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.
Mar 01, 2026, 6:12 AM EST

China 'strongly condemns' Khamenei killing, Foreign Ministry says

A spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Sunday described the U.S.-Israeli killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei as "a grave violation of Iran’s sovereignty and security."

A mourner holds a picture on a phone of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei following his death; at Enqelab Square in Tehran, Iran, March 1, 2026.
Abedin Taherkenareh/EPA/Shutterstock

"It tramples on the purposes and principles of the U.N. Charter and basic norms in international relations," the spokesperson said. "China firmly opposes and strongly condemns it."

"We urge for an immediate stop to the military operations, no further escalation of the tense situation and joint effort to maintain peace and stability in the Middle East and the world at large," the spokesperson added.

-ABC News’ Karson Yiu

Mar 01, 2026, 6:03 AM EST

US Embassy in Jordan issues shelter-in-place order

The U.S. Embassy in Amman, Jordan, issued a shelter-in-place order for all mission personnel, telling them to avoid the Embassy compound "as it may be targeted."

"All Americans should exercise increased vigilance and avoid the U.S Embassy facility," the Embassy said in a post to X.

Protests have erupted at several U.S. diplomatic facilities in the Middle East and South Asia following the launch of the U.S.-Israeli operation against Iran on Saturday.

-ABC News’ Kevin Shalvey

Mar 01, 2026, 5:58 AM EST

Ayatollah Alireza Arafi appointed to interim leadership council

Iran’s Guardian Council announced on Sunday that it had selected Ayatollah Alireza Arafi to join the three-person temporary leadership council formed to lead Iran following the killing of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

In this file photo, a woman walks past electoral posters of Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, then a candidate for Assembly of Experts elections in downtown Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024.
Vahid Salemi/AP

Arafi will join President Mahmoud Pezeshkian and the head of the Iranian judiciary on the council.

-ABC News’ Somayeh Malekian and Victoria Beaule

Mar 01, 2026, 5:45 AM EST

IDF claims killing of 40 Iranian commanders

The Israel Defense Forces said Sunday it had killed 40 Iranian commanders in strikes on Iran.

Rescue workers and military personnel survey the scene of a direct hit a day after an Iranian missile struck in Tel Aviv, Israel, Sunday, March 1, 2026.
Oded Balilty/AP

Those killed, the IDF said, included the chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces, "seven members of the top Iranian security leadership" and "the majority of the highest-ranking senior military officials."

-ABC News’ Jordana Miller and Victoria Beaule

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