Israel hits Iranian heavy water nuclear reactor

A research reactor in Iran's Khondab was hit by airstrikes, an Iranian official said, stressing there was no radiation leak.

The UN warns of a potential "catastrophe" in Lebanon.

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Here's a summary of events in the US-Israel war with Iran on Friday, March 27, 2026:
Trump says US don't 'have to be there' for NATO
US President Donald Trump again expressed frustration that NATO allies declined to provide military support to secure the Strait of Hormuz, repeating his warning that Washington might not come to their aid if asked.

"They just weren't there," he said at an economic event in Miami.

"We spend hundreds of billions of dollars a year on NATO, hundreds, protecting them, and we would have always been there for them, but now, based on their actions, I guess we don't have to be, do we?" he said.

"Why would we be there for them if they're not there for us?

They weren't there for us."
Trump referenced German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's insinuation that Iran is "not our war." Merz earlier said that Germany does not want to become part of the operation against Iran.

"Well Ukraine is not our war, but we help them," Trump said.

The Washington Post reported Thursday that the Pentagon is considering whether to divert weapons meant for Ukraine to the Middle East.

Trump has had an inconsistent relationship with the NATO military alliance and has at times made remarks that raised doubts about his commitment to NATO's Article 5, which treats an attack on one member as an attack on all.

The only time NATO invoked Article 5 was after the 9/11 terrorist attacks against the United States in 2001, when all allies contributed military forces to the war in Afghanistan.

Trump calls Hormuz waterway 'Strait of Trump'
US President Donald Trump says Iran must reopen the Strait of Hormuz to oil shipments before any peace deal can be reached.

Speaking at a Saudi-backed investment forum in Miami, Trump even referred to the vital waterway as the "Strait of Trump."
"They have to open up the Strait of Trump.

I mean, Hormuz," Trump said.

He added, "Excuse me ...

I'm so sorry — such a terrible mistake."
The "fake news" will say he accidentally said 'Strait of Trump' he added, "no, there’s no accidents with me.

Not too many."
He said discussions are under way to end the monthlong conflict.

He told the forum it would be "great" to reach a deal, but only if Iran fully opens the strait.

US troops reportedly wounded in strike on Saudi air base
Several US troops were wounded in a strike on a Saudi air base, a source told the Associated Press on Friday.

Several planes were also damaged in what is believed to have been an Iranian airstrike.

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that the Prince Sultan Air Base was hit, causing casualties.

There was no immediate comment from the US military.

Witkoff hopeful for meeting with Iran this week
President ‌Donald Trump's ⁠special ⁠envoy ​Steve Witkoff ​said ​on ‌Friday that the US was hopeful there would ​be ⁠meetings ​with ​Iran this ​week.

"We think there will be meetings ‌this week.

We're ‌certainly hopeful ​for it," Witkoff said at an investment forum in ​Miami, Florida.

"We have a 15-point deal on ⁠the ​table that ​the Iranians have had for ​a bit ‌of time.

We expect an ​answer ⁠from them, and it would solve ⁠it ​all," he added.

Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, had been engaged in indirect diplomatic talks with Iranian officials two days before the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran nearly a month ago.

US and Europe play happy families at Iran-focused G7 talks
We expected Marco Rubio 's meeting with his counterparts from Europe, Canada and Japan would be tense.

After all, US President Donald Trump had only just been blasting NATO nations for doing "absolutely nothing" to support the US-Israeli war on Iran.

But by the time ministers wrapped up meetings at a picturesque abbey around an hour's drive from Paris on Friday evening, Rubio had softened his tone, and Europeans were stressing convergence.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul seemed relieved; he told reporters here there was "no disagreement" between the US and Germany.

He said Washington was not asking for any military support until after the hostilities end.

For now, at least, the US seems to have pivoted away from pressuring allies into joining a war many say is not theirs to fight.

Instead, it's asking them to prepare for some sort of post-conflict role.

France's foreign minister reiterated his country was ready to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz — after the fighting stops.

Iran to allow humanitarian aid through Strait of Hormuz
Tehran has agreed to "facilitate and expedite" humanitarian aid through the Strait of Hormuz , Ali Bahreini, the Iranian ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, said Friday.

Bahreini said Tehran has accepted a request from the UN to let "humanitarian shipments" pass through the strait.

"This measure reflects Iran’s continued commitment to supporting humanitarian efforts and ensuring that essential aid reaches those in need without delay," Bahreini posted on X.

The plan would mark the first breakthrough at the narrow waterway after a month of war.

Iran: Israel hit steel factories, power plant, despite Trump's talk of diplomacy
Israel has targeted Iranian infrastructure, including two of its "largest steel factories," a power plant and civilian nuclear sites, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said in an online post on Friday.

"Attack contradicts [Donald Trump's] extended deadline for diplomacy," Araghchi wrote, in reference to Trump's saying Pentagon would "postpone any and all military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure" to facilitate peace talks.

While Araghchi did not say US forces took part in the Friday strikes, he said "Israel claims it acted in coordination with the US" and pledged that Iran would exact a "HEAVY" price for the bombing.

US could divert weapons intended for Ukraine, Rubio says
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has not ruled out the possibility that weapons intended for Ukraine could be used for other purposes.

"If the United States has a military need, whether it is to replenish our stocks or to fulfill some mission in the national interest of the United States, we're always going to come first," Rubio said after talks the Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers' meeting near Paris.

Rubio stressed that no weapons had been diverted so far, but he said it could happen in the future.

Earlier, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul warned that support for Ukraine was weakening amid the war in Iran.

"There must be no compromises when it comes to maintaining Ukraine's defence capabilities," he said, adding that weakening support for Kyiv would only benefit Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Rubio: US can achieve Iran goals without ground troops
The US objectives in the Iran war are to destroy Tehran's missile and drone capabilities and production capacities, as well as its navy and air force, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told G7 foreign ministers in France.

"We are ahead of schedule on most of them, and we can achieve them without any ground ​troops, without any," Rubio said.

The US is in the process of deploying thousands of troops into the region , including Marines and paratroopers.

But Rubio said these troops' movements were aimed at providing options to President Donald Trump.

"We are always going to be prepared to give the president maximum optionality and maximum opportunity to adjust ​the contingencies, should they ⁠emerge," he said.

Germany's Merz questions if US and Israel can oust Iran's regime
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he had "major doubts" if the US and Israel have an actual strategy in Iran.

"Is regime change really the goal?" he asked at a Frankfurt forum organized by the German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung .

"If that's the goal, I don't think they'll achieve it," Merz added.

"Currently, the Americans and the Israelis are becoming more and more entangled in this conflict every day," said the German chancellor.

"What Trump is doing right now is not de-escalation and an attempt to find a peaceful solution, but a massive escalation with an uncertain outcome."
His remarks come after dozens of German scholars slammed the conservative politician for not clearly condemning the US-Israeli attack on Iran.

Merz had made it clear he did not intend to "lecture" US President Donald Trump on international law.

This week, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, whose largely ceremonial role is outside of  Merz's government, labelled the attack on Iran a "disastrous mistake" and said the conflict was a violation of international law.

German president: Iran war violates international law
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US expects to wrap up Iran war in 'weeks, not months' — Rubio
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington was likely to finish its operations in Iran in "weeks, not months."
At a meeting of G7 foreign ministers in France, Rubio specified that the US military action would finish in the "next couple of weeks."
The US top diplomat also said Iran may start demanding tolls from ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Reuters news agency.

The US and Israel launched the ongoing war against Iran some four weeks ago, on February 28.

In repsonse, Iran has fired missiles at Israel and some Gulf countries.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly announced Washington was in contact with Tehran and engaged in talks he said were "going very well." Iran has denied those claims.

Iran was attacked by Israel and the US during talks focusing on Iran's nuclear program last year , and again in February .

Iran says heavy water nuclear reactor hit in US-Israeli attack
An Iranian research reactor in Khondab, in western Iran, was bombed "in two stages by aggression from the American and Zionist enemy," an Iranian official told the Fars news agency.

Iranian authorities said there were no casualties and no danger of a radiation leak.

Heavy water is about 10% denser than normal water due to its composition, including a heavier hydrogen isotope.

It can be used to slow down neutrons in nuclear reactors, as a basis to produce a radioactive hydrogen isotope known as tritium, and for other scientific purposes.

The Israeli military later confirmed it struck the heavy water plant.

Iranian footballers wear school bags to protest Minab school bombing
A World Cup qualifier between Iran and Nigeria, played behind closed doors in Turkey, ended with Nigeria winning 2-1.

The focus, however, was on Iranian footballers showing up to the match with purple and pink school bags as a sign of protest against the deadly bombing of the Minab girl school .

Members of the Iranian football team also wore black armbands during the game.

"At the moment, the result — victory or defeat — is not important.

The only important thing is that the players show on the pitch that they are true Iranians and love their fatherland," federation official Mirshad Madshedi told state broadcasters IRIB.

Evidence points to US role in deadly Iran school attack
The strike on the girls school killed over 175 people, most of them children, in one of the opening salvos of the US-Israeli war on Iran on February 28.

Initially, US President Donald Trump blamed Iran for the deadly bombing, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth insisting that "the only side that targets civilians is Iran."
Images from the scene, however, indicated that the school was hit by a US-made Tomahawk missile.

Preliminary findings by a US military investigation, cited by The New York Times , found that the US bombed the school, using outdated targeting data.

It was not clear if any US officials or military personnel will be held responsible for the children's deaths.

WATCH — How Iran war affects US support for Trump, Republicans
A majority of Americans — and even some top MAGA figures — disapprove of the US-Israeli war against Iran.

DW asked Republican voters at the CPAC conference for their thoughts on the conflict and the gas price hikes it has sparked.

How Iran war is impacting support for Trump, US Republicans
G7 foreign ministers urge end to attacks on civilians
Top diplomats of G7 nations — the US, the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan, along with the multinational European Union — called for an immediate end to attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure in the Iran war.

During their two-day summit at the historic Vaux-de-Cerney abbey outside of Paris, the G7 delegates discussed ways "to mitigate global economic shocks…  which have direct impacts on ⁠our ​citizens," according to a statement seen by the Reuters news agency.

The diplomats also stressed the need to restore free navigation through the Iranian-controlled Strait of Hormuz .

Separately, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said the Iranian regime would be "well advised to enter into serious negotiations with the United States now." He previously stated that representatives of the two nations would soon be meeting in Pakistan.