As Iran retaliates, largest US military base in Middle East hit by ballistic missile, Qatar says

No one was injured, according to the Qatari Ministry of Defense.

ByJon Haworth, Jack Moore, Nadine El-Bawab, David Brennan, Kevin Shalvey, Meredith Deliso, and Leah Sarnoff
Last Updated: March 3, 2026, 10:02 PM EST

President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Saturday, with daytime strikes in the joint U.S.-Israel attack targeting military and government sites, officials said.

On Sunday, Iranian state television confirmed that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among those killed by airstrikes in Tehran on Saturday.

Iran is responding to the U.S.-Israeli operation with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, regional U.S. bases and Gulf nations. American diplomatic facilities have also been attacked.

In Lebanon, Israel is intensifying its long-running strike campaign against the Iranian-aligned Hezbollah militia.

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

Key Headlines

Here's how the news is developing.
Feb 28, 2026, 8:47 PM EST

Iranian state TV reports Khamenei's death

Iranian state TV confirmed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's death Saturday night.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei adjusts his eyeglasses during a press conference after casting his ballot for the parliamentary runoff elections in Tehran, May 10, 2024.
Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images

Khamenei was "carrying out his assigned duties," and was "in his workplace" when he was killed "in the early hours of Sunday morning," according to the announcement.

Iranian state TV said claims from Israeli media that Khamenei was "in a secure and hidden location" when he was killed were false.

-ABC News' Ellie Kaufman

Feb 28, 2026, 8:35 PM EST

Israeli Defense Forces launches 'another wave of strikes' against Iran

The Israeli defense forces have launched "another wave of strikes," against Iran, the IDF said in a post on X.

The post said it was targeting the regime's "ballistic missile array and air defense systems."

-ABC News' Ellie Kaufman

Feb 28, 2026, 7:31 PM EST

Kamala Harris calls strikes 'dangerous and unnecessary gamble with American lives'

Former Vice President Kamala Harris, in a statement posted on social media on Saturday, criticized Trump's strikes on Iran as "dragging the United States into a war the American people do not want," calling the gambit a "dangerous and unnecessary gamble with American lives that also jeopardizes stability in the region and our standing in the world."

A missile is launched after U.S. Central Command commenced Operation Epic Fury, Feb. 28, 2026.
U.S. Central Command

"I know the threat that Iran poses, and they must never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon, but this is not the way to dismantle that threat ... And let us all be clear-eyed about what comes next. The President has already said this conflict may produce American casualties," Harris wrote.

She also criticized Trump's campaign promise to not start new wars as "a lie", as well as Trump's claim last year that he had obliterated Iran's main nuclear program.

-ABC News' Oren Oppenheim

Feb 28, 2026, 7:13 PM EST

Hegseth says US will hit Iranian missile production, 'Iranian navy will be destroyed'

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted a statement on social media about "Operation Epic Fury," writing: "The Iranian regime had their chance, yet refused to make a deal — and now they are suffering the consequences."

Hegseth reaffirmed that not only would Iran’s missiles and missile production be destroyed, but that "The Iranian navy will be destroyed."

Hegseth's post continued: "As President Trump has said his entire life, Iran will never have a nuclear weapon. The United States did not start this conflict, but we will finish it."

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