LIVE UPDATES: Middle East Tensions Mount After Strikes on Iran – Day 9
LIVE UPDATES: Middle East Tensions Mount After Strikes on Iran – Day 9
Sputnik International
The United States and Israel carried out a coordinated series of strikes on February 28 targeting multiple sites in Iran, including locations in Tehran. In response, Iran launched retaliatory strikes against Israeli territory and US military bases across the Middle East.
united states, israel, series of strikes, israeli territory, us military bases, middle east
united states, israel, series of strikes, israeli territory, us military bases, middle east
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The United States and Israel carried out a coordinated series of strikes on February 28 targeting multiple sites in Iran, including locations in Tehran. In response, Iran launched retaliatory strikes against Israeli territory and US military bases across the Middle East.
The operation against Iran took place despite ongoing Oman-mediated talks between the US and Iran in Geneva aimed at addressing the Iranian nuclear issue.Iranian authorities reported that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the strikes.
Following the attacks, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced the launch of True Promise 4, describing it as the most extensive and forceful offensive operation in the country’s history, targeting Israel and US military bases in the region.
Follow Sputnik's live updates to find out more!
Table of contents
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19:03 GMT 08.03.2026
IDF Says It Targeted IRGC Air Force HQ
19:03 GMT 08.03.2026
Assembly of Experts Member Says Surname of Iran's New Leader Will Remain Khamenei - Report
The surname of Iran's new supreme leader will remain Khamenei, Assembly of Experts member Hosseinali Eshkevari said on Sunday.
"The name of Khamenei will continue. The vote has been cast and will be announced soon," Eshkevari was quoted as saying by Reuters.
Iranian Military Threatens to Target Oil Industry in Response to Attacks on Energy Assets
ran will retaliate for attacks on its energy infrastructure by striking oil industry assets across the Middle East, the central command of the Iranian armed forces warned on Sunday.
"We expect governments of Islamic countries to urgently caution the criminal United States and the Zionist regime [in Israel] against such steps to avoid fanning the flame of war, least this leads to similar action across the region," Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said.
The command said Iran had refrained from striking at regional energy infrastructure assets despite having comprehensive intelligence on potential targets.
16:42 GMT 08.03.2026
📹Mehr News video: Direct hit on Minab girls‘ school during US-Israeli strikes Feb 28
Shell Kills 2 in Saudi Arabia's Al-Kharj Province Near Riyadh – Civil Defense
Two people were killed and 12 others injured when a shell fell on a residential area in the Al-Kharj province, east of the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh, the kingdom's civil defense agency said on Sunday.
"A military shell fell on a residential area in Al-Kharj Governorate, killing two people and injuring 12. The dead were Indian and Bangladeshi citizens, and the injured were Bangladeshi citizens," the agency said.
15:33 GMT 08.03.2026
IDF Announces Start of Large-Scale Strikes Against Targets in Tehran, Areas in Iran
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced the start of large-scale strikes against targets in Tehran and additional areas in Iran on Sunday.
"The IDF has begun wide-scale strikes on … targets in Tehran and additional areas in Iran," the IDF wrote on Telegram.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Sunday that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' aerospace forces headquarters and some 50 bunkers storing ammunition were hit in a new wave of strikes on Tehran.
"The IDF completed an additional wave of strikes in Tehran: the IRGC Space Headquarters and 50 ammunition bunkers were struck," the IDF said in a statement.
The IDF also hit the Basij base of Iran's "mobilization force," the Internal Security Command Center, and a complex belonging to the IRGC Ground Forces, the statement added.
14:45 GMT 08.03.2026
Iran Sees US Bases in Middle East as US Property - Gov't
Tehran considers US military bases in the Middle East to be US property, so attacking them does not equal attacking their host countries, Iranian government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani told Sputnik.
The spokeswoman said that Iran "implements national measures to defend itself against US military aggression, which uses its bases in the region and attacks from the territory of neighboring countries."
"Accordingly, they are not part of the territories of these countries. They are, in fact, owned and controlled by the US. Iran's defensive actions are not directed against any country in the region," she said, adding that accusations against Tehran of attacking those countries "do not correspond to facts on the ground."
14:45 GMT 08.03.2026
US Has No Plans to Strike Iranian Energy Assets - Energy Minister Wright
The United States has no plans to strike Iran's energy industry targets, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Sunday.
"There are no plans to target Iran's oil industry, their natural gas industry, or anything about their energy industry," he told CNN News.
Wright said that maritime shipping through the Strait of Hormuz would resume soon.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei accused the US and Israel on Sunday of waging chemical warfare against Iran following attacks on fuel storage facilities. He said that toxic substances released into the air were poisoning civilians and devastating the environment.
14:44 GMT 08.03.2026
Iran Convinced US Fighter Jet Hit Girls' School in Minab - Foreign Minister
Iran is convinced that a US fighter jet struck the girls' school in the southern Iranian city of Minab, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday.
"In the middle of negotiations, in the middle of diplomacy, they decided to attack us and they have attacked so many places, including schools and hospitals. And there… are all evidences that this school is [was] attacked by an American… jet fighter," Araghchi told the NBC News broadcaster.
14:07 GMT 08.03.2026
Death Toll From Attacks on UAE Reaches 4 - Defense Ministry
The death toll from missile and drone attacks on the United Arab Emirates since February 28 has reached four, the Gulf Arab country's defense ministry said on Sunday.
"These attacks resulted in 4 deaths among Pakistani, Nepalese and Bangladeshi nationals, and 112 people sustained moderate to minor injuries," the ministry said on X.
Iran rejects the US demand for "unconditional surrender" and will continue to defend itself for as long as needed, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday.
"We never give up. We never surrender, and we continue to resist as long as it takes. We continue to defend ourselves and we are defending our territory, our people and our dignity. And our dignity is not for sale," Araghchi told the NBC News broadcaster.
Iran believes that it is premature to discuss the terms of a ceasefire with the United States at this stage, the foreign minister added.
"There should be a permanent end of the war. And, unless we get to that, I think we need to… continue fighting for the sake of our people and our security," Araghchi said.
13:52 GMT 08.03.2026
US Ambassador to UN Calls Deadly Attack on Girls’ School in Iran Tragic Mistake
US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz has called the deadly bombing of a girls’ school in southern Iran a tragic mistake that can happen in a military operation, stopping short of assigning the blame.
"The United States does everything it can to avoid civilian casualties. Sometimes, of course, tragic mistakes occur," he told ABC News in an interview airing on Sunday.
When grilled about an investigation conducted by The New York Times, which suggested that the US was responsible, Waltz said that he would leave that to the investigators to determine.
13:52 GMT 08.03.2026
Israeli Military Reports First Losses in Lebanon Offensive
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) disclosed on Sunday its first military losses in the Lebanon offensive, saying two soldiers were killed in an operation targeting the Hezbollah movement.
"Master Sergeant Maher Khatar, aged 38, from Majdal Shams, a soldier from the Combat Engineering Corps in the 91st division, fell during combat in southern Lebanon," the statement read.
The second soldier, whose name has not yet been made public, died in the same incident.
"During the incident in which Maher Khatar fell, an additional soldier fell. Their family has been notified and his name has not yet been cleared for publication and will be published later," the IDF said.
12:53 GMT 08.03.2026
Strikes on Oil Facilities in Iran Tantamount to Chemical Warfare - Foreign Ministry
Strikes on oil storage facilities in Iran are tantamount to chemical warfare against Iranian citizens, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Sunday.
"The U.S.-Israeli criminal war against the Iranian nation has entered a dangerous new phase with deliberate strikes on Iran's energy infrastructure. These attacks on fuel storage facilities amount to nothing less than intentional chemical warfare against the Iranian citizens," Baghaei said on X.
By targeting fuel depots, the United States and Israel are "releasing hazardous materials and toxic substances into the air, poisoning civilians, devastating the environment, and endangering lives on a massive scale," the official said, warning that the consequences of the strikes will be felt outside Iran.
"These strikes constitute war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide — all at once," Baqaei underlined.
The U.S.-Israeli criminal war against the Iranian nation has entered a dangerous new phase with deliberate strikes on Iran's energy infrastructure. These attacks on fuel storage facilities amount to nothing less than intentional chemical warfare against the Iranian citizens
Arab League Secretary General Says Arab Countries Not Parties to Iran Conflict
Arab countries are not parties to the conflict around Iran and have never sought it, League of Arab States Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said on Sunday.
"Arab countries are not parties to the ongoing war, neither did they seek it… They announced in advance that they refused to provide access to their airspace or their territory," Aboul Gheit said during an emergency meeting of the pan-Arab organization via conference call.
He said that Oman, Qatar and Egypt had acted as mediators between the United States and Iran in an attempt to prevent the armed conflict from flaring up in the region.
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