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.
Key Headlines
- Iran’s near-total internet blackout continues, tracker says
- Israel warns of strikes in Beirut's southern suburbs
- Israel says its working to intercept Iranian missiles
- Iranian missiles, drones targeting UAE, ministry says
- US orders evacuation of non-emergency government employees from Saudi Arabia
- More missile and drone attacks reported in the region
Pentagon IDs remaining 2 American troops killed in Kuwait
The Pentagon on Wednesday identified the remaining two of the six American troops killed in the opening hours of the war with Iran.
Maj. Jeffrey R. O’Brien, 45, of Indianola, Iowa, and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Marzan, 54, of Sacramento, California, were killed Saturday in Kuwait from an Iranian drone attack, the Pentagon said.
Marzan is "believed to be the individual who perished at the scene," the Pentagon said, and positive identification will be completed by a medical examiner.
On Tuesday, the Pentagon identified the other soldiers as Capt. Cody A. Khork, 35, of Winter Haven, Florida; Sgt. 1st Class Noah L. Tietjens, 42, of Bellevue, Nebraska; Sgt. 1st Class Nicole M. Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake, Minnesota; and Sgt. Declan J. Coady, 20, of West Des Moines, Iowa.
The soldiers were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command, an Army Reserve unit based in Des Moines, Iowa.
All six died in the same attack at Shuaiba port in Kuwait, a commercial harbor that doubles as a logistics hub through which the U.S. military ships tactical vehicles and supplies into the region. An additional 18 service members were wounded in the strike.
-ABC News' Steven Beynon
Qatar evacuating residents living near the US embassy
The Qatari Interior Ministry announced overnight on Thursday that it was evacuating residents near the United States embassy as a temporary precautionary measure.
The announcement comes after the Al Udeid Air Base -- the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East -- was struck by a ballistic missile from Iran on Wednesday, the Qatari Ministry of Defense said at the time.
No one was injured, it said.
A second ballistic missile launched from Iran on Wednesday was intercepted, the defense ministry said.
State Department says a charter flight for Americans has left Middle East
The State Department announced on Wednesday that a charter flight for American citizens stuck in the Middle East is en route to the United States, "as part of our ongoing efforts to assist Americans return home."
The agency said additional flights will be departing from the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Israel.
Foreign Service union blasts lack of American leadership in Middle East
The American Foreign Service Association, in a statement on Wednesday, said the current crisis in the Middle East "exposes real gaps in America's diplomatic readiness" and says leadership gaps -- notably the lack of Senate-confirmed ambassadors at several postings in the region -- are "impossible to ignore."
AFSA is the union and professional organization of the U.S. Foreign Service and represents 23,000 active and retired Foreign Service employees.
"At a moment of escalating regional instability, that absence of Senate-confirmed leadership matters. At the same time, attempts to push through reductions in force have left many of these embassies and the offices that support them critically understaffed," AFSA said.
"The safety of America’s diplomats and their families must remain paramount. America cannot safeguard its national interests if it cannot safeguard the diplomats who advance them. AFSA will continue urging foreign affairs agencies and policymakers to ensure that those serving overseas have the leadership, expertise, and resources they need to carry out their mission safely," the union continued.
-ABC News' Mariam Khan