(KYIV, UKRAINE) – The United States and Israel have launched a large scale air campaign against Iran, killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and much of the country’s senior military leadership, according to Iranian state media and Western officials. The strikes began on Saturday and have rapidly escalated tensions across the Middle East.
The operation has targeted military command centres, missile facilities, air defence systems and naval assets. Within the first 48 hours, US and Israeli forces established control of Iranian airspace and struck what they described as high priority targets. Iranian state television confirmed the death of Khamenei after his compound was hit early in the campaign.
Iran responded by firing missiles and drones at nine countries including Bahrain, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria and the United Arab Emirates. The attacks were described as sporadic and uncoordinated. Damage reports included strikes on Kuwait International Airport and Dubai International Airport, where a retail area was damaged, as well as impacts on hotels including the Burj Al Arab and the Fairmont The Palm in Dubai. A residential building in Bahrain was hit by a drone. Tel Aviv was struck by a ballistic missile, causing injuries.
The United States confirmed that three service personnel were killed and five seriously wounded in a strike on a US base.
Washington had previously demanded that Iran end its nuclear programme and halt support for armed groups in Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Gaza. Iranian officials had refused to negotiate limits on missile production, according to US statements.
There are concerns about instability within Iran. Some analysts warn that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps may consolidate power rather than moderate. Reports indicate internet access inside Iran has been disrupted, though demonstrations have taken place both domestically and among diaspora communities abroad.
Ukraine voiced support for the operation. President Volodymyr Zelensky published a statement in Farsi, saying Iran had become an accomplice of the Russian dictator by supplying Shahed drones and missile technology used against Ukrainian cities. He said Russia has launched more than 57,000 Shahed type drones during the full scale invasion.
Ukraine’s official social media account stated that “nothing beats the death of a dictator”.
In Moscow, officials condemned the strikes as unprovoked aggression against an ally. Russian commentators questioned the implications for their own security. Observers note that Russia has recently seen setbacks involving allied governments in Syria, Venezuela and now Iran.
Meanwhile, Ukraine reported battlefield gains in the south and east. Officials said Russian advances have stalled and that Ukrainian forces have retaken positions along parts of the 2024 defensive line. Ukraine also reported destroying two S 300 radar stations in occupied Donetsk region. Belgian authorities, with French support, seized a Russian oil tanker operating under sanctions in the North Sea, in what President Emmanuel Macron described as a blow to Russia’s shadow fleet.
Ukrainian officials said the country had endured the winter without energy collapse despite continued Russian attacks.
