Iran war: Second State-organised charter flight to leave from Abu Dhabi this week

Main points

US president Donald Trump has said he is “nowhere near” decided ‌on whether to send troops into Iran

Israel launched a new wave of strikes on Iran targeting “regime infrastructure” as well as further attacks on Lebanon

Nearly 700,000 people have been forced to flee their homes in Lebanon

Oil prices rose above $100 a barrel over fears of a prolonged conflict

State organising flight home for Irish citizens in Abu Dhabi, says McEntee

Saudi Arabia has warned Iran it would be “the biggest loser” if it continued to attack Arab states

French president Emmanuel Macron has called an Iranian drone strike on Cyprus an attack on Europe

Mojtaba Khamenei, son of Ali Khamenei, has been chosen as Iran’s new supreme leader

Key reads

Government wary of acting too quickly on fuel prices, says Harris

Simon Harris speaking with members of the media in Brussels on Monday. Photograph: Omar Havana/Bloomberg

The Government wants to avoid rushing into any response to spiking energy prices that ends up being the “wrong” decision in the coming weeks, Tánaiste and Minister for Finance Simon Harris has said.

A significant rise in inflation would have a much wider economic impact than the current concerns about energy prices, he told Europe Correspondent Jack Power and other reporters in Brussels.

“So what we need to do is be very conscious of the fact that, if you got into a prolonged conflict in the Gulf region, the inflationary impact of that could be very significant for a whole swathes of the Irish economy,” Harris said.

“This is a conflict that is a week old, and at the moment it’s hard to predict whether this is something that lasts for a period of more days or weeks, or indeed something that lasts for months,” the Fine Gael leader said.

Harris was speaking on his way in to a meeting of euro zone finance ministers in Brussels, which will be dominated by discussions about how Europe might respond, should energy prices continue to spike.

Any economic intervention by the Government, or the EU, would need to look different in the event of a protracted war, he said.

“Something that could seem right this month could indeed turn out to be wrong next month. So we’re monitoring this situation very, very carefully,” he said.

“The best way of addressing cost issues is to increase supply, and we really need to see what can be done in relation to that in the hours and days ahead,” he said.

Government responds to President Catherine Connolly comments

The Government has responded to President Catherine Connolly’s intervention on Iran by reminding her that it has executive responsibility for foreign affairs, writes Irish Times Political Editor, Pat Leahy.

Speaking to political correspondents after the today’s Cabinet meeting, the Government’s official spokesman said that “successive governments have voiced support for international law” adding that this was “especially important for a small country”.

He said that the Government “fully respects the constitutional role of the President” but then went on to say: “It’s important to recall that the responsibility for foreign affairs rests with the Government.”

The spokesman declined to comment further but the statement is likely intended as a direct riposte to Connolly’s comments on Sunday when she condemned the “violations of international law” in the Gulf, which she said were “shocking and numbing”, adding, “but we cannot afford inaction.”

Though not naming the United States, the President’s words were taken as a clear message that she believes Ireland should speak out against US actions against Iran, just a week before the Taoiseach Micheál Martin visits president Donald Trump at the White House.

“What we have witnessed in recent days in the Middle East, and beyond, are not political disputes. They are deliberate assaults on international law, the international laws that have underpinned global peace for eighty years. We must name them as such, without euphemism and without equivocation,” she said. “Ireland is uniquely positioned to do precisely that.”

The Government’s response today, reminding the President of her role – and by implication of the limits of her role – is in contrast to its previous policy of not commenting on the interventions by Michael D Higgins.

Senior sources declined to discuss the issue citing the sensitivity of the issue, though did not contradict the suggestion that Government Buildings was intending to send a message to the Áras.

McEntee says second Abu Dhabi charter flight being arranged

I’m pleased to say that we are arranging a second government charter flight later this week from Abu Dhabi. We are now contacting those citizens in the UAE who have already been in contact with us requesting assistance to return to Ireland @dfatirl — Helen McEntee TD (@HMcEntee) March 9, 2026

Iranian footballers granted asylum by Australia, says Trump

Five members of the Iranian women’s football team have been granted asylum in Australia after reportedly escaping their government minders following a tournament, according to US president Donald Trump who announced the news on social media on Monday.

The US president said he had spoken to Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese who had told him that five members of the team had been “taken care of” amid fears they could be punished if they returned home.

Posting on Truth Social