us israel iran war

Beginning on 28 February 2026, Israel and the United States engaged in coordinated joint attacks on various sites in Iran. Codenamed Operation Roaring Lion by Israel and Operation Epic Fury by the United States, the attacks have targeted key Iranian officials, military commanders and facilities. Iran's response has been named Operation True Promise IV.
The operation began with joint strikes by Israel and the US in the cities of Tehran, Isfahan, Qom, Karaj, and Kermanshah. The attacks included the assassination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, whose compound was destroyed; Ali Shamkhani, former secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council; and several other Iranian officials. In retaliation, Iran launched dozens of its drones and ballistic missiles throughout the Persian Gulf at targets in Israel and US military bases in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Iran launched strikes on civilian airports and shipping ports in Kuwait, the UAE, and Oman. Britain's Akrotiri and Dhekelia military base in Cyprus was struck. Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting global oil and gas shipments. Hezbollah in Lebanon joined the war after the killing of Khamenei.
US officials, including US president Donald Trump, have offered various and shifting reasons for launching the war on Iran, including to ward off an imminent threat, destroy missile and military capabilities, prevent it from obtaining nuclear weapons, and ultimately to achieve regime change. Iran rejected US claims that it was preparing an attack. After the strikes, the International Atomic Energy Agency said that Iran does not have a nuclear weapons program. Israeli Minister of Science and Technology Gila Gamliel said that 2026 Israeli legislative election will likely be brought forward to late June or July to allow prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc to leverage the war. The United Nations and several uninvolved countries condemned the initial strikes for undermining the stability of the Middle East; others condemned Iran's retaliatory strikes on US allies in the region. Critics of the operation described it as illegal under US law, an act of imperialism, and a violation of Iran's sovereignty under international law.

View More On Wikipedia.org