03-31 00:00 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio tells Al Jazeera that Iran will never possess a nuclear weapon.
Iran war updates: Marco Rubio tells Al Jazeera that Trump prefers diplomacy
These were the updates on the US-Israeli war on Iran on Monday, March 30, 2026,
Published On 30 Mar 2026
|Updated: 31 Mar 2026 (00:12 GMT)
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03-30 02:10 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
Power being restored after Iran’s Ministry of Energy reported outages in the capital, Tehran following attacks.
Iran’s parliament speaker has accused the United States of plotting a ground attack despite publicly pushing for a negotiated deal, as the US deploys thousands of military personnel to the Middle East.
“Our men are waiting for the arrival of the American soldiers on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional allies once and for all,” Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in a statement on Sunday, carried by the official IRNA news agency, as Iran struggled with power cuts amid escalating Israeli attacks on central and western areas of the country.
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Iran’s Ministry of Energy reported power outages in the capital, Tehran, its surrounding region and neighbouring Alborz province on Sunday, “following attacks on electricity industry facilities”. The Fars news agency reported later that the outages were being resolved.
It was unclear whether the attacks were related to US President Donald Trump’s threats to strike Iranian power stations and other energy infrastructure if Tehran did not agree to a deal to end the war. Trump extended his deadline by 10 days through April 6 as Washington presented a 15-point plan for peace that critics described as “maximalist”.
Al Jazeera’s Ali Hashem, reporting from Tehran, said that authorities had activated substations to restore power. “This gives an indication of how much they’ve been also preparing for such situations,” he said.
Ghalibaf’s comments on Iran’s readiness for a ground assault came as The Washington Post reported that the Pentagon was preparing for weeks of limited ground operations in Iran, potentially including raids on Kharg Island, a crude export hub, and coastal sites near the Strait of Hormuz shipping chokepoint.
As the US-Israel war on Iran stretches into its fifth week, the Trump administration is also planning to send thousands of soldiers from the army’s 82nd Airborne to the region, following a US Central Command (CENTCOM) announcement Saturday that about 3,500 military personnel had arrived in the Middle East on board the USS Tripoli.
IRGC threatens retaliation after university attacks
The Israeli military said it dropped more than 120 munitions on sites used for research, development, and production of weaponry in Tehran on Sunday.
Iran’s Ministry of Health reported that 2,076 people had been killed since the start of the war, including 216 children.
Among the deaths, six people were killed in a US-Israeli attack on a residential area in the Iranian village of Osmavandan, according to the Mehr news agency, which added that five houses were destroyed and 22 were severely damaged.
A university in Iran’s central city of Isfahan said it was hit by US-Israeli air strikes on Sunday for the second time since the war erupted, leaving four university staff members wounded.
The strike followed an attack the previous day on Iran’s University of Science and Technology. After that attack, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it would target two Israeli or US universities in the region in retaliation, according to Iranian state television.
Hossein Sadeghi, head of the Information and Public Relations Center at Iran’s Ministry of Education, told the IRNA news agency that at least 250 students and teachers have been killed amid strikes on 600 educational facilities across Iran since the war began.
Also on Sunday, a commercial building housing Qatar’s Al-Araby TV in Tehran was hit, with video footage showing walls and windows blown out of the multistorey block. “It was a real miracle we survived,” said Al Araby camera operator Mohammadreza Shademan. “There was no military target here”.
As the civilian cost of the war mounts, Iran is demanding compensation in a five-point plan presented to the US.
That plan also includes a halt to killings of Iranian officials, an end to hostilities, safeguards against the outbreak of more war, and Iran’s “exercise of sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz”.
Iran, Hezbollah launch attacks
Israel’s military said on Sunday evening that it had detected seven new incoming missile salvoes fired from Iran during the day. These coincided with Hezbollah rocket attacks on northern Israel, with sirens triggered in more than 100 towns.
Israel’s ADAMA, a pesticide maker in the Neot Hovav industrial zone, located 9km (6 miles) south of the city of Beersheba, said its Makhteshim plant was hit either by an Iranian missile or debris from a missile. No casualties were reported, and no leak of hazardous materials was found.
Reporting from Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh said it was “an incident that raises a lot of alarms”.
“This industrial zone has about 19 different factories, including a bromide factory and some pharmaceutical factories. But it’s also home to the main hazardous disposal sites
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03-30 02:10 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
Uncertainty looms over Trump’s approval of the Pentagon’s plans for limited ground operations in Iran’s strategic regions.
The Pentagon is preparing for weeks of limited ground operations in Iran, potentially including raids on Kharg Island and coastal sites near the Strait of Hormuz, according to United States officials quoted by The Washington Post newspaper.
The plans, which fall short of a full invasion, could involve raids by special operations and conventional infantry troops, the Post reported on Saturday, exposing US personnel to Iranian drones and missiles, ground fire, and improvised explosives.
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Whether President Donald Trump would approve any of those plans remains uncertain, according to the report.
“It’s the job of the Pentagon to make preparations in order to give the Commander in Chief maximum optionality. It does not mean the president has made a decision,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement, responding to questions over the Post report.
The Trump administration has deployed US Marines to the Middle East as the war in Iran stretches into its fifth week, and has also been planning to send thousands of soldiers from the army’s 82nd Airborne to the region.
On Saturday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said about 3,500 additional soldiers arrived in the Middle East on board the USS Tripoli.
The sailors and marines are with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and arrived in the region on March 27, along with “transport and strike fighter aircraft, as well as amphibious assault and tactical assets”, according to CENTCOM.
Officials speaking to The Washington Post said discussions within the administration over the past month have touched upon the possible seizure of Kharg Island, a key Iranian oil export hub in the Gulf, and raids into other coastal areas near the Strait of Hormuz to find and destroy weapons that can target commercial and military shipping.
According to the report, one person said the objectives under consideration would probably take “weeks, not months” to complete, while another put the potential timeline at “a couple of months”.
The Pentagon had not responded on Saturday to the Post’s requests for comment. Iran has yet to respond to the report.
The report comes as Pakistan, which shares a 900km-long (559-mile) border with Iran, mediates between Washington and Tehran, hosting two days of talks starting on Sunday with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Egypt.
Iranian threats
The Iranian parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said on Sunday the “enemy openly sends messages of negotiation and dialogue and secretly plans a ground attack”.
“Unaware that our men are waiting for the arrival of American soldiers on the ground to set fire to them and punish their regional partners forever. Our firing continues. Our missiles are in place,” the Tasnim news agency reported, quoting Ghalibaf.
“Our determination and faith have increased. We are aware of the enemy’s weaknesses, and we clearly see the effects of fear and terror in the enemy’s army.”
It was not clear whether Ghalibaf was responding to the Post report.
On Wednesday, Ghalibaf had warned that intelligence reports suggested that “Iran’s enemies” were planning to occupy an Iranian island with support from an unnamed country in the region.
He said any such attempt would be met with targeted attacks on the “vital infrastructure” of the regional country – which he did not name – that assists in the operation.
Meanwhile, Iran’s navy chief Shahram Irani said on Sunday that the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier would be targeted if it comes within range.
“As soon as the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group comes within firing range, we will avenge the blood of the martyrs of the Dena warship by launching various types of sea-to-sea missiles,” Irani was quoted as saying by state TV, referring to an Iranian frigate sunk by the US on March 4.
On Wednesday, Tasnim quoted an unnamed military source as saying that Iran could open a new front at the mouth of the Red Sea if military action takes place on “Iranian islands or anywhere else in our lands”.
The source told Tasnim that Iran can pose a “credible threat” in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, which lies between Yemen and Djibouti.
Tasnim later quoted an “informed source” claiming that Yemen’s Houthi rebels, backed by Iran, are prepared to play a role “if there is a need to control the Bab al-Mandeb Strait to further punish the enemy”.
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03-30 02:10 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom raise concern over ‘de facto discriminatory character of the bill.’
European countries have expressed “deep concern” over Israeli plans to extend the application of the death penalty in a bill that could disproportionately target Palestinians.
In a statement shared by the German Federal Foreign Office on Sunday, the foreign ministers of France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom expressed their “deep concern” over the bill, which could be voted into law next week.
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“We are particularly worried about the de facto discriminatory character of the bill. The adoption of this bill would risk undermining Israel’s commitments with regards to democratic principles,” it said.
Israel’s far-right government is due to put its bill to a second and third reading in the Knesset, the parliament, on Monday. If it passes, it will almost certainly face a legal challenge and go before the Supreme Court.
The legislation is being considered as Israel’s genocidal policies against Palestinians in Gaza continue, and as Palestinians in the occupied West Bank experience a surge in Israeli military and settler violence.
Amnesty International previously said the proposals, championed by government figures, including far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, would make the death penalty “another discriminatory tool in Israel’s system of apartheid”.
“These amendments mean that the most extreme and irrevocable punishment is being reserved for, and weaponised against, Palestinians,” the rights group said in February.
At that time, a dozen United Nations rights experts argued that the legislation would remove “judicial and prosecutorial discretion” and prevent courts from considering “individual circumstances, including mitigating factors, and from imposing a proportionate sentence that fits the crime”.
Also on Sunday, Council of Europe chief Alain Berset issued an appeal to Israel over the draft law. “The Council of Europe opposes the death penalty in all places and in all circumstances,” he said, calling on the authorities to abandon it.
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03-30 02:10 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
Despite general support for war, several Republicans say boots on the ground would be a political Rubicon for Trump.
United States Representative Nancy Mace, a Republican, has said Congress should have a say in any decisions to deploy troops to Iran, further underscoring division within US President Donald Trump’s political party.
Mace’s comments on Sunday came days after she emerged from a classified House of Representatives briefing on the war, saying it had raised concerns over the administration’s plans.
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They also came on the same day the Washington Post reported the Pentagon is preparing for limited ground operations in Iran, including raids on Kharg Island and sites near the Strait of Hormuz.
“If we’re going to do a conventional ground operation with Marines and 82nd Airborne that is a ground war that I believe Congress should have a say and we should be briefed,” Mace said during an interview on CNN.
“We don’t want troops on the ground,” Mace added.
“I think that’s a line for a lot of people. If we’re going to do that, then come to Congress and get the proper authorities to do so.”
Trump has so far not publicly supported deploying US troops to Iran, but has maintained that all options remain on the table. He has broadly claimed success in the month since the US and Israel launched the war on February 28, but his endgame and final timeline for the conflict have remained unclear.
Military analysts and Trump’s own director of national intelligence have said that while Iran’s military capabilities have been diminished in the fighting, the country still maintains the ability to inflict damage on the region and to potentially rebuild.
Many experts have also pointed to the limits of using air power alone in fully degrading Iran’s military capabilities, destroying its nuclear programme, or in achieving more comprehensive regime change.
In a statement on Sunday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt did not deny the Washington Post’s report, but said the Pentagon regularly prepares a range of options for the president to review.
“It’s the job of the Pentagon to make preparations in order to give the commander-in-chief maximum optionality. It does not mean the president has made a decision,” Leavitt told the newspaper.
Inter-party divisions
Deploying boots on the ground has been a major political Rubicon for Trump, who has long favoured swift and finite military action abroad in what he calls an “America First” strategy.
The decision would also be a major gut check for Republican lawmakers, who have generally thrown their support behind Trump even as influential figures in his “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) movement have condemned the war.
That was largely on display at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) gathering held in Dallas, Texas over the weekend, where several speakers cheered the war or avoided the issue altogether.
However, former member of Congress and Trump ally Matt Gaetz directly decried any possible ground invasion.
“A ground invasion of Iran will make our country poorer and less safe,” he said. “It will mean higher gas prices, higher food prices, and I’m not sure we would end up killing more terrorists than we would create.”
The US has increased its military presence in the region in recent days, with the US Central Command (CENTCOM) saying about 3,500 additional soldiers arrived in the Middle East on board the USS Tripoli on Saturday.
About 2,000 soldiers from the US Army’s 82nd Airborne Division were diverted from the Asia Pacific region prior to that.
Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that Trump was weighing sending an additional 10,000 troops to the region, where about 40,000 US troops are typically stationed.
Speaking to Politico last week, Representatives Eli Crane and Derrick Van Orden, both Republicans and former members of the military, also said their support for the war would shift if Trump deployed troops.
“My biggest concern this whole time is that this would turn into another long Middle Eastern war,” Crane told the news site.
“Though I don’t want to try and take away any of the president’s ability to carry out this operation, I know a lot of our supporters and a lot of members of Congress are very concerned,” he said.
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03-30 02:10 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
Iran reportedly hits E-3 Sentry flying radars, which track drones, missiles, aircraft from hundreds of kilometres away.
As the United States and Israel launched the war on Iran on February 28, Tehran’s response was swift. Not only did Iran fire missiles and drones towards Israel, but it also targeted US assets in Gulf countries, expanding the conflict in one of the most important energy-producing regions in the world.
In the past month, Iranian attacks have damaged or destroyed radar systems, a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defence system and Reaper drones in attacks on US bases in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait as it sought to counter the US air campaign, according to media reports. The Al Udeid base in Qatar, where US forces are stationed, also came under attack.
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On Friday, an Iranian missile and drones reportedly hit the Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). The airbase, about 96km (60 miles) southeast of the Saudi capital, Riyadh, is run by the Saudi air force but is also used by US forces.
The attack damaged multiple KC-135 tankers, which refuel US aircraft in flight, and an E-3 Sentry airborne warning and control system (AWACS) aircraft, Air & Space Forces Magazine, a publication that covers US air defence and national security issues, reported on Saturday.
At least 15 American soldiers were wounded and five were in serious condition, The Associated Press news agency reported, quoting unnamed sources briefed on the strikes.
Neither the US military nor Saudi Arabia has commented on the incident. Al Jazeera could not independently verify the reports.
Here’s what we know about the incident and why it is significant as the US-Israel war on Iran enters its second month:
What do we know about the incident?
In a video statement on Saturday, Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesperson for Iran’s central military headquarters, said an attack on Friday on the airbase had destroyed one of the refuelling aircraft while three others were damaged and put out of service.
Satellite images published by Iran’s English-language news channel Press TV showed the destruction of several aircraft at the airbase after the Iranian strikes.
If what Iran said proves to be true, the airbase came under attack for the second time in a week. An attack on March 13 damaged five KC-135 refuelling aircraft, a US official was quoted as saying by the WSJ, although the report has not been independently verified.
Saudi Arabia had previously intercepted several missiles fired near the base. It has been intercepting Iranian missiles and drones targeting the country’s oil-rich eastern region.
On Friday, the Saudi Ministry of Defence said it intercepted several drones and missiles launched from Iran towards Riyadh but has not yet commented on the attack on the airbase.
Meanwhile, former US military officials have told the WSJ that targeting the E-3G AWACS in particular “is a big deal”.
Retired US Air Force Colonel John Venable told the WSJ on Saturday that the attack “hurts the US ability to see what’s happening in the Gulf and maintain situational awareness”.
Heather Penney, a former F-16 pilot and director of studies and research at the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies think tank, told Air & Space Forces Magazine that “the loss of this E-3 is incredibly problematic, given how crucial these battle managers are to everything from airspace deconfliction, aircraft deconfliction, targeting and providing other lethal effects that the entire force needs for the battle space”.
What is AWACS?
The E-3 Sentry, or AWACS, is critical in managing a battle space and tracking drones, missiles and aircraft from hundreds of kilometres away.
According to the US Air Force, it is basically “a modified Boeing 707/320 commercial airframe and has a rotating radar dome”. This radar has a range of more than 375km (250 miles), which enables it to provide “situational awareness of friendly, neutral and hostile activity, command and control of an area of responsibility”, the US Air Force said.
Introduced in the US military in 1977, it also provides “all-altitude and all-weather surveillance of the battle space, and early warning of enemy actions during joint, allied, and coalition operations”, it said.
Data on the aircraft published on the official website of the US Air Force also indicate that it has the ability to carry out missions lasting eight continuous hours without the need for refuelling. There is also a possibility of extending its range and time in the air by refuelling while flying.
The US has a fleet of 16 E-3 Sentry aircraft in service, and according to recent flight tracking data, the US Air Force has sent six of them to bases in Europe and the Middle East during Washington’s war on Iran.
What is so special about the E-3?
Losi
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03-30 02:10 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
Kuwaiti authorities say Indian worker killed in attack that also caused ‘significant material damage’ to building.
An Iranian attack on a power and water desalination plant in Kuwait has killed one Indian worker and damaged a building at the site, according to Kuwaiti authorities, as regional tensions heighten amid the United States-Israeli war on Iran.
“A service building at a power and water desalination plant was attacked as part of the Iranian aggression against the State of Kuwait, resulting in the death of an Indian worker and significant material damage to the building,” Kuwait’s Ministry of Electricity said in a statement on Monday.
Technical and emergency response teams were immediately sent to the site to deal with the aftermath of the attack and ensure the normal continuation of operations, it added.
Later on Monday, Iran claimed Israel was behind the attack.
“The brutal aggression by the Israeli regime against Kuwait’s desalination plant, carried out in recent hours under the pretext of accusing the Islamic Republic of Iran, is a sign of the vileness and depravity of the Zionist occupiers,” said the military’s operational command Khatam al-Anbiya in a statement carried by state TV.
Reporting from Kuwait City, Al Jazeera’s Malik Traina said Kuwait has been subjected to repeated attacks since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran more than a month ago.
“Just yesterday evening, the Defence Ministry said that 14 missiles and 12 drones were detected in Kuwaiti airspace, and several of those drones were targeting a military camp, where 10 servicemen were injured,” he said. “They have since been taken to the hospital and have received medical treatment.”
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry condemned the attack in the “strongest terms the heinous Iranian aggressions targeting a camp, power Station, and water desalination plant in Kuwait”.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs … in this context, affirms the State of Qatar’s full solidarity with the State of Kuwait and its support for all measures it takes to preserve its sovereignty and security,” it said in a post on X.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry also condemned the attack in the “strongest terms the heinous Iranian attacks targeting a camp belonging to the Kuwaiti Armed Forces”, in a post on X
“The Kingdom emphasises that these cowardly attempts by Iran and its blatant conduct toward the countries of the region confirm the continuation of an unjustifiable hostile approach under any circumstances,” it said.
“Such actions constitute a clear violation of international laws and norms, as well as the principles of good neighbourliness, and risk further escalation in the region,” it added.
Oman’s foreign ministry issued “condemnation and strong denunciation” of the attack.
“The Sultanate of Oman renews its call to all parties on the necessity of an immediate and complete cessation of the war and refraining from escalation,” it said in a statement.
Al Jazeera’s Zein Basravi reporting from Dubai said there’s been “serious concern” in the GCC about attacks on integrated power plants and water desalination plants like the one in Kuwait.
“The region produces 40 percent of overall global desalinated water, and it is consumed in the region, and it’s where these cities get their potable drinking water from,” he added.
Regional escalations have continued to spike since the start of the US and Israeli attacks on Iran, which have killed more than 2,000 people – including former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, several other top officials and at least 216 children, according to Iranian authorities – and destroyed critical infrastructure.
Iranian forces have hit back with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel and regional countries hosting US military assets, causing casualties and damage to infrastructure.
Iran has also effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, through which some 20 percent of global oil and liquefied natural gas passes, in a move that has driven up energy prices and rattled financial markets.
Last week, US President Donald Trump said he would pause threatened attacks on Iranian energy plants for 10 days until April 6. Iran said it would respond with its own attacks on energy sites across the Gulf region if its facilities came under attack.
The war has exposed the vulnerability of critical water infrastructure in a region that is among the most water-scarce in the world.
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03-30 02:10 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
Since the US and Israel launched a war on Iran, Israel has closed holy sites in Jerusalem, citing safety concerns.
Israeli police have prevented Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to mark Palm Sunday Mass.
The Catholic Church said on Sunday that Pizzaballa and Francesco lelpo, the official Guardian of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, were both prevented from entering the church.
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“As a result, and for the first time in centuries, the Heads of the Church were prevented from celebrating the Palm Sunday Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre,” the statement said.
“This incident is a grave precedent and disregards the sensibilities of billions of people around the world, who, during this week, look to Jerusalem,” it added.
Israeli police said all holy sites in Jerusalem were closed due to safety concerns amid the United States and Israel’s war on Iran. During the Muslim month of Ramadan, which also coincided with the war, Al-Aqsa Mosque was also closed to worshippers.
In a statement to the AFP news agency, Israeli police said Pizzaballa’s request to deliver the Catholic mass to mark Palm Sunday, the beginning of the Christian Holy Week that ends with Easter, could not be approved.
“The Old City and the holy sites constitute a complex area that does not allow access for large emergency and rescue vehicles, which significantly challenges response capabilities and poses a real risk to human life in the event of a mass casualty incident,” the force said.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a post on X that the blocking of Pizzaballa was out of “special concern for his safety” as holy sites in Jerusalem had been “repeatedly targeted” by Iran.
“There was no malicious intent whatsoever, only concern for his safety and that of his party,” the post read.
“However, given the holiness of the week leading up to Easter for the world’s Christians, Israel’s security arms are putting together a plan to enable church leaders to worship at the holy site in the coming days,” it added.
While the Catholic Church had already announced it had cancelled the traditional Palm Sunday procession, in a statement, it said Israel’s actions to ban Pizzaballa and Ielpo were a “manifestly unreasonable and grossly disproportionate measure”.
“This hasty and fundamentally flawed decision, tainted by improper considerations, represents an extreme departure from basic principles of reasonableness, freedom of worship, and respect for the status quo,” it said.
But the prevention also caused condemnation.
US Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, called the incident an “unfortunate overreach already having major repercussions around the world.”
“Home Front Command Guidelines restrict any gatherings to 50 people or less. The 4 representatives of the Catholic Church were well below that restriction. Statements from the Gov’t of Israel indicate the action to prohibit Cardinal Pizzaballa entry to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre were for safety reasons, but churches, synagogues, and mosques throughout Jerusalem have met with the restrictions of 50 or less,” Huckabee wrote on X.
“For the Patriarch to be barred from entry to the Church on Palm Sunday for a private ceremony is difficult to understand or justify. Israel has indicated it will work with the Patriarch to accommodate a safe means of carrying out Holy Week activities,” it added.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said the incident was “an offence not only to the faithful, but to any community that respects religious freedom”.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani also said in a post on X that he had summoned Israel’s ambassador over the incident.
French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the decision and said worship “for all religions” must be guaranteed in Jerusalem.
The European Union’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, also denounced the incident as a “violation of religious freedom and long-standing protections governing holy sites.”
“Freedom of worship in Jerusalem must be fully guaranteed, without exception, for all faiths. Jerusalem’s multi-religious character must be protected,” she added.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called the blocking of Pizzaballa an “unjustified attack on religious freedom”, calling on Israel to “respect the diversity of faiths and international law. Because without tolerance, coexistence is impossible.”
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03-30 02:10 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
Kuwait says an Indian worker has been killed in an Iranian raid as attacks across the Gulf continue.
Iran war updates: Marco Rubio tells Al Jazeera that Trump prefers diplomacy
These were the updates on the US-Israeli war on Iran on Monday, March 30, 2026,
Published On 30 Mar 2026
|Updated: 31 Mar 2026 (00:12 GMT)
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03-29 00:00 · 中东,局势,AlJazeera,中东
Organisers say ‘Together Alliance’ event was the largest anti-far-right march in British history.
London, United Kingdom – Tens of thousands of people have marched through central London in what organisers are calling the largest ever demonstration against the far right in British history.
The Together Alliance march, backed by about 500 groups including trade unions, antiracism campaigners and Muslim representative bodies, brought together a diverse crowd of all ages from across the country on Saturday, converging on Whitehall near the Houses of Parliament.
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Organisers said that half a million people took part.
Kevin Courtney, chairman of the Together Alliance, told crowds the march “gives us all confidence to carry on.”
London’s Metropolitan Police put the figure considerably lower, at approximately 50,000, though it acknowledged it was difficult to reach an accurate figure given how spread out the crowds were.
The protest was met with a far smaller group of counterprotesters waving Israeli flags and Iran’s pre-1979 monarchical flag.
Aadam Muuse, a trade union activist, told Al Jazeera that racism and Islamophobia had moved from the fringes into mainstream politics, and was “being pushed by parliamentarians”.
He said the march was “much needed to push back against [Reform leader Nigel] Farage and his ilk,” adding that the populist party “must be defeated at the ballot box and [far-right agitator] Tommy Robinson [must be] challenged on the streets”.
Al Jazeera’s Milena Veselinovic, reporting from the march, said demonstrators were resisting what they saw as “the politics of hate and division” in the United Kingdom.
One demonstrator, activist and writer Hamja Ahsan, told Al Jazeera he was motivated to attend after a rally last year that was organised by Robinson and drew 150,000 people. That rally was marred by violence that injured several police officers. Robinson is reportedly planning another march in May.
“We need to show them that we’re the majority,” Ahsan said. “At a street level, the far right won’t take over our streets.”
He said the atmosphere on Saturday was akin to the Notting Hill Carnival, as the march united people from all backgrounds, “from pensioners to children”.
Museum worker Charlotte Elliston told Al Jazeera that she also feels unsettled by the far right’s creeping rise.
“You think this would never happen here, and then all of a sudden this might happen,” she said. “You see that it is getting scary.”
Several left-wing politicians joined the demonstration.
Independent MP Jeremy Corbyn posted on X that the “problems we face are not caused by migrants or refugees”, arguing they were rooted instead in “an economic system rigged in favour of corporations and billionaires”.
MP Zarah Sultana said on X, “There’s one minority we should be angry at: the billionaires funding division while working class people can’t make ends meet.”
Green Party leader Zack Polanski, Dianne Abbott and Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham were also among the crowds.
‘Historic demonstration’
The rights group Amnesty UK hailed the “historic demonstration”, saying marchers were “calling for a different vision of society – one which places dignity, compassion and human rights at its heart”.
A separate march organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which assembled at Exhibition Road near Hyde Park, converged with the main demonstration during the afternoon.
Eighteen people were arrested outside New Scotland Yard on Saturday after staging a protest in support of Palestine Action, the protest group which remains proscribed under the Terrorism Act despite a High Court ruling in February that the government’s decision to ban it was unlawful.
The march comes amid rising racism as Farage’s Reform party surges in the polls.
Hope Not Hate, an antiracism campaign group, warned earlier in March that the British far right is now “bigger, bolder and more extreme than ever before”.
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