Iran war: Much of Gulf, Israel halts oil, gas production

DW News · Mar 2, 2026 · Collected from RSS

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Skip next section Trump: 'Big Wave' yet to comeMarch 2, 2026Trump: 'Big Wave' yet to comeUS President Donald Trump has said that the "big wave" of US strikes on Iran hasn't come yet. Speaking to US broadcaster CNN, Trump added that Washington does not know who the country's new leader will be following the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah ​Ali ⁠Khamenei. At the same time, the New York Post tabloid reported that Trump said he "couldn't rule out" boots on the ground in Iran. Trump has not taken open questions at a press briefing since the US strikes began on Saturday, but has answered individual questions from some journalists. https://p.dw.com/p/59ft0Skip next section Germany to start evacuating stranded citizensMarch 2, 2026Germany to start evacuating stranded citizensThe German government says it is preparing to send civilian planes to Saudi Arabia and Oman to start evacuating nationals stranded due to the Iran war. Up to 30,000 German tourists are believed to be stuck in the Middle East. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said vulnerable groups such as children, sick people and pregnant women would be flown out first. He said he was in talks with national carrier Lufthansa to arrange the flights. "The safety of our citizens is our top priority," Wadephul said. The foreign minister added that crisis support teams would be sent to Muscat, Doha and Dubai to look into the possibility of evacuating Germans, including overland. "Further teams are investigating the situation at the border crossings," he said, including a team from the German Embassy in Cairo assisting with crossings from Israel. "We have a common goal: we want to help Germans get home." https://p.dw.com/p/59frwSkip next section Much of Gulf, Israel halts oil, gas productionMarch 2, 2026Much of Gulf, Israel halts oil, gas productionLNG and oil producing sites may face the risk of attack, and exporting by sea is also unlikely to be without risk at presentImage: Karim Jaafar/AFP/Getty ImagesQatar has halted its production of liquefied natural gas as a precaution, as Iran continues to strike Gulf countries in retaliation for Israeli and US strikes against it. This followed drone attacks on the Ras Laffran complex, where natural gas is cooled to liquefied form for export by ship. Various production facilities across the Middle East started implementing precautionary shutdowns, responding both to the threat of strikes on production sites and the prospect of difficulties shipping oil and gas through the Strait of Hormuz. Qatari LNG production alone is equivalent to about 20% of global supply, and its importance as a supplier has grown in places like Europe as the continent tries to move away from Russian oil and gas amid the war in Ukraine. Natural gas prices rose sharply. The benchmark European futures market, the TTF front-month contract price, went from €32 (roughly $37.50) per megawatt hour at the close of trade last week to more than €44 per megawatt hour by mid afternoon in Europe. In Saudi Arabia, the country's biggest oil refinery halted operations after a drone strike on Monday. State oil giant Saudi Aramco produces around 550,000 barrels per day (bpd) at the Ras Tanura ‌refinery. Most oil production in Iraqi Kurdistan and Israel was also offline, throttling exports to Egypt. Oil prices leapt past $80 per barrel, to their highest levels since January 2025, surpassing the small spike during Israel and Iran's brief war in the summer of 2025. Iran is also responsible for a little less than 5% of global oil supplies. https://p.dw.com/p/59fi0Skip next section Thousands of German cruise passengers stranded in the GulfMarch 2, 2026Thousands of German cruise passengers stranded in the GulfOn the same day that German tour operators reported 30,000 customers stranded worldwide by airspace closures, German maritime companies said that thousands of cruise passengers were stuck in the Gulf. The German shipowners' association (VDR) said that 25 ships belonging to seven different companies were affected, leaving some 7,000 passengers unable to pass through the Strait of Hormuz for security reasons. Although the VDR didn't name any specific companies, Dertour and TUI Cruises announced earlier on Monday that they had suspended or changed travel plans across the Middle East. The narrow waterway between Iran and Oman is one of the world's most critical oil shipping routes, carrying around 20% of global crude exports from the Gulf to markets in Europe, Asia and North America. Iran's Revolutionary Guard has reportedly warned vessels not to pass amid the ongoing US-Israel war with Iran. Strait of Hormuz: World's most critical oil chokepointTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video https://p.dw.com/p/59fmkSkip next section Iran appoints IRGC general as acting defense ministerMarch 2, 2026Iran appoints IRGC general as acting defense ministerIran's president has appointed an acting defense minister following the death of the previous holder of the post, state news agency IRNA reported on Monday. President Masoud Pezeshkian tasked a senior officer from the powerful Revolutionary Guards, Brigadier General Majid Ebnelreza, with taking over the post, at least on a temporary basis. Previous Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh was killed in the opening salvo of airstrikes on Iran by the US and Israel over the weekend. https://p.dw.com/p/59fhVSkip next section US Defense Secretary insists regime change not the goalMarch 2, 2026US Defense Secretary insists regime change not the goalHegseth (left) appeared to roll back Trump's claim that regime change in Iran is one of the US' objectives [FILE: January 2026]Image: Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesUS Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has addressed concerns that Washington's conflict with Iran could spiral as previous US interventions in the region have done. "This is not Iraq. This is not endless," he said, standing alongside Air Force General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. This was the first official press conference since the strikes began on Saturday. Appearing to walk back earlier calls from the Trump administration for a change of leadership in Tehran, Hegseth said there was only one "clear, devastating, decisive mission" to "destroy the missile threat" from Iran. He added that there would be "no nation-building quagmire, no democracy building exercise," appearing to allude to the US-led war in Afghanistan, as well as Iraq. Although Hegseth said that regime change was not the goal, he insisted that with the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, "the regime sure did change and the world is better off for it." He did not comment on the rest of the Iranian leadership, which remains intact. In laying out a justification for the strikes, Hegseth said that Iran "waged a savage, one-sided war against America" since the Islamic revolution in 1979. "Iran was building powerful missiles and drones to create a conventional shield for their nuclear blackmail ambitions," Hegseth said, before accusing Tehran of not taking negotiations to curtail its nuclear program seriously. The previous Trump administration tore up the landmark JCPOA deal made in 2015, in which Western allies agreed to lift some sanctions against Iran in exchange for major curbs to its nuclear ambitions. Hegseth did not give any indication of a US plan to wrap up the conflict. President Trump has been highly critical of his predecessors who got the US military involved in foreign conflicts. https://p.dw.com/p/59fQjSkip next section FACT CHECK: Are these videos really related to the current attacks? March 2, 2026FACT CHECK: Are these videos really related to the current attacks? Claim: This video, viewed more than 1 million times on X, and also shared on other platforms such as Instagram and Facebook, allegedly shows a missile hitting a building in Tel Aviv, Israel. DW Fact check: Fake This video doesnt show a missile attack in Tel Aviv — it's completely AI-generatedImage: X Although media reports showit's true that Iranian missiles hit Tel Aviv, this video doesn't depict that. It's fake, to be more precise: AI-generated. There are several clues: The antennas of the building crash before being hit. Also, the building on the left falls on another one, which doesn't collapse — this couldn't be the case in real circumstances. And this is not the only AI-generated video circulating about the US-Israel war with Iran. Claim: This viral TikTok video allegedly shows a missile hitting Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the world's largest building. DW Fact check: Fake This video is AI-generated — Burj Khalifa in Dubai wasn't hit by a missileImage: tiktok The video, viewed more than 250.000 times on TikTok, is an AI-Fake too. There are many hints: First, the missile appears to go through the building, although it hits the top of it. Also, the debris of the tower vanishes in the air. And some cars keep driving towards the tower after the bombing, which would not be typical behavior if there was an explosion. Also, the video is labeled as AI-generated. Indeed, after the US and Israeli attacks on Iran, Tehran reportedly launched retaliatory attacks across the Gulf region. Iran launches retaliatory strikes across Gulf regionTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video According to media reports, Dubai was targeted as well and air defenses were activated. Some buildings and hotels like the Burj Al Arab, which is a totally different building to the Burj Khalifa, were reportedly hit by debris from an intercepted drone. There are no media reports or any other evidence that Burj Khalifa was hit by missiles or debris. Also, the international news agency Reuters provided photos of the tower, proving that it's not damaged. https://p.dw.com/p/59fSrSkip next section Iran will defend itself whatever it costs — security chief Larijani