The conflict began on February 28, 2026, when the United States and Israel launched surprise airstrikes on multiple sites and cities across Iran, according to research from five sources. These strikes killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and several other Iranian officials, based on research from two sources. President Donald Trump ordered a sustained campaign of airstrikes on Iran, multiple reports indicate.
One of the most devastating incidents occurred at a girls' primary school in Minab, located near an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps base. The school building was directly struck with guided weapons, alongside 12 other structures in an adjacent IRGC compound, research from five sources shows. Amnesty International reports the attack killed 168 people, including over 100 children, while Iranian officials say at least 153 people, including children, died. Multiple reports confirm U.S.-Israeli airstrikes struck a girls school and left more than 100 children dead, though the exact death toll remains uncertain.
International organizations have condemned the school attack and raised legal concerns. Amnesty International holds the U.S. responsible for the attack, and Iran has blamed both the U.S. and Israel. Amnesty International and HRANA say the attack may violate international humanitarian law, with Amnesty calling on U.S. authorities to ensure a transparent, thorough investigation with public results. UNESCO expressed deep alarm at the impact of military attacks on educational institutions and condemned the strikes.
The U.S. and Israel have offered differing responses to allegations about the school strike. The U.S. military's Central Command said it was looking into reports of the incident, while Israel's military said it was not aware of any IDF operations in the area. A brewing scandal suggests the U.S. military was likely behind the February missile strike on the girls' primary school that killed over 150 people, despite public statements that the incident is still under review, according to multiple reports.
Broader civilian casualties from the initial bombings have been reported with conflicting figures. The Human Rights Activists News Agency says more than 1,000 civilians have been killed in the first five days of U.S.-Israeli bombings of Iran, including 181 children under age ten. In contrast, the Iranian Red Crescent reports at least 201 people have been killed in air strikes in Iran and 747 hurt since Saturday, indicating significant uncertainty about the true human cost.
Iran responded to the initial strikes with missile and drone attacks against Israel, U.S. bases, and U.S.-allied countries in the Middle East, research from five sources confirms. These retaliatory strikes have hit U.S. bases and consulates across the region, as well as civilian areas of Gulf countries and Israel. Subsequent attacks in the war damaged military bases, government facilities, schools, hospitals, and cultural heritage sites. Iranian attacks have also targeted diplomatic missions, hotels, airports, and critical energy infrastructure within Arab Gulf states, multiple reports indicate.
U.S. military casualties from these retaliatory strikes have been reported with conflicting numbers. Multiple sources report six U.S. military service members have been killed by Iran’s retaliatory strikes, while other major media reports say 13 U.S. service members have been killed since Iran initiated strikes against American military bases following the outbreak of the conflict. The U.S. military confirmed on Monday that around 200 U.S. troops have now been wounded in the ongoing conflict, with most injuries minor and 180 personnel already back on active duty, according to Central Command. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said eight U.S. service members are currently severely injured, though multiple reports indicate ten of the reported injuries are considered serious. These casualties were sustained across multiple locations including Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain, Iraq, and Israel, and the figure had not previously been reported publicly, with the Pentagon having only confirmed that eight American military personnel were seriously injured.
The scale of the U.S. bombing campaign also shows conflicting target numbers. Admiral Brad Cooper of CENTCOM said the U.S. has struck nearly 2,000 targets in the first 100 hours of the operation. Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said U.S. forces have hit more than 5,000 targets, while multiple reports indicate the United States has carried out strikes against more than 7,000 targets in Iran. A U.S. official speaking on condition of anonymity said about a dozen MQ-9 drones have been destroyed in the war.
The conflict has incurred significant economic costs and market impacts. Pentagon officials in a closed-door briefing to Congress said the war with Iran reportedly cost the U.S. over $11.3 billion in its first six days. The conflict has driven up oil prices and negatively impacted U.S. stock markets, with oil prices swinging violently during the week after mixed messages from the White House created confusion on global energy markets. The international benchmark Brent oil fell on Tuesday by 17 percent to under $80 per barrel, multiple reports show.
Domestic U.S. political reactions have been critical, with Trump administration officials offering various and conflicting explanations for starting the war. The International Atomic Energy Agency said there was no evidence of a structured nuclear weapons program in Iran at the time of the strikes. Americans are broadly unsupportive of the war, and Democratic lawmakers expressed significant dissatisfaction and anger following the briefing, citing a lack of detail regarding the war's costs, reasons, goals, and methods. Democrats are advocating for public hearings with testimony from top administration officials, though previous efforts to curb the conflict, such as War Powers Act resolutions, have been unsuccessful.
Specific impacts on Gulf allies have been severe. The United Arab Emirates reported two more deaths as nine drones struck the country, with Iranian attacks on the UAE killing six people and wounding 122 others since the surprise bombardment began. Firefighters battled a blaze in the industrial city of Ruwais after an Iranian drone strike, with no injuries reported there. In Bahrain, an Iranian attack hit a residential building in the capital, Manama, killing a 29-year-old woman and wounding eight people, and Bahrain's Defense Ministry says it has intercepted over 100 ballistic missiles and 175 drones since the war began.
Attacks on Israel have involved Hezbollah, with sirens sounding in Jerusalem and sounds of explosions heard in Tel Aviv as Israel’s air defenses worked to intercept barrages from Iran. Hezbollah launched missiles into Israel after the start of the war. The Israel Defense Forces said it had begun broad scale strikes targeting Iranian terror regime targets in Tehran, and Iran's state television said a mourning ceremony for Khamenei had been postponed due to intensive airstrikes in Tehran.
Pre-war intelligence warnings about potential Iranian retaliation existed despite Trump's claims of surprise. President Trump was warned that attacking Iran could trigger retaliation against U.S. Gulf allies despite his claims that Tehran's reaction came as a surprise. An anonymous source said pre-war intelligence assessments did not say that Iran’s response was a guarantee, but it certainly was on the list of potential outcomes.
Veteran perspectives and political context add depth to the conflict. Trump won nearly two-thirds of the veteran vote in 2024, multiple reports show. Nathan Wendland, a 46-year-old former US army staff sergeant, receives compensation for post-traumatic stress disorder and checked himself into a psychiatric emergency room in January because he was worried he would kill himself. Shawn VanDiver is a navy veteran and founder of #AfghanEvac, a coalition of 250 veterans, national security and human rights groups. Senator Ruben Gallego is an Arizona Democrat and marine corps veteran of the Iraq war whose unit sustained heavy casualties, while Senator Joni Ernst is an Iowa Republican and combat veteran of the Iraq war.
Technical details of U.S. drone capabilities used in the conflict include the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle, which can loiter at altitudes of around 50,000 feet for more than 27 hours, gathering intelligence with sophisticated cameras, sensors and radars. The Reaper, which entered service with the U.S. Air Force 16 years ago, can be equipped with weapons such as air-to-ground missiles.