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

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

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.

Mar 08, 2026, 3:11 PM EDT

IDF says 5 senior Iranian commanders killed in Beirut hotel strike

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Sunday that it killed five Iranian senior commanders of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in a strike on a hotel in Beirut, Lebanon.

The commanders were targeted by the Israeli Navy, according to the IDF. The commanders were part of the IRGC's Quds Force’s Lebanon Corps, which serves as a central liaison between the Hezbollah terrorist organization and the Iranian regime, the IDF said.

Israeli tanks on the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, following an escalation between Hezbollah and Israel amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in northern Israel, March 8, 2026.
Amir Cohen/Reuters

"Its senior officials synchronize activities across the various terrorist organizations operating in Lebanon. The commanders eliminated in the strike were advancing terrorist activity across Lebanon while hiding in a civilian hotel," the IDF said.

The commanders were targeted following the elimination of the commander of the Lebanon Corps, Daoud Ali Zadea, last week, the IDF said.

-ABC News' Dorit Long

Mar 08, 2026, 2:23 PM EDT

State Department says more than 32,000 Americans have safely evacuated the Middle East

The State Department said Sunday that it is now aware of 32,000 Americans who have safely returned to the United States from the Middle East since fighting began in Iran.

The figures do not include many Americans who have safely relocated to other countries or those who have departed the Middle East but are still in transit back to the United States, officials said.

Americans board a U.S. Department of State flight on a plane chartered from a company that manages the New England Patriots team plane that left the Middle East bound for Washington, Mar 5, 2026.
U.S. Department of State/X

The State Department said it has completed nearly two dozen charter flights that have safely evacuated thousands of Americans from the Middle East.

While commercial flight availability across the region continues to improve, the State Department's charter flights and ground transport operations continue to ramp up as security conditions allow, Dylan Johnson, assistant secretary of state for Global Public Affairs, said in a statement on X.

"At this time, more than half of American citizens who requested help departing turn down U.S. Government-provided transportation options when contacted. Some American citizens wish to remain in country, while others prefer an alternative departure option," Johnson said.

Through the State Department’s around-the-clock Task Force, the agency has directly assisted more than 19,000 Americans abroad, offering security guidance and travel assistance, Johnson said.

Johnson said Americans in need of travel assistance in Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Israel should complete the Crisis Intake Form.

Americans in the Middle East who need assistance can call the U.S. Department of State at (202) 501-4444.

-ABC News' Chris Boccia

Mar 08, 2026, 1:13 PM EDT

Assembly of Experts member says majority leaning toward Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's son, Mojtaba Khamenei, as next leader

A member of Iran's Assembly of Experts, the body responsible for choosing the leader of the Islamic Republic, said Sunday that the majority of assembly members want the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's son, Mojtaba Khamenei, to be Iran's next leader.

No official decision has been made, but it is the first time an assembly member has publicly spoken out.

Mojtaba, son of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, center, attends the annual Quds, or Jerusalem Day rally in Tehran, Iran, May 31, 2019.
Vahid Salemi/AP

"The enemy is trying to disrupt a majority in-person meeting of the Assembly of Experts by attacks, but the members of the Assembly of Experts have practically reached an option," Asgar Dirbaz, member of the Assembly of Experts, said in an interview with the Mehr News Agency.

"The majority's opinion is in favor of the son of His Eminence (i.e., Ali Khamenei's son)," Dirbaz added.

-ABC News' Somayeh Malekian

Mar 08, 2026, 12:28 PM EDT

Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson accused US and Israel of 'chemical warfare'

A spokesperson of Iran's foreign ministry said Sunday that the United States and Israel have taken the war into a "dangerous new phase" with attacks on Iran's energy infrastructure.

"These attacks on fuel storage facilities amount to nothing less than intentional chemical warfare against the Iranian citizens," Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesperson for the foreign ministry, said in a post on X.

Plumes of smoke from a U.S.-Israeli strike on an oil facility late Saturday linger and merge with the cloudy sky over Tehran, Iran, March 8, 2026.
Vahid Salemi/AP

Following the attacks on oil depots of Tehran's oil depots, Iran's environmental protection agency and the Red Crescent Society warned about the risks of acid rain over the capital.

The deputy head of emergency training in Tehran, however, warned that the risk of inhaling toxic gases is greater than acid rain due to the pollution from the attack on fuel tanks in Tehran. He urged citizens to stay indoors as much as possible and avoid unnecessary outdoor activities.

-ABC News' Somayeh Malekian

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