March 18, 2026 — Day 18 of Operation Epic Fury — LIVE UPDATE
Day 18 of the U.S.-Israel war against Iran has delivered a cascade of explosive developments — from the assassination of Iran's security chief Ali Larijani and the commander of Iran's Basij paramilitary force, to the resignation of a senior Trump-appointed U.S. intelligence official who said he could not support the war, the bombing of the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad, the temporary closure of UAE airspace, and the first confirmed use of 5,000-pound bunker-buster bombs against Iranian missile sites. Here is the complete Day 18 breakdown.
💀 BREAKING: Israel Kills Iran's Security Chief Ali Larijani
In the single most significant leadership blow to Iran since the assassination of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Day 1, Iran's security chief Ali Larijani was confirmed dead Tuesday after an Israeli airstrike in Tehran.
Iranian Defense Minister Israel Katz said Larijani, the head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, was killed in an overnight attack on Iran. Iran's Supreme National Security Council confirmed that Larijani died alongside his son Morteza Larijani, a security deputy of the secretariat, and several members of his protection team.
Larijani was not just a figurehead. He was Iran's most senior security official — the man responsible for coordinating the regime's response to the war, managing relations with the IRGC and military, and leading Iran's domestic security apparatus. Larijani was seen as the right-hand man of Iran's late supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in strikes aimed at high-ranking Iranian officials at the beginning of the war on Feb. 28.
Netanyahu's office said in a social media post Tuesday morning that Netanyahu had ordered the elimination of senior officials of the Iranian regime.
💀 Basij Commander Gholamreza Soleimani Also Killed
Soon after Larijani's death was announced, the Israeli military said that it had killed Gholamreza Soleimani, the head of Iran's Basij paramilitary force. The Basij operates like a police force for the regime's military, and it also helped suppress protests earlier this year.
The Israeli military said his death marked a "significant blow to the regime's security command-and-control structures." Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps confirmed Soleimani was killed, according to Iran's semi-official Mehr news agency.
In a single night, Israel had decapitated two of Iran's most critical internal security figures — the man who ran the regime's security council and the man who commanded the paramilitary force that suppresses internal dissent. The double killing raises a fundamental question: who is actually running Iran's war effort now?
🏛️ US Embassy Baghdad HIT — Explosions at Compound
The US Embassy and a hotel in Baghdad were targeted by drones early Tuesday, with video appearing to show air defenses engaging a projectile near the embassy. The Majnoon oil field in southern Iraq also came under attack, the spokesperson for the Commander-in-Chief of Iraq's armed forces said.
The attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad — the largest American diplomatic compound in the world — represents one of the most serious escalations of the conflict. Smoke was visible rising from the compound in footage shared on social media.
Smoke rises after an explosion at the United States Embassy compound in Baghdad, Iraq, March 17, 2026. U.S. officials confirmed the compound was struck but said details on casualties were being assessed. Secretary of State Rubio earlier closed the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait City after Iranian missile strikes; the Baghdad Embassy has now also been targeted.
✈️ UAE Closes Airspace — Dubai Airport Temporarily Suspended
Explosions sounded over Dubai early on Tuesday as the United Arab Emirates' military worked to intercept incoming Iranian fire that caused the country to briefly close its airspace.
Abu Dhabi shut down its airspace early on Tuesday after its military reported it was "responding to missile and drone threats from Iran." The closure was soon lifted, according to the state-run WAM news agency, which quoted the UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority as saying. Authorities said "the situation stabilised," allowing flights to resume.
Falling debris from a missile intercepted by air defences has killed a person in the Bani Yas area of Abu Dhabi. The victim was a Pakistani national. The government of the UAE's Fujairah says a fire broke out at its oil industry zone after being attacked by drones.
UAE schools announced distance learning to continue for 2 weeks amid the ongoing conflict.
💣 5,000-Pound Bunker Buster Bombs Deployed — Strait of Hormuz Missile Sites Targeted
In a major escalation of firepower, U.S. aircraft dropped "multiple 5,000-pound deep penetrator munitions" on hardened Iranian missile sites along Iran's coastline by the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, U.S. Central Command announced.
The bombs are officially "bunker busters" designed to strike at reinforced targets and can also penetrate deep towards a target. Their use against hardened Iranian missile targets along the Strait of Hormuz is part of the ongoing effort to prevent Iran from striking at commercial shipping through the strait. Many of the larger bombs the U.S. has been dropping are 2,000-pound bombs.
The deployment of 5,000-pound penetrator munitions — more than double the weight of the standard bombs used so far — signals that the U.S. is deliberately targeting the deepest, most hardened Iranian coastal missile installations that standard bombs cannot reach. These are the bunkers that house the shore-based anti-ship missiles capable of targeting vessels attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz.
😤 Joe Kent Resigns: Trump Intel Official Quits Over Iran War
In one of the most dramatic political moments of Day 18, Joe Kent, a senior Trump-appointed U.S. intelligence official, abruptly announced Tuesday he is stepping down from his post, citing misgivings about the administration's war with Iran.
"I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby," Kent said in a resignation letter he posted on X.
Trump said Kent's resignation was a "good thing" because he was "very weak on security."
Hours after Kent's resignation, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard on Tuesday publicly backed President Donald Trump's authority to determine what constitutes an imminent threat on the war.
Kent is the latest in a growing list of MAGA-aligned figures who have broken with Trump over Iran — joining Tucker Carlson, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Sen. Rand Paul, and Rep. Thomas Massie in publicly opposing the conflict.
🏙️ Tehran Struck Near Saadabad Palace Complex
A series of large explosions were reported in northern Tehran near the Saadabad Palace complex, following earlier attacks on central Tehran, Karaj, Shahriar and Shiraz.
The Israeli military said early Tuesday it had begun a "wide-scale wave of strikes" across Iran's capital, adding that it was also stepping up strikes on Iran-backed Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
The Saadabad Palace complex in northern Tehran — a historic compound that houses multiple presidential and government palaces — has been a recurring target throughout the conflict. Its proximity to key regime leadership facilities makes it a high-value symbolic and strategic target.
👶 Newborn Baby and 2-Year-Old Sister Killed in Arak Strike
Among the most heartbreaking reports of Day 18: a three-day-old infant and his two-year-old sister were among those killed in a US-Israeli attack that hit their home in the city of Arak. The children's mother and grandmother were also killed in the attack, according to Iran's English-language news channel Press TV citing the IRGC.
🏫 Amnesty International: 170 Killed — Mostly Schoolgirls — in Primary School Strike
An Amnesty International investigation confirmed that a US attack on an Iranian primary school killed at least 170 people, most of whom were schoolgirls.
The report, released Tuesday, places direct responsibility for the attack on the United States — one of the most damning findings yet from an international human rights organization regarding the conduct of the war. The U.S. military has previously said it ordered a formal command investigation into the school strike.
🇱🇧 Lebanon: 1 Million Displaced, Ground Operations Begin
Israeli strikes have so far displaced more than 1 million Lebanese people — roughly 20% of the population — according to the government, which also noted that some 850 people were killed in the attacks. Some Israeli troops have pushed into southern Lebanon on Monday, after the IDF announced it was conducting "limited and targeted ground operations" into the area to "enhance the security buffer" between southern Lebanon and northern Israel.
Hezbollah said it attacked Israeli troops and vehicles in at least three Lebanese border towns, after the Israeli army announced it had begun limited ground operations in Lebanon.
🤝 Iran Diplomacy: Reaching Out — But Trump Refuses
Iranian officials have reached out to Trump's Middle East envoy, trying to reopen a diplomatic channel, but Trump said he didn't want to negotiate now, two senior White House officials told CNN. Part of the reason is because Trump's administration is not confident that Iran's new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, "is actually in charge," one of the officials said.
The revelation that Iran is actively seeking a diplomatic channel — while Trump simultaneously refuses to engage — suggests Tehran is feeling the pressure of 18 days of relentless strikes on its infrastructure, military, and leadership.
⚽ FIFA World Cup: Iran Asks to Move Games to Mexico
In a remarkable geopolitical footnote to the conflict, Iran's football federation has formally asked FIFA to move its 2026 World Cup games to Mexico, citing fears for player safety after the U.S. carried out joint airstrikes on Iran. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Tuesday that Mexico would have "no problem" hosting Iran's matches during the 2026 World Cup, should FIFA decide to relocate them from the United States.
🛢️ Oil Update: Brent Tops $103 — 42% Higher Since War Began
Brent crude continued its upward march on Tuesday, settling at $103.42 a barrel, a 3.2 percent gain for the day and now more than 42% higher since the war began.
Scandinavian carrier SAS says it will cancel select flights in the coming days after what it described as a "sharp and sudden increase in fuel prices," the latest airline to feel the strain of the global energy shock triggered by the war on Iran.
🇬🇧 UK Leak Scandal: Miliband Led Objections to US Base Use
Britain's Government Security Group has launched an inquiry into a leak from the National Security Council, after confidential discussions about whether the United States could use British military bases for early strikes on Iran were disclosed publicly. The probe was confirmed in an official letter from the cabinet secretary. The leak involved allegations that Energy Minister Ed Miliband had led internal objections to granting the U.S. access to UK bases during the opening days of the conflict in early March.
📊 Day 18 — Full Numbers
- 🇮🇷 Iran deaths: 1,444+ confirmed (18,551 injured)
- 🇱🇧 Lebanon deaths: 850+
- 🇮🇱 Israel deaths: 15+
- 🇺🇸 US service members killed: 13
- 🎯 Iranian targets struck by Israel: 8,000+ (85% of air defenses; 70% of missile launchers destroyed)
- 🏠 Iranian homes damaged/destroyed: 30,000+
- 🌍 Displaced in Iran: Mass exodus northward
- 🌍 Displaced in Lebanon: 1 million+ (20% of population)
- 🛢️ Brent crude: $103.42/barrel (+42% since Feb 28)
- 💀 Senior Iranian officials killed today: Ali Larijani (Security Chief) + Gholamreza Soleimani (Basij Commander)
- 💣 New weapons deployed: 5,000-lb bunker-buster bombs (first use in this conflict)
- ✈️ Countries with airspace disruptions: UAE (closed/reopened Tuesday)
- 😤 Trump admin resignations over Iran war: Joe Kent (Day 18) — joining growing list
📡 Sources: CNN (Day 18 live blog, March 17–18), Al Jazeera (Day 18 live blog, March 17), CNBC (March 17), Newsweek (March 17), ABC News (live updates, March 17–18), Euronews (March 17), Khaleej Times (March 17) — all reporting as of March 18, 2026.
🔄 Last updated: March 18, 2026 — Day 18 continues. Check back for updates.
🔖 Tags: Iran War Day 18, Ali Larijani Killed, Basij Soleimani Killed, Joe Kent Resignation, Baghdad Embassy Attack, UAE Airspace, Bunker Buster Bombs, Iran War 2026, Operation Epic Fury, Breaking News
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