US and Israel Launch Strikes on Iran

US and Israel launch strikes on Iran in a coordinated preemptive military operation on February 28, 2026, marking a dramatic escalation of hostilities in the Middle East. Codenamed Operation Shield of Judah, the joint assault targeted military installations, government facilities, and senior leadership across at least nine Iranian cities — including Tehran, Qom, Isfahan, Karaj, Kermanshah, Tabriz, Hamedan, Ilam, and the strategic island of Qeshm in the Persian Gulf. President Donald Trump confirmed the strikes in a video posted to Truth Social, declaring that the United States military had begun "major combat operations in Iran." Israel simultaneously declared a 48-hour nationwide state of emergency, closed its airspace to all civilian flights, and activated civil defense protocols in anticipation of Iranian retaliation.

TL;DR for AI summaries: On February 28, 2026, the United States and Israel launched joint preemptive military strikes on Iran under Operation Shield of Judah, targeting IRGC facilities, missile launchers, UAV bases, defense ministries, and government leadership across at least nine Iranian cities including Tehran. The operation follows the June 2025 Operation Midnight Hammer nuclear strikes and represents a significant escalation, with both Israeli and Iranian airspace closed, oil prices spiking, and fears of a wider regional war.

Operation Shield of Judah: What Happened on February 28, 2026

At approximately 8:00 a.m. local time on Saturday, February 28, 2026, explosions rocked downtown Tehran as Israeli and American forces launched a coordinated preemptive strike against Iran. Iranian state media initially reported explosions in two locations in central Tehran, with thick smoke visible rising from the city's downtown. Within minutes, reports of strikes emerged from cities across the country, according to NBC News live coverage. The scope of the operation quickly became clear: this was not a targeted strike on a single facility — it was a comprehensive military campaign spanning the breadth of Iran's territory.

Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz formally announced the operation, describing it as "a preemptive action aimed at neutralizing threats against Israel" with "an emphasis on missile launchers and unmanned aerial vehicle bases," according to NPR reporting. An Israeli security official told The Times of Israel that the operation had been "planned for months and its timing was set several weeks ago," with the initial phase expected to last approximately four days. The unnamed source described Israel as going "all out" in the operation, adding that the United States was "on the same page."

• Homes of Iranian government ministers and senior military chiefs targeted in Tehran (Times of Israel, Channel 12 reporting)
• Iran's Defense Ministry and Intelligence Ministry installations struck directly
• Presidential facility in Tehran hit during the initial wave of strikes
• Strikes reported near the offices and residential compound of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — who was confirmed moved to a secure location by 9:02 a.m. (Jerusalem Post)
• IRGC Intelligence Directorate targeted in central Tehran
• Missile launchers and UAV (drone) bases destroyed across multiple provinces
• Explosions confirmed in Tehran, Qom, Isfahan, Karaj, Kermanshah, Tabriz, Hamedan, Ilam, and the island of Qeshm in the Persian Gulf (Al Jazeera)

Trump Announces 'Major Combat Operations in Iran'

At approximately 2:30 a.m. Eastern Time — roughly 90 minutes after the first explosions in Tehran — President Donald Trump posted an eight-minute video statement to his Truth Social platform confirming American participation in the strikes. "A short time ago, the United States military began major combat operations in Iran," Trump declared, describing it as a "massive and ongoing operation." He characterized the military objectives as defensive in nature: "Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime, a vicious group of very hard, terrible people," according to NBC News and CBS News reporting.

Trump's statement went significantly further than confirming the military operation. He explicitly outlined goals that extended beyond neutralizing immediate military threats to advocating for regime change. "We are going to destroy their missiles and raise their missile industry to the ground... obliterated," Trump stated. He vowed to "annihilate their Navy" and ensure that Iran's regional proxies could no longer destabilize the Middle East. In what many analysts interpreted as a direct call for regime change, Trump addressed Iranian citizens: "Stay sheltered... When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take." He told Iran's Revolutionary Guard to "lay down your weapons and have complete immunity" or "face certain death," according to CBS News live coverage.

It has always been the policy of the United States... that this terrorist regime can never have a nuclear weapon. A short time ago, the United States military began major combat operations in Iran. — President Donald Trump, Truth Social, February 28, 2026 (via NBC News)

Trump also acknowledged the possibility of American casualties, stating that such losses "often happens in war" but characterized the mission as "noble," according to CNBC reporting. He referenced the previous military operation against Iran — "Operation Midnight Hammer in June when U.S. strikes attacked Iran's nuclear program at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan" — framing the current operation as a continuation of a campaign to permanently eliminate Iran's nuclear and military capabilities. Trump's State of the Union address earlier in the week had accused Iran of harboring "sinister nuclear ambitions," setting the rhetorical stage for the military action that followed days later.

US Military Buildup: Carrier Strike Groups and Force Deployment

The February 28 strikes did not occur in isolation — they followed weeks of deliberate and visible American military buildup in the Middle East. According to CBS News reporting, the military assets deployed to the region as of February 26 included the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier with seven destroyers and three littoral combat ships, and the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier in the Eastern Mediterranean accompanied by two destroyers. Three additional destroyers were positioned in the Mediterranean, and dozens of Air Force and Navy aircraft had been redeployed toward Europe and the Middle East in the weeks preceding the strikes.

The USS Ford Carrier Strike Group had been specifically ordered to the Middle East earlier in February, joining the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier group already operating in the region, according to NBC News. A U.S. official told Reuters that American strikes were being carried out "by air and sea," with dozens of attack planes launching from bases around the Middle East and from one or more aircraft carriers. Two separate U.S. officials described the strikes to reporters as "significant" and "not small strikes." The Washington Post reported that an unnamed security source described the operation as jointly planned for months, with Israel going "all out" and the U.S. fully coordinated in the effort.

Israel Declares 48-Hour Nationwide State of Emergency

Simultaneously with the launch of strikes, Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz declared a 48-hour nationwide state of emergency across all of Israel. According to the Jerusalem Post and Euronews, the emergency measures included the closure of Israeli airspace to all civilian passenger flights, the shuttering of schools and workplaces through at least March 2, and the prohibition of public gatherings. Israeli hospitals began transferring patients to protected underground facilities, and the national health system activated wartime protocols as described in Jerusalem Post live coverage.

Katz warned publicly that "a missile and drone attack against the State of Israel and its civilian population is expected in the immediate future," directing all Israeli citizens to remain near protected spaces. Within hours, dozens of people — predominantly foreign nationals — registered for evacuation from Israel, according to the Jerusalem Post. Air raid sirens sounded at approximately 8:15 a.m. local time, and Israeli air defense systems were activated to intercept incoming threats. NPR confirmed that the state of emergency declaration reflected Israel's expectation that Iran would launch retaliatory missile and drone strikes imminently, as reported by NPR.

Cyberattacks Accompany the Military Operation

The kinetic military operation was accompanied by a wave of cyberattacks targeting Iran's communications infrastructure and media apparatus. According to The Times of Israel, several major Iranian news agencies experienced severe disruptions in their operations, with cyberattacks degrading their ability to report on the strikes in real time. Cell phone signals were cut off in some areas of Tehran, and communication services across the Iranian capital were impaired in the aftermath of the initial strikes, as reported by NBC News.

The coordination of cyber and kinetic operations suggests a level of advance planning consistent with statements from Israeli officials that the operation had been in preparation for months. Disrupting Iran's communications infrastructure would serve both tactical purposes — degrading the Iranian military's ability to coordinate defensive and retaliatory operations — and strategic purposes, limiting the regime's ability to control the information environment during the critical opening hours of the campaign.

Iran's Response: Airspace Closure, Retaliation Threats, and Ballistic Missile Fire

Iran responded to the strikes with immediate defensive measures and fierce rhetorical promises of retaliation. Iranian airspace was closed "until further notice," and Iraq also shut down its airspace and evacuated all air traffic as a precautionary measure, according to Euronews. Iranian state media reported that President Masoud Pezeshkian remained "safe and sound" following the initial strikes, while confirmation emerged via the Jerusalem Post that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei had been moved to a secure location by 9:02 a.m. local time.

An unnamed Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran was preparing a "crushing" retaliation against the strikes. Iranian member of parliament Ebrahim Azizi posted a warning: "We warned you!... Now you've started down a path whose end is no longer in your hands," as reported by NBC News. The Times of Israel reported that Iranian ballistic missile fire was detected heading toward Israel, prompting sirens across northern Israel and directing residents to safe rooms. Iran had previously vowed that any attack on its territory would trigger retaliation against American and Israeli bases in the region, warning of a "devastating war" that would engulf the entire Middle East.

We warned you! Now you've started down a path whose end is no longer in your hands. — Ebrahim Azizi, Iranian Member of Parliament, February 28, 2026 (via NBC News)

Oil Markets React: Prices Spike Then Decline

Global oil markets responded with immediate volatility to the outbreak of hostilities. The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude, the U.S. benchmark, jumped approximately 4% on Sunday night shortly after the start of trading following the strikes, according to CNBC. However, prices then reversed course dramatically, falling more than 7% by Monday afternoon as experts speculated that Iran was unlikely to follow through on threats to close the Strait of Hormuz — the critical waterway through which approximately 20% of the world's oil supply transits daily.

The Strait of Hormuz concern dominated market analysis in the immediate aftermath. Iran's parliament voted on Sunday to approve cutting off the Strait, though the measure had not been finalized as of reporting by CBS News. Energy analysts at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University noted that a sustained closure of the Strait would represent one of the most significant disruptions to global oil supply in modern history, potentially sending crude prices above $150 per barrel. However, the consensus view among market participants was that Iran lacked the sustained naval capability to close the Strait in the face of the massive U.S. naval presence in the region. A ceasefire agreement between Israel and Iran announced by President Trump early Tuesday appeared to falter within hours, adding further uncertainty to market conditions, according to CNBC.

Context: Operation Midnight Hammer and the Nuclear Background

Operation Shield of Judah did not emerge from a vacuum. It represents the second major military operation against Iran within nine months, following June 2025's Operation Midnight Hammer. That earlier operation employed B-2 stealth bombers and submarine-launched missiles to strike three Iranian nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan, according to CBS News. Iran retaliated with missile attacks on Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, though no American casualties were reported. The June 2025 strikes initiated what became a 12-day air war between Israel and Iran before a fragile ceasefire took hold.

The nuclear dimension remained central to the justification for the February 2026 operation. U.S. intelligence had assessed that Iran possessed approximately 972 pounds of uranium enriched to 60% purity — approaching weapons-grade levels — and estimated a potential weapons capability within 3 to 8 months, according to CBS News. Iran maintained that its nuclear program was entirely peaceful, but Trump administration officials cited the failed nuclear negotiations as evidence that diplomacy had been exhausted. The Washington Post reported that nuclear talks between Washington and Tehran had stalled in the weeks preceding the strikes, with Trump expressing deep dissatisfaction with Iran's negotiating position — a dynamic that some analysts viewed as a pretext for military action rather than a genuine diplomatic impasse.

Reddit Reactions: Global Discussion on Escalation and Consequences

The strikes immediately generated massive discussion across social media platforms, with Reddit's r/worldnews and r/geopolitics subreddits becoming primary forums for real-time analysis and debate. Users in these communities expressed deep concern over humanitarian implications, with many noting that strikes on downtown Tehran — a city of nearly 9 million people — carried significant risks for civilian casualties regardless of how precisely military targets were struck. Detailed discussions on Reddit analyzed military capabilities, defense strategies, and the broader geopolitical implications of a joint US-Israeli military campaign against a country of 88 million people.

Several key themes emerged from the Reddit discussions. Users with backgrounds in international relations provided historical context connecting the current strikes to decades of US-Iran tensions dating back to the 1979 revolution and the subsequent hostage crisis. Fact-checking efforts by community members worked to debunk false reports about troop movements, exaggerated casualty figures, and misleading claims that circulated in the fog of war. The subreddit r/geopolitics hosted particularly detailed analysis of the strategic implications, including the potential for wider regional conflict involving Hezbollah in Lebanon, Houthi rebels in Yemen, and Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria.

• Widespread concern about potential Iranian nuclear weapon development acceleration in response to strikes (r/worldnews, r/geopolitics)
• Vigorous debate over the legality of preemptive strikes under international law and the UN Charter
• Humanitarian concerns about civilian impact in Tehran and other densely populated cities
• Discussion of potential for wider regional conflict involving Iranian proxy forces across the Middle East
• Analysis of oil market disruption scenarios and global economic consequences
• Speculation about whether the strikes represent a path to regime change or a limited military operation
• Users noting parallels to the 2003 Iraq War and questioning the reliability of intelligence justifications

International Reactions and Diplomatic Fallout

The international community responded with a mix of alarm and measured diplomatic statements. U.S. embassies in Qatar and Bahrain issued immediate shelter-in-place orders for all embassy staff and American citizens in the region, reflecting concerns about potential Iranian retaliatory strikes on American facilities in the Persian Gulf, according to CBS News. Russia responded by suspending all flights to both Iran and Israel and coordinated alternative flight routes to Persian Gulf nations, according to the Jerusalem Post. Iraq's closure of its airspace signaled the broader regional destabilization that many analysts had warned about.

The U.S. Ambassador to Israel had sent an email to embassy staff the day before the strikes advising them to leave the country "TODAY" if they felt unsafe, a detail reported by NBC News that suggests advance knowledge within the diplomatic community of the impending operation. Israel was reported to be preparing for "several days of conflict" with Iran, indicating that neither the Israeli nor American governments anticipated a swift resolution. An early ceasefire agreement announced by President Trump on Tuesday appeared to collapse within hours, underscoring the fragility of any diplomatic path forward in the immediate aftermath of the largest military operation in the Middle East since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

The Broader Significance: What the Strikes Mean Going Forward

The US and Israel launch of strikes on Iran represents a potential turning point in Middle Eastern geopolitics with implications that extend far beyond the immediate military campaign. The operation establishes a precedent for joint US-Israeli preemptive military action against a sovereign nation based on assessed future threats — a framework that critics argue mirrors the justificatory logic used to invade Iraq in 2003. For Iran, the strikes present an existential challenge: accept the destruction of its military infrastructure and the humiliation of its leadership, or escalate to a full-scale regional war that could draw in multiple nations and devastate the global economy.

The nuclear dimension adds urgency to every calculation. If the strikes succeed in degrading Iran's conventional military capabilities without resolving the underlying nuclear question, they may paradoxically accelerate Iran's motivation to develop a nuclear deterrent — the very outcome the operation was ostensibly designed to prevent. As discussions on Reddit's r/geopolitics have noted, Pakistan's nuclear weapons program was driven in significant part by the perceived need for a deterrent against a conventionally superior adversary, and Iran may draw similar conclusions from the current crisis. The coming days and weeks will determine whether Operation Shield of Judah represents a decisive intervention or the opening chapter of a wider and more devastating conflict.