World Report - March 14: Saturday's top stories in 10 minutes

Episode Date: March 14, 2026

President Trump warns he may destroy Iran's oil infrastructure following a major bombing raid on Kharg Island.A missile strike hits the U-S Embassy in Baghdad.PM Mark Carney pitches Canada as a "low-risk" energy partner during a visit to Norway that also included a stop at the Nordic World Cup.Former NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg warns the war with Iran is a boost for Russia and a threat to Ukraine.War in the middle east continues to spill over, a Jewish school in Amsterdam attacked, adding to multiple attacks on Jewish community across Europe and North America.One year into the review of Canada’s F-35 contract, the government admits relations with the U-S are complicating the deal.Japan's fishing industry is concerned that crude oil shortage due to war in middle east will affect their industry.

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This is a CBC podcast. This is World Report. Good morning. I'm John Northcon. We are afraid every day. Every day we come to work afraid. And when we say goodbye to our parents, we hug them extra tight because we don't know if we will return to them. A restaurant worker in Tehran describes the new reality of life

under unrelenting strikes as the war there enters its third week. But we begin with strikes hundreds of kilometers to the south in Harg Island. U.S. forces launched a massive raid hitting military targets there. Megan Williams is covering the story for us from Dubai. U.S. President Donald Trump says he could order strikes on Iran's Harg Island oil terminal if Tehran continues attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Haarg handles about 90% of Iran's oil exports and sits roughly 500 kilometers northwest of the strait. The U.S. President said American forces have already hit military targets on the island,

including air defenses and a naval base, but deliberately avoided damaging the oil infrastructure. Trump warned on social media that if Iran continues to target ships in the strait, the U.S. would rethink holding back. Iran responded quickly, saying any strike on its oil facilities would lead to attacks on energy infrastructure belonging to companies working with the United States in the region. The threats have already spilt beyond shipping lanes. Here in Dubai, the situation remains tense. This morning, debris from a drone shot down hit a building in the financial district, the second day in a row.

And the third time this week, a skyscraper in the city center was damaged. Tehran warned on Wednesday, after an Iranian bank linked to its military was hit, that it would target financial interests across the Gulf. The conflict has already become the largest energy supply shock in modern oil market history. With shipping through the Strait of Hormuz under threat, prices are swinging sharply as the war spreads across the Middle East. Megan Williams, CBC News, Dubai. Iran, meanwhile, is warning people to evacuate three major ports in the United Arab Emirates today as it threatens to target regional energy infrastructure. This, after the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad was struck by a missile.

Video posted online shows smoke and fire billowing from the compound after a projectile hit the embassy helipad early this morning. There's been no immediate comment from officials, but the facility remains under a level four security alert. Oil is leading the discussions as Canada's Prime Minister visits Norway. The exporters of oil like Norway, like Canada, we don't have to have reserves because we're providing oil to the market. Prime Minister Mark Carney speaking in Oslo this morning as he meets with his Norwegian counterpart. Both leaders emphasize that the war with Iran and skyrocketing fuel prices are a top priority for their nations. From Norway's perspective, from Canada's perspective, we are low-risk producers of oil.

We are low-risk producers of natural gas. We're reliable. We can produce, we're in jurisdictions where what we produce, will go to market and we can deliver it to market. And that is a contribution in a world which is lost, in effect, in the oil case, 15% potentially, some buffer on that of its oil flow and 20% of its natural gas flow. While the summit in Oslo is focused on trade and defense, the Prime Minister also spent part of his day

meeting with Canadian athletes as they compete in the Nordic World Cup. The former head of NATO is weighing in on the war with Iran. Yen Stoltenberg is worried about the human cost and the potential for Russia to profit from the instability. He's also questioning how well the alliance can hold together as global tensions rise. Catherine Cullen reports. It's the combination of the human suffering, the war, with the economic consequences, which is making me, of course, concerned. Despite that concern, Yen Stoltenberg says he hopes the NATO military alliance won't get involved in the war with Iran. Stoltenberg says there's little precedent for NATO.

involvement in the Middle East. He was the head of NATO for a decade, including when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and he worries about how this conflict will benefit Putin's regime, both as air defense systems are put to work in the Middle East, and as Russia grows richer through oil sales. It actually also can have a negative impact on Ukraine, and of course, I regret that very much. The United States has offered temporary licenses for countries to buy Russian oil that's stranded at sea. The U.S. says it's about stabilizing the global energy market, but Prime Minister Mark Carney still sees a threat. Canada's position is to maintain sanctions on Russia, maintain sanctions, including on the shadow

fleet, which is moving this oil. Still, despite the stress of the current conflict, Stoltenberg says he does believe NATO will continue even in the face of disruptions caused by Donald Trump. We don't have any guarantees, but I believe that NATO, the North Atlantic Alliance, will survive will prevail, despite the difficulties, the disagreements and the crisis we face. He says that's in part because it's in the interests of all members that the alliance thrive. Catherine Cullen, CBC News, Ottawa. And you can hear more of Catherine's interview with Jens Stoltenberg on the House

right after this edition of World Report or wherever you get your podcasts. Dutch police are hunting for a suspect caught on camera detonating an explosive outside a Jewish school in Amsterdam. The overnight blast caused limited damage and no injuries, but it marks the second attack on a Jewish site in the Netherlands in as many days. Authorities have already ramped up security at schools and synagogues across the country, following a similar arson attack in Rotterdam on Friday. The Amsterdam mayor called the incident, quote, a cowardly act of aggression and says the city's Jewish residents are facing a rising tide of fear and anti-Semitism. Today marks exactly one year since Ottawa announced a review of its multi-billion-dollar defense contract with Lockheed Martin.

The order for 88 F-35 fighter jets was put on hold as tensions between the White House and the federal government began to climb. As CBC's Murray Brewster reports, a final resolution remains far out of reach. We are also examining other alternatives, whether we need all of those fighter jets to be F-35s or if there might be alternatives. It has been exactly a year since former defense minister Bill Blair, dropped that bomb on CBC's power and politics. Even by federal government standards, taking a year to review a decision that has already been one of the most examined of the decade seems a bit strange. We're going to take the time we need to get this right. David McGinty, the current defense minister who inherited this political tug of war,

where the U.S., through Ambassador Pete Hoekstra, has publicly expressed frustration to rival jetmaker's sob, which sees revived hopes to sell its Gripen E fighter jet to fill out the rest of Canada, order to cabinet colleagues who see manufacturing jobs in Sob's renewed bid. Earlier this week, McGinty acknowledged industrial benefits are part of the still ongoing assessment, but also there is something else that's part of the hesitation. The question of relations with the United States, of course, finds its way into this decision, and we're managing that very carefully. EADY is widely known.

The military favors continuing with the F-35. Alan Williams, a former senior defense official, says the military always has its biases and it's time for an independent outside review in order to move things along. Murray Brister, CBC News, Oslo, Norway. The ripple effect of the Middle East crisis is being felt across the Pacific Ocean. Japan imports 95% of its crude oil from the Middle East, and much of that is now blocked by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. International oil prices have surged past $100 a barrel. prompting the Japanese government to release 80 million barrels from its emergency reserves. But despite those measures and new gasoline price caps, worries are mounting.

Patrick Falk has more. Masaki port to the south of Tokyo is a hub for deep sea fishing, popular among day-trippers from the capital. It's nicknamed Tuna Town, and the seafood restaurants specialize in serving the best cuts of the fish in Japan. But restaurant manager Kazuma Miyakawa says rise in fuel costs are certain to make it pricier. When it comes to things like tuna, the fishermen have to go out, and when fuel costs go up, it gets more expensive. Even before the Iran crisis, seafood prices have surged over the past few years,

outpacing broader food inflation in Japan. Declining catches are partly to blame. Fishermen like Sekhi Ashoto feared developments in the Middle East will add to the pressure. If things don't change, we'll have to raise prices. Their government warns oil imports could drop significantly from late March. To manage potential shortages, it says it will deliver domestic stockpiles to refiners by as early as Monday. But prolonged disruption could ripple through Japan's economy and squeeze industries that rely heavily on fuel. Patrick Fock for CBC News, Masaki, Japan.

And that is the latest national and international news from World Report. I'm John Northcott. Thanks for spending part of your weekend with us here at CBC News. For more CBC podcasts, go to cBC.ca.