War widens across West Asia as U.S., Israel launch joint attack on Iran: In Pictures

Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei was killed in a major attack on Iran launched by Israel and the United States, throwing the future of the Islamic Republic into doubt and raising the risk of regional instability.

Explosions rocked Iran’s capital as Israel said it would carry out “non-stop strikes” against its leaders and military. Iran meanwhile fired more missiles at Israel and Gulf Arab states in retaliation for the killing.

The killing of Khamenei, and U.S. President Donald Trump’s calls for the overthrow of the decades-old Islamic Republic, marked the start of a stunning new U.S. intervention in West Asia and potentially a prolonged war.

The weekend attacks were the second combined strikes in eight months from the U.S. and Israel against Iran. In the 12-day war last June, Israeli and American strikes greatly weakened Iran’s air defences, military leadership and nuclear programme. But the killing of Khamenei, who ruled Iran for more than three decades, creates a leadership vacuum, increasing the risk of regional instability.

With inputs from Agencies

A man holds an Iranian flag following an Israeli and the U.S. strike on Gandhi Hotel Hospital, amid the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran, in Tehran, Iran, on March 2, 2026. Iranian news agency ISNA reported that Gandhi hospital in northern Tehran was targeted on March 1, 2026 by strikes, on the second day of a U.S.-Israeli air campaign against Iran. The Fars and Mizan agencies published a video, presented as being from inside the facility, showing debris on the floor among wheelchairs. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters

A satellite image of a destroyed residence complex belonging to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran, Iran March 1, 2026. Iranian state television and the state-run IRNA news agency announced the 86-year-old's death early on March 1. U.S. President Donald Trump had announced his death hours earlier, saying it gave Iranians their “greatest chance” to “take back” their country. Photo: Vantor/Handout via Reuters

This image provided by U.S. Central Command shows a F/A-18E Super Hornet preparing for an arrested landing on the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) after a mission in support of Operation Epic Fury, on February 28, 2026. The United States unleashed an array of weaponry against Iranian targets, including Tomahawk cruise missiles, stealth fighters, and for the first time in combat, low-cost one-way attack drones modeled after Iranian designs.

A damaged car remains on the ground in the aftermath of an Israeli-U.S. strike in Tehran, Iran, on February 28, 2026. The strikes opened a stunning new chapter in U.S. intervention in Iran, marking the second time in eight months that the Trump administration has attacked the country during talks over its nuclear programme.

Rescue workers and residents search through the rubble in the aftermath of an Israeli-U.S. strike on a girls' elementary school in Minab, Iran on February 28, 2026. An Iranian provincial official said Israeli strikes had hit a school in Hormozgan near the strategic sea route of the Strait of Hormuz. A county governor, according to state television, identified the school as the Shajare Tayyebeh elementary school in Minab. The Iranian Red Crescent later gave a death toll from the strike of 108, after it had steadily climbed from an initial estimate of five provided by the provincial official.

Government supporters gather in mourning after state TV officially announced the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in Tehran, Iran on March 1, 2026. Around 5:00 am on Sunday (March 1, 2026), Iranian state TV announced Khamenei's death, saying he had "fulfilled his lifelong dream" of martyrdom. Within hours, Iranian mourners dressed in black took to the streets in Tehran's central Enghelab Square. Some were angry while others wept. The grieving crowds chanted "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" and demanded revenge as they carried portraits of Khamenei, religious banners and the Iranian flag.

Government supporters chant slogans as they gather in mourning after state TV officially announced the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, shown in the poster, in Tehran, Iran, on March 1, 2026.

Smoke rises following an Iranian projectile strike, after Israel and the U.S. launched strikes on Iran, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on February 28, 2026. The Israeli military announced ‌a "prohibition ‌on ‌educational ⁠activities, gatherings, ⁠and workplaces" after Israel ‌launched what the defence minister ‌said was a ⁠pre-emptive attack ‌against Iran.

Interceptions attempt after Iran launched missiles into Israel, following Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran, in central Israel on February 28, 2026. Global airlines suspended flights across West Asia after the United States and Israel launched strikes ‌on Iran, plunging the region into a renewed military confrontation. Flight maps showed the airspace over Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Israel and Bahrain virtually empty as Israel said it struck Iran and the U.S. military initiated a ⁠series of strikes against targets in the country. Iran retaliated with a salvo of missiles.

A satellite image of an industrial area covered in smoke in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, March 1, 2026. The peaceful image of United Arab Emirates was shattered Saturday (February 28, 2026) as Iranian weaponry rained down on Dubai, setting fire to a five-star resort, threatening the world's tallest building, and killing one person and injuring seven others at the airport in the capital city of Abu Dhabi. Photo: 2026 Planet Labs PBC/Handout via Reuters

Rescue workers and military personnel operate at the scene where several people were killed by an Iranian missile strike in Beit Shemesh, Israel on March 1, 2026. The strike in Beit Shemesh comes as part of a broader escalation in the region. Expanding the scope of hostilities, Zayed Port in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, was also targeted by missile strikes launched by Iran, according to a report by the Iranian state broadcaster,

A plume of smoke rises after a strike in Tehran, Iran, on March 1, 2026. Israel and the U.S. have bombed Iranian missile sites and targeted its Navy, claiming to have destroyed its headquarters and multiple warships. Blasts in Tehran sent a huge plume of smoke into the sky in an area of government buildings. Iranian authorities say more than 500 people have been killed since the start of the US and Israeli strikes that killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other senior leaders.

Israeli security forces inspect a damaged road after a missile launched from Iran struck Jerusalem, on March 1, 2026. Iran vowed revenge after the killing of its supreme leader and traded strikes with Israel as part of a widening war. In Israel, loud explosions caused by missile impacts or interceptions could be heard in Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem.

A black plume of smoke rises from a warehouse at the industrial area of Sharjah City in the United Arab Emirates following reports of Iranian strikes in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on March 1, 2026.

Published - March 02, 2026 12:34 pm IST

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