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US and Israeli Strikes Target Khamenei and Pezeshkian in Iran

Senior Israeli officials say the Supreme Leader and the Iranian president were among the primary objectives of coordinated raids

US and Israeli strikes target Khamenei and Pezeshkian in Iran, according to Israeli officials who described the country’s top leadership as central objectives of the operation carried out Saturday, February 28.

Sources cited by Axios said Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian were both among the intended targets of the morning raids on the Islamic Republic. Iran’s official news agency IRNA reported that Pezeshkian is “safe and unharmed.”

A senior Israeli official told Axios that the purpose of the coordinated action was to “create all the conditions for the fall of the Iranian regime,” adding that the broader objective encompasses “the entire Iranian leadership — political and military — past, present and future.” According to the same source, future developments could depend in part on whether the Iranian population rises up.

Israeli outlet Ynet reported that Israel believes it eliminated Mohammad Pakpour, commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, known as the Pasdaran. Pakpour had been appointed by Khamenei after his predecessor, Hossein Salami, was killed in an Israeli strike during last summer’s 12-day war.

Channel 12, citing anonymous Israeli sources, reported that Khamenei’s residential compound in Tehran was completely destroyed. It remains unclear whether the Supreme Leader was inside at the time. The New York Times said satellite imagery shows significant damage to the compound, including the collapse of several internal structures. Earlier, an Iranian source said Khamenei had been moved to “a secure location” outside the capital.

Channel 12 also reported that the home of former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was hit, without providing details about his condition. The network further said Israel estimates “with high probability” that Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Defense Council and a political adviser to Khamenei, was killed in the airstrikes. Shamkhani was described by the broadcaster as a central figure behind the Revolutionary Guard’s nuclear program and among the regime’s most hardline officials.

The strikes triggered immediate retaliation. According to Arab satellite networks, Iranian missile attacks targeted U.S. bases across the Gulf region, including in Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. Media in Manama reported missiles aimed at the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet headquarters, while Qatar and the UAE said they intercepted incoming projectiles. The situation in Kuwait remains unclear.

Iranian sources said the Revolutionary Guard targeted Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, Al Salem base in Kuwait, Al Dhafra Air Base in the UAE, and the Fifth Fleet base in Bahrain. There has been no independent confirmation of damage.

In Abu Dhabi, at least one person was killed after multiple missiles were launched toward the UAE, according to the Emirati state news agency. The government condemned the attack as “a flagrant violation of national sovereignty and international law,” adding that it reserves the right to respond.

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