Iran war: Tehran vows response to Trump's Hormuz threats

• Iran threatens to strike US energy and desalination infrastructure in the Gulf
• Donald Trump says US will hit Iran's power plants if it doesn't open the Strait of Hormuz
• Israel says it is again striking 'regime targets' in Tehran

Here is a roundup of the war in the Middle East on Sunday, March 22, 2026. You can catch up on Saturday's developments here.

03/22/2026March 22, 2026

Saudi Arabia says 3 ballistic missiles targeted Riyadh

The Saudi Ministry of Defense said on Sunday that it had detected three ballistic missiles around the capital, Riyadh.

"One missile was intercepted, while the other two fell in an uninhabited area," a ministry spokesperson said on social media.

It did not say what the origin of the missiles was, but Iran has targeted the kingdom before as part of its retaliation against the US and Israeli strikes.

The Saudi Defense Ministry also said that five drones had been detected since midnight.

03/22/2026March 22, 2026

Israel says it's striking central Tehran

Israel has been bombing Tehran on a near-daily basis, including on Saturday [FILE: March 21, 2026]Image: Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu/IMAGO

The Israeli military said early on Sunday that it had launched another wave of strikes against the Iranian capital.

In a statement, it said forces were "currently conducting strikes on Iranian terror regime targets in the heart of Tehran."

The announcement came just hours after Iranian missiles hit two Israeli towns close to the country's main nuclear research facility, injuring scores of people.

03/22/2026March 22, 2026

Trump gives Iran 48 hours to open Strait of Hormuz

Trump's latest threat comes just a day after he said he was mulling 'winding down' the US operationImage: Nathan Howard/REUTERS

US President Donald Trump has shown his increasing frustration over Iran's blocking of the Strait of Hormuz, threatening on Saturday to "obliterate" Iran's power plants unless it reopens the strategic waterway within 48 hours.

Here's what he said:

"If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!" the US president wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Iran has threatened to attack any ships that pass through the Strait as part of its retaliation against the ongoing US-Israeli military operation, effectively halting most maritime traffic.

Around a fifth of the world's oil would normally pass through the Strait.

Trump's threat comes a day after he told reporters at the White House that he was considering "winding down" the military operation against Iran.

03/22/2026March 22, 2026

Iran vows response to attacks on energy infrastructure

Iran has said that it will target US energy and desalination infrastructure if its own energy facilities are hit.

The warning comes in response to US President Donald Trump's threat on Saturday to hit Iran's power plants if the Strait of Hormuz is not opened.

Maritime traffic through the strategic waterway has largely ground to a halt due to Iran's threat of attacks on tankers in response to the joint US-Israeli operation.

"Following previous warnings, if Iran's fuel and energy infrastructure is violated by the enemy, all energy, information technology and desalination infrastructure belonging to the US and the regime in the region will be targeted," the Iranian military's operational command Khatam Al-Anbiya said in a statement carried by Fars news agency.

Desalination plants are key infrastructure for the countries in the Gulf that have been targeted by Iranian attacks so far. They provide vital fresh water for human consumption as well as agricultural and industrial use.

03/22/2026March 22, 2026

Welcome to our coverage

Welcome to our coverage of the US-Israel war against Iran this Sunday.

There have been mixed messages from US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

After Trump said he was "winding down" the war, Israel said it was ramping up attacks on Iran.

Then, later on Saturday, Trump threatened to strike Iran's power plants if it failed to open up the Strait of Hormuz in 48 hours.

Stay with us as we bring you the latest developments from the war, now three weeks in.