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On February 28, 2026, the US and Israeli military undertook an operation on Iran, striking the capital Tehran, killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, and injuring dozens. Donald Trump subsequently announced the US would be continuing operations in Iran until he saw a change of leadership and a dissolution of Iran's mythical nuclear program. Trump later claimed the US attacked Iran because of a report that Iran was going to attack Israel in the coming days. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calls the strategy ‘forward defence'. In the 21 days that followed, Donald Trump attacked Iran more than 7,000 times, and Iran retaliated with strikes across nine different Gulf countries. More than 2,000 people have been killed in the Western-manufactured conflict.
Attacks on March 18
On March 18, Donald Trump announced that Israel had killed both Iran's security chief Ali Larijani and commander Gholamreza Soleimani. Larijani was widely regarded as a moderate politician in the Iranian cabinet. He led the talks with the US and Israel to diffuse Iran's nuclear program, and has long been an advocate for open negotiations with the West. Some analysts claim the move could be used to close routes for negotiation between Israel and Iran. The Iranian government also confirmed the killing of intelligence minister Esmail Khatib. Khatib has held office since 2021 and was Iran's top intelligence officer.
Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) also attacked Iranian energy infrastructure on March 18. Attacks scarred the South Pars natural gas field and the Asaluyeh processing hub in Bushehr Province, two installations that are key to Iran's domestic natural gas supply. The attacks on March 18 targeting Israeli officials have reportedly caused widespread panic through the Iranian cabinet, with security forces and officials sleeping in vehicles, mosques, and sports arenas for safety. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that the IDF has the green light to eliminate any top Iranian official.
“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have authorized the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) to eliminate any senior Iranian official for whom the intelligence and operational circle has been closed, without the need for additional approval,” – Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz.
Trump calls out allies
After the flurry of strikes from Israel and Iran on Wednesday, President Trump began to panic. His war on Iran has caused gas prices to spike to unmanageable levels, and if gas prices continue to skyrocket, the global economy will be at risk. With Israel threatening the Hormuz Strait, through which a third of the planet's crude oil is transported, oil prices have skyrocketed. Trump has called on his NATO and EU allies to aid the US in protecting the Strait, but those same allies have refused. On March 18, Trump released a statement criticizing his Western allies, calling them paper tigers and cowards.
Donald Trump is facing serious backlash for the rising gas prices in the United States. Americans are seeing the direct result of Donald Trump's manufactured war, with gas prices jumping more than 30% since February 28th. Donald Trump's approval rating has sunk to record-breaking levels, and his promise of ‘no new wars' is so far in the rearview mirror; it's stuck in Canada.
March 19th attacks
On March 19, Israel struck energy infrastructure in Iran, prompting Iran to attack liquefied natural gas facilities at Qatar's Ras Laffan Industrial City. Laffan Industrial City is responsible for processing a fifth of the world's natural gas. The damage from Iran's attacks will reportedly take years to repair, and Qatar's export capacity has been kneecapped by 17% because of the damage. Donald Trump criticized Israel for the attack, claiming that Iran was causing too much damage. Trump is seeing the consequences of allowing the US to be sucked into another war that doesn't involve it. With Iran showing its ability to sustain military retaliation in the face of US and Israeli attacks, there is no clear timeline for this conflict. Iranian missiles are consistently breaching Israel's Iron Dome defence system, and nearly 4,000 Israeli's have been injured in Iranian strikes.
Iran retaliated with strikes on six different countries on March 19: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, and Iraq all reported strikes. Iran focused its attacks on energy infrastructure and military bases. Bahrain International Airport was also targeted in the attacks. In total, Iran sent more than 25 waves of attacks to six different countries on March 19.
Cost of war
As of March 20th, preliminary figures show harrowing victim counts across the Middle East. In Iran, more than 1,400 people have been killed by US and Israeli strikes. US forces have struck more than 7,000 locations in Iran, and alongside the 1,444 killed, another 18,500 Iranians have been injured, and more than 3 million people have been displaced. A US strike targeting an all-girls elementary school killed 168 children last week. In Lebanon, more than 1,000 people have been killed by Israeli strikes, with another 2,500 injured and more than 1 million civilians displaced. Thirteen US servicemembers have been killed, and 18 people have been killed in Israel. Eighty-five people have been killed by Iranian strikes across Gulf Countries.
