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Kurdish Authorities Delay Start of Academic Year over Virus Outbreak

A school in Washukanni camp in northeast Syria’s Hasakeh province in February 2020. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A school in Washukanni camp in northeast Syria’s Hasakeh province in February 2020. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Kurdish Authorities Delay Start of Academic Year over Virus Outbreak

A school in Washukanni camp in northeast Syria’s Hasakeh province in February 2020. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A school in Washukanni camp in northeast Syria’s Hasakeh province in February 2020. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (NES), or Rojava, has decided to postpone the reopening of schools in areas it runs until October 4 instead of early September due to the increased number of coronavirus infections there.

Infections in regions east of the Euphrates River have reached 527, including 34 deaths and 88 recoveries.

The postponement decision was taken in coordination with the Administration’s Education Authority, Health Authority and Executive Council, said the NES’s education authority chief Rajab al-Musharraf.

He said authorities were studying options to resume the academic year even as the pandemic persists.

Musharraf said efforts are ongoing with concerned committees to provide schools and educational institutions with personal hygiene supplies, including soap, sanitizers and paper tissues in toilets.

Areas east of the Euphrates are suffering from a severe shortage of health and medical supplies following a Russian-Chinese veto earlier this year, which suspended aid through al-Yarubiyah border crossing with Iraq and posed a double threat with the coronavirus outbreak.

International and local humanitarian organizations and Kurdish officials have warned local authorities may not be able to contain the outbreak.

The Autonomous Administration has instructed municipalities to disinfect the 2,225 schools and educational institutions ahead of the school year to preserve the safety of students and teaching staff.

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Arab World

Iran Military Says to Hit US, Israeli Economic Targets in Region

A photograph shows the damage in the aftermath of a drone strike in the Seef district of Manama on March 10, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
A photograph shows the damage in the aftermath of a drone strike in the Seef district of Manama on March 10, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
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Iran Military Says to Hit US, Israeli Economic Targets in Region

A photograph shows the damage in the aftermath of a drone strike in the Seef district of Manama on March 10, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
A photograph shows the damage in the aftermath of a drone strike in the Seef district of Manama on March 10, 2026. (Photo by AFP)

Iran's military vowed on Wednesday to launch strikes against US and Israeli economic targets in the region, including banks, after overnight attacks reportedly hit an Iranian bank.

"The enemy has given us free rein to target economic centers and banks belonging to the United States and the Zionist regime," said the military's central operational command, Khatam Al-Anbiya, in a statement carried by state TV.

It urged people across the region to refrain from going within one kilometer of banks.

Iranian media said US and Israeli strikes hit a bank in Tehran overnight, killing an unspecified number of employees.

Arab World

Report: Drone Hits US Diplomatic Facility in Iraq, No Injuries Reported

The US embassy headquarters in Iraq is pictured in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone on March 8, 2026. (AFP)
The US embassy headquarters in Iraq is pictured in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone on March 8, 2026. (AFP)
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Report: Drone Hits US Diplomatic Facility in Iraq, No Injuries Reported

The US embassy headquarters in Iraq is pictured in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone on March 8, 2026. (AFP)
The US embassy headquarters in Iraq is pictured in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone on March 8, 2026. (AFP)

A drone struck a major US diplomatic facility in Iraq on Tuesday amid the US-Israeli air war on Iran, but there were no injuries and everyone was accounted for, according to a US official and an internal State Department alert seen by Reuters.

The drone hit the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center, next to the Baghdad airport, impacting near a guard tower, the internal alert from the Department seen by Reuters said. Individuals at the facility were ordered to "duck and cover", it said. A separate alert said everyone was accounted for.

The White House and the State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Washington Post ‌first reported the ‌incident and said a total of six drones were launched ‌toward ⁠the compound in ⁠Baghdad and that five were shot down. It also said the attack was likely carried out by the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iran-backed armed factions.

Iraq condemned the attacks near the Iraqi bases but did not mention the damaged US facility, according to the Washington Post.

"The (Iraqi) Ministry of Defense stresses that it will not stand by as a spectator. Rather, it will firmly confront and pursue ... all parties involved," ⁠the ministry said in a statement cited by the newspaper.

The US ‌and Israel began attacks on Iran on ‌February 28. Iran has responded with its own strikes on Israel and Gulf countries with US ‌bases.

Raising the stakes for the global economy, Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps said ‌it would block oil shipments from the Gulf unless US and Israeli attacks cease.

The United States and Israel pounded Iran on Tuesday with what the Pentagon and Iranians on the ground called the most intense airstrikes of the war, despite global markets betting that President Donald ‌Trump will seek to end the conflict soon.

Trump has said the strikes were aimed to eliminate what he called imminent threats from Iran, citing its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and its support for the Hamas and Hezbollah groups.

Iran, which denies seeking a nuclear weapon, has called the attacks an unlawful violation of its sovereignty. Iran does not have nuclear weapons. Israel is believed to be the only country in the region with nuclear weapons, while Washington is also nuclear-armed.

Israel says 11 civilians have been killed in Iranian attacks. Iran's UN ambassador said on Tuesday the US-Israeli strikes had killed more than 1,300 civilians.

Arab World

Three Vessels Hit by Projectiles in Strait of Hormuz

The Callisto tanker sits anchored as the traffic is down in the Strait of Hormuz, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
The Callisto tanker sits anchored as the traffic is down in the Strait of Hormuz, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
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Three Vessels Hit by Projectiles in Strait of Hormuz

The Callisto tanker sits anchored as the traffic is down in the Strait of Hormuz, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
The Callisto tanker sits anchored as the traffic is down in the Strait of Hormuz, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier

Three vessels have been hit by unknown projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz, maritime security agencies and sources said on Wednesday, as one of the strikes led to a fire onboard a ship and forced most of its crew to evacuate it.

The Thailand-flagged bulk carrier Mayuree Naree was targeted and damaged approximately 11 nautical miles north of Oman, two maritime security sources said.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said later, referring to the ⁠incident, that the ⁠fire had been extinguished and that there was no environmental impact. Necessary crew remained on the vessel.

Earlier, the Japan-flagged container ship One Majesty had sustained minor damage from an unknown projectile 25 nautical miles (46 km) northwest of Ras Al ⁠Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates, two maritime security sources said.

Its crew members are safe and the vessel is sailing towards a safe anchorage, the sources added.

A third vessel, a bulk carrier, was also hit by an unknown projectile approximately 50 miles northwest of Dubai, maritime security firms said.

The projectile had damaged the hull of the Marshall Islands-flagged Star Gwyneth, maritime risk management company Vanguard ⁠said, adding ⁠that the vessel's crew were safe.

US President Donald Trump said in social media posts there were no reports of Iran planting explosives in the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil is shipped.

The US said it took out more than a dozen minelaying Iranian vessels Tuesday to help prevent any attempt to close the waterway.

Iran's vow not to allow any oil through the strategic strait has led to market volatility and fears of shortages, especially in Asia, which is dependent on oil shipped from the region.

Some tankers, believed linked to Iran, are continuing to get through the Strait of Hormuz.

Some of the ships getting through are so-called “dark” transits, meaning they aren’t turning on their Automatic Identification System tracks, which show where vessels are.

Vessels carrying sanctioned Iranian crude often turn off their AIS trackers.

The security firm Neptune P2P Group said Wednesday that seven ships had passed through the strait since March 8. Of those, five were linked to Iranian-associated shipping, it said.

The commodity-tracking firm Kpler said Iran has restarted crude exports through its Jask oil terminal on the Gulf of Oman.

A tanker loaded roughly 2 million barrels at Jask on March 7, the firm said.