Portal:Current events/2026 March 16

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Middle Eastern crisis
  • 2026 Iran war
    • 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis
      • Several NATO allies of the United States, including Germany, Italy, and Spain, rule out sending warships to lift the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz following a request from U.S. president Donald Trump. (Reuters)
      • Australia rules out sending warships to lift the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. (Nine News Australia)
      • A Pakistan-bound oil tanker with its Automatic Identification System activated, the Karachi, gets safe passage and crosses Hormuz following negotiations between the Pakistani and Iranian governments. According to Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, Pakistan agreed to pay the oil shipment, purchased from Abu Dhabi, in Chinese yuan instead of in US dollars. (AAJ News)
    • 2025–2026 Iran–United States negotiations.
      • Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says that Iran is not seeking a ceasefire but also called for the war to end. (Iran International)
    • 2026 Iranian strikes on the United Arab Emirates
      • Iran launches drone attacks on the United Arab Emirates, killing a Palestinian man in Abu Dhabi and forcing the temporary closure of Dubai International Airport. The port of Fujairah, in the Emirate of Fujairah, already attacked two days ago, is also hit. (The Telegraph) (BBC)
    • The Israeli Air Force strikes and completely destroys the Iranian Space Research Center in central Tehran, stating that it was being used for potential space warfare activities against Israeli satellites. (Iran Wire)
    • Kata'ib Hezbollah senior commander Abu Ali al-Askari is killed in an airstrike in Baghdad, Iraq. (Jerusalem Post)
    • The U.S. embassy in Baghdad is reportedly attacked by two suicide drones, causing a powerful explosion. (Ynet)
    • The Royal Tulip Al Rasheed Hotel in the Green Zone in Baghdad is struck by a drone. (Al Jazeera)
  • Hezbollah–Israel conflict
    • 2026 Lebanon war
      • At least seven people, including four children, are injured by Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks on northern Israel. (The Times of Israel) (The Jerusalem Post)
      • The Israeli military's 91st Division launches a ground operation against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, expanding a buffer zone along the border. (Israel Hayom) (The Times of Israel)
  • At least four members of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) are killed and three others are injured in an airstrike on a checkpoint at the entrance to Al-Qa'im, Al Anbar Governorate. A PMF official attributes the strike to the United States. (AFP via LBCI)
• Russo-Ukrainian war
  • International sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian war, International sanctions during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • The European Union imposes sanctions against nine Russian individuals over their role in the mass murder of civilians committed during Russia's occupation of Bucha during the initial 2022 invasion of Ukraine. (Kyiv Post)
  • Prisoners of war in the Russo-Ukrainian war
    • Kenyan prime cabinet secretary Musalia Mudavadi says that the government has identified two prisoners of war from Kenya that have been detained by authorities in Ukraine after being involved in Russia's special military operations. (The Star Kenya)
• 2026 Afghanistan–Pakistan conflict
  • 2026 Kabul hospital airstrike
    • Afghanistan claims Pakistani jets bombed a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul, killing over 400 people. Pakistan denies the claim, saying it attacked military installations. AFP and BBC journalists confirm at least 30 dead as a result of the bombing. (BBC News) (The Washington Post)
• 2026 Maiduguri bombings
  • At least 23 people are killed and 108 others are injured in suspected suicide bombings at three locations, including the Monday Market and University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, in Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria. No group has claimed responsibility. (Reuters) (AP)
• Nigerian bandit conflict, kidnapping in Nigeria
  • One person is killed and seven others are abducted, including children, in an attack on a community in Chikun, Kaduna State, Nigeria. (The Punch)

Arts and culture

• A police report in New York formally reveals English street artist Banksy's identity as 51-year-old Robin Gunningham from Bristol, England. (ABC News) (The Telegraph)

Business and economy

• 2026 Cuban crisis
  • Cuba announces that citizens living abroad will be permitted to invest in and own businesses in the country as the government seeks to expand commercial activity amid an economic crisis. (AFP via Indo Premier)
• Economic impact of the 2026 Iran war
  • Sri Lanka introduces a four-day workweek for the public and education sectors to preserve fuel as the 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis continues to restrict fuel shipments to the region. (The Guardian)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–2026 Cuba blackouts
  • Cuba reports a nationwide power outage following a total electrical grid collapse. (AP)
• Eleven people are killed and ten others are injured in a massive fire at the Srirama Chandra Bhanja Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack, Odisha, India. (Hindustan Times)
• A roof collapses at a shop in Rahim Yar Khan, Punjab, Pakistan, killing eight people and injuring more than 50 others. (AP)
• At least four people are killed and four others are injured in a building collapse in Nairobi, Kenya. (AP via CTV News)

Health and environment

• Vaccination policy of the United States
  • United States federal judge Brian E. Murphy blocks the implementation of changes to vaccine policy introduced by health and human services secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., including revisions to the childhood immunization schedule and recommendations issued by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Murphy rules that the measures likely violate required procedures and halts their enforcement pending further legal proceedings. (AFP via France 24)
• The death toll from Lassa fever in Nigeria this year rises to 109. (The Punch)
• A woman is killed and over 100 others are hospitalized after getting foodborne illness at a pizzeria in Pombal, Paraíba, Brazil. (Xinhua)

International relations

• International sanctions against Iran
  • The European Union imposes sanctions against 16 Iranian individuals and three entities for their role in suppressing protests earlier this year. (Shafaq)

Law and crime

• Terrorism in Kuwait
  • Kuwaiti authorities arrest 16 people, including two Lebanese nationals, on suspicion of links to Hezbollah and involvement in a planned sabotage operation, with weapons, drones, and communication equipment seized during the operation. (Middle East Eye)

Politics and elections

• 2026 Nepalese general election
  • Nepalese activist and Rastriya Swatantra Party member Bhumika Shrestha is confirmed by the Nepalese Election Commission, becoming the first transgender lawmaker elected in Nepal. (AFP via Dawn)
• 2026 Rajya Sabha elections
  • India holds its first phase of elections for 37 seats of the Rajya Sabha. (CNBC TV18) (Mathrubhumi)

Science and technology

• Discoveries of exoplanets
  • Modeling suggests the presence of a volatile-rich magma ocean on the exoplanet L 98-59 d, a planet orbiting L 98-59, a red dwarf star 35 light-years away from Earth. (University of Oxford) (Nature)

Sports

• 2025–26 Premier League
  • In association football, the Premier League fines Chelsea F.C. £10.75 million and gives them a two-year suspended transfer ban for making secret payments worth £47 million to unregistered agents and third-parties between 2011 and 2018. (BBC Sport)