A visual guide to US-Israeli strikes on Iran – and Tehran’s response | Iran
The US-Israeli war against Iran entered its second day on Sunday, as news of the assassination of the country’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei shook the Islamic Republic and the wider region.
While Donald Trump announced the death of Khamenei, Israel claimed that at least 40 senior Iranian commanders were killed on the first day of the attacks. Both countries continued to strike Iran, launching hundreds of airstrikes across the country throughout the night and on Sunday.
Despite losing much of its senior military and political leadership, Iran did not slow down its retaliation on Sunday, bombing targets in the Gulf and launching waves of ballistic missiles aimed at Israel.
On Saturday, Israel, together with Trump, announced the start of what it called Operation Lion’s Roar. An Israeli military official said this was aimed at “weakening the regime’s capabilities.” It was stated that the operations will continue ‘as long as necessary’. Trump went further, saying in a video posted on the Truth Social platform when the attack began that the goal was regime change.
Strikes took place across the country on Saturday and continued with new strikes on Sunday, including in central Tehran.
The attacks hit key security and political targets in Tehran, including Khamenei’s residence and ballistic missile depots elsewhere in the country. Satellite images showed black smoke billowing from the religious leader’s heavily damaged compound, and Iranian state media later confirmed he had been killed.
Hundreds of attacks hit at least 14 cities across Iran, an Israeli military official said; This attack was much more comprehensive than the previous US-Israeli attack on Iran in last summer’s 12-day war. The attacks targeted intelligence and security centers, the homes of Iranian officials, as well as ballistic missile launchers and warehouses; A tactic aimed at limiting Iran’s ability to respond to US and Israeli attacks. Israel also said it targeted Iran’s air defense systems in the west of the country to help establish air superiority.
Nearly 150 people were killed and at least 95 others were injured in an attack on a girls’ school in Minab, in the southern province of Hormozgan, according to state media. The attack was confirmed by Reuters. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards’ base is also located in the same city.
Reuters said it also confirmed that the images belonged to the school.
Iran’s retaliation crossed previous red lines that kept the Gulf out of the conflict. Much of the Middle East was affected by Sunday.
Iran hit targets including luxury hotels in Dubai and Bahrain and airports in Dubai, Kuwait and Bahrain.
A port facility in Oman and a ship northwest of Muscat were also hit, as the Iranian military broadcast radio warnings to ships trying to cross the Strait of Hormuz.
While Israel was intercepting missiles coming from Iran in the sky, the people in Damascus, Southern Lebanon and Amman were shaken by explosions.
Strikes against Gulf countries and the wider region have left travelers stranded due to the closure of major hubs in Dubai and Qatar. Flights around and within the region were canceled or delayed, and it was unclear when airspace over the Gulf states would reopen.
The speed at which the conflict became regionalized was dizzying. The geographical scope of the conflict exceeded the scope of the 12-day war in just a few hours.
Satellite images from Vantor showed Iranian ships burning at the Konarak naval base on Saturday.
Thousands of people gathered in Tehran’s Enghalab Square, waving flags and chanting slogans, to mourn the death of the religious leader. Women were screaming in pain and beating their chests, while men were holding Khamenei’s pictures in the air and calling for retaliation against the US and Israel for the assassination.
Protests have erupted across the Middle East and the wider region as Shiite Muslims gather to express their shock and anger at Khamenei’s killing. As an ayatollah, he was an important religious figure for members of the Shiite faith.
In Pakistan, hundreds of pro-Iran protesters tried to attack the US consulate in Karachi, prompting security forces to disperse the crowd. At least nine people died and many were injured.
Protests also broke out in Baghdad’s green zone, with Iraqi Shiite leaders Ali Sistani and Muqtada al-Sadr expressing their condolences for Khamenei’s death. Hezbollah also called for a rally in Beirut on Sunday afternoon.
The streets of Tehran were filled with panic as explosions shook the densely populated city. Israeli military spokesman told Iranians to stay away from military and industrial facilities. Iranian authorities have ordered citizens to flee major cities for safety in scenes reminiscent of the mass exodus from Tehran, the last time Israel attacked the city this summer.
The presence of many security institutions and officials in residential areas makes civilian casualties likely.
Israelis spent most of Sunday in air raid shelters as sirens blared almost constantly. One person died and dozens were injured when an Iranian missile hit Tel Aviv on Saturday night. Eight more people were killed and 20 people were injured when a missile hit the town of Bet Shemesh on Sunday afternoon.
Israel’s internal command ordered its citizens to take shelter after Iran launched waves of ballistic missiles into the country. Most of these were intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, which shot airborne projectiles heading toward populated areas.
