Iran announces 40 days of national mourning as the Middle East is plunged into its most dangerous crisis in decades
Khamenei was killed "in his office in the household of the leader" while carrying out his duties at the time of the strike, according to state media outlet Fars News Agency. Satellite imagery showed heavy smoke rising from his compound in central Tehran, with several buildings visibly destroyed. Iran declared 40 days of national mourning following his death. An announcer on Iranian state television broke down in tears while delivering the news.
President Donald Trump, speaking from Mar-a-Lago, confirmed the operation and made clear that regime change in Tehran is the explicit goal of the campaign. The strikes, he said, would continue "uninterrupted throughout the week, or as long as necessary." US Central Command released new video Saturday night showing ongoing American strikes against targets inside Iran.
Iran Promises "The Heaviest Offensive in Its History"
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned that "the heaviest offensive operations in the history of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran will begin shortly toward the occupied lands and bases of the American terrorists." The Iranian government declared the killings "a great crime" that "will never remain unanswered," and the country's Supreme National Security Council — a powerful body coordinating national defense — said the attacks would "begin a massive uprising in fighting the world's oppressors."
Iranian ballistic missiles struck the heart of Tel Aviv on Saturday, and Iran launched widespread attacks on US military bases, Israeli territory, and civilian infrastructure across the Gulf. The US military reported no American combat casualties.
Gulf states bore the brunt of Iranian drone and missile strikes: Bahrain International Airport was struck and damaged; a concourse at Dubai International Airport sustained minor damage with four injured; Abu Dhabi's Zayed International Airport was hit, killing at least one person and injuring seven; and Kuwait International Airport also sustained limited damage. Bahrain, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar have all closed their airspace. Drone strikes in Bahrain struck residential high-rises in Manama, sending fire engulfing the exterior of at least one 30-story building.
Civilian Toll and International Outcry
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported at least 133 civilians killed and 200 injured in Iran from the joint strikes, with the group warning the actual toll is likely higher. Iranian state media cited the Red Crescent as reporting 201 killed and 747 wounded across 24 provinces. Among the strikes, one killed scores of students at an elementary school in southern Iran, according to Iranian state media — an attack drawing immediate international condemnation.
At an emergency UN Security Council meeting Saturday, Iran's permanent representative Amir-Saeid Iravani denounced the strikes as a "war crime" incompatible with the UN Charter. US Ambassador Mike Waltz defended the operation by cataloging decades of Iranian aggression — including attacks on US forces in Lebanon and Iraq, attacks on Red Sea shipping, and Iran's nuclear ambitions — though critics noted he cited no imminent threat to justify the strikes. Waltz pushed back against Iran's international law argument by claiming that "the Iranian people" were celebrating the strikes.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted on social media that Iran "had their chance" to reach a deal and was now "suffering the consequences," warning that Iran's missile production and navy "will be destroyed" and vowing that "Iran will never have a nuclear weapon."
The United Arab Emirates called the moment "historic," saying world leaders had failed for years to ensure the region's stability.
The Question of Succession
Khamenei, who had led the Islamic Republic since 1989, leaves no officially declared heir. Under Iran's constitution, the 88-member Assembly of Experts will select his successor. Analysts and experts point to several potential candidates: Khamenei's son Mojtaba, who wields significant influence but faces resistance given that dynastic succession is frowned upon in the Shiite clerical tradition; senior cleric Alireza Arafi, a confidant of Khamenei and deputy chairman of the Assembly of Experts; hardline cleric Mohammad Mehdi Mirbagheri, a conservative known for his opposition to the West; Hassan Khomeini, grandson of the Islamic Republic's founder, who carries revolutionary legitimacy but limited institutional influence; and Hashem Hosseini Bushehri, a senior cleric closely linked to the succession institutions but with a notably low public profile.
Trump, when asked by CBS News who he believed should lead Iran, said he knew "exactly" who he wanted — but declined to name them, adding only that "there are some good candidates."
Former National Security Adviser John Bolton told CNN that the Trump administration should now focus on building ties with Iran's internal opposition. Of Khamenei's death, Bolton said simply that the man "deserved it," citing the regime's role in the deaths of American troops and civilians over decades, and its pursuit of nuclear weapons. He expressed hope that this moment marks "the beginning of the end of the regime."
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