US & ‘Israel’ at war with Iran | Day 38 coverage
The 2026 Iran War began on February 28 when the United States and ‘Israel’ launched an operation dubbed Epic Fury by the US and Lion's Roar by ‘Israel’, unleashing nearly 900 airstrikes in 12 hours on Iranian missile systems, air defenses, nuclear facilities, military bases, and leadership targets.
Yemen’s Houthi movement entered the war early, launching missile and drone attacks toward ‘Israel’ and expanding the war beyond the Gulf and Levant theaters.
This direct assault followed years of shadow war, including the first-ever Iran-‘Israel’ missile exchanges in April and October 2024 and a limited 12-day war in June 2025 that damaged Tehran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and dozens of top officials were killed in the opening salvo, while a US Tomahawk strike on a school adjacent to a naval base near Bandar Abbas killed about 170 civilians, mostly children.
Iran responded within hours by firing hundreds of ballistic missiles and launching thousands of drones at ‘Israel’, US bases in the Gulf, and targets in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait.
Tehran restricted passage through the Strait of Hormuz—through which 20% of global oil flows—disrupting shipping and spiking oil prices.
The retaliation reignited fighting with Hezbollah in Lebanon, prompting ‘Israeli’ strikes there and spreading the conflict regionally while hitting civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, airports, and heritage sites.
Over the next five weeks, US-‘Israeli’ forces conducted sustained air campaigns that destroyed much of Iran’s air-defense network, missile production sites and navy assets.
Iran appointed Mojtaba Khamenei as the new supreme leader, but pragmatic senior official Ali Larijani was assassinated in an ‘Israeli’ strike on March 17.
More than 80,000 civilian sites were hit, including 260 medical facilities and UNESCO-listed buildings, causing widespread blackouts, fuel shortages, toxic pollution, and over 2,000 total deaths across Iran, ‘Israel’, Lebanon, and Gulf states.
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Kashan Airport damaged in multiple attacks
Kashan Airport sustained damage after being targeted several times today, the deputy governor of Isfahan for security affairs told Nornews.
Key points from Trump’s briefing on downed F-15 airman
- The rescue of the second F-15 airman faced close-range gunfire; equipment, including helicopters, was damaged, and two planes at the site were destroyed.
- Roughly 155 US aircraft took part in the mission, including 64 fighter jets, 48 refueling tankers, and 13 rescue planes.
- Officials are seeking the identity of the “leaker” who first told a media outlet that a second airman was missing in Iran.
- More than 10,000 combat flights have been carried out over Iran since the war began, targeting 13,000 sites.
- Trump stated that the entire nation of Iran “can be taken out in one night, and that night may be tomorrow night.”
Trump claims Iranians are 'begging' for US bombing
US President Donald Trump claimed that Iranians are “begging” for continued US airstrikes. He quoted a supposed sentiment: “Please keep bombing…”
Trump used the statement to justify ongoing military operations and to emphasize the pressure he believes the US is exerting on Tehran. There is no independent verification of the quote, and Iranian officials have not confirmed any such sentiment.
Mojtaba Khamenei says 'American‑Zionist' enemy chose terrorism after defeats
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei condemned the killing of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) intelligence chief Major General Majid Khademi, saying the “American‑Zionist enemy” has resorted to assassination and terrorism following repeated defeats.
In a statement released by state media, Khamenei mourned Khademi as a martyr and commended his decades of “silent struggles” defending Iran’s security and national interests. He said such losses will not weaken the resolve of the Iranian nation or its armed forces.
Khademi, who led the IRGC’s intelligence organization, was killed in what Iranian officials described as a criminal attack by US and ‘Israeli’ forces. Tehran has characterized the strike as part of ongoing aggression against the country’s leadership.
"We control the sky," Hegseth says about Iran pilot rescue operation
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth boasted that American forces “controlled the sky” during the recent full-scale operation to rescue downed US pilots in Iran.
He said US aircraft flew seven hours in daylight to recover the first pilot and another seven hours at night to extract the second, claiming Iran “did nothing about it.”
Hegseth on pilot rescue operation: Iran ‘embarrassed’ and ‘humiliated’
US Defense official Pete Hegseth said Iran was “embarrassed” and “humiliated” after a successful US operation to rescue a downed American pilot in Iranian territory.
Trump says US has struck more than 13,000 targets in Iran
“Over the past 37 days, America’s armed forces have carried out more than 10,000 combat flights over Iran – unheard of,” the Trump said.
He added that the US F-15 that was downed last week in Iran “was the first manned aircraft downed by the enemy in this entire operation”.
Trump says pilot info leaks endanger US security
US President Donald Trump warned that leaks about lost American pilots undermine national security.
He said the government will identify the person responsible for disclosing sensitive information and bring them to court. Trump emphasized that such leaks could compromise ongoing military operations in Iran and the wider region.
Trump: We took three helicopters there during the rescue mission in Iran
US President Donald Trump said that American forces deployed three helicopters as part of the high‑risk rescue mission in Iran to recover a downed US airman. Trump described the operation as one of the most daring in US military history, involving dozens of aircraft and special operations units operating deep inside hostile territory.
155 aircraft involved in Iran rescue mission, says Trump
US President Donald Trump revealed that 155 aircraft participated in the operation to rescue an American pilot in Iran.
He described the mission as one of the largest and most complex ever carried out by the US military, highlighting the coordination and scale required to extract the servicemember safely from hostile territory.
Trump: US Military personnel faced gunfire at very close range during rescue mission in Iran
US President Donald Trump said that American military personnel came under intense gunfire at very close range during a high‑risk rescue operation inside Iran to retrieve a downed airman, describing the mission as one of the most daring in US military history.
Trump claims Iran can be ‘taken out in one night’
The US president has claimed the US’s war on Iran is going well and that US forces could “take out” the whole country in a single night.
“The entire country can be taken out in one night,” said Trump. “And that night might be tomorrow night.”
Trump says US executes one of largest military operations in Iran
US President Donald Trump said that the American military carried out “one of the largest and most complex operations” in Iran.
Houthis claim strike on Eilat
Yemen’s Houthi group said it carried out an attack targeting 'Israel’s' southern city of Eilat as part of a coordinated operation with Iran and Hezbollah.
In a televised statement, the group said the strike targeted “several key military sites,” describing it as part of a broader joint effort across regional fronts.
'Could leave now but we want to finish it off': Trump
US President Donald Trump said American forces could withdraw from Iran immediately, but he prefers to “finish it up,” insisting that Tehran must not acquire nuclear weapons.
“We could leave right now and it would take them 15 years to rebuild what they had. We could leave right now but I want to finish it up,” Trump said. “Iran … cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
Trump’s comments reinforce his administration’s hardline stance, even as Iran continues to deny any nuclear weapons ambitions. The remarks come amid ongoing military operations and escalating regional tensions.
Trump says US sent ‘a lot of guns’ to Iran amid protests
The US president has reiterated that his administration “sent guns” in an attempt to help Iranian protesters taking part in mass anti-government demonstrations earlier this year.
“They were supposed to go to the people so they could fight back against these thugs,” Trump said.
“You know what happened? The people they sent them to kept them because they said, ‘What a beautiful gun, I think I’ll keep it.’ So I’m very upset with a certain group of people and they’re going to pay a big price for that.”
Trump did not specify which “group of people” he was referring to.
Qatar shoots down Iranian drones
Qatar successfully intercepted several Iranian drones that targeted the country, the Qatari Defense Ministry reported.
Kuwait reports injuries due to falling shrapnel
A spokesperson for Kuwait’s Ministry of Defence says injuries have been reported in a residential area in the north of the country due to falling shrapnel.
Colonel Saud Abdulaziz Al-Otaibi’s statement did not specify how many people were injured in the incident.
Al-Otaibi added that the Kuwaiti armed forces responded to 14 ballistic missile attacks along with two cruise missile and 46 drone firings in the country’s airspace over the past 24 hours.
'Israeli' attacks leave 1,497 dead in Lebanon
The Lebanese Ministry of Health reported that 'Israeli' aggression has killed 1,497 people and injured 4,639 since the attacks began on March 2.
