Trump urges US allies to send warships to Strait of Hormuz as Iran vows to retaliate
Mar 14, 2026, 9:33 PM | Updated: Mar 16, 2026, 4:58 am
CAIRO (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said he hoped allies would send warships to secure the vital Strait of Hormuz while Iran urged people to evacuate three ports in the United Arab Emirates as its war with the United States and Israel showed no signs of ending.
Iran’s call to evacuate the Middle East’s busiest port and two other UAE ports marked the first time it had openly threatened a neighboring country’s non-U.S. assets.
Tehran said the U.S. had used “ports, docks and hideouts” in the UAE to launch strikes on Kharg Island, home to the main terminal handling Iran’s oil exports, without providing evidence. It urged people to leave areas where it said U.S. forces were sheltering.
Meanwhile, Lebanon’s humanitarian crisis deepened, with over 800 people killed and 850,000 displaced as Israel launched waves of strikes against Iran-backed Hezbollah militants.
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said the U.S. attacked Kharg Island and Abu Musa Island from two locations in the UAE, Ras Al-Khaimah and a place “very close to Dubai,” calling that dangerous and saying Iran “will try to be careful not to attack any populated area” there.
U.S. Central Command said it had no response to Iran’s claim. A diplomatic adviser to the UAE’s president, Anwar Gargash, said on social media the country has the right to defend itself but “still prioritizes reason and logic, and continues exercising restraint.”
Iran has fired hundreds of missiles and drones at Arab Gulf neighbors during the war, but it has said it was targeting U.S. assets, even as hits or attempts were reported on civilian ones such as airports and oil fields.
Araghchi said the Strait of Hormuz was closed only to “those who are attacking us and their allies.”
As global anxiety soars over oil prices and supplies, Trump said Saturday that he hopes China, France, Japan, South Korea, the U.K. and others send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz “open and safe.” Britain in response said it was discussing with allies a “range of options” to secure shipping.
Araghchi, in a social media post, urged neighbors to “expel foreign aggressors” and described Trump’s call as “begging.”
On Saturday, Iran’s joint military command reiterated its threat to attack U.S.-linked “oil, economic and energy infrastructures” in the region if the Islamic Republic’s oil infrastructure is hit.
Iran’s semiofficial Fars news agency said the Kharg Island strikes caused no damage to oil infrastructure. It said they targeted an air defense facility, a naval base, the airport control tower and an offshore oil company’s helicopter hangar.
The U.S. Department of Defense on Saturday identified six service members who died when the military refueling aircraft they were aboard crashed Thursday while supporting operations against Iran.
The service members were Maj. John A. Klinner, 33; Capt. Ariana G. Savino, 31; Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34; Capt. Seth R. Koval, 38; Capt. Curtis J. Angst, 30; and Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, according to U.S. officials.
The crash in western Iraq followed an unspecified incident involving two aircraft in “friendly airspace,” according to U.S. Central Command. The other plane landed safety.
A missile struck a helipad inside the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad on Saturday. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. The embassy complex, one of the largest U.S. diplomatic facilities in the world, has been repeatedly targeted by rockets and drones fired by Iran-aligned militias.
The State Department again warned citizens in Iraq to leave “now,” and by land since commercial flights were not available. It noted that Iran and Iran-aligned militia groups “may continue to target” U.S. citizens, interests and infrastructure.
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Mednick reported from Tel Aviv, Israel, and Magdy from Cairo. Associated Press writers Melanie Lidman in Jerusalem; Sally Abou AlJoud, Kareem Chehayeb and Bassem Mroue in Beirut; and Tia Goldenberg in Washington contributed to this report.
