Covering global conflict is my job as The Daily Wire’s foreign affairs correspondent. But from Friday at sundown until Saturday night — roughly 25 hours each week — I step away completely. I’m an Orthodox Jew, and each week on Shabbat, I don’t use any electricity, including my phone.
At sundown tonight, I logged on to find a very different reality in the Middle East than I left. If you’ve been following The Daily Wire’s coverage all day, you know that, early this morning, the United States and Israel struck Iran. But if you need a refresher, here are the 7 updates that got me up to speed.
1. Operation Epic Fury Hits Hard
Precision munitions rained down from land, air, and sea in the opening hours, hitting Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps command-and-control centers, Iranian air defenses, missile and drone launch sites, and military airfields. According to U.S. Central Command, the strikes began at 1:15 a.m. ET, and CENTCOM called Operation Epic Fury the largest regional concentration of American military firepower in a generation.
2. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei Is Dead
Precision U.S. and Israeli strikes hit the Supreme Leader’s compound in the opening hours of the operation, killing Iran’s top ruler. He was 86, had led the country since 1989, and was only the second person to hold the post of supreme leader since the 1979 Iranian Revolution that brought a radical clerical regime to power. Israel’s Channel 12 reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former President Donald Trump were shown images of Khamenei’s body after it was recovered.
President Trump called Khamenei “one of the most evil people in history” and said his death delivered justice for the people of Iran, for all great Americans, and for those around the world who suffered under him and his “gang of bloodthirsty thugs.” Khamenei had ruled tyrannically for decades, overseeing widespread oppression, including the violent crackdown on protesters that left an estimated 32,000 dead in January.
Trump added that the Supreme Leader could not evade the strike — despite any efforts to hide, highly sophisticated tracking systems, coordinated between the U.S. and Israel, made it impossible for him to escape.
3. Iranians Encouraged To Take Fate Into Their Own Hands
After Khamenei was killed, President Trump called this “the single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their country,” a moment that some Iranians appear to be marking with hope. Videos circulating on social media show cheers across Iran Saturday night following reports of the Supreme Leader’s death, including in Tehran, and videos emerging from London show members of the Iranian diaspora joining in the celebrations.
Trump added that many members of the IRGC, military, and other security forces reportedly no longer want to fight and are seeking immunity. He expressed hope that the IRGC and police could peacefully merge with Iranian patriots, working together to restore the country to what he described as its deserved greatness.
4. Iran’s Retaliatory Strikes Across the Middle East
In retaliation following Khamenei’s death, Iran has launched missile and drone attacks across the region:
Israel: Multiple missile impacts, including in Tel Aviv. Qatar: Missiles targeted Al Udeid Air Base. United Arab Emirates (UAE): Al Dhafra Air Base struck; one person killed in Abu Dhabi. Bahrain: U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters and residential buildings targeted. Kuwait: Kuwait International Airport and Ali Al Salem Air Base were attacked. All missiles were intercepted, though a drone hit Kuwait International Airport, causing minor injuries to employees. Jordan: Muwaffaq Al-Salti Air Base targeted. Iraq: U.S. Consulate in Erbil and Erbil Airport targeted by drones, which were shot down. Saudi Arabia: Riyadh was targeted, but attacks were repelled. Oman: Spared from attacks; the country had mediated nuclear negotiations as recently as Thursday.
5. The U.S. and Israel Are Operating in Full Coordination
The strikes on Iran were part of a coordinated military campaign between the United States and Israel. Strategic analysts at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) note that the United States designated its part of the operation “Operation Epic Fury,” while Israel called its portion “Operation Lion’s Roar,” reflecting a division of labor that plays to each side’s strengths: Israel focusing on regime leadership and intelligence targets, and the United States using its superior firepower to strike missile silos and major military sites.
The level of coordination was clear in advance. In the days leading up to the strikes, American refueling tankers were stationed at Ben Gurion Airport, while combat fighter jets were on the runway in Israel for offensive operations for the first time.
6. Top Iranian Officials Reportedly Killed
In addition to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, Israel claims several high-ranking Iranian figures were killed in the strikes, including:
7. Trump Says Bombing Will Continue
President Trump warned that the air campaign in Iran isn’t ending anytime soon, saying heavy and precise strikes will keep going “throughout the week or as long as necessary” to achieve what he described as peace across the Middle East and beyond.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth echoed that stance, saying the United States will not tolerate missiles aimed at Americans and vowing that the Iranian navy “will be destroyed.”