Explosive activity continues. Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) Darwin warned about a volcanic ash plume that rose up to estimated 15000 ft (4600 m) altitude or flight level 150 and is moving at 05 kts in SW direction. The full report is as follows:
FVAU02 at 15:13 UTC, 31/03/26 from ADRM VA ADVISORY DTG: 20260331/1530Z VAAC: DARWIN VOLCANO: SEMERU 263300 PSN: S0806 E11255 AREA: INDONESIA SOURCE ELEV: 3657M AMSL ADVISORY NR: 2026/369 INFO SOURCE: HIMAWARI-9, CVGHM ERUPTION DETAILS: VA TO FL150 OBS AT 31/0310Z EST VA DTG: 31/1510Z EST VA CLD: SFC/FL150 S0757 E11259 – S0803 E11305 – S0824 E11303 – S0825 E11236 – S0759 E11237 MOV SW 05KT FCST VA CLD +6 HR: 31/2110Z SFC/FL150 S0800 E11301 – S0825 E11304 – S0827 E11240 – S0807 E11232 – S0757 E11255 FCST VA CLD +12 HR: 01/0310Z SFC/FL150 S0757 E11251 – S0758 E11302 – S0819 E11311 – S0830 E11252 – S0816 E11236 FCST VA CLD +18 HR: 01/0910Z SFC/FL150 S0757 E11300 – S0816 E11314 – S0829 E11300 – S0822 E11240 – S0759 E11248 RMK: VA UNIDENTIFIABLE DUE TO OBSCURATION. INTERMITTENT VA EMISSIONS EXPECTED TO BE ONGOING. VA HEIGHT AND MOVEMENT BASED ON SATELLITE IMAGERY, GROUND REPORTS AND MODEL GUIDANCE. WINDS BECOMING LIGHT REDUCING FORECAST CONFIDENCE. NXT ADVISORY: NO LATER THAN 20260331/2130Z=
Explosive activity continues. Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) Darwin warned about a volcanic ash plume that rose up to estimated 7000 ft (2100 m) altitude or flight level 070 . The full report is as follows:
FVAU01 at 10:54 UTC, 31/03/26 from ADRM VA ADVISORY DTG: 20260331/1100Z VAAC: DARWIN VOLCANO: IBU 268030 PSN: N0129 E12738 AREA: INDONESIA SOURCE ELEV: 1325M AMSL ADVISORY NR: 2026/366 INFO SOURCE: HIMAWARI-9, CVGHM ERUPTION DETAILS: VA TO FL070 OBS AT 31/1040Z MOV NE EST VA DTG: 31/1040Z EST VA CLD: SFC/FL070 N0124 E12737 – N0133 E12733 – N0141 E12742 – N0137 E12752 – N0125 E12751 MOV NE 05KT FCST VA CLD +6 HR: 31/1640Z SFC/FL070 N0124 E12737 – N0133 E12733 – N0142 E12742 – N0138 E12752 – N0126 E12752 FCST VA CLD +12 HR: 31/2240Z SFC/FL070 N0124 E12737 – N0133 E12732 – N0142 E12742 – N0138 E12752 – N0125 E12752 FCST VA CLD +18 HR: 01/0440Z SFC/FL070 N0124 E12736 – N0133 E12734 – N0141 E12744 – N0134 E12754 – N0123 E12749 RMK: VA OBS ON LATEST SATELLITE IMAGERY MOVE NE. INTERMITTENT VA EMISSIONS EXPECTED TO BE ONGOING. HEIGHT AND MOVEMENT BASED ON SATELLITE IMAGERY, GROUND REPORTS AND MODEL GUIDANCE. WINDS BECOMING LIGHT AND VARIABLE REDUCING FORECAST CONFIDENCE. NXT ADVISORY: NO LATER THAN 20260331/1700Z=
Volcanic Ash Advisory Center Tokyo (VAAC) issued the following report:
FVFE01 at 05:47 UTC, 31/03/26 from RJTD VA ADVISORY DTG: 20260331/0547Z VAAC: TOKYO VOLCANO: MAYON 273030 PSN: N1315 E12341 AREA: PHILIPPINES SOURCE ELEV: 2462M AMSL ADVISORY NR: 2026/409 INFO SOURCE: HIMAWARI-9 PHIVOLCS ERUPTION DETAILS: ERUPTION AT 20260331/0529Z VA CLD UNKNOWN REPORTED OBS VA DTG: 31/0530Z OBS VA CLD: VA NOT IDENTIFIABLE FM SATELLITE DATA WIND FL180 080/6KT FCST VA CLD +6 HR: NOT AVBL FCST VA CLD +12 HR: NOT AVBL FCST VA CLD +18 HR: NOT AVBL RMK: WE WILL ISSUE FURTHER ADVISORY IF VA IS DETECTED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY. NXT ADVISORY: NO FURTHER ADVISORIES=
Strike on Ramat Lehi neighbourhood destroyed Tiferet Israel synagogue
New investigation shows no military objective in vicinity of strike
“The weapon used in the strike is wildly inaccurate”– Erika Guevara-Rosas
A missile strike by the Islamic Republic of Iran’s authorities on the Israeli city of Beit Shemesh that killed nine civilians – including four teenagers – must be investigated as a war crime, Amnesty International said in a new investigation.
The strike, just before 2pm local time on 1 March on the Ramat Lehi neighbourhood, destroyed the Tiferet Israel synagogue and caused extensive damage to the bomb shelter beneath it. An estimated 46 people were also injured.
Amnesty International analyzed verified digital evidence posted on social media, along with photos and videos the organization collected from the site of the strike, and found that an Iranian ballistic missile was used in the attack.
“The weapon used in Iran’s strike on the Ramat Lehi neighborhood in Israel is wildly inaccurate and carries a massive warhead, making it completely inappropriate for use in densely populated civilian areas,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s Senior Director of Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns.
This attack destroyed a synagogue and a bomb shelter – two places that should have been areas of refuge and safety for civilians
Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s Senior Director of Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns
Amnesty International’s research found no evidence of the presence of legitimate military objectives in the immediate vicinity of the attack. The nearest military objective to the site of the strike appears to be an Israeli military base near the town of Sdot Micha, which is located approximately 3.5km to the west of the impact site.
“This attack destroyed a synagogue and a bomb shelter – two places that should have been areas of refuge and safety for civilians. Nine civilians were killed, including four children. The strike must be investigated as a war crime,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas.
“The Iranian authorities’ use of a ballistic missile in this attack renders it indiscriminate and therefore a violation of international humanitarian law. Launching an indiscriminate attack that causes civilian deaths, injuries or damage to civilian objects constitutes a war crime. There must be an independent and impartial investigation, and anyone for whom there is sufficient evidence of responsibility must be prosecuted in a fair trial.”
Amnesty International verified social media footage showing the munition falling in the city of Beit Shemesh. The trajectory of the munition and the extent of the damage at the scene of the strike are consistent with the use of a ballistic missile carrying a large warhead, rather than a cruise missile or smaller drone-delivered munition. Images from the aftermath show the razed synagogue, along with widespread damage across an approximate 500-metre radius.
Israeli media outlets reported that the warhead used was approximately 500kg. Amnesty International has not been able to confirm the payload of the weapon. A 2024 analysis of the accuracy of Iranian ballistic missiles found they routinely missed their target by at least half-a-kilometre.
Between 16 March and 19 March, Amnesty International interviewed four survivors of the attack, and a rescue worker who arrived soon after the strike. The organization also analyzed satellite imagery of the site before and after the attack to corroborate the scale of destruction.
“We are all in despair. We are broken”
Nine civilians were killed as a result of the strike: siblings Sara Biton, aged 13, Avigail Biton, 15, and Yaakov Biton, 17; Gabriel Revah, 16; Oren Katz, 46; Sara Elimelech, 67, and her daughter, Ronit Elimelech, 45; and Bruria Cohen, 76, and her son, Yossi Cohen, 41.
Rabbi Yitzak Biton lost three of his children in the attack. On the morning of the attack, he gave a lesson to Torah students. His two daughters, Sara and Avigail, convinced his son Yaakov to go to the nearby bomb shelter with them, while he, his wife Tamar, and his four-year-old daughter Rachel stayed at their house, located one block from the synagogue.
He told Amnesty International: “The ceiling and the roof [of their house] collapsed… I looked through the window, and I saw the area where the synagogue was. It was on fire, and there was very black smoke in the sky. I was afraid to go… After I worked up the courage to go, I saw the synagogue was completely destroyed, and the [bomb] shelter was split open. The shelter wasn’t safe. It did not provide protection.
“I lost not one, not two, but three children… One day, out of the blue, half of the family is gone.”
Sarah Fanny Amar, 53, was in the bomb shelter when the strike hit the synagogue. She told Amnesty International: “There was a big boom… I was hanging from metal, and metal was on top of me. Before the boom I was sitting, so the shockwave had thrown me. Around me everything was black and dust… The ceiling collapsed on top of me… I started walking, but I could barely see anything, and I was feeling my way with my hands. I was walking on top of ruins and people… Outside, there was fire… Cars were burning… I got to the grass, and that’s where I collapsed. I opened my eyes in an ambulance.
“With these bombs, you’re left with no desire to live, to sleep, to eat… I can’t live like this… Even in the shelter you are not safe… I knew everyone who was killed.”
Nissim Edery, 71, was sitting with his neighbour about 100m from the site of the attack. He told Amnesty International: “At the moment of the explosion, I was thrown 4-5m from the shockwave… I realized it was a missile that hit our area… I walked toward the explosion, and there was a huge fire and smoke… It was unbelievable to see what destruction this missile made.
“I know three of the victims, a brother and his two sisters. It tore my heart… We are all in despair. We are broken.”
Reuven Harow, 56, is a senior medic for the emergency medical service Magen David Adom. He arrived at the site around 10 minutes after the attack. He told Amnesty International: “People were coming out all bloodied and bruised… No one knew where the missile strike was – there was damage everywhere…
“Bodies were blown apart… There were body parts lying around for hours after. The focus was on saving anyone who was alive… The people who were giving treatment at the scene – they were treating family and family friends they had known for years. Everyone knows everyone here… What I kept saying over and over is ‘This isn’t real’… It looked like I was watching a movie.”
Background
On 28 February, the US and Israel launched joint attacks on Iran, with thousands of strikes across the country since. The Iranian authorities have launched retaliatory attacks across the region. The armed conflict rapidly expanded into regional hostilities across the Middle East and has resulted in significant loss of civilian life and destruction of civilian infrastructure. Israel has also escalated its attacks on Lebanon in response to Hezbollah’s attacks.
As of 27 March, according to reports, as a result of Israeli and US attacks, at least 1,900 people, including at least 100 Minab schoolchildren, have been killed in Iran; more than 1,116 in Lebanon. Iranian attacks have thus far killed at least 16 civilians in Israel and four in the occupied West Bank; and at least 23 killed across other Gulf Cooperation Council countries in the region.
