US Struggles to Evacuate Americans From Middle East as its Assets Come Under Fire

The Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport is operational, but most international flights have been canceled, the airport’s arrivals board shows. One flight from Lebanon’s main carrier Middle East Airlines (MEA) landed at 8:25 a.m. local time, according to the airport’s website.

The Israeli military previously issued an “urgent warning” for residents to evacuate in the city’s southern suburbs, particularly the Haret Hreik neighborhood.

MEA pilots have continued to fly from Beirut, even during the Israel-Hezbollah conflict in 2024.

An electricity utility worker inspects the ruins of a police facility struck during the U.S.–Israeli military campaign in Tehran, Iran on Wednesday.

Vahid Salemi/AP

The Israel Defense Forces have begun “broad scale strikes targeting Iranian terror regime targets in Tehran,” it said in a statement Wednesday morning.

This marks the tenth such wave of attacks since the latest conflict began on Saturday, according to the IDF. Earlier Wednesday, it said its overnight strikes had targeted what it described as command centers used by Iran’s feared internal security forces and the Basij militia.

“They hit quite hard last night, it was a bad night,” one resident in northern Tehran told CNN. “I don’t know where exactly they hit, but it felt like we could hear explosions from around us.”

They added that they wanted to get out of the city and flee into the mountains. “But we also don’t know where military assets are so its hard to tell where it is going to be safe,” the resident said.

Iranian state media reported explosions in several parts of the country Wednesday morning, with one photo geolocated by CNN showing a large plume of dark smoke near the city of Isfahan.

The war in the Middle East is posing growing risks to the global economy, with oil and natural gas prices soaring as stock markets tumble.

The Middle East is a major producer of oil and natural gas, but its energy exports have been largely cut off from the rest of the world by an effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has vowed to attack ships that attempt transit through the strait, usually a conduit for around a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas production each day.

The Islamic Republic has also attacked energy infrastructure across the region, prompting several producers to halt output and increasing the risk that global supplies could be throttled.

Markets are feeling the strain. On Tuesday, the price of gasoline in the US had its largest one-day increase since 2005, when Hurricane Katrina hit. Asian markets also plummeted in early Wednesday trading, since many countries in the region source the majority of crude oil and sizable portion of gas from the Gulf states.

Inflation could rise and economic growth slow around the world if the conflict in the Middle East drags on, economists have warned.

On the ground, that translates to chaos.

Myanmar’s ruling military junta announced a fuel-rationing system due to the disruption on Wednesday. Private cars with even-numbered plates will only be allowed to drive on even dates, with the same going for odd-numbered plates on odd dates, according to Reuters.

In Thailand, authorities have urged residents not to panic buy and hoard fuel, and have encouraged government employees to work from home to save on fuel.

US President Donald Trump attempted to calm nerves on Tuesday, ordering US “insurance and guarantees” for ships traveling through the Gulf, and suggesting the navy would escort tankers through the strait “if necessary.”

But if the conflict drags on, this chokehold could fuel a humanitarian crisis in the Middle East, according to the UN’s humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher. He warned that “food prices will soar, health systems will be squeezed, and basic supplies will tighten in countries that rely on imports.”

French Air and Space Force Rafale fighter jets fly by Air Base 120 in Cazaux, south-western France, on January 29, 2026, during the TOPAZE 2026 exercise.

Philippe Lopez/AFP/Getty Images

France has deployed Rafale fighter jets over the skies of the United Arab Emirates to protect its military bases there, foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot said Tuesday.

“They conducted airspace security operations over our bases,” Barrot told CNN affiliate BFMTV. Barrot did not elaborate on the missions flown by the jets, or whether they have been involved in shooting down any drones or missiles that might threaten the bases.

France has been critical of the US-Israel attack on Iran, with President Emmanuel Macron saying the operation took place “outside the framework of international law, which we cannot approve.”

But with the conflict rapidly expanding across the Middle East, it has moved more military assets into place by deploying its nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle and its escort frigates to the Mediterranean.

Iran will hold 3-day farewell ceremony for Ayatollah Khamenei, state media reports

As Iranian clerics gather to select a new supreme leader to replace the killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, they’re doing so virtually – unable to convene in person in Qom, one of Iran’s holy cities, after Israel bombed their compound.

The strike on Monday, which Israel confirmed the following day, is significant both symbolically and practically.

The facility belonged to the Assembly of Experts, a group of 88 senior clerics that’s elected by the Iranian public every eight years. They’re responsible for choosing a new supreme leader – the highest political authority in Iran. Until they do so, those powers are being shared by a three-person council.

Khamenei did not officially declare a successor. His son Mojtaba Khamenei is among a handful of clerics tipped as likely successors – but it’s unclear where they are, or even if they are alive.

Qom itself is deeply symbolic. It is considered a holy city, home to Iran’s largest and most famous Shia seminary. Ali Khamenei studied at the Qom Seminary, as did several of Iran’s former presidents, making it a major religious hub with deep ties to the clerical regime.

The city also played a key role in the 1979 Iranian Revolution, which overthrew the monarchy and created the current Islamic Republic.

The first protests broke out in Qom in 1978, with thousands demonstrating against the royals after a newspaper editorial disparaged the then supreme leader – sparking a nationwide movement that ultimately reshaped the country’s identity and power brokers.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz speaks after his meeting with his Greek counterpart in Athens on January 20, 2026.

Aggelos Nakkas/AFP/Getty Images

Any new leader appointed by Iran’s ruling clerics would be “an unequivocal target for elimination,” Israel warned on Wednesday, as top Iranian officials gather to choose a successor to the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“Any leader appointed by the Iranian terrorist regime will be an unequivocal target for elimination – the Prime Minister and I have instructed the IDF to prepare and act by all means necessary to carry out the mission as an integral part of the objectives of Operation ‘Lion’s Roar,’” said Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz.

An elected body of senior clerics has been gathering virtually to select a new Supreme Leader after Khamenei was killed in the initial US-Israel strikes on Saturday. Khamenei did not leave an officially declared successor.

Both Israel and the US have claimed that their strikes would create the conditions for the Iranian people to establish a democratic government and restore peace to the region. At the same time, US President Trump has floated a similar outcome to Venezuela – where US forces seized the president but left much of the administration in place

Both featured heavily in the bloody crackdown on mass anti-government protests that rocked Iran for several weeks beginning late last year.

The Israeli Air Force had “completed an additional wave of strikes targeting command centers throughout Tehran,” including sites linked to the Basij, a paramilitary force, and other internal security bodies, the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.

It said the military dropped “dozens of munitions” on those command centers.

It described the sites as hubs used by Iran’s leadership to “maintain control throughout Iran.”

A illustration released by the IDF said the four targets were all located in Tehran. Two were what it described as Basij command centers; the other two were an “internal security command center” and a “riot suppression headquarters.”

Rescuers work near a damaged car at the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted a building in the town of Aramoun, south of Beirut on Wednesday.

Fadel Itani/AFP/Getty Images

Strikes and attacks continued across the Middle East on Wednesday morning as the widening conflict entered a fifth day.

Here’s what we’re seeing:

Iran: Iranian state media reported explosions in several parts of the country, including west of the capital Tehran, as Israeli military says it has launched what it described as a new “broad wave” of strikes against the country. Israel said its strikes hit “Basij and internal security command centers.” A photo geolocated by CNN shows a large plume of dark smoke near the Iranian city of Esfahan.

Israel: Israeli air defenses were working to intercept missiles launched from Iran, the military said. In its north, the Israeli military said it also detected several rockets crossing from Lebanon and intercepted most of them. A medical response group said there was a “fall” in Beit Shemesh, near Jerusalem. It was unclear whether the projectile was a rocket or debris from an intercept.

Lebanon: An airstrike in Aramoun, south of the capital Beirut, killed at least six people, the country’s health ministry said. Another strike hit a residential building in Baalbek, killing at least five people, state media reported. Israel ordered evacuations for more than a dozen Lebanese villages and towns, warning strikes were imminent.

Qatar: The Defense Ministry said an Iranian ballistic missile struck Al Udeid Air Base, the largest US military installation in the Middle East, but did not cause any casualties.

Saudi Arabia: The kingdom intercepted and destroyed two cruise missiles near the city of Al Kharj, the defense ministry said. Saudi Arabia also intercepted and destroyed nine drones that entered its airspace, according to state media.

Kuwait: The health ministry said an 11-year-old girl was killed “when shrapnel fell on a residential area.” The military intercepted “several hostile aerial targets,” with debris landing on a home and causing injuries, according to the defense ministry, reported in state media.

United Arab Emirates: A ship was struck by an “unknown projectile” off the coast of Fujairah, the UK Maritime Trade Operations said. It’s the latest ship to be struck in or around the Persian Gulf, and the vessel was not seriously damaged, UKMTO said.

A large black plume of smoke could be seen in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut on Wednesday morning, according to footage from Reuters news agency.

It comes after the Israeli military issued an “urgent warning” for residents to evacuate in the city’s southern suburb of Dahieh, particularly the Haret Hreik neighborhood.

Smoke rises in Beirut’s southern suburbs, following an escalation between Hezbollah and Israel amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, Lebanon on Wednesday.

Claudia Greco/Reuters

Iranian soccer player Sara Didar became emotional and seemed to fight back tears at a press conference a day ahead of her team’s Asian Cup match against hosts Australia.

“We’re all concerned and sad at what has happened to Iran and our families in Iran and our loved ones, but I really hope it’s very good for our country, to have good news ahead and I hope that my country would be strongly alive,” the 21-year-old striker was quoted as saying by Reuters on Wednesday.

The team’s coach Marziyeh Jafari said: “Iranian Australians here support us, we are so happy to have a country that all the people are united and supportive, and we really love them also as well and we’ll do our best to make them proud.”

Iran’s Sara Didar during the Iran team press conference for the Women’s Asian Cup at Gold Coast Stadium on the Gold Coast, Australia on Wednesday.

Dave Hunt/EPA/Shutterstock

She added that the team was full of “concerns” about their loved ones back home but that they were aiming to do their best and focus on Thursday’s second group-stage match in Gold Coast.

The players were respectful but quiet while the anthem was played before their opening match against South Korea on Monday, which they lost 3-0.

Security personnel fire tear gas as Shiite Muslims shout slogans during a protest outside the US consulate in Karachi on Sunday.

Asif Hassan/AFP/Getty Images

The US State Department has ordered non-emergency US staff in its consulates in Pakistan’s Lahore and Karachi to leave Pakistan with their families “due to safety risks.”

There is no change to the status of its embassy in the capital Islamabad, it said.

“Following the onset of hostilities between the United States and Iran on February 28, there has been an ongoing threat of drone and missile attacks from Iran and significant disruptions to commercial flights,” the US Embassy and Consulates in Pakistan said on its website.

It also cited a “risk of terrorist violence, including terrorist attacks and other activity in Pakistan.”

Clashes in Pakistan left at least 22 people dead and more than 120 injured as crowds protested the death of Iran’s supreme leader. Ten people died and at least 50 people were wounded in Karachi after protesters stormed the heavily fortified US consulate compound earlier this week.

Nicolas Maduro, Xi Jinping and Ali Khamenei.

AP/Getty Images/Reuters

In quick succession, US President Donald Trump has taken out two of Beijing’s closest allies: Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

The former is now in shackles in a New York detention facility after being snatched from Caracas by US special forces in an extraordinary overnight raid. The latter was killed in a daring daylight bomb drop in the center of Tehran in a joint US mission with Israel.

In the aftermath, China has responded with anger – condemning the capture or killing of a sovereign leader and the apparent US attempt at regime change while reaching out to Iran express its friendship. But China has done little more than look on as its geopolitical rival shakes up the rules of engagement.

For Chinese leader Xi Jinping, it comes down to hard-nosed pragmatism – and other, higher priorities, including the stability of US-China relations.

Read our full analysis here.

An Israeli strike hit a four-story residential building in the Lebanese city of Baalbek Wednesday morning, killing at least five people and wounding 15 others, according to Lebanese state media.

Response teams were working to rescue families from under the rubble, Lebanon’s state National News Agency (NNA) reported.

CNN cannot independently confirm the report and has reached out to the Israeli military for comment.

It comes as Israeli bombardments in Lebanon continued Wednesday morning.

Earlier, Lebanon’s Ministry of Health reported an airstrike in Aramoun, south of the capital Beirut, killed at least six people.

NNA also reported strikes on a hotel in Hazmieh, close to Beirut, and in southern Lebanon.

The Israeli military published a new evacuation order for more than a dozen Lebanese villages and towns, warning strikes were imminent Wednesday morning. The list includes places mostly in southern Lebanon, where Israel’s military have been targeting Hezbollah positions.

Plumes of smoke seen in Isfahan, Iran, on March 4, 2026/

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A photo geolocated by CNN shows a large plume of dark smoke near the Iranian city of Esfahan.

Hours before, the Israeli military said it had launched what it described as a new “broad wave” of strikes against Iran, targeting launch sites, aerial defense systems and other infrastructure. The photo has not appeared online before Wednesday morning.

Iranian state media reported explosions in several parts of the country Wednesday morning, including west of the capital Tehran.

A military evacuation flight for Czechs who were stranded in the Middle East landed in Prague at the Vaclav Havel Airport on Tuesday.

Roman Vondrous/AP

Despite regional travel being paralyzed, foreign nationals have been urged to leave the Middle East. Several countries are now working to evacuate stranded nationals.

As the conflict with Iran widens, global shipping costs are surging.

Supertanker costs in the Middle East have reached record highs, prompting both the US and China to call for the safeguarding of vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

The narrow channel off the coast of Iran carries 20% of global oil consumption and massive quantities of liquefied natural gas (LNG). Iran has vowed to attack any ship that tries to pass through the strait. Vessels in the area have also been hit by strikes.

Shipping through the strait has almost completely stopped. Ship-tracking data from the MarineTraffic platform reveals a virtually empty Strait of Hormuz.

Fears of a prolonged closure have caused oil and natural gas prices to jump, and world powers want to stabilize the markets.

On Tuesday, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Mao Ning said: “China urges all parties to stop the military operations at once, avoid further escalation, keep the shipping routes in the Strait of Hormuz safe, and prevent further impact on the global economy.”

US President Donald Trump went further, offering shipping insurance and guarantees. Trump also said the US Navy would escort oil tankers in the Gulf if needed.

The details are unclear, but China may have the most to gain. China is the world’s largest importer of crude and the world’s biggest buyer of Iranian oil.

It’s a point not lost on Trump’s political foes. On his X account, Democratic lawmaker Joaquin Castro points out: “This certainly looks like the United States will be subsidizing and protecting oil shipments to China.”

And it’s not just China. Asia sources a whopping 60% of its oil from the Middle East.

China and Japan are also the world’s largest importers of LNG.

US President Donald Trump said strikes targeted another set of Iranian leaders. A source told CNN Israel struck a compound belonging to a group responsible for electing Iran’s next supreme leader, though Iranian state media has said that the building was evacuated before the attack.

Trump also said Iran’s air force and navy had been “knocked out,” and the US military said it destroyed 17 Iranian ships and nearly 2,000 targets.

The war — which Trump has warned could last over a month, with the “big wave” yet to come — has disrupted global travel, stranded foreign nationals, and spiked global commodity prices.

Here are the latest developments: