NEED TO KNOW

• The US and Israel launched coordinated strikes across Iran on Saturday, hitting Tehran, Qom, Isfahan, Kermanshah and other cities in what Trump called "major combat operations"
• Both Trump and Netanyahu explicitly called for regime change — Trump told Iranians to "take over your government" and Netanyahu urged ethnic groups to "rid themselves of the yoke of tyranny"
• Iran retaliated with missiles targeting Israel and US military bases in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and the UAE — one person killed in Abu Dhabi — as the conflict spread across the entire region

WASHINGTON, DC (TDR) — The United States and Israel launched a joint military operation against Iran early Saturday, striking targets across the country in what President Donald Trump called "major combat operations" and Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz described as a "preemptive attack" to "remove threats to the State of Israel."

The operation — codenamed Operation Epic Fury by the Pentagon and Operation Roaring Lion by the IDF — represents the largest American military mobilization in the Middle East since the Iraq War. U.S. officials told multiple outlets the strikes were "not a small strike" and that the military is planning for several days of attacks.

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What sets this operation apart from previous strikes on Iran — including last June's Operation Midnight Hammer targeting nuclear facilities — is that both leaders have now stated, on the record, that the goal is not limited military action. It is the end of the Iranian government.

"When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations." — President Donald Trump

"Our joint action will create the conditions for the brave Iranian people to take their destiny into their own hands." — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

What Was Hit — And What Happened Next

Israeli fighter jets struck "dozens of military targets" across Iran with what the IDF described as "full synchronization and coordination" with U.S. forces. CNN geolocated and verified videos showing smoke rising from Tehran. Strikes also hit Qom, Isfahan, Kermanshah, Karaj, Tabriz, and Ilam, according to Iranian state media.

The first strikes appeared to target a district in downtown Tehran that houses the offices of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the presidential palace, and the National Security Council. Israeli officials told Axios that both Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian were among the targets. U.S. sources told Al Jazeera that American involvement was aimed at "decapitating the Iranian regime." Iranian media claimed both leaders were safe, though Khamenei has not been seen publicly in days.

Two U.S. officials told NBC News that Israel targeted Iranian leaders while the U.S. focused on Iran's ballistic missile and nuclear programs. Communications across Tehran were severely impaired, with internet monitoring group NetBlocks reporting Iranian connectivity had fallen to 4% of normal levels.

Iran retaliated within hours. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched what it called a "large-scale wave of retaliatory missile and drone strikes" at Israel and U.S. military bases across the Gulf. The IRGC confirmed strikes targeting Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, Al-Salem Air Base in Kuwait, Al-Dhafra Air Base in the UAE, and the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain. One person was killed in Abu Dhabi by missile fragments, the UAE's state news agency reported.

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Approximately 35 ballistic missiles were fired at Israel, according to preliminary IDF assessments. Some were intercepted; others struck open areas. One man in his 50s was lightly injured in northern Israel. Israel declared a nationwide state of emergency, closed its airspace, and ordered civilians to remain near shelters.

A senior Iranian official told Al Jazeera that "all American and Israeli assets and interests in the Middle East have become a legitimate target" and that "there are no red lines after this aggression."

From Geneva To Bombs In 48 Hours

The strikes came just two days after U.S. and Iranian negotiators held a third round of nuclear talks in Geneva on Thursday. An Omani diplomat described the talks as making "significant progress". Iran's Foreign Ministry noted in its condemnation Saturday that the attacks were carried out "while Iran and the United States were in the midst of a diplomatic process."

In his eight-minute video statement posted on Truth Social around 2:30 a.m. EST, Trump framed the collapse differently: "We sought repeatedly to make a deal. We tried. They wanted to do it. They didn't want to do it. Again, they wanted to do it. They didn't want to do it. They didn't know what was happening."

Trump claimed Iran had attempted to rebuild the nuclear program destroyed in last June's Operation Midnight Hammer and was developing long-range missiles that "could soon reach the American homeland." He vowed to "destroy their missiles and raze their missile industry to the ground" and to "annihilate their navy."

Benjamin Netanyahu framed the operation as existential. "This murderous terrorist regime must not be allowed to arm itself with nuclear weapons that would enable it to threaten all of humanity," he said, calling on "Persians, Kurds, Azeris, Balochis, and Ahwazis" to "rid themselves of the yoke of tyranny."

Mehran Kamrava, director of the Iranian studies unit at the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies and a professor at Georgetown University in Qatar, told Al Jazeera that Israel "appears to have launched an attack designed to derail the negotiations."

The War Powers Question Congress Didn't Answer In Time

The strikes landed while Congress was in recess — and while war powers votes were scheduled for next week. House Democrats led by Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) had announced plans to force a vote on a bipartisan resolution by Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Thomas Massie (R-KY) that would require Trump to obtain congressional authorization before engaging in hostilities with Iran. Senate Democrats Tim Kaine (D-VA), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Adam Schiff (D-CA) had announced a similar effort.

Both votes were expected to be close — and expected to fail. Several Democrats, including Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), had already publicly opposed the resolution. Even if passed, Trump could veto it.

Massie was among the first lawmakers to respond Saturday, calling the strikes "acts of war unauthorized by Congress."

"I lost friends in Iraq to an illegal war. Young working-class kids should not pay the ultimate price for regime change and a war that hasn't been explained or justified to the American people." — Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ)

But the party lines didn't hold cleanly. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) praised the operation: "President Trump has been willing to do what's right and necessary to produce real peace in the region." Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) called the strikes "necessary" and "long justified", saying "the end of the largest state sponsor of terrorism is upon us."

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) had already signaled support for regime change earlier this week: "In my view, if you're going to do something there, you better well make it about getting new leadership."

The institutional question remains unanswered. Salon reported this week that multiple lawmakers in both parties had sought to avoid a recorded vote on war powers — supporting the operation privately while avoiding accountability publicly. Neither U.S. intelligence nor the UN nuclear watchdog have found evidence that Iran was actively pursuing a nuclear weapon, a narrative Israel and some in the Trump administration have pushed despite limited corroboration.

The Iraq Parallel No One Wants To Say Out Loud

Several of Trump's own advisers, including Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, had privately warned about the risks of a prolonged conflict, raising concerns about scale, complexity, and the potential for American casualties. Trump acknowledged the risk in his statement: "The lives of courageous American heroes may be lost and we may have casualties. That often happens in war."

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) offered a warning that echoed lessons from Iraq. "There are a lot of people who think that they would just naturally ascend to the top to create a quasi-democratic nation," Tillis told reporters Thursday. "That is not how it's going to work in Iran. Ninety million people aren't all on the same page about how they want the regime to look once this regime is gone."

The operation started exactly as Trump's 10-day deadline to Iran expired, Axios reported. The Purim holiday's symbolic timing — a celebration of Jewish survival against Persian threats — was noted by CNN and other outlets. Israel's Mossad launched a Farsi-language Telegram channel for Iranian citizens, telling them "you are not alone." Iran's exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi called on Iranian security forces to "join the people," while urging Trump to "exercise the utmost caution" to protect civilian lives.

As of Saturday morning, the situation remains fluid. Iran has closed its airspace. Israel has closed its airspace. Schools are shut across both countries. Gulf states have activated air defenses. And the conflict that began between two nations now involves at least eight countries — with no authorization from Congress, no defined exit strategy, and no answer to the question that haunted the Iraq War for two decades.

The president has told 90 million Iranians to "take over your government" while bombs fall — but who authorized this war, what does "victory" look like, and which institution is supposed to decide those questions before American lives are at risk?

Sources

This report was compiled using information from NPR, CNN, CBS News, NBC News, Al Jazeera, Axios, The Times of Israel, The Hill, CNBC, Euronews, The Jerusalem Post, official statements from Sen. Tim Kaine's office, and reporting from The Christian Science Monitor.

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