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01:46

US To Allow Sale Of Some Russian Oil To Ease Shortages Amid Iran War

The United States said it will temporarily allow the sale of Russian oil that is currently at sea in an effort to ease any price pressures caused by shortages linked to the US-Israeli strikes against Iran and Tehran's subsequent retaliatory strikes.

TheUS Treasurysaid it issued a license permitting sale of Russian crude oil and petroleum products that have been loaded on vessels on or before 12:01 a.m. March 12 for 30 days until April 11.

File photo of Russian-flagged crude oil tanker.

"To increase the global reach of existing supply, the Treasury is providing a temporary authorization to permit countries to purchase Russian oil currently stranded at sea," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessentsaid on X.

"This narrowly tailored, short-term measure applies only to oil already in transit and will not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government, which derives the majority of its energy revenue from taxes assessed at the point of extraction," he added.

The move comes a day after the Energy Department said the United States would be releasing 172 million barrels of oil from the strategic petroleum reserve in an effort to ease surging oil prices in the wake of the Iran war. That would be a part of a wider move by the 32-nation International Energy Agency to release 400 million barrels of oil.

The Russian oil is "stranded" at sea because ofUS sanctionson major Russian producers, creating financial risks for potential buyers, putting the crude in transit without landing points.

SEE ALSO:

Russia's Oil Giants Get Sanctioned By The US. Will It Hurt The Kremlin's War On Ukraine? (For Now, No)

Experts estimated that there are more than 100 million barrels of Russia-origin oil at sea globally.

The White House has barred the purchase of Russian oil and threatened massive tariffs on countries that do so, as a way of blocking funds to help finance the Kremlin's war on Ukraine.

Democrats and some Republicans have come out against the possibility easing of sanctions against Russia. Critics have complained that President Donald Trump has favored Moscow and have expressed worries that any additional oil revenue will help President Vladimir Putin extend his attacks on Ukraine.

The White House has denied that Trump favors Russia in negotiations to end Moscow's war on Ukraine.

On March 6, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a 30-day waiver of sanctions so that India could buy Russian oil. Russias proceeds from those sales to India are widely estimated at billions of dollars.

In addition to the waiver, Trump and Bessent have said a broader relaxation of sanctions on Russian energy exports are possible.

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23:03

12.3.2026

US Says KC-135 Refueling Aircraft Crashes In Western Iraq

The Pentagon said a KC-135 refueling aircraft has gone down in western Iraq during the current air campaign against Iran, marking the fourth US military aircraft lost during the mission.

US Central Command, responsible for American forces in the Middle East, on March 12 said in a statement that the incident involved two aircraft and that the downing was "not due to hostile fire or friendly fire."

File photo of a US KC-135 refueling aircraft.

"The incident occurred in friendly airspace during Operation Epic Fury, and rescue efforts are ongoing. Two aircraft were involved in the incident," it added.

The statement said that one of the aircraft involved in the incident went down in western Iraq, and the second landed safely.

On March 2, US military officials saidthree F-15 fighter jetscrashed in Kuwait after being hit by friendly fire from Kuwaiti air defenses.

All six of the crew from the three F-15s ejected and parachuted to the ground before being located by rescuers, Central Command said.

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22:48

12.3.2026

Drone Strike Injures At Least 6 French Soldiers In Iraqi Kurdistan

A drone attack on a joint Peshmerga-French base in Iraqs Irbil region injured at least six French soldiers, the Irbil Governor Omed Koshnaw and French military officials said on March 12.

AFP quoted a member of the French military as saying the troops were "engaged in training activities on counterterrorism with Iraqi partners." It was not immediately clear if the French troops were working with Iraqi Kurdish forces or Iraqi Army troops.

It was not immediately clear where the drones came from. An Italian base was also targeted, but no casualties were reported.

The Peshmerga -- Iraqi Kurdish fighters are based in the semiautonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq.

The Iraqi Kurdish militias are separate from the self-exiled Iranian Kurdish fighters now also based in Iraq. Tehran's forces have targeted the groups amid fears that the militias could join the US-Israeli war against Iran.

French military officials said the injured soldiers were taken to a nearby medical center. The officials did not disclose the condition of the troops.

France has maintained close ties to the Iraqi Kurdish population. It first sent several dozen soldiers to the region in 2014, although it was not immediately clear how many personnel are now station at the affected site in the Makhmour area.

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22:14

12.3.2026

Trump Suggests Iran Soccer Team Withdraw From World Cup For Safety Reasons

US President Donald Trump suggested in a social media post that Irans national soccer team should pull out of the upcoming World Cup tournament because of life and safety reasons.

The Iran National Soccer Team is welcome to The World Cup, but I really dont believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety,he wroteon March 12 on Truth Social, without specifying what the dangers might be.

The United States, Canada, and Mexico are co-hosting the 2026 World Cup -- perhaps the most popular sporting event in the world -- running from June 11 to July 19.

Iran's soccer team celebrates a victory in the World Cup qualifying round in March 2025.

All three of Iran's three group stage matches are scheduled to take place at US venues.

The team is slated to play New Zealand on June 15 and Belgium on June 21 in the Los Angeles area. It is scheduled to face Egypt on June 26 in Seattle.

Iran's national sports minister, Ahmad Donyamali, told state TV this week that the country could not participate in the World Cup amid the ongoing US-Israeli air strikes against Iran beginning on February 28.

He specifically cited the killing of Irans supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameini, who died during the first day of air strikes against Iran. His son, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, was chosen on March 8 to succeed him.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino on March 12 said he had spoken with Trump about the situation in Iran, and was told that Iran's team is welcome to compete in the 48-team World Cup, which occurs every four years.

Trump on March 3 said that I really dont care when asked about the possibility of Iran withdrawing from the World Cup.

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20:56

12.3.2026

Netanyahu Says 'Heavy Blows' Dealt To Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that almost two weeks of air strikes on Iran have dealt heavy blows to the country's main armed forces, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), and the Basij paramilitary.

Speaking in his first press conference since the start of US-Israeli air strikes on February 28, Netanyahu said one of the main aims of the campaign is to stop Iran from moving nuclear and ballistic weapons projects underground.

He added in the March 12 press conference that the military operation is also aimed "to create, for the Iranian people, the conditions to bring down this regime."

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20:39

12.3.2026

Israeli President Calls For 'Hitting Iran Hard' As Attacks Continue On Both Sides

The exchange of fire between Iran and Israel continued on March 12, with strikes hitting civilian sites in central Israel as its military claimed to have targeted Basij militia checkpoints in Tehran.

Speaking to RFE/RL, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said his country aims to keep up the intense campaign to "remove [Iran's] capabilities" to wage war.