Three US jets accidentally shot down in Kuwait and Israel and Hezbollah trade blows in Lebanon.
Updated 8:23 AM EST, Mon March 2, 2026
Here’s the latest
• NOW: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine are briefing reporters at the Pentagon.
• Expanding war with Iran: Iran’s top official said Tehran “will not negotiate” with the US. Israel and Hezbollah are trading blows as the conflict widens, while explosions have been heard in Gulf cities including Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha. Here’s a look at the war in maps and charts.
• Fighter jets shot down: Three US fighter jets were accidentally shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses in an apparent “friendly fire incident,” according to the US military. All crews have been recovered and are in stable condition.
• Death toll grows: At least 555 people have died in Iran since the US-Israeli strikes began, according to the Red Crescent Society. President Donald Trump acknowledged there could be more US casualties after four US troops were killed in Kuwait.
• Global shockwaves: Qatar’s state-run energy company has stopped its production of liquified natural gas, following an Iranian attack on its facility. Qatar accounts for roughly 20% of global exports. The war has also disrupted air travel, with airspace closed in the Middle East.
“This is not Iraq,” Hegseth says as he lays out war’s objectives
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said today the war against Iran is not comparable to the Iraq War — adding the United States will not be caught in the same nation-building quagmire that it found itself in two decades ago.
“This is not Iraq,” Hegseth said from the Pentagon. “This is not endless. I was there for both. Our generation knows better, and so does this president. He called the last 20 years of nation building wars dumb, and he’s right.”
“This is the opposite,” he added. “This operation is a clear, devastating, decisive mission: Destroy the missile threat, destroy the Navy, no nukes.”
