Tensions between the United States and Iran escalated sharply after joint US-Israeli strikes reportedly killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
US President Donald Trump said he was “doing this for the world” and claimed several top Iranian leaders were eliminated in the operation. At the same time, Oman indicated that Tehran may be open to “de-escalation,” even as retaliatory missile and drone strikes continued across the region.
Iranian President Mahmoud Pezeshkian vowed to “continue to strike hard,” calling Khamenei’s killing a declaration of war. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed attacks on US bases in Iraq and the Gulf, and alleged targeting of the USS Abraham Lincoln, a claim denied by Washington.
Air-raid sirens were reported in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Doha, while explosions were heard in Tehran. One woman was killed in Israel, and dozens were injured across multiple locations.
Global aviation faced massive disruption, with thousands of flights cancelled as key hubs such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi shut operations. Oil prices jumped nearly 10%, raising fears of crude touching $100 per barrel.
Meanwhile, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin described Khamenei’s killing as a “cynical murder,” and North Korea condemned the strikes as “illegal aggression.”