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 Dramatic satellite images taken Monday afternoon show dark plumes of smoke rising from multiple burning vessels at a military harbor in Bandar Abbas, Iran. One of the ships, over 750 feet long, appears to have been converted from an oil tanker to a naval vessel with a large helicopter landing pad. Take a look below: A dark cloud of smoke rises from a burning Iranian Navy vessel docked in Bandar Abbas. The ship appears to have been converted from an oil tanker to a naval vessel with a large helicopter landing pad seen on March 2, 2026.

 • Pentagon briefs press: US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called on Iranians to “take advantage” of the opportunity for regime change, even as he said the war was not about ousting the government in Tehran. • Expanding war: Israel and Hezbollah are trading blows as the conflict widens, while explosions have been heard in Gulf cities including Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha. • Fighter jets shot down: Three US fighter jets were accidentally shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses in an apparent “friendly fire incident,” according to the US military. All crews are in stable condition. • Global shockwaves: Qatar’s state-run energy company has stopped its production of liquefied natural gas following an Iranian attack on its facility. The war has disrupted air travel, with airspace closed in the Middle East.

 Just one day before primary Election Day in Texas, two voters from the Lone Star State spoke to CNN about the US strikes on Iran and the spiraling war in the Middle East. Linda Johnson, a Republican voter from Waco who cast a ballot early for state Attorney General Ken Paxton in the high-stakes Senate primary, told CNN’s Arlette Saenz that the US strikes are “necessary.” “I think that Trump takes the real tough stance on a lot of things that people don’t agree with, but I feel like it’s necessary,” Johnson said, adding, “I don’t think people realize that enough — that our country is in danger of just being complacent and just letting these countries do whatever they want to do.” Meanwhile, Kurt Krakowian — a GOP voter from Hewitt who remains undecided in the Senate race — applauded President Donald Trump for taking action. “Every single president’s tried to do something to get rid of this situation,” Krakowian said, referring to the Iranian regime. “President Trump is the only one...

 Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, said Iran’s leadership is “lashing out in desperation” following what he described as decisive and surgical US-Israeli strikes, and he vowed that Israel will continue its military campaign for “as long as it takes.” Speaking to reporters in New York on Monday, Danon said Israel and the US “will not stop” their operations against Iran ⁠until their objectives are met. “We will do whatever is necessary to make sure Iran doesn’t have nuclear capabilities,” he said. Danon said Israel would do “whatever is necessary to protect our people, to protect our borders.” He also expressed hope for new leadership in Tehran, saying he believes that freedom for the Iranian people “will come sooner than later.”

 The pastors had narrated how Lawal and some personnel attached to his office allegedly collected N2,000,000 from them using a woman operating a Point of Sale (POS) machine. Policemen attached to the Ondo State Command of the Nigeria Police Force have invaded the homes of a group of pastors who accused the Commissioner of Police, Adebowale Lawal, of extortion. The pastors had narrated how Lawal and some personnel attached to his office allegedly collected N2,000,000 from them using a woman operating a Point of Sale (POS) machine.

 According to him, the former governor, who is currently the Minister of Works, informed him that a road dualisation project around Dr. Akanu Ibiam Roundabout would affect part of his property frontage. A business owner in Ebonyi State, Mr. Okay Emmanuel Nnolum, has accused the immediate past Governor of Ebonyi State, David Nweze Umahi, of using a road expansion project at the Dr. Akanu Ibiam Roundabout in Abakaliki as a pretext to revoke his company’s Right of Occupancy, demolish his filling station, and subsequently develop the land into a private shopping plaza reportedly linked to the former governor. Nnolum, whose company B.O. Nnolum & Sons Limited owned the affected filling station, told SaharaReporters that what began as a purported government request for minor road expansion and canopy relocation eventually led to the total takeover of his property.