WASHINGTON/JERUSALEM/DUBAI, Feb. 28, 2026 — The United States and Israel launched joint strikes across Iran on Saturday, and Tehran fired missiles and drones toward Israel and U.S. bases in the Gulf in the first wave of retaliation, Reuters reported, and the Associated Press said.
President Donald Trump called the operation “major combat operations” and urged Iranians to “take over your government,” while Israel’s leadership said the strikes were aimed at removing threats from Iran, according to the BBC and The Guardian.
Strikes rattle Tehran and beyond
Explosions were reported in Tehran and other Iranian cities shortly after dawn, with smoke visible over parts of the capital as the strikes unfolded, the BBC reported, and the AP described.
Iran closed its airspace and described the attack as unlawful, while state media said strikes hit multiple locations nationwide, details also carried by the BBC and Reuters.
Missiles fired across the region
Iran’s retaliation sent missiles and drones toward Israel and U.S. military facilities in Gulf states, with Bahrain saying the U.S. Fifth Fleet headquarters was targeted and multiple countries reporting interceptions, Reuters said, and the BBC reported.
The United Arab Emirates said falling debris from intercepts killed at least one person in Abu Dhabi, and explosions were heard in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, as detailed by the AP and BBC.
Diplomacy and broader risks
The strikes came after the latest round of U.S.-Iran nuclear talks failed to produce a breakthrough, a point noted by Reuters, while the AP said the Omani mediator warned that negotiations had been undermined.
Airlines suspended or rerouted flights across parts of the Middle East as airspace closures spread, with disruptions outlined by the BBC and Reuters.
World leaders called for restraint and a return to diplomacy, with the United Nations and European officials warning about escalation, according to the BBC and The Guardian.
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Image: “Tehran Skyline” by Hamed Saber, CC BY 2.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tehran_Skyline.jpg (original: https://www.flickr.com/photos/hamed/165602336/). License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/. Modifications: cropped and resized to 1920×1080 (16:9).