As U.S. and Cuban officials negotiate over the future of the Communist-ruled and economically besieged Caribbean island nation, the Trump Administration is seeking to push President Miguel Díaz-Canel from power in Havana. In a move that, similar to recent actions in Venezuela, would topple a key figurehead but leave in place the Communist repressive government that has ruled Cuba since 1959. The Americans have signaled to Cuban negotiators that President Díaz-Canel must go, but are leaving the next steps up to the Cubans, four people familiar with the talks have told The New York Times.

After President Trump claimed to reporters twice today that he had recently spoken to a former president who praised his actions in Iran, saying: “I wish I did what you did.” Aides to all four living presidents, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Joe Biden, have issued statements to CNN, saying there is no record of any communications between them and President Trump.

Explosions and air defense activity reported in the last few minutes over Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

According to PBS NewsHour, President Trump has confirmed that his China trip later this month and meeting with President Xi Jinping will likely be delayed due to the conflict with Iran, stating: “I'd love to go, but I have to be here because of the war.” Adding that the trip is expected to be delayed into late April.

Sailors onboard the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), which is entering its tenth month of deployment, battled flames onboard the aircraft carrier last week for over 30 hours, after a small fire that started in the ship’s main laundry area, spread through ventilation to several other areas of the ship, including multiple berthings, with more than 600 sailors and other crewmembers having lost their beds in the fire and since been bunking down on floors and tables throughout the ship, officials tell The New York Times.

A Counter-Rocket, Artillery, and Mortar System (C-RAM) attempting to engage Iranian one-way drones during a major attack tonight on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq.

Reports of a strike by an Iranian one-way attack drone in the vicinity of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

Successful interception of at least one Iranian Shahed-136, by an American Counter-Rocket, Artillery, and Mortar System (C-RAM), during tonight’s attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

Following reports of at least two drone impacts at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, smoke can be seen rising from the embassy campus. Additional reports also indicate that the drones impacted despite the emplaced counter rocket, artillery, and mortar (C-RAM) system’s active efforts. At the time of writing, it seems that the attack may have been more substantial than past strikes on the embassy since the start of the conflict with Iran.

Video footage shows an impact by an Iranian one-way attack drone right outside the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

More footage showing a drone attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq tonight. An emplaced counter rocket, artillery, and mortar (C-RAM) system can be seen actively engaging air threats before yet another impact can be seen near the Embassy.

An Iranian Shahed-136 seen flying low over the Iraqi capital of Baghdad before being engaged by an American Counter-Rocket, Artillery, and Mortar System (C-RAM), during tonight’s attack on the U.S. Embassy.

Footage shows a near direct impact on the U.S. Embassy Compound in Baghdad, during tonight’s Iranian drone attack against the capital of Iraq.

An American Counter-Rocket, Artillery, and Mortar System (C-RAM) expends several hundred rounds attempting to intercept Iranian Shahed-136s during tonight’s drone attack targeting the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

A U.S. Air Force KC-135R “Stratotanker” Aerial-Refueling Tanker (61-0324) has been circling off the coast and over Israel now for nearly two hours burning fuel, after returning from a mission supporting Operation Epic Fury over Iraq. Multiple other Stratotankers have returned to Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv in that time, suggesting a possible issue preventing landing with this particular KC-135.

According to Axios, citing three people with knowledge on the matter, tomorrow afternoon, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff is set to brief a small group of bipartisan senators on the ongoing operations against Iran. The briefing, which was organized by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), who chairs the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities, is expected to update select legislative decision-makers on the ongoing war in Iran, more specifically, the status of purported lines of communication between the Trump administration and the Iranian regime. As of late Monday (today EST), senators are still being invited to the briefing.

Following the temporary closure of the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) airspace as an “exceptional precautionary measure” due to Iranian drone and missile attacks, the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority has announced the reopening of their airspace.

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates report they are responding to a fire at the Fujairah Oil Industrial Zone, following a drone attack tonight by Iran.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center has issued a warning to ships in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz following an attack on a vessel at anchor near the United Arab Emirates. This is the first reported attack in the region in more than 72 hours.

The Popular Mobilization Front (PMF), an Iranian-backed group, who has acted as one of the principal executors of Iran’s strategic outlook in Iraq, released footage showing what appears to be an unarmed FPV drone flying unencumbered through the Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq near the U.S. Embassy.

Sailors observe and support flight operations by F/A-18E Super Hornets from Primary Flight Control “Pri-Fly” onboard the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) in the Northern Red Sea, in support of Operation Epic Fury, March 15, 2026.