Iran live updates: 7th killed service member is identified

Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington, 26, was killed in Saudi Arabia.

ByDavid Brennan, Jon Haworth, Kevin Shalvey, Leah Sarnoff, Meredith Deliso, Nadine El-Bawab, and Bill Hutchinson ABCNews logo
Last updated: Monday, March 9, 2026 3:00PM GMT
ABC News Live

President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israel strikes attack targeting military and government sites, officials said.

Iranian state television confirmed that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among those killed in Tehran on the first day of strikes. His son Mojtaba Khamenei was chosen on Sunday to succeed him.

Iran is responding to the operation with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, regional U.S. bases and multiple Gulf nations. Israel is also intensifying its long-running strike campaign against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.

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Mar 01, 2026, 12:49 PM GMT

US Embassy in Bahrain advises citizens to avoid hotels after attack

The U.S. Embassy in Bahrain advised U.S. citizens in the country "that hotels might be a target for future attacks" and encouraged them to avoid hotels in the capital Manama, following a reported strike on the city's Crowne Plaza Hotel.

The Bahrain Interior Ministry said on Sunday that the hotel was targeted resulting in material damaged but no loss of life.

The U.S. Embassy said it was "tracking confirmed reports the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Manama was struck on March 1, 2026, resulting in injuries."

Bahrain has reported being attacked with multiple waves of Iranian missiles and drones since Saturday.

-ABC News' Victoria Beaule

Mar 01, 2026, 12:03 PM GMT

Regional nations condemn ongoing Iranian strikes

Several neighboring countries -- including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait -- condemned a strike on the port of Duqm in Oman on Sunday.

The attack was the first apparent strike on Oman since the start of the conflict on Saturday.

Qatar called the reported attack "an unacceptable escalation and a cowardly targeting of a country playing an active role in mediation efforts."

Qatar itself reported attacks on Sunday "involving drones and cruise missiles launched by Iran." The country's Interior Ministry reported a fire in an industrial area caused by falling debris.

Elsewhere, the Kuwaiti Ministry of Defense said it "confronted a number of hostile aerial targets" on Sunday morning.

The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain also reported fresh Iranian attacks on Sunday.

-ABC News Victoria Beaule

Mar 01, 2026, 11:29 AM GMT

China 'strongly condemns' Khamenei killing, Foreign Ministry says

A spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Sunday described the U.S.-Israeli killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei as "a grave violation of Iran's sovereignty and security."

"It tramples on the purposes and principles of the U.N. Charter and basic norms in international relations," the spokesperson said. "China firmly opposes and strongly condemns it."

"We urge for an immediate stop to the military operations, no further escalation of the tense situation and joint effort to maintain peace and stability in the Middle East and the world at large," the spokesperson added.

-ABC News' Karson Yiu

Mar 01, 2026, 11:26 AM GMT

US Embassy in Jordan issues shelter-in-place order

The U.S. Embassy in Amman, Jordan, issued a shelter-in-place order for all mission personnel, telling them to avoid the Embassy compound "as it may be targeted."

"All Americans should exercise increased vigilance and avoid the U.S Embassy facility," the Embassy said in a post to X.

Protests have erupted at several U.S. diplomatic facilities in the Middle East and South Asia following the launch of the U.S.-Israeli operation against Iran on Saturday.

-ABC News' Kevin Shalvey