Middle East war, day 21: Tehran burns on Iranian New Year, F-35 down & Pentagon wants $200B more

Iran marked its Persian New Year under Israeli bombs on Friday. As millions gathered to observe Nowruz , Israeli airstrikes struck Tehran in the early hours while air raid sirens sounded across central Israel. Countries across the region scrambled to intercept drones and missiles, with the attacks coinciding with Eid al-Fitr , the Muslim festival marking the end of Ramadan. In perhaps the starkest illustration of the war's relentless pace, IRGC spokesman Brigadier General Ali Mohammad Naini gave an interview hours before his death, stating that Iran was still actively producing missiles and that "there is no concern in this regard." Minutes later, the Israeli Air Force confirmed it had killed him in a targeted strike in Tehran, marking the fourth senior Iranian leadership killing in a single week.

The day's most alarming military development came when a US F-35 fighter jet made an emergency landing at an undisclosed Middle East airbase after sustaining what officials believe was a hit from Iranian fire, which would make it the first American combat aircraft struck by Iran since the war began. The pilot is stable. The Pentagon is simultaneously seeking an additional $200 billion in war funding , with Defense Secretary Hegseth offering a blunt rationale: "It takes money to kill bad guys." The Trump administration also bypassed Congress to fast-track billions in weapons sales to the UAE and Kuwait , both under sustained Iranian attack.

Diplomatic friction erupted during a White House summit between Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi . When a reporter pressed Trump on why allies were not forewarned before the Iran strikes, he replied: "We didn't tell anyone because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprises than Japan? Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor?" Takaichi, seated beside him, appeared visibly taken aback . Trump then called NATO allies "cowards" for sitting out the war. Takaichi, navigating the moment carefully, told reporters she believed Trump was "the only one who can achieve peace across the world." Netanyahu, meanwhile, claimed Iran has "no ability" to enrich uranium or build ballistic missiles . Iran responded with a fresh missile barrage toward Israel within hours.

Thursday set the stage for Friday's escalation. On Day 20 , Israel struck South Pars, the world's largest natural gas field , prompting Iran to retaliate against energy infrastructure across Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Qatar's Ras Laffan LNG facility sustained damage that could cut output by 17 percent for up to five years . Brent crude hit $115 a barrel . Israel also struck Iranian naval targets in the Caspian Sea, the first such operations of the war, while Iran executed three men , including a 19-year-old wrestler , linked to January's protests, in proceedings Amnesty International described as built on forced confessions.

The human toll is severe. Iran's civilian death toll has surpassed 1,444, including 204 children . Lebanon has recorded over 1,000 deaths since March 2. More than 2,200 people have been killed across the region. Over 220 Ukrainian drone specialists are deployed across five Middle Eastern countries, countering the same Iranian-designed weapons Russia fires at Kyiv nightly. The UN is negotiating a humanitarian corridor to free 20,000 seafarers stranded in the Gulf. Three weeks in, with no ceasefire in sight, the war shows every sign of deepening before it shows any sign of ending.