The first reports of explosions in the Iranian capital Tehran came shortly after 7 a.m. Saturday, local time in Sweden. Israel says it launched a “preemptive strike.”
Just over an hour later, Iranian media reported that the attacks were nationwide. Iran and Israel are closing their respective airspaces, and in Iran the mobile network is reportedly down.
US President Donald Trump confirms that the US is engaged in a “major combat operation” aimed at militarily crushing Iran. He calls on the Iranian people to overthrow the regime.
On Saturday morning, there were reports of explosions after Iranian counterattacks against northern Israel. Iran announced that it had fired “the first wave” of drones and rockets at Israel. Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Jordan and Kuwait - all of which host US bases - reported that they had been attacked and had shot down Iranian missiles in their airspace.
Spread to Lebanon
Late Saturday night, US President Donald Trump announced that Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had been killed. Mohammad Pakpour, leader of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh, and Army Chief of Staff Abdolrahim Mousavi were also killed in the attacks.
On Sunday, Israel and the US carry out more attacks on Iran, and Iran continues to attack Israel. At the same time, explosions are reported from several cities in countries around the Persian Gulf.
On Monday night, the Iran-allied Islamist movement Hezbollah in Lebanon launched rocket and drone attacks on northern Israel. They were met with numerous Israeli airstrikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, where around 50 people were reported killed on Monday.
Meanwhile, Israel continues to attack Iran and the capital, Tehran, overnight.
On Monday, flames and smoke rose after a suspected Iranian attack on the US embassy in Kuwait, and Kuwait's air defenses accidentally shot down three American fighter jets.
Hundreds killed
Iran on Monday accused the United States of attacking the nuclear facility in Natanz on Sunday afternoon.
Explosions are once again being reported in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, as well as in Bahrain.
During Tuesday night and into Tuesday morning, Israel continued to carry out airstrikes against targets in Lebanon and Iran. At the same time, Iran continued to direct drone attacks against several countries in the Middle East. Among other things, the US embassy in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, was hit and a small fire broke out.
The Israeli military said soldiers had been sent across the border to several locations in southern Lebanon as a “defensive measure.” At least 30,000 Lebanese have been forced to flee, according to the UN refugee agency.
The Iranian Red Crescent said early Tuesday that at least 787 people had been killed in Iran since the war began. A mass funeral for more than 160 victims is being held in Minab in southern Iran, following what Iranian state media described as an Israeli-American attack on a girls' school in the city.
