West Asian War Daily Bulletin – March 20, 2026 | Day 21 of Operation Epic Fury
Iran launches 66th wave of Op. True Promise 4 with super-heavy multi-warhead missiles. Ras Laffan damage estimated at $20bn — repairs could take 3–5 years. IEA calls the crisis ‘the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market.’ US has struck 8,000 Iranian targets; Israel hits 200 across western and central Iran.
Authors
Today’s Key Developments
This space provides a daily brief tracking key developments in the West Asian conflict.
India
Foreign Policy & Neighbourhood
- India condemned attacks on gas facilities in the region, calling them “unacceptable” and noting such strikes are “deeply disturbing” and further destabilise the global energy scenario.
- Officials underscored concerns over LPG, oil, and fertiliser supplies. Efforts are reportedly underway to diversify imports, with shipments expected from Russia, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia, and Saudi Arabia in the coming days.
- India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation advised airlines to avoid nine airspaces in the region, including Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, and the UAE.
Geopolitics
Strait of Hormuz
- Brent crude hit $115 a barrel on Day 20 after Israel’s attack on the South Pars gas field spurred Iranian forces to fire back at energy infrastructure across West Asia.
- Iran warned it will show “zero restraint” if its energy facilities are attacked again, following Israeli strikes on the South Pars gas field and subsequent Iranian attacks on energy sites across the Gulf.
- US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington might lift sanctions on Iranian oil already being shipped, to ease rising energy prices.
- US President Donald Trump called NATO allies “cowards” for not heeding his demand for military assistance against Iran to help control the Hormuz Strait shipping route.
Global Systems
Energy & Supply Chains
- Iran launched its 66th wave of Operation True Promise 4, firing five super-heavy, multi-warhead missiles at locations across Israel and US military positions in the West Asian region.
- Iran’s attack on Qatar severely damaged the world’s largest LNG export facility at Ras Laffan, with losses estimated at roughly $20 billion. The strikes reportedly affected 17% of Qatar’s LNG exports. Repairs could take three to five years. Qatar condemned the strikes as a “dangerous escalation.”
- The US Pentagon sought an additional $200 billion from the US Congress for the Iran conflict.
- The International Energy Agency asked people to work from home and avoid air travel, proposing government and household-level measures to ease a potential global fuel crisis. IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol described the situation as “the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market.”
Defence & Security
Weapons Systems & Defence Tech
- Israel said it struck 200 targets across western and central Iran, including military infrastructure. An Israeli-intercepted missile caused shrapnel injuries to one foreign national in the southern Sharon region.
- Trump said he is not planning troop deployments: “I’m not putting troops anywhere. If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you, but I’m not putting troops.” However, he also claimed that the US was getting close to winding down its military efforts, saying on social media that the US is “getting very close to meeting our objectives.”
- Israel carried out strikes against Iranian naval targets in the Caspian Sea, in the first such strikes in nearly three weeks of war.
- US CENTCOM reported it had struck 8,000 Iranian targets since the start of the West Asian conflict. The US is now deploying Apache helicopters and A-10 Warthog planes, a sign the Pentagon believes the threat from Iranian forces has been significantly reduced.
- Israel’s military confirmed the killing of IRGC spokesman Ali Mohammad Naini in an early morning strike. Iranian state media confirmed the death.
This bulletin is prepared by the Takshashila West Asia Desk. For queries, contact research@takshashila.org.in.