Current events: 2026-03-18

Wikipedia Current Events · 2026-03-18T20:41:19-0400

Armed conflicts and attacks

Middle Eastern crisis
- 2026 Iran war
  - Israel assassinates Iranian intelligence minister Esmaeil Khatib in an overnight airstrike in Tehran. (AP) (Reuters)
  - Two people are killed and five are wounded by an Iranian ballistic missile in Ramat Gan, Israel. (The Jerusalem Post)
  - A foreign worker is killed by a cluster bomb impact in Moshav Adanim, central Israel. (The Times of Israel)
  - Four Palestinians are killed and six others are injured when falling Iranian missile fragments strike a beauty salon in Beit Awwa, West Bank, Palestine. (Wafa) (The Times of Israel)
  - Israel struck the South Pars natural gas field in the Persian Gulf and its neighboring refineries in Iran. (The Guardian)
  - Saudi Arabia's air defenses intercept and destroy multiple drones targeting gas and energy facilities in the Eastern Province, with no damage reported. (Saudi Gazette)
- 2026 Iranian strikes on Qatar
  - Iran launches a missile attack on Ras Laffan Industrial City, the world's largest LNG export facility, causing "extensive damage" according to QatarEnergy. (Al Jazeera)
- 2026 Lebanon war
  - Six people are killed and dozens injured in an Israeli airstrike on a building in Beirut, Lebanon. (Al Jazeera)
War in the Sahel
- Boko Haram insurgency
  - Over 60 Boko Haram and Islamic State – West Africa Province insurgents are killed in an operation by the Nigerian Army in Abadam, Borno State, Nigeria. (The Punch)

Business and economy

Economic impact of the 2026 Iran war
- Aramco restarts operations at Ras Tanura oil refinery, the largest of Saudi Arabia, following a 16-day closure. (Oil Price)

Disasters and accidents

Seven people are killed and three others are critically injured in an explosion and fire at a residential building in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India. (NDTV)
One person is killed when a cable car cabin crashes down a snowy mountainside in Engelberg, Obwalden, Switzerland. (CNN)

International relations

Politics and elections

Science and technology

Sports

The WNBA and its players' union reach a tentative agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement that, if ratified by the league and union, will increase average player salaries and the team salary cap more than fourfold. (ESPN)