U.S. and Israel launched military operation against Islamic Republic: This is what we know so far

It’s been just over ten hours since the U.S. and Israel launched operations ‘Epic Fury’ and ‘Roaring Lion’ against the Islamic Republic. And while this is still a developing story, here is what we know. 

Just after 8 am local time the U.S. and Israel launched a series of strikes on Iranian military targets across Iran. The main targets were Iran’s leaders and IRGC senior commanders in Iran and some targets in Iraq. 

The IDF says it struck hundreds of targets, including ready-to-fire ballistic missile launchers. While there is no official confirmation of any specific eliminations, Iran’s foreign minister confirmed that some senior commanders were eliminated. 

As Israeli and U.S. strikes continued, Iran launched numerous ballistic missile barrages across Israel, and against six Arab countries, namely Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain, who all condemned the Iranian strikes on their territory. Iran claims it targeted U.S. military bases in the region. 

The escalation also saw a rare sign of unity between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi, who have suffered from tense relations in recent weeks.

Iran has vowed to continue its strikes across the region, with Israeli officials saying they expect the strikes against Iran to continue for at least a few days. 

While Iran has already turned this into a regional conflict, it still has potential to expand further. So far, neither Hezbollah in Lebanon nor Pro-Iranian militias in Iraq have joined the fray. 

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam sent a warning message to Hezbollah not to drag the country into, quote, “adventures that threaten its security and unity.”