March 9, 2026

U.S., ISRAEL, IRAN WAR | Day 10.

• According to state media, Mojtaba Khamenei has been named the new Iranian supreme leader, succeeding his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in Tehran on the opening day of the ongoing war. Reports note that Khamanei, who has never before held a government office, is rumored to have the strong support of Iran's paramilitary Islamic Republican Guard Corps. [more]
• U.S. President Donald Trump over the weekend appeared to downplay media reports that, citing US intelligence sources, say Russia has provided Iran with information to help Tehran target US military personnel and assets in the Middle East. Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Mojtaba Khamenei this morning on being named Iran's new supreme leader and expressed Russia's "unwavering support" for the Iranian regime. [more]
• Oil and gas prices continue to spike amidst the ongoing Middle East conflict, with benchmark Brent crude oil spiking to $119.50 per barrel early today before settling to about $105 per barrel. Gasoline prices in the U.S. continued to rise this morning, reaching an average of $3.48 per gallon according to AAA – up about 50 cents from the average a week ago. Negative effects on global and U.S. markets also continue. G7 finance ministers are scheduled to hold an emergency meeting today to discuss surging oil prices and other economic effects of the U.S.-Israel-Iran war, and multiple Asian nations are reported to be considering taking market stabilization steps to mitigate economic turmoil. [more on oil and gas] [more on G7] [more on Asian markets]
• The U.S. military's Central Command says a seventh U.S. service member has been killed in the Middle East war. The yet-unidentified service member is reported to have been injured in the opening days of the war in an Iranian strike on Saudi Arabia. [more]
• Officials in Turkey said this morning that NATO air defenses shot down a ballistic missile fired from Iran that had entered Turkish airspace – the second such incident since the U.S.-Israel-Iran war began. [more]
• Israeli military operations against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group continued over the weekend in Lebanon, where authorities say tens of thousands of people have been displaced and more than 300 have been killed, in the conflict. [more]

U.S. VOTING AND ELECTIONS | In a social media post yesterday, President Donald Trump threatened to "not sign other bills" until Congress passes the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, which would require eligible voters to prove their U.S. citizenship using limited forms of identification when registering to vote, limit voting via mail-in ballots, and require presentation of identification when voting. [more]

U.S. DRUG WAR | In the latest of more than 40 such strikes, the U.S. military targeted a suspected drug-smuggling boat in the eastern Pacific yesterday, killing six people aboard the vessel. Reports note that more than 150 people have been killed in similar strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats since September 2025. [more]

U.S. VOICE OF AMERICA | In a ruling issued Saturday, U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth said President Donald Trump's appointment of Kari Lake to head the U.S. Agency for Global Media did not satisfy the legal requirements for such a position, making Lake's actions taken to largely dismantle the Voice of American broadcasting system unlawful. [more]

NEW YORK CITY | Authorities say six people have been arrested in connection with the placement of at least two improvised explosive devices during clashes yesterday between anti-Islamic protesters and counter-protesters outside the residence of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Neither of the devices, which were later found to contain nails and other projectiles, exploded. [more]

U.S. TRAVEL | Amidst the ongoing partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, reports say security screening wait-times at numerous U.S. airports have begun to spike as TSA agents work without pay, leading to staffing shortages. [more]

MISSOURI | The terminal at Missouri's Kansas City International Airport was evacuated and closed for several hours yesterday following a potential threat that the FBI later determined "not to be credible." [more]

WEST BANK | At least three Palestinians were killed yesterday in violent clashes between Israeli settlers and local residents near Khirbet Abu Falah in the Israel-occupied West Bank. [more]

JAPAN | Amidst heightened regional tensions due largely to China's stances on control of Taiwan and the South China Sea, the Japanese military is in the final stages of deploying the country's first domestically developed long-range missiles in its southwestern Kumamoto prefecture. Reports note that the upgraded Type-12 land-to-ship missiles have an estimated range of about 620 miles (1,000 km). [more]

SOUTH SUDAN | Reports say most humanitarian workers have been evacuated, and thousands of civilians have fled, from the Akobo region of eastern South Sudan following an evacuation order issued by the army to pave the way for a military operation in the opposition-held town. [more]

HAITI | Jury selection in the U.S. federal trial of five men charged with conspiring in South Florida to assassinate Haitian President Jovenel Moïse in 2021 begins today in Florida. [more]

SCOTLAND | Train services across Scotland are reported to be disrupted today following a major fire at Glasgow's Central Station that has closed all traffic to and from Scotland’s busiest railway station. [more]

KENYA | According to a statement issued by Kenyan government officials yesterday, at least 42 people died amidst heavy rains and flooding in the capital Nairobi over the weekend. [more]

PERU | Local authorities say at least 44 people were injured Saturday night in the bombing of a nightclub in the city of Trujillo in Peru's La Libertad region. Authorities say three people have been arrested in connection with the attack, but have yet to release detailed information on the incident. [more]

GOLF | Akshay Bhatia won a playoff against Daniel Berger yesterday to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational and claim his third PGA Tour title. [more]

CRICKET | India beat New Zealand yesterday to win the T20 World Cup cricket championship for a record third time. [more]

WEEKEND MOVIES | "Hoppers" topped the North American box office over the weekend with an estimated $46 million in receipts, followed by "Scream 7" and "The Bride." [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1831, the French Foreign Legion, whose unofficial motto is “Legio patria nostra” (“The legion is our fatherland”), was founded by King Louis-Philippe as an aid in controlling French colonial possessions in Africa. [more history]