Iran strikes Israel in retaliation for killing; Stratton wins Illinois Senate primary
Iran fires missiles into Israel after the killing of a top security official. Strikes hit near Tel Aviv, killing civilians as Iran vows more attacks.
Plus, the SAVE Act heads to a prolonged Senate fight as Republicans move it forward without the votes to pass.
And a meteor streaks across the eastern sky. The explosion triggers a sonic boom strong enough to shake homes.
These stories and more highlight your Unbiased Updates for Wednesday, March 18, 2026.
Iran strikes Israel, vows revenge follow killing of top security official
Iran has vowed revenge after the killing of a top security official, and Israel is now under fresh attack. Sirens sounded across central Israel overnight as air defenses worked to intercept a new wave of Iranian missiles.
Iran’s military said the strikes were in retaliation for the killing of Ali Larijani, a top national security adviser who was killed in an Israeli strike. Iranian state TV has now confirmed his death, and officials are promising a “decisive” response.
The missile barrage hit areas around Tel Aviv, including Ramat Gan, killing at least two people and sparking fires and damage in residential areas.
Israel said it intercepted many of the incoming missiles, but some debris and warheads made it through. It said it was also expanding its response, launching strikes inside Lebanon.
At least six people were killed in two strikes in central Beirut, including one that brought down a multi-story building after an evacuation warning.
The U.S. has deepened its role, targeting Iranian military sites along the Strait of Hormuz. American forces used heavy “bunker buster” bombs aimed at hardened missile positions, part of an effort to limit Iran’s ability to target shipping in the region.
Back in Iran, strikes continue around Tehran with damage reported at security sites and checkpoints.
Iranian leaders said more attacks are coming, warning the response will be “more devastating” in the days ahead.
President Donald Trump said the U.S. won’t pull back yet, even as he signals a possible exit ahead.
“If we left right now, it would take 10 years for them to rebuild. But we’re not ready to leave yet,” Trump said. “But we will be leaving in the near future. We’ll be leaving in pretty much the very near future, but right now they’ve been decimated from every standpoint. And again, we’ve had great support from countries in the Middle East, great support, but we’ve had no support from, essentially no support, from NATO.”
Trump intel official Joe Kent resigns over Iran, war justification
A top U.S. counterterrorism official has resigned over Trump’s war in Iran, and now the president is responding. Joe Kent, who led the National Counterterrorism Center, announced Tuesday that he’s stepping down, effective immediately.
In a letter posted online, Kent said he could not support the war in good conscience, writing that Iran did not pose an imminent threat to the United States.
The resignation marks the highest-profile break from inside the Trump administration over the war, which is now in its third week.
Kent had been a close ally of Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and aligned with the administration’s more skeptical view of foreign interventions. He’s also a former green beret who’s wife was killed by ISIS in Syria in 2019.
His exit highlights a growing divide among some Trump supporters, with figures like Tucker Carlson criticizing the war even as most Republicans continue to back it.
Trump responded to Kent’s resignation, saying he’s glad Kent is gone.
“I didn’t know him well, but I thought he seemed like a pretty nice guy. But when I read his statement, I realized that it’s a good thing that he’s out, because he said that Iran was not a threat,” Trump said. “Iran was a threat; every country realized what a threat Iran was. The question is whether or not they wanted to do something about it.”
Trump has defended the strikes, while some lawmakers and former officials say there was no clear evidence of an imminent attack.
‘SAVE America Act’ advances to Senate debate
The Senate has now opened debate on Trump’s election bill, setting up a prolonged fight over voting rules in the U.S. Senators voted 51 to 48 to take up the House-passed “SAVE America Act,” a bill that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and a photo ID to vote.
Republicans say it’s a common-sense step to secure elections. Democrats say it would block millions of eligible voters from casting a ballot.
The debate could last days, or even weeks, with leaders promising an open floor and multiple votes.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said the process will unfold in real time.
“How it ends remains to be seen. There will be a point at which it will end, and there will be a series of votes that come with that,” Thune said. “But I’m, I’m at the end of the day, I just don’t know how you defend a position that you need to be a citizen in this country, not only to register to vote, but also to be able to show an ID when you vote.”
The bill does not have the 60 votes needed to pass, but Republicans are using the floor fight to force votes and keep the issue front and center.
Trump has called the bill his top priority and is pressuring lawmakers to get it to his desk.
Democrats are digging in, promising to drag out the process and block the bill.
“If MAGA Republicans want to bog down the Senate over a debate on voter suppression, Democrats are ready,” Sen. Chuck Schumer said. “We’re ready to be here all day, all night, as long as it takes to ensure the powers of voter suppression do not win the day. Let me be very clear. The SAVE Act is not a voter ID bill. It is, in every sense, a voter suppression bill. It could purge millions of American citizens from the voter rolls.”
Under current law, noncitizens are already barred from voting in federal elections. But this bill would require voters to show documents such as a passport or birth certificate, and states would have to verify citizenship using federal data.
Republicans argue that it only builds confidence in elections. Democrats say it risks disqualifying legal voters who don’t have those documents readily available and that voter fraud is rare.
Bondi ordered to testify on Epstein files
Attorney General Pam Bondi is being compelled to testify about the government’s handling of the Epstein files. House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer issued a subpoena requiring Bondi to appear for a closed-door deposition next month.
In a letter to Bondi, Comer said the committee has questions about how the Justice Department reviewed and released documents under a law passed last year. The move follows a rare bipartisan vote — with five Republicans joining Democrats to force her testimony.
Lawmakers from both parties have voiced frustration with redactions and the slow pace of the release.
The Justice Department told Straight Arrow News the subpoena is unnecessary, adding Bondi has offered briefings and made files available for lawmakers to review.
Only about half of the documents in the department’s possession have been released so far, out of millions of pages reviewed.
The Oversight Committee expanded its investigation by subpoenaing former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to testify. It has heard from both.
Bondi and her deputy are expected to brief lawmakers in closed-door sessions as early as this week.
Pritzker, Bailey advance to high-stakes November election
Illinois voters have set up two key November races: a rematch for governor and an open Senate seat in a deep-blue state.
Incumbent Gov. JB Pritzker prepares for a rematch against Republican Darren Bailey, the same contest from 2022. Pritzker ran without opposition in his primary and is now seeking a third term.
Bailey, a farmer from southern Illinois and former state lawmaker, won the GOP primary and returns after losing to Pritzker by 13 points.
Pritzker used his victory speech to take direct aim at President Donald Trump, casting Washington as a threat to Illinois and pointing to the state’s pushback on last year’s federal immigration crackdown in Chicago.
Bailey is framing the race around the cost of living and leadership, claiming Pritzker is out of touch and blaming him for rising costs.
In the Senate race, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton defeated U.S. Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Robin Kelly in the Democratic primary. She now faces Republican Don Tracy, the former state GOP chair.
Stratton’s victory also benefits Pritzker, who supported her and invested heavily to help her beat opponents with more funding.
In a state where Democrats hold a clear advantage, she enters the general election as the front-runner to succeed retiring Democrat Sen. Dick Durbin.
Meteor streaks across eastern sky, triggers sonic boom
Many people heard it, some saw it and cameras captured it. A 7-ton meteor traveling at 45,000 miles per hour shot across the eastern sky Tuesday morning.
A National Weather Service employee in Pittsburgh took a video of the fireball streaking across the sky. Witnesses in ten states, along with Washington, D.C., and Ontario, Canada, saw it. It was also marked by a loud boom.
NASA also posted an image of the meteor on X, and the National Weather Service in Cleveland said the loud boom was likely caused by the meteor.
As that large piece of space rock broke apart, it released energy equivalent to about 250 tons of TNT, which explains the sound. Some homes even shook like an earthquake.
Experts believe the asteroid fragmented over Valley City, Ohio, with pieces likely falling in Medina County, just west of Akron and about 45 miles south of Cleveland.
NASA meteor expert Bill Cooke said it could have been a small asteroid that burned up in the atmosphere or a fragment from a larger one. They’re still working to determine exactly which.
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