The briefing for Wednesday, March 18.

Israel has killed Iran's top security official Ali Larijani and Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani in air strikes near Tehran, according to announcements from both governments. Larijani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, was considered one of the most powerful figures in Iran since Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in an airstrike on February 28. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed the strikes eliminated both men, calling them key figures in Iran's military operations against Israel and regional allies.

Iran responded Wednesday with renewed missile and drone attacks on Israel and Gulf Arab states. The Revolutionary Guard said it launched multiple-warhead Khorramshahr-4 and Qadr missiles at central Israel, killing two people in Ramat Gan according to Israeli medical services. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other Arab states also faced Iranian missile barrages that were intercepted by air defense systems. The strikes targeted U.S. military facilities across the region, including a hit inside the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad.

Larijani had overseen Iran's unprecedented crackdown on protests in December and January, when at least 6,508 demonstrators were killed and 53,000 arrested according to human rights activists. Soleimani commanded the Basij militia, whose estimated one million members have been used to suppress dissent. The killings represent the most significant blow to Iranian leadership since Khamenei's death, though Iranian state media initially published what it claimed were messages from both men written Tuesday, raising questions about the timing of the strikes.

More than 100 people were killed Monday evening when a Pakistani airstrike hit a drug treatment center in Afghanistan's capital, Kabul, according to forensic laboratory sources. The Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital was struck around 8:50 PM local time as approximately 2,000 patients broke their daily Ramadan fast. The Taliban government claims the death toll could reach 400, though the BBC has independently confirmed at least 100 bodies were taken to Kabul's forensic medicine department. Pakistan denied deliberately targeting the facility, saying it had 'precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure.'

Survivors described a devastating scene as the attack hit during dinner. Mohammad Shafee, a patient in his 20s, told the BBC he was helping serve food when he heard a loud bang and ran for safety. 'When I returned later, I found most of our colleagues and people in the dining room hit. Only five of us survived,' he said. Another survivor, Ahmad, 50, described the scene as 'like doomsday' with friends burning in fires that rescuers couldn't control. The facility, a former U.S. military base turned rehab center by the Taliban in 2021, was reduced to smoking rubble.

The strike is the deadliest incident in months of cross-border conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Pakistan accuses Kabul of harboring militants who attack its territory, claims the Taliban denies. The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan called for a swift investigation and immediate ceasefire, noting that at least 75 people were killed in Afghanistan between February 26 and March 13 due to the fighting. UN officials say at least six health facilities in Afghanistan have been impacted since late February. China has urged both countries to 'remain calm and exercise restraint' and engage in face-to-face talks as soon as possible.

Joe Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, resigned Tuesday in protest over the Iran war, urging President Trump to 'reverse course' in a public letter. Kent, a decorated U.S. special forces and CIA veteran, claimed Iran posed 'no imminent threat' to the United States and alleged the administration 'started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.' The resignation makes Kent the most high-profile Trump administration official to publicly criticize the U.S.-Israeli military operation in Iran.

In his resignation letter posted to social media, Kent said he 'cannot support sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people.' He cited his military service, including 11 deployments overseas, and the 2019 death of his wife Shannon Kent in a suicide bombing in Syria. Kent had previously supported Trump's foreign policy platform and ran unsuccessfully for Congress twice as a Trump ally. He alleged that 'high-ranking Israeli officials' and influential journalists created an 'echo chamber' of 'misinformation' that deceived Trump into believing Iran posed an imminent threat.

The White House quickly dismissed Kent's letter, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt saying it contained 'many false claims' and calling Kent's suggestion that Trump was influenced by foreign countries 'both insulting and laughable.' Speaking in the Oval Office, Trump said he thought Kent was a 'nice guy' but 'weak on security,' adding that the resignation letter made him realize 'it was a good thing that he's out.' Kent, 45, was narrowly confirmed to his post earlier in Trump's administration after Democrats criticized his links to extremist groups including the Proud Boys.

The Supreme Court agreed Monday to hear arguments in April over the Trump administration's push to end temporary protected status for people fleeing war and natural disaster, including 350,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrians. The court declined to immediately lift protections, allowing them to remain in place during the legal proceedings. The decision comes after the court previously sided with the administration to end protections for 600,000 Venezuelans while lawsuits continue, exposing them to potential deportation.

The Trump administration filed emergency appeals after lower courts in New York and Washington, D.C., blocked the immediate termination of the program. One court found that 'hostility to nonwhite immigrants' likely played a role in the decision to end protections for Haitians, citing Trump's amplification during his campaign of false rumors that Haitian immigrants were abducting and eating pets. Solicitor General D. John Sauer argued that the Department of Homeland Security has sole power over the program, which was designed to be temporary, and accused 'lower courts' of attempting 'to block major executive-branch policy initiatives.'

Immigration attorneys argue that conditions in both countries remain dangerous. 'Without a functioning government, Haiti is a nation in turmoil. Rape, kidnapping, and murder are rampant, while food, housing, and medical care are scarce,' attorneys wrote, pointing to reports that four Haitian women were recently found dead months after deportation. Protections for Haitians were first granted in 2010 after a catastrophic earthquake, while Syrian protections date to 2012 during the country's civil war. About 1.3 million people from various countries currently hold temporary protected status, which allows them to legally live and work in the U.S. without providing a path to citizenship.

The Federal Reserve is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged Wednesday for the second consecutive meeting, as policymakers grapple with how the Iran war will affect both inflation and economic growth. The central bank will also release quarterly projections that could alter its forecast from one rate cut this year to zero cuts, a significant course correction after 18 months of on-again, off-again reductions. Gas prices have jumped to $3.79 per gallon nationwide, up 88 cents from a month ago, raising concerns about inflation even as the spike could slow economic growth and increase unemployment.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell faces a particularly difficult challenge issuing projections during such uncertainty. Many economists expect the Fed will forecast inflation remaining as high as 3% even by late 2026, up from the 2.6% projection issued in December. The combination of higher inflation and potential job losses represents a worst-case scenario for central bankers, who typically raise rates to fight inflation but cut them to boost employment. Before the war, inflation had already reached 3.1% in January excluding food and energy, while employers shed 92,000 jobs in February following a gain of 130,000 in January.

This week's meeting will be among the last with Powell as chair, as his term ends May 15 and President Trump has nominated Kevin Warsh to replace him. Warsh's confirmation has been delayed because Republican senators objected to a Justice Department investigation of Powell. A judge threw out Justice Department subpoenas last Friday, though U.S. Attorney Jeannine Pirro said she will appeal. Powell could remain chair of the Fed's rate-setting committee until a replacement is confirmed if Warsh isn't approved by mid-May.

Arizona became the first state Tuesday to file criminal charges against prediction market company Kalshi, accusing it of operating an illegal gambling business. The 20-count charging document alleges Kalshi accepted bets on political outcomes, college sports, and individual player performance in violation of state laws prohibiting unlicensed wagering and election betting. Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes said 'Arizona will not be bullied into letting any company place itself above state law.'

The criminal case escalates a legal battle over whether prediction markets should face the same regulations as gambling companies. Kalshi insists it operates a financial marketplace rather than a gambling operation and should only answer to federal regulators at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which under Trump agrees it has exclusive oversight. The company's spokesperson dismissed Arizona's charges as 'meritless' and accused the state of trying to circumvent federal court. U.S. District Judge Michael Liburdi, a Trump appointee, denied Kalshi's request for a temporary block and ordered the company to demonstrate why the case belongs in federal court.

At least nine other states have taken legal action against Kalshi, with mixed results so far. Federal and state judges in Nevada and Massachusetts ruled in favor of states seeking to ban Kalshi and competitor Polymarket from offering sports betting, while federal judges in New Jersey and Tennessee sided with Kalshi. The Trump administration has thrown its support behind the prediction market industry, with Trump's son Donald Trump Jr. serving as a strategic adviser for Kalshi. The president's Truth Social platform is launching its own cryptocurrency-based prediction market called Truth Predict. The charges were filed just days before the NCAA basketball tournaments, one of the busiest periods for prediction markets and sportsbooks.