This blog is now closed. For the latest, please read here.
Here are the main developments in the US-Israeli war on Iran on Tuesday, March 31:
Trump to address the nation on Iran on Wednesday
US President Donald Trump will deliver a national address at 9:00 pm Wednesday night (0100 GMT Thursday) related to the war against Iran, the White House said.
"TUNE IN: Tomorrow night at 9PM ET, President Trump will give an Address to the Nation to provide an important update on Iran," Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote Tuesday evening on X.
The announcement came after Trump said earlier that the US could end its military offensive against Iran in two to three weeks.
The US president also said it will be up to other countries to secure the Strait of Hormuz and keep the strategic waterway open.
Trump says US could be leaving Iran within two to three weeks
President Donald Trump said the US could be leaving the Iran war very soon, adding that the exit could be within two or three weeks. "We'll be leaving very soon," Trump told reporters at the White House.
The president said securing the Strait of Hormuz is "not for us," and that the responsibility for keeping the vital waterway open will rest with countries that rely on it. "That’s not for us. That’ll be for France. That’ll be for whoever’s using the strait," he said.
Trump indicated that Iran could also reach a deal with the US during that period.
The Trump administration has repeatedly claimed that the US has won the Iran war and achieved its military goals.
The Iranian foreign minister in an interview with news network Al Jazeera said Tuesday that Iran had not responded to a 15-point proposal sent by the US to end the war in the region.
Abbas Araghchi said he had received a direct message from US special envoy Steve Witkoff, but denied the countries were negotiating.
Hegseth: Strikes damaging morale of Iran's military
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
US markets soar as traders bet on potential war off-ramp
US stocks surged to their best day since last spring amid hope on Wall Street about a possible end to the war with Iran.
The benchmark S&P 500 index leaped 2.9% for its largest gain since May, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 2.5% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite jumped 3.8%.
The price of oil, meanwhile, finished down, with a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, easing 3.2% to settle at $103.97. Benchmark US crude erased a gain from the morning and fell 1.5% to settle at $101.38.
The S&P 500 and the Dow have recorded their deepest quarterly declines since 2022 amid the monthlong conflict.
Investors worry that higher energy prices caused by the war could drag down economic growth and hurt demand for goods and services, while forcing the US central bank to raise interest rates to contain inflation.
Pope Leo urges Trump to find war's 'off-ramp'
Pope Leo delivered a rare direct appeal to the US president to end the war in Iran.
"I'm told that President Trump has recently stated that he would like to end the war," the pope told journalists outside his residence in Castel Gandolfo, near Rome. "Hopefully he's looking for an off-ramp."
"Hopefully he's looking for a way to decrease the amount of violence, of bombing" he added.
Known for choosing his words carefully, the pontiff has been stepping up criticism of the Iran war in recent weeks, saying on Sunday that God rejects the prayers of those who start wars and have their "hands full of blood."
Leo lamented on Tuesday the number of people who have been killed, saying it was his wish that the violence could end before Easter on April 5.
"There have been so many deaths, including innocent children," the pope said. "Let's continually appeal for peace."
"There are too many people who promote fighting, violence (and) war," Leo added.
Chinese propaganda casts US as reckless aggressor in Iran war
Last week, an AI-generated video produced by Chinese state media symbolizing the US-Israel war with Iran by featuring Persian cats and bald eagles went viral, netting nearly a million likes within hours, and filling up comment boards.
The video offers a window into how Beijing interprets the Iran conflict to shape domestic public opinion, and the core message fed to the Chinese public aligns with a commonly used narrative that the US is an aggressive, declining hegemon, while China remains a steady, peaceful rising power.
DW breaks down China's media strategy, especially in relation to the US, here.
Iran's top diplomat confirms receiving 'direct messages' from Witkoff but downplays negotiations
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday he has received "direct messages" from US envoy Steve Witkoff but said that doesn't mean Tehran is negotiating with Washington.
Speaking to the Qatari Al Jazeera TV channel, Araghchi said: "What's happening now is not negotiations, but rather an exchange of messages either directly or via our friends in the region."
Witkoff's messages include "threats or an exchange of views," Araghchi said, denying that a specific body within Iran is negotiating with the US.
He said communication between Tehran and Washington takes place via the Foreign Ministry but acknowledged "communication between security apparatuses" without giving details.
"We have not sent a response to the US 15-point proposal, and we have not provided any suggestions or conditions," Araghchi said, adding that Tehran's conditions for ending the war are "clear," listing them as:
Guarantees that Iran will not be attacked again
Reparations for the damages caused by the war
Iran issues demands to end the war
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
The Iranian top diplomat reiterated that Iran would not accept a ceasefire but rather a complete end to the war "not just in Iran, but in the whole region," alluding to Israel's ongoing invasion of Lebanon.
Araghchi again repeated Tehran's line that Iranian attacks on neighboring Gulf countries do not target the countries themselves but rather US assets, though he acknowledged that "building trust with neighboring countries in the future would be difficult," stressing he was still confident it would be achieved.
Foreign journalist kidnapped in Iraq, Interior Ministry says
A foreign female journalist was abducted by "unknown" assailants in Iraq on Tuesday evening, the country's Interior Ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said it had pursued the kidnappers based on intelligence and arrested one of them, while seizing one of the vehicles used in the kidnapping, but that its efforts to free the journalist were still underway.
The ministry did not reveal the journalist's nationality, but the Reuters news agency cited two police sources as saying she was a US passport holder. The sources added that the search was focused on the eastern part of the capital Baghdad.
EU preparing 'toolbox' to deal with war-fueled energy crisis
The European Union is preparing a "toolbox" to help member-states deal with the impact of the war on fuel supply, EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen said on Tuesday, while calling on member states to ration their domestic demand for fuel.
"In financial terms, 30 days of conflict have already added €14 billion to the [European] Union's fossil fuel import bill," Jorgensen told reporters in Brussels. "Even if there would be peace tomorrow, still we would not go back to normal. Energy infrastructure in the region has been ruined by the war and continuously is being ruined."
The toolbox will include proposals on lowering tax rates for electricity and grid tariffs, Jorgensen said, adding that the bloc was also preparing opportunities similar to the ones used during the 2022 crisis following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
"There's no one-size-fits-all solution. But it is clear that the more you can do to save oil, especially diesel, especially jet fuel, the better we are off," Jorgensen went on to say. "We are in a situation that might worsen where indeed, demand reduction is necessary."
Why Iran fuel crisis hits different in Europe than the US
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
Nobel Laureate Mohammadi's health is deteriorating in Iranian prison, rights group says
The Free Narges Coalition rights group warned on Tuesday of the deteriorating health of Iran's Nobel Laureate Narges Mohammadi as she serves prison time following what the coalition had deemed a "sham trial."
"Narges Mohammadi's life is in imminent danger, and we call on Iranian authorities to heed our warning and provide the medical care that she urgently needs, by granting her an immediate medical furlough," the coalition said in a statement on Tuesday.
Mohammadi's legal team and a member of her family were able to visit her in Zanjan Prison on March 29, the coalition said.
Unbreakable - My fight for freedom in Iran
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
"Her general health was extremely poor, and she appeared pale and weak with significant weight loss when brought to the visitation room by a prison nurse," it added, saying that Mohammadi has been consistently denied the necessary medical care.
Mohammadi's condition was further worsened by the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran and the continuous strikes on the country, including nearby strikes and explosions, the coalition said, referencing an airstrike earlier on Tuesday which hit south of Zanjan "only several kilometers away from the prison" where Mohammadi is held.
Mohammadi has spent much of the past 20 years in Tehran's notorious Evin prison due to her advocacy in defiance of the Islamic Republic's regime.
Why reopening the Strait of Hormuz by force is so dangerous
Iran is calling the shots on the global choke point that is the Strait of Hormuz. What would it actually take to force the narrow waterway open again?
DW speaks to security analyst Megan Sutcliffe about the risks.
Why reopening the Strait of Hormuz by force is so dangerous
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
Iran threatens to strike US tech companies if assassinations continue
Iran's Revolutionary Guard said on Tuesday it will target US tech companies' bases in the Middle East as of Wednesday in retaliation for any future assassinations of its leaders.
The Guard listed 18 companies including Microsoft, Meta, Google, Apple, Intel, IBM, Oracle, Tesla, Nvidia and Boeing.
"These companies should expect the destruction of their respective units in exchange for each terror act in Iran, starting from 8 PM Tehran time (1630 GMT) on Wednesday, April 1st," the IRGC statement said.
The Guard accused the US tech companies of helping with assassination strikes targeting Iranian leaders by providing important data.
"Companies that actively participate in terrorist designs will face reciprocal action for every targeted assassination," the statement said.
The ongoing war started with US-Israeli strikes on Iran which killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and has since seen the targeted assassination of several other Iranian top brass including Revolutionary Guard commander-in-chief Mohammad Pakpour and powerful security chief, Ali Larijani.
European countries condemn killing of UNIFIL peacekeepers in Lebanon
A group of 10 European countries and the European Union high representative condemned on Tuesday the killing of three peacekeepers from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in southern Lebanon.
"We strongly condemn all recent attacks on UNIFIL contingents, which provoked unacceptable casualties among the peacekeepers in recent days," the joint statement read, urging all parties to ensure the peacekeepers' safety.
The statement was signed by the foreign ministers of Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, and the United Kingdom, and the High Representative of the European Union.
What do we know about the 3 UNIFIL peacekeepers' death?
One Indonesian UNIFIL peacekeeper was killed near Adchit Al Qusayr on Sunday, with an unnamed UN security source telling the French AFP news agency on Tuesday that he was killed by Israeli fire.
Investigations had shown the fire that killed the peacekeeper came from an Israeli tank, the source said, adding that "debris from a tank round has been recovered" at the site.
Israel's military has said it was investigating the incident, while the United Nations Security Council was holding an urgent meeting on Tuesday to discuss the peacekeepers' death, at the request of France.
Two more UNIFIL peacekeepers were killed in southern Lebanon on Monday, with UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix saying an initial investigation points to a roadside explosion hitting their convoy.
Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon blamed the incident on Hezbollah.
Israel says to remain in southern Lebanon after war
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Tuesday said the military would occupy parts of southern Lebanon even after the current conflict with the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militant group ends.
"At the end of the operation, the IDF will establish a security zone inside Lebanon — a line of defense against anti-tank missiles — and will maintain security control over the entire area up to the Litani River, including the remaining Litani bridges," Katz said in a statement.
The Litani River flows some 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the Israeli border. The area between it and the Israeli border represents nearly a 10th of Lebanon's territory.
Katz's statement was not the first Israeli one signalling an intention to occupy parts of southern Lebanon, but it was the clearest such statement since Hezbollah attacks on Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei drew Lebanon into the conflict on March 2.
"All houses in villages near the Lebanese border will be destroyed, in accordance with the model used in Rafah and Beit Hanoun in Gaza, in order to permanently remove the threats near the border to northern residents," he said.
Katz added that displaced residents would not be allowed to return south of the Litani "until the safety and security of residents of northern Israel is guaranteed."
UN warns of Israeli occupation
United Nations aid chief Tom Fletcher on Tuesday warned that Lebanon could become yet another Israeli-occupied territory in the region.
"Given the intensity of the coercive displacement that we are seeing, how should we prepare, collectively as the international community, for a new addition to the list of occupied territories?" Fletcher asked the UN Security Council.
Israel's invasion of southern Lebanon has left over 1,200 people killed and displaced over one million.
Litani River bridge hit as Israel moves in south Lebanon
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
UN official estimates Arab countries lost 6% of GDP in one month of war
A top UN official on Tuesday said the US-Israeli war with Iran has cost Arab nations in the Gulf and Middle East an estimated $186 billion (€161 billion) since it was launched on February 28.
Speaking in Amman, Jordan, UN Assistant Secretary General Abdallah Al Dardari said, "We hope the fighting will stop tomorrow, as every day of delay has negative repercussions on the global economy."
"We estimate that the loss to the Arab region's GDP as a result of one month of fighting will be around six percent," Dardari continued, adding, "Six percent of GDP means the region has lost around $186 billion from its economy in a single month."
Dardari, a top UN official in the region, said, "The impact on GDP is very significant in the Gulf region, where it could reach $168 billion; and in the Levant region, where it could reach around $30 billion."
As nations in the Gulf and Middle East are drawn into the conflict, Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz has exposed Gulf nations' dependence on oil to run their economies.
"The Arab economy relies on virtually a single commodity," said Dardari on Tuesday. "Even countries that do not export oil depend on remittances from expatriates in oil-exporting countries and on aid from those same countries, while the oil-exporting countries themselves rely on a single product."
"This fragility in the Arab economy is demonstrated by recent events, which prove that it is unsustainable."
Dardari also delivered a grim prognosis for employment in the region moving forward, "We estimate that the number of jobs we will lose as a result of this conflict is around 3.7 million."
"As for the impact on poverty," he continued, "we expect that around four million more people in the region will fall, or have already fallen, below the poverty line this month as a result of the hostilities."
What to know if you're just joining us
Tuesday is day 32 of the war in Iran, with no end in immediate sight, despite Washington's repeated assertions that peace negotiations are ongoing. Here are the top headlines from today if you are just joining us:
TechCrunch 
