costs of imported raw materials surging – Modlin’s aluminum and steel costs jumped 65%.
She wasn’t able to give any raises last year. And on Thursday, facing another round of surging costs, Modlin had to cut an administrator back from full-time to part-time without benefits.
“He’s got a house payment; he’s got bills he’s gotta pay. It’s just awful,” Modlin said. “We have to do something. You can only cut so many breakroom supplies.”
Modlin was one of four business owners — a clothing store owner, a bread baker, a spot shipper and a factory owner — CNN spoke to about how they plan to deal with surging fuel costs.
Saudi Arabia expels Iran’s military attaché, embassy staff as Tehran continues to strike Gulf countries
Saudi Arabia has ordered Iran’s military attaché, the assistant military attaché and three embassy staff to leave the country within 24 hours, its foreign ministry said early Sunday, as Tehran continued strikes on its Gulf neighbors.
The Saudi foreign ministry said Iran’s ongoing attacks amounted to “flagrant violation” of international conventions and contradicted “the principles of Islamic brotherhood.” It also warned against further escalation.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has notified the military attaché of the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Kingdom, the assistant military attaché, and three members of the mission staff to leave the Kingdom,” it said, adding that it has declared them “personae non gratae,” which means they are no longer welcome by the host country.
Hours after the announcement, the Saudi defense ministry said it detected three ballistic missiles fired at the capital of Riyadh.
Here’s the latest from the Gulf:
Saudi Arabia: The defense ministry said early Sunday that it intercepted one of the three missiles fired towards Riyadh, while the remaining two fell in an uninhabited area. The military also detected several drones launched towards the eastern region overnight.
UAE: The defense ministry responded to strikes from Iran early Sunday, it said. Over the past day, its air defenses also intercepted at least eight unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and three ballistic missiles.
Kuwait: Its air defense systems struck down nine ballistic missiles in a 24-hour period, its state-owned news agency reported Saturday night, citing the defense ministry.
Bahrain: The defense force said early Sunday that it shot down two drones within the past day.
EU states encouraged to lower gas storage targets
The European Commission has urged member states to lower gas storage targets, as the Iran war impacts critical suppliers and drives up energy prices.
EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen reminded the bloc’s energy ministers of the “flexibilities” available under current gas storage regulations and encouraged them to make use of them, a spokesperson told CNN.
The move signals concern in Brussels that rigid storage targets could add to the upward pressure on European energy prices.
In a letter on Friday, Jørgensen highlighted that member states can reduce storage targets by up to 20 percentage points – 10 in “difficult conditions to fill underground gas storages,” a further five under “certain technical conditions” and an additional five in cases of “persistent unfavourable market conditions.”
Benchmark natural gas prices surged just over 13% on Thursday, having soared by 25% at one point, and have now nearly doubled since the war began on February 28.
Iran's attempt to strike Indian Ocean military base raises questions about its capabilities
On Friday morning local time, Iran launched two intermediate-range ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia, a joint US-UK military base in the Indian Ocean, a US official told CNN, adding that neither of them struck the base.
This marks what appears to be the first known attempt to target the base, which was deliberately built in a remote location beyond the reach of many adversaries. The base is over 2,000 miles (over 3,000 kilometers) off Iran’s coast.
While the attack was unsuccessful, it shows that Iran may not be adhering its self-imposed missile range limit of 2,000 kilometers, raising concerns about whether Tehran could hit US and European interests further away than previously thought.
Trita Parsi, the co-founder of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, believes the US homeland is safe from Iranian strikes, but he told CNN that the attempted attack “suggests that other bases that the US thought is outside of the range of Iran may actually be within the range,” along with American ships “that have been kept 3,000 kilometers away.”
President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that Tehran has been building missiles that “could soon reach the American homeland.”
However, an unclassified assessment from the Defense Intelligence Agency from 2025 said that Iran could develop a “militarily-viable” intercontinental ballistic missile by 2035 “should Tehran decide to pursue the capability.”
Sources also told CNN late last month that there was no intelligence to suggest that Iran is pursuing an intercontinental ballistic missile program to hit the US at this time.
What to know about Iran's power plants, which Trump has threatened to "obliterate"
US President Donald Trump has threatened to “hit and obliterate” Iran’s power plants , “STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” if it does not open the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours. Here’s a look at the facilities in the country:
Iran has about 110 gas plants, a small number of which are hybrid, according to data from OpenInfraMap, an open-source intelligence tool for researching energy infrastructure, compiled by volunteers.
The country also operates solar, hydro, wind, oil, diesel, coal, geothermal and nuclear plants, according to the site.
The three biggest plants by output run on gas:
- Damavand Combined Cycle Power Plant: located around 70 km southeast from downtown Tehran. Output: 2,868MW.
- Shahid Salimi: located in Mazandaran province, near the Caspian Sea. Output: 2,215 MW.
- Shahid Rajai: located some 110 km northeast of downtown Tehran. Output: 2,043 MW.
For context: Florida’s West County Energy Center is the largest operating natural gas power plant in the US, with an output of 3,750 MW, according to OpenInfraMap.
Iran produces most of its electricity via fossil fuels. Over 340,000 GWh came from such fuels, while almost 28,000 GWh was from renewable energy in 2023, according to data from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) website.
Iran says it only has one nuclear power reactor in operation — the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in the west — and another under construction, according to the IAEA. In 2023, Iran produced 5,740 GWh of electricity by nuclear energy.
Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization said a “hostile projectile” struck the Bushehr site on Tuesday, but reported no casualties and no damage to the facility.
CNN’s Teele Rebane contributed to this report.
The US and Israel’s war with Iran is in its 23rd day. Here's where things stand
Both the United States and Israel have threatened to step up their aerial onslaughts against Iran, while an Iranian missile hit a city in southern Israel, injuring dozens.
More countries have signaled a willingness to help safeguard maritime traffic in the critical Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively blocked for weeks.
Here are the latest developments:
- Strike threat: US President Donald Trump threatened to “hit and obliterate” Iran’s power plants if Tehran doesn’t open the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for the world’s energy resources, within 48 hours. The threat marks an escalation in rhetoric from Trump, who’s previously dangled the option of hitting Iranian infrastructure but cautioned it would impair the country’s ability to rebuild. It’s also a tacit acknowledgement that the strait’s closure provides Iran significant leverage.
- Israel hit: The Israeli military said it failed to intercept a missile before it struck the central city of Dimona, injuring several people and destroying a small building in the home of the country’s nuclear program. Meanwhile in the south, officials declared a mass casualty event as missiles appeared to have pierced the defense array and hit Arad.
- Israeli strikes: The Israeli military says it has launched simultaneous “wide-scale” waves of strikes on Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon so far this weekend, hitting more than 200 targets.
- US-UK base targeted: The UK denounced what it called “Iran’s reckless attacks” after missiles were fired toward the Indian Ocean military base of Diego Garcia. The attempt has renewed questions about Tehran’s military capabilities and how far its missiles can reach.
- Protecting safe passage: The United Arab Emirates and Australia are the latest countries to express their willingness to contribute to efforts to ensure safe navigation of the Strait of Hormuz, joining a statement which now has 22 participating nations. It was not immediately clear what the efforts to secure the crucial waterway would look like.
- History repeats: Suggestions of US Navy ships escorting oil tankers through the strait bring to mind the so-called Tanker War of the late 1980s, which involved some of the same weapons – and problems – a US escort force would face today.
Trump threatens to "obliterate” Iran's power plants if Strait of Hormuz not opened in 48 hours
President Donald Trump threatened Saturday to “hit and obliterate” Iranian power plants if Tehran does not reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours.
Trump posted at 7:44 p.m. ET on Saturday, which means his deadline expires at 7:44 p.m. ET on Monday (3:14 a.m. on Tuesday in Tehran).
The threat marks an escalation in rhetoric from Trump, who’s previously dangled the option of hitting Iranian infrastructure but cautioned it would impair the country’s ability to rebuild. And it’s a tacit acknowledgement that the strait’s closure provides Iran significant leverage.
Trump’s latest threat comes a day after he said the US is considering “winding down” military efforts in the Middle East and dismissed questions about the White House’s plan for restoring traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, saying that “at a certain point, it’ll open itself.”
It also comes after Trump said Thursday that he’d told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop attacks on Iranian oil and gas facilities.
But as gas prices have risen at home, US officials have been furiously trying to avert a potential monthslong closure of the strait, privately acknowledging that reopening the key waterway is a problem without a clear solution, CNN previously reported.
