Following reports of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s death, Israel continued to pound sites in Iran on the second day of a massive joint attack by Tel Aviv and Washington on the Islamic republic.
There was no immediate word early on March 1 of further US air strikes after President Donald Trump a day earlier said Washington had begun “major combat operations” against Iran in one of the biggest Western attacks ever against the Middle East country.
Trump has said the “heavy and pinpoint bombing” would continue through the week or perhaps longer.
US defense chief Pete Hegseth wrote on X that the “Iranian regime had their chance, yet refused to make a deal — and now they are suffering the consequences.”
The strikes set the region on edge as air raid sirens wailed in across the Middle East amid retaliatory strikes by Tehran against Israel and on Arab countries hosting US military assets.
Along with the US and Israeli bombs falling in Iranian cities, celebrations were reported on the streets of Tehran and several other cities after Trump said Khamenei had been killed in the US-Israel strikes.
“Khamenei, one of the most evil people in History, is dead,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on February 28. He provided no evidence to back up the claim.
“This is not only Justice for the people of Iran, but for all Great Americans, and those people from many Countries throughout the World, that have been killed or mutilated by Khamenei and his gang of bloodthirsty THUGS.”
Tehran has not commented directly on Trump’s statement but issued several denials earlier on February 28 following multiple reports — including one by Israeli prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — suggesting that the 86-year-old Khamenei was dead.
Early on March 1, Iran’s Fars News Agency — which is close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) — did not respond to the reports but did say that members of Khamenei’s extended family were killed in the Israeli attacks.
Earlier, there were reports that a bride and a son-in-law of the Supreme Leader had been killed, but this news was denied by Iranian domestic media hours later.
Reuters quoted witnesses as saying celebrations took place in several cities — including Tehran, Karaj, Shahavar, and Isfahan.
A Major Blow To Regime
Unverified videos also showed celebrations in Shiraz and Abdanan, with car horns blaring and carrying photos of some of the thousands of protesters killed in the January crackdown on antigovernment demonstrations.
If Khamenei’s death is confirmed, it would represent a major blow to the country’s embattled leadership.
Khamenei has held near-dictatorial powers over Iran since becoming the supreme leader in 1989 after the death of the founder of the Islamic republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
As supreme leader, hard-line Khamenei was a vocal opponent of moves by any potential moderate leaders to repair relations with the West. He was also a symbol of hatred by many inside Iran who were angered by the repression of the theocratic regime in Tehran.
Israel’s military said it hit multiple areas in the capital where top officials had gathered and also struck Iranian missile-launcher sites — 500 targets in all with some 200 fighter jets taking part in the first waves.
Trump and Netanyahu said reports indicated that several other leaders had also been killed in the air strikes. Israel said among those dead were top Khamenei adviser Ali Shamkhan and Mohammad Pakpor, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander.
Early on March 1, Israel’s military said it completed another round on air strikes targeting ballistic-missile and air-defense sites in central and western Iran. Details weren’t immediately available.
The US military — which named the campaign Operation Epic Fury — said there were no American casualties on the first day of strikes and that any damage to US installations in the region hit by Iran was “minimal and has not impacted operations.“
Iran Hits Back In Region
Tehran struck back at Israel and seven other countries, including Persian Gulf states that host US military assets.
Bahrain, which hosts the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet — a massive center for naval activity in the Middle East — reported it was hit by a missile attack, while Qatar said it had shot down all missiles targeting the small country, which has been acting as a mediator for US-Iranian talks over Tehran’s nuclear program.
Trump had threatened Iran with military strikes if it did not reach a deal over its nuclear program. The West suspects Tehran is looking to build a nuclear weapon, while Iran said the program is strictly for civilian purposes. Negotiations failed to produce a breakthrough.
Iran’s Mizan news agency, which is tied to Iran’s judiciary, said 108 people died in a strike on a girls school in Minab, blaming Israel.
Western journalists were not allowed access to the site and the claim could not be verified.
Blasts were reported at several sites inside Israel as Iran launched missiles toward its bitter enemy.
Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency service, said a 40-year-old woman was killed in the Tel Aviv area and at least 21 people were injured elsewhere. It was not immediately clear if the blasts were caused by direct hits of Iranian missiles or from debris after projectiles were shot down.
The UN Security Council met on February 28 on the latest flareup of violence, with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urging an immediate cessation of hostilities.
