President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israel strikes attack targeting military and government sites, officials said.
Iranian state television confirmed that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among those killed by airstrikes in Tehran on the first day of strikes. His successor is yet to be named.
Iran is responding to the operation with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, regional U.S. bases and multiple Gulf nations. Israel is also intensifying its long-running strike campaign against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.
State Department says 17,500 Americans have safely returned to US
The State Department says it's aware of 17,500 Americans who have safely returned to the U.S. from the Middle East since Saturday, with more than 8,500 of those Americans returning on Tuesday.
The Trump administration is facing fierce criticism for not having a plan in place to evacuate Americans in advance of the joint operation. The State Department on Monday urged Americans to depart from 14 countries in the region using commercial means, but there are significant disruptions in air travel.
Passengers whose flights were cancelled wait at the departure terminal of Rafik Hariri International Airport in Beirut, Lebanon, on Feb. 28, 2026, as many airlines canceled flights due to the conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran.
Hassan Ammar/AP
-ABC News’ Shannon Kingston
Mar 04, 2026, 11:15 AM EST
Marine traffic through Strait of Hormuz reduced by 90%
A new playback shared by Marine Traffic shows that movement of vessels in the Strait of Hormuz has dropped by 90% compared to last week.
The Strait of Hormuz is the critical maritime passageway between Iran, Oman and the UAE through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil passes. Analysts say shipping has been at a virtual standstill as insurance costs have spiked because of the safety risks of navigating the Strait.
Boats in the Strait of Hormuz amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, as seen from Musandam, Oman, March 2, 2026.
Amr Alfiky/Reuters
-ABC News’ Camilla Alcini
Mar 04, 2026, 11:04 AM EST
Israel moved up operations by several months: Defense minister
The Israeli operation against Iran was moved up several months "due to developments and circumstances" in Iran and with President Trump's position, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said.
"An operation was planned for the middle of the year, with the same goal that was set, but due to developments and circumstances, mainly what happened inside Iran, and the position of the President of the United States, and the whole possibility of creating a combined operation here, then the need arose to bring everything forward to February," Katz said Wednesday in remarks to intelligence soldiers.
Rubble surrounds the site of a police facility, struck days earlier, during the U.S.Israeli military campaign, March 4, 2026 in Tehran, Iran.
Majid Saeedi/Getty Images
"This was something we ourselves had hoped for but were not sure about," Katz added.
"When we spoke following the very successful 'Rising Lion' operation, I also said, and it was clear, we are not fighting the war that was, we need to prepare for the next war,” Katz told the soldiers. “Many intelligence and other capabilities have been exhausted, burned, and used up, and therefore the challenge was to rebuild the intelligence capability, and not just build it but expand it tenfold, and that is what actually happened here, across all of Iran.”
-ABC News' Jordana Miller and Dorit Long
Mar 04, 2026, 11:00 AM EST
US submarine uses torpedo to sink Iranian ship
At a briefing at the Pentagon on Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed that a U.S. submarine used a torpedo to sink an Iranian warship named after Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Qasem Soleimani, who was killed in a 2020 drone strike ordered by President Trump.
The Defense Department published periscope video of a U.S. submarine targeting the Soleimani, an Iranian warship whose namesake is that of Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian commander killed by the U.S. in 2020.
Department of War/X
Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine said this was the first time since 1945 that a U.S. Navy submarine “sunk an enemy combatant ship using a single Mark 48 torpedo to achieve immediate effect, sending the warship to the bottom of the sea.”
The Defense Department published periscope video of a U.S. submarine targeting the Soleimani, an Iranian warship whose namesake is that of Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian commander killed by the U.S. in 2020.
Department of War/X
The Iranian warship, which was near Sri Lanka, had 180 people on board, Sri Lankan authorities said, according to the Associated Press. Thirty-two people were rescued and 87 bodies have been recovered, according to the AP. The ship had just completed participating in a large, multinational Indian naval exercise.
Caine acknowledged that there are a lot of questions about the U.S. missile stockpile, but he expressed confidence that the U.S. has enough munitions to continue military operations against Iran. However, he cautioned that he cannot provide details due to operational security reasons.
