JERUSALEM, March 14 (Reuters) - Israel and Lebanon are expected to hold direct talks in the coming days, their first since the start of the Iran war that has drawn Lebanon deeper into conflict, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on Saturday, citing two sources with knowledge of the matter.

U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner will be involved in the talks that may be held in Paris or in Cyprus, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's confidant Ron Dermer leading the Israeli delegation, Haaretz said.

By Maayan Lubell and Nazih Osseiran

JERUSALEM/BEIRUT March 14 (Reuters) - The Israeli military warned on Saturday that it may strike ambulances and medical facilities which it said were being used unlawfully by Hezbollah in Lebanon, though it did not provide evidence for the claim.

"As part of its terrorist activities, Hezbollah is using ambulances extensively for military purposes," the Israeli military's Arabic spokesman Avichai Adraee said on X, adding that such use must immediately stop.

Two more players of the Iranian women's football team, which competed in the Asian Cup in Australia, and one member of the backroom staff have withdrawn their requests for asylum in the country, Iranian state media said on Saturday.

Seven members of the visiting women's football delegation -- six players and one backroom staff member -- had sought sanctuary in Australia after they were branded "traitors" at home for refusing to sing the national anthem during the ongoing war between Iran and the US and its ally Israel.

March 14 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that many countries would send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, but did not provide details on which countries would do so.

"Many Countries, especially those who are affected by Iran’s attempted closure of the Hormuz Strait, will be sending War Ships, in conjunction with the United States of America, to keep the Strait open and safe," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

Trump said he hoped that China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others would send ships to the area.

US President Donald Trump on Saturday said countries that rely on oil carried through the Hormuz strait should take responsibility for keeping the passage open, with American help.

Global oil prices have surged by 40 percent as Iran has choked off the vital sea passage and attacked Gulf energy facilities since US-Israeli strikes launched the war on Iran.

By Nidhi Verma and Saurabh Sharma

NEW DELHI, March 14 (Reuters) - India has sought safe passage for 22 of its vessels stranded west of the Strait of Hormuz, a foreign affairs ministry spokesperson said on Saturday, after Iran allowed a few Indian ships to sail through, in a rare exception to the blockade.

Randhir Jaiswal told a press conference that India has stayed in touch with all major parties in the Middle East - including Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Iran, the U.S. and Israel - to convey its priorities, particularly on energy security.

March 14 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday said four of five tanker planes targeted in an attack on a base in Saudi Arabia suffered "virtually no damage."

"Four of the five had virtually no damage, and are already back in service. One had slightly more damage, but will be in the air shortly," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

CAIRO, March 14 (Reuters) - The Palestinian Iran-aligned militant group Hamas has called on Iran to not target neighbouring countries, while still reaffirming Tehran's right to respond to the U.S.-Israeli attacks.

This is the first time the group has publicly commented on Iranian policies. It has expressed solidarity with Iran during the war but appeared to steer clear from threatening any retaliatory actions so far.

Kharg Island, targeted in US air strikes on Saturday, is a scrubby stretch of land in the Gulf that handles almost all of Iran's crude exports.

Announcing the strikes, US President Donald Trump described Kharg as a "crown jewel" for Iran and maintained that every military target on the island had been "totally obliterated".

The island, located around 30 kilometres (19 miles) off the Iranian mainland, is a hub for roughly 90 percent of Iran's crude exports, according to a JP Morgan note released earlier this month.

By Sarah El Safty and Nidhi Verma

DUBAI, March 14 (Reuters) - Some oil-loading operations have been suspended in the United Arab Emirates' Fujairah emirate, a major bunkering hub and crude export terminal, after a drone attack and fire on Saturday, industry and trade sources said.

The suspension comes hours after the U.S. attacked military targets on Iran's Kharg Island oil export terminal and Iran's Revolutionary Guards responded by saying that U.S. interests in the UAE - including ports, docks and military locations - were legitimate targets.