Saturday 21 / March / 2026
Iran fired two intermediate-range ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia, a joint US-UK military base in the middle of the Indian Ocean, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing multiple US officials.
Neither missile hit the target, the report said.
The base is located around 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) from Iranian territory.
The launch suggests that Tehran has missiles with longer ranges than previously thought, the report said.
One of the missiles failed in flight, and the other was targeted by an interceptor fired from a US warship, the WSJ reported, adding it was not clear if the missile was hit.
US temporarily eases sanctions on some Iranian oil
The United States has said that it will temporarily lift sanctions on Iranian oil that is already on tankers at sea.
The move comes as global oil prices soar due to the conflict in the Middle East.
Maritime traffic through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping lane through which a fifth of the world's oil normally passes, has largely ground to a halt due to Iran's attacks on tankers in response to the joint US-Israeli operation.
The US Treasury said "the sale, delivery, or offloading of crude oil or petroleum products of Iranian origin loaded on any vessel" on or before March 20 would be "authorized" through 12:01 am (0401 GMT) on April 19.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had hinted at the move on Thursday when he told US broadcaster Fox that Washington might "unsanction the Iranian oil that's on the water."
"In essence, we will be using the Iranian barrels against the Iranians to keep the price down for the next 10 or 14 days as we continue this campaign," he said.
The US has already temporarily lifted bans on purchases of Russian oil in a bid to curb rising energy prices.
