US‑Israel Strikes in Iran Trigger Full Scale Regional Conflict
The offensive, which began on Feb. 28 under a campaign U.S. officials have described as aimed at degrading Iran’s missile capabilities and military infrastructure has seen hundreds of air and missile strikes across Tehran and other Iranian cities. Senior Iranian leaders including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei were killed in the opening wave of attack
s according to official Iranian and Western sources. Iranian forces have responded with waves of ballistic missiles and drones targeting Israeli territory and U.S. military bases across the Gulf. Retaliatory strikes have hit Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps declaring U.S. assets in the region legitimate targets. The conflict has spread beyond direct U.S.‑Iran engagements. Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has launched rockets into northern Israel, prompting Israeli retaliatory strikes on Beirut, further expanding the theatre of war. U.S. President Donald Trump said operations could continue for several weeks, emphasizing strategic objectives against Tehran’s military reach. Amid rising oil prices and disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, global markets have reacted sharply to the escalation. Diplomatic efforts to halt the fighting have so far failed to produce a ceasefire with officials in Cairo and Muscat calling for urgent international action to prevent further bloodshed. Source: The Guardian