Mojtaba Khamenei chosen as Iran's next supreme leader, Iranian state media reports

He is the son of assassinated Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

ByDavid Brennan, Jon Haworth, Kevin Shalvey, Leah Sarnoff, Meredith Deliso, Nadine El-Bawab, and Bill Hutchinson

Last Updated: March 9, 2026, 5:55 AM EDT

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.

(Read previous Iran live updates here.)

Watch special coverage on Nightline, "War with Iran," each night on ABC and streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.

Key Headlines

Mar 09, 2026, 4:06 AM EDT
Iran’s near-total internet blackout continues, tracker says
Mar 09, 2026, 3:33 AM EDT
Israel warns of strikes in Beirut's southern suburbs
Mar 09, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT
Israel says its working to intercept Iranian missiles
Mar 09, 2026, 2:13 AM EDT
Iranian missiles, drones targeting UAE, ministry says
Mar 08, 2026, 10:00 PM EDT
US orders evacuation of non-emergency government employees from Saudi Arabia
Mar 08, 2026, 9:38 PM EDT
More missile and drone attacks reported in the region

Here's how the news is developing.

Mar 05, 2026, 7:39 AM EST

Tanker hit by explosion in Persian Gulf, UKMTO says

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said Thursday that a Bahamas-flagged tanker was hit by an explosion in the northern Persian Gulf late on Wednesday.

The explosion occurred while the vessel was empty and at anchor around 30 nautical miles southeast of the Kuwaiti coast, the UKMTO said.

"The Master" of the tanker reported "a large explosion on the port side then seeing a small craft leave the vicinity," the UKMTO said.

An oil tanker is pictured offshore of Dubai, UAE, on March 1, 2026.
Fadel Senna/AFP via Getty Images

Iranian state media on Thursday carried a claim by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' public relations office that IRGC naval forces attacked an oil tanker in the northern Persian Gulf.

-ABC News' Zoe Magee

Mar 05, 2026, 7:15 AM EST

UAE reports strikes by 1 Iranian missile, 6 drones

The United Arab Emirates' Defense Ministry said in a post to X that one Iranian missile and six drones landed inside the country during attacks on Thursday.

The ministry said six ballistic missiles and 125 drones were intercepted during the latest wave of Iranian attacks.

A plume of black smoke rises from the port of Fujairah in the UAE on March 4, 2026.
Fadel Senna/AFP via Getty Images

Since Saturday, the UAE has reported three deaths and 94 injuries related to Iranian attacks.

Mar 05, 2026, 7:06 AM EST

Italy to join France, Spain in sending naval assets to Cyprus, minister says

Italy will join France and Spain in sending naval assets to help protect Cyprus, Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto told the Italian parliament on Thursday.

Crosetto spoke of deploying Italian "naval assets" to defend Cyprus, as quoted by the ANSA news agency.

A British Airbus A400M military aircraft approaches RAF Akrotiri, a British sovereign base that was hit by a drone, in Cyprus, on March 5, 2026.
Yiannis Kourtoglou/Reuters

The Mediterranean island, which hosts British military bases, has been targeted by drones since the start of the U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran.

British bases in Cyprus have traditionally served as hubs for U.K. and allied military activity across the Middle East.

-ABC News' Camilla Alcini

Mar 05, 2026, 6:40 AM EST

77 killed by Israeli attacks in Lebanon, Health Ministry says

At least 77 people have been killed and 527 others have been wounded by Israeli attacks in Lebanon since dawn on Monday, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said Thursday.