DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a major attack launched by Israel and the United States, U.S. President Donald Trump announced Saturday, confirming an assassination that he said gave Iranians their “best chance” to “take the country back” but that also put the Islamic Republic’s future in doubt and raised the risk of regional instability.
The attacks opened a stunning new chapter in US intervention in Iran, marking the second time in eight months that the Trump administration has attacked the country during talks over its nuclear program. It seemed certain that Khamenei’s presumed death after decades in power would create a significant leadership vacuum given the absence of a known successor and because the supreme leader had the final say on all major policies. He headed Iran’s clerical establishment and the Revolutionary Guard paramilitary group, the two main centers of power in the ruling theocracy.
In a nationally televised address, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there were “growing signs” that Khamenei, 86, had been killed when Israel attacked his compound early Saturday. Shortly after the speech, two Israeli officials said that Israel had confirmed his death. Both spoke on condition of anonymity pending a formal announcement and did not provide further details.
As reports of the death filtered in, witnesses in Tehran told the AP that some residents were rejoicing, whistling and shouting.
The attacks come after months of rising tensions
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The joint U.S.-Israeli operation, which officials say was months in the making, took place Saturday during the holy fasting month of Ramadan and the start of the Iranian work week.
As the attack on Iran got underway, Trump urged the Iranian public to “take their destiny into their own hands” by rising up against the Islamic leadership. In a video announcing the “major combat operations,” Trump told the Iranians that “when we’re done, take control of your government. It will be yours to run. This will probably be your only chance in generations.”
An Iranian diplomat told the United Nations Security Council that hundreds of civilians were killed and wounded in the attacks.
Citing the Red Crescent, Iranian state media reported Saturday night that at least 201 people had been killed and more than 700 injured. Iran responded by launching missiles and drones toward Israel and US military bases in the region, and exchanges of fire continued into the night.
About 12 hours after the attacks began, the U.S. military reported that there were no American casualties and minimal damage to U.S. bases despite “hundreds of Iranian missile and drone strikes.” He said targets in Iran included Revolutionary Guard command facilities, air defense capabilities, missile and drone launch sites, and military airfields.
Several members of Iran’s ruling body were targeted in the attack. Israel said it killed the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the country’s defense minister. The Israeli military also claimed that its strikes caused the death of the Iranian Security Council secretary, a close adviser to Khamenei.
Some of the first attacks against Iran reportedly struck near the offices of Khamenei, the Islamic Republic’s second leader who succeeded Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Before Israeli officials confirmed the death, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told NBC News that the ayatollah and President Masoud Pezeshkian were alive “as far as I know,” calling the “unprovoked, illegal and absolutely illegitimate” attack.
Democrats charged that Trump acted without authorization from Congress. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said the president’s administration informed several Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress in advance about the attack.
Failed nuclear talks
Tensions have soared in recent weeks as American warships headed to the region. Trump said he wanted a deal that would restrict Tehran’s nuclear program, as the country faces growing discontent following a wave of nationwide protests.
The trigger for Saturday’s attacks appeared to be the recent round of failed nuclear talks held on Thursday. They also reflect the drastic changes that have left Iran’s ruling body in its weakest position since the Islamic Revolution nearly half a century ago.
Although Trump declared that Iran’s nuclear program had been wiped out in last year’s attacks, the country was rebuilding the infrastructure it had lost, and intelligence showed that Iran had developed the ability to produce its own high-quality centrifuges, an important step toward developing the highly enriched uranium needed to make weapons. This, according to a senior US official who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity to discuss Trump’s decision-making process.
The Israeli and American strikes in June greatly weakened Iran’s air defenses, its military leadership and its nuclear program. A region-wide war, triggered by the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, has left Iran’s network of allies across the Middle East greatly weakened. For their part, US sanctions and global isolation have decimated the Iranian economy.
Iran responded to the recent attacks by launching missiles and drones against Israel, as well as attacks on US military facilities in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. Israel’s military said Iran fired “dozens” of missiles at Israel, many of which were intercepted. The Magen David Adom emergency service reported 89 people “with minor injuries.”
At least three explosions were heard Saturday night near the Intelligence Ministry building in northern Tehran, witnesses said, adding that air defense systems had begun operating. Israel’s military said it had begun a new wave of attacks on missile launchers and air defense systems in central Iran.
In the Islamic Republic’s south, at least 85 people were reported dead after a girls’ school was hit, and dozens more were injured, the local governor told Iranian state television.
Capt. Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said he was “aware of reports” that a girls’ school was hit and that they were investigating.
Iran’s state news agency IRNA said at least 15 people were killed in the southwest, citing Lamerd Governor Ali Alizadeh, who said a sports center, two residential areas and a hall near a school were hit.
Flights across the Middle East were disrupted and air defense fire roared over Dubai, the commercial capital of the United Arab Emirates. Shrapnel from an Iranian missile attack on the capital of the Emirates left one dead, according to state press.
Coordinated attack between Israel and the US
Israel said the operation had been planned for months with the United States. Air Force pilots were attacking “hundreds of targets across Iran,” Israeli Army Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir said in a statement.
Among the targets of the Israeli campaign were the Iranian military, government symbols and intelligence targets, according to an official familiar with the operation, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss non-public information about the attack.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has canceled his trip to Israel, scheduled for early next week, a State Department official said.
Trump, in justifying his military action, claimed that Iran was continuing to develop its nuclear program, despite claiming last year that the program had been “wiped out” by a previous round of attacks.
He acknowledged Saturday that there could be American casualties, noting that “that usually happens in war.” It was a relevant appeal to the American population by a leader who came to office driven by the mantra “America first” and promised to stay away from “forever wars.”
Trump also indicated that he sought to “annihilate” the Iranian navy and destroy regional allies backed by Tehran. He also urged the Iranian paramilitary group Revolutionary Guard to lay down their arms, saying its members would receive immunity or face “certain death” if they did not.
Iran has previously signaled it was hopeful it could avoid war, but maintains it has the right to enrich uranium. He did not want to address other issues, such as its long-range missile program or its support for armed groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
Iran has said it has not enriched uranium since June, but has prevented international inspectors from visiting sites the United States bombed. Satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press have shown new activity at two of those sites, suggesting Tehran is trying to assess and possibly recover material there.
Trump had threatened military action — but held back — following the recent repression of protests fueled by the economic crisis, which led to nationwide anti-government mobilizations.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency says it confirmed more than 7,000 deaths in that crackdown and is investigating thousands more. The Iranian theocracy has recognized more than 3,000 deaths.
Regional effects
The attacks could have a huge impact on global markets, especially if the security of the Strait of Hormuz for commercial traffic is jeopardized. A third of global seaborne oil exports will pass through the strait by 2025.
Saudi Arabia said Iran had attacked its capital and eastern region in an attack that was repelled. Bahrain said a missile attack targeted the headquarters of the US Navy’s 5th Fleet in the island kingdom, and that three buildings were damaged in Manama, the capital, and the city of Muharraq by drone strikes and debris from an intercepted missile.
Kuwait’s civil aviation authority said a drone targeted the main international airport, injuring several employees. Kuwait’s state news agency said three soldiers were wounded by shrapnel from attacks that hit the Ali Al-Salem air base. Explosions were also heard in Qatar. Jordan said it “dealt with” 49 drones and ballistic missiles.
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Lidman reported from Tel Aviv. Boak reported from West Palm Beach, Florida. Tucker reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Joe Federman in Jerusalem, Aamer Madhani and Konstantin Toropin in Washington, Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Farnoush Amiri in New York and AP journalists around the world contributed to this report.
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This story was translated from English by an AP editor with the help of a generative artificial intelligence tool.
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