Iran War and beyond
(Al Arabiya) Republican leaders in the US Congress are facing mounting pressure to respond to anti-Muslim rhetoric after a series of inflammatory remarks and policy proposals reignited debate over Islamophobia in American politics. The latest controversy was sparked by statements from House Republicans including Andy Ogles of Tennessee and Randy Fine of Florida that critics say cross the line from security concerns into hostility toward Muslims as a religious group. – US Republican leaders in spotlight over anti-Muslim rhetoric
(Al Arabiya) The UAE slammed the targeting of its consulate in Iraqi Kurdistan for the second time in a week, the foreign affairs ministry said in a statement Saturday. – UAE strongly condemns targeting of consulate in Iraqi Kurdistan for second time this week
(AFP/Al Arabiya) Israeli settlers injured five Palestinians, including two with gunshot wounds, in a fresh attack against a village in the occupied West Bank, the local Palestinian mayor told AFP Saturday. Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that a group of settlers attacked in the area of Rashayda, near the village of Kisan, “firing live ammunition.” – Palestinians say five injured in Israeli settler West Bank attack
(AFP/Al Arabiya) Gaza’s civil defense agency said Saturday that Israeli strikes had killed six people over the past 24 hours, the latest bout of violence in the territory against the backdrop of the US-Israeli war with Iran. In a pre-dawn strike on Saturday, two policemen and a civilian were killed in the southern city of Khan Yunis, the agency reported. – Israeli strikes kill six in Gaza: Civil defense
(Reuters/Al Arabiya) United States forces executed a large-scale precision strike on Kharg Island in Iran on Friday night, the US Central Command said on Saturday. “US forces successfully struck more than 90 Iranian military targets on Kharg Island, while preserving the oil infrastructure,” CENTCOM said. – US strikes more than 90 Iranian military targets on Kharg Island, CENTCOM says
(Colin Demarest – Axios) The U.S. lacks the “political will” and popular consensus to put boots on the ground in Iran after decades of “adventures” in the Middle East, Anduril Industries founder Palmer Luckey said on “The Axios Show”. Three weeks into the Iran war, the U.S. is sending thousands of Marines to the region, with growing uncertainty about what actually comes next. “Our adventures in the Middle East of the last couple decades have robbed America of its ability to sustain a boots-on-the-ground campaign,” said Luckey, whose $60 billion company builds everything from drones to missiles to electronic warfare tools. – US lacks the “will” for Iran ground war, Anduril’s Luckey says
(Zachary Basu – Axios) The U.S. government is treating strikes on Iran like a video game, inviting the country to watch as memes and montages subsume the human cost of war. The Trump administration didn’t invent the gamification of war, nor did it invent wartime propaganda — a tool of statecraft as old as armed conflict itself. But packaging live combat as social media content — scoring real kills in real time, and broadcasting it to an audience of millions — is a first in the history of American warfare. Two weeks into Operation Epic Fury, much of the White House’s online messaging has been gleefully trollish — a stream of videos splicing real missile strikes with footage from Call of Duty, Wii Sports and Hollywood blockbusters. – How America gamified its war with Iran
(Global Times) Nearly two weeks into the US-Israeli war against Iran, the US on Friday reportedly carried out bombing raids against military targets on Kharg Island, a key oil export hub that handles most of Iran’s crude shipments. A Chinese expert described the move as reflecting a further escalation of confrontation, warning that should the conflict escalate, it could expand from military targets to civilian infrastructure, signaling both intensifying hostilities and a greater threat to global energy security. – US carries out bombing raids on military targets in Iran’s Kharg Island; move reflects escalation of confrontation: Chinese expert – Global Times
China/Serbia
(Zhang Wanshi and Liu Xuanzun – Global Times) Serbia recently purchased Chinese CM-400AKG air-to-surface ballistic missiles for its air force, becoming the weapon’s first European operator, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said late on Thursday, media reported, and a Chinese expert highlighted the missile’s high level of compatibility with the existing aircraft. “We have a significant number of those missiles, and we will have even more,” Vucic said in a live broadcast by Serbia’s state RTS TV, days after the first images of the missiles mounted on a Serbian plane leaked online, according to Reuters. Vucic added that the Serbian air force had adapted its Soviet-made MiG-29 fighter jets to carry the CM-400AKG. According to the report by Reuters, Vucic declined to disclose the price Serbia paid for the missiles, only saying it received a “slight discount”. – Serbian president confirms buying Chinese missiles after photos leaked; Chinese expert highlights their high compatibility – Global Times
China/US
(Zhong Sheng, People’s Daily/Global Times) On March 13, a piece of news quickly made global headlines. China’s Ministry of Commerce announced that the sixth round of China-US economic and trade consultations will soon be held in France. This will mark a new round of talks under the framework of the China-US economic and trade consultation mechanism, following previous meetings in Geneva, London, Stockholm, Madrid and Kuala Lumpur. This year is widely viewed as pivotal for China-US relations. Whether bilateral economic and trade ties can continue the stabilizing momentum that the world hopes to see makes this round of consultations particularly significant. – Global focus on China-U.S. trade talks to set tone for economic engagement: People’s Daily Zhong Sheng – Global Times
Georgia/Iran
(Givi Targamadze – The Kyiv Independent) On March 7, 2026, a crowd of Georgian citizens gathered outside Iran’s embassy in Tbilisi. They held aloft portraits of recently killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and chanted a pledge of obedience to the supreme leader of a foreign theocracy. A few blocks away, thousands of other Georgians continued the pro-European protests that have filled Rustaveli Avenue since the disputed November 2024 elections, demanding a new vote and a return to the Western path we fought for — and nearly died building. Two Georgias, standing side by side in the same capital, facing in opposite directions. The response of Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze was telling — and for those of us who remember what Georgia once was, infuriating. Rather than expressing alarm at citizens pledging fealty to a foreign autocrat, he equated the embassy rally with the pro-European demonstrations, saying both gatherings “need to be managed”. When a journalist pressed him on whether the State Security Service should be investigating Iran’s influence operations, Kobakhidze deflected — and instead attacked former officials who had raised the alarm as “foreign agents”. I know something about being targeted by this government. After several of us raised concerns about Iran’s expanding influence in Georgia — including the operation of an unaccredited Iranian university on Georgian soil — the security services summoned Giorgi Kandelaki, Gubaz Sanikidze, and General Vakhtang Kapanadze for questioning. And they summoned me. The message is unmistakable: in today’s Georgia, exposing a foreign adversary’s influence network is treated as a crime, while the network itself is left to flourish. I spent seven months in prison last year for refusing to appear before Georgian Dream’s sham parliamentary commission — a body that Amnesty International called a tool of political repression. – Iran is building shadow state inside Georgia. I was interrogated for saying so
