US-Iran war live updates: Trump threatens to ‘obliterate’ Kharg Island if deal not reached; Albanese announces fuel excise cut to combat soaring petrol prices

Thank you for joining our continuing live coverage of the conflict in the Middle East.

Here’s a recap of the latest developments:

• US President Donald Trump claims to have made progress in talks with Tehran but also threatened to “completely obliterate” Iranian energy assets, including major oil hub Kharg Island and “possibly all” desalination plants, if a deal is not reached “shortly”.
• Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said that a 15-point ceasefire proposal put forward by the US was filled with “excessive, unrealistic and irrational demands”.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has ordered the military to further expand its operations in southern Lebanon.
• NATO air defences have downed a fourth Iranian missile in Turkish airspace.
• Spain has closed its airspace to US military planes as it continues to oppose the war.
• From Wednesday, April 1, excise tax will be halved for three months to deliver a 26¢ cut to a litre of petrol, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced.

Spain has closed its airspace to US planes involved in attacks on Iran, a step beyond its previous denial of use of jointly-operated military bases.

“We don’t authorise either the use of military bases or the use of airspace for actions related to the war in Iran,” Defence Minister Margarita Robles told reporters in Madrid on Monday.

“I think everyone knows Spain’s position. It’s very clear,” Robles said, calling the war “profoundly illegal and profoundly unjust”.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has been one of the most vocal opponents of the US and Israeli attacks on Iran, describing them as reckless and illegal.

President Donald Trump has threatened to cut trade with Madrid for denying the US use of Spain’s bases in the war.

The closure of the airspace forces military planes to bypass NATO member Spain en route to their targets in the Middle East, but it does not include emergency situations, according to Spanish newspaper El Pais.

Reuters and AP

NATO intercepted an Iranian missile over Turkey on Monday, the Turkish Defence Ministry said in a statement, eliminating a fourth such threat against the country in less than a month.

“A ballistic munition, determined to have been launched from Iran and to have entered into Turkish airspace, has been neutralised by NATO air and missile defence assets deployed in the Eastern Mediterranean,” the ministry said, without disclosing the location of the incident.

The first interception occurred on March 4, when NATO shot down a missile fired toward an unknown target. Iran has previously denied firing any missiles toward Turkey whereas the Turkish government has said it has evidence the missiles originated from Iran.

NATO deployed two extra Patriot missile-defence systems to Turkey after the previous interceptions. Past missiles fired from Iran are believed to have targeted an advanced early-warning radar system in eastern Turkey as well as Incirlik Air Base in southern Turkey, which hosts NATO forces including hundreds of US personnel.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt began her briefing on Monday afternoon, Washington time, noting it was Holy Week and stating the team had just held a prayer. She was then asked during the briefing, given her reference to Easter and prayers, about comments from Pope Leo XIV on Sunday that God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war”.

Leavitt said US presidents, leaders of the Department of War and troops have gone to prayer “during the most turbulent times in our nation’s history”.

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with our military leaders or with the president calling on the American people to pray for our service members and those who are serving our country overseas,” she said.

“In fact, I think it’s a very noble thing to do, and if you talk to many service members, they will tell you they appreciate the prayers and support from the commander-in-chief and from his cabinet.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt held a press briefing moments ago, during which she was asked why US President Donald Trump was threatening to target Iranian civilian infrastructure such as desalination plants which could “amount to, potentially, a war crime”.

“The president has made it quite clear to the Iranian regime, at this moment in time … that their best move is to make a deal, or else, the United States Armed Forces has capabilities beyond their wildest imagination, and the president is not afraid to use them,” Leavitt said.

“Of course, this administration and the United States Armed Forces will always act within the confines of the law. But with respect to achieving the full objectives of Operation Epic Fury, president Trump is going to move forward unabated, and he expects the Iranian regime to make a deal with the administration.”

She declined to respond to a follow-up question asking which of the objectives destroying desalination plants would help.

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman said that a 15-point ceasefire proposal put forward by the United States was filled with “excessive” demands.

“We haven’t had any direct negotiations with the US so far,” Esmail Baghaei told a news conference.

“What has been communicated to us, whatever you may call it, 15-points or more or less, are a set of very excessive, unrealistic and irrational demands.”

AP

US President Donald Trump claims to have made great progress in talks with Tehran but also threatened to “completely obliterate” Iranian energy assets, including Kharg Island and possibly desalination plants, if a deal is not reached “shortly”.

Trump posted on Truth Social on Monday night AEDT that the US was in “serious discussions with a new, and more reasonable, regime to end our military operations in Iran”.

“Great progress has been made but, if for any reason a deal is not shortly reached, which it probably will be, and if the Hormuz Strait is not immediately ‘Open for Business,’ we will conclude our lovely ‘stay’ in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinization [sic] plants!), which we have purposefully not yet ‘touched’,” Trump wrote.

The president, in an interview with London’s Financial Times, claimed the US military had “another couple of thousand targets to go” in Iran and that “a deal could be made fairly quickly”, but also said he wanted to seize Iran’s oil resources.

Thank you for joining our continuing live coverage of the conflict in the Middle East.

Here’s a recap of the latest developments:

• US President Donald Trump claims to have made progress in talks with Tehran but also threatened to “completely obliterate” Iranian energy assets, including major oil hub Kharg Island and “possibly all” desalination plants, if a deal is not reached “shortly”.
• Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said that a 15-point ceasefire proposal put forward by the US was filled with “excessive, unrealistic and irrational demands”.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has ordered the military to further expand its operations in southern Lebanon.
• NATO air defences have downed a fourth Iranian missile in Turkish airspace.
• Spain has closed its airspace to US military planes as it continues to oppose the war.
• From Wednesday, April 1, excise tax will be halved for three months to deliver a 26¢ cut to a litre of petrol, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced.