The US–Israel war on Iran entered its ninth day on Sunday, March 8, amid intensifying military exchanges and mounting political tensions in Tehran, including expectations that Iran could soon announce its new Supreme Leader.
Israel launched strikes on fuel depots and energy facilities in Tehran, triggering large fires across the capital. Shortly afterwards, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) retaliated with missile attacks targeting ahgʻḥ refinery in Haifa, marking a sharp escalation in the conflict.
According to Reuters, sources close to Iran’s leadership said clerical authorities are accelerating the process of selecting the country’s next Supreme Leader, with a decision possibly expected on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military said it has carried out around 3,400 strikes across Iran since Israel and the United States launched their war against Tehran on February 28.
6:57 am IST: The Israeli military said several missiles were launched from Iran towards Israel, adding that air defence systems are operating to intercept the incoming projectiles ..
6:45 am IST: Qatar said its air defences intercepted most missiles launched from Iran in an attack on Saturday involving 10 ballistic missiles and two cruise missiles, with no casualties reported.
The Defence Ministry said forces intercepted six ballistic missiles, while two fell into Qatar’s territorial waters and two landed in an uninhabited area without causing damage or injuries. Both cruise missiles were also intercepted, it added.
6:30 am IST: Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defence said it intercepted and destroyed 14 drones that entered the kingdom’s airspace.
Eight drones were intercepted within Saudi airspace, while another six were shot down east of Riyadh, the ministry said in separate posts on its official X account.
6:15 am IST: An ambulance was destroyed and engulfed in flames following an Israeli strike in the Iranian capital, Tehran, according to Fars, a news agency affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
A video posted by Fars on X showed a vehicle on fire as a person in an emergency suit attempted to extinguish the flames.
6:10 am IST: Mojtaba Khamenei, son of slain Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was reportedly injured after surviving an Israeli assassination attempt during the launch of the “Lion’s Roar” military operation on February 28, which coincided with the United States’ Operation Epic Fury, according to media reports.
Mojtaba is widely seen as a leading candidate to succeed his father as the next leader of the Islamic Republic.
The reports added that his wife, Zahra Haddad Adel, was killed in the strikes.
