President Donald Trump has confirmed “major combat operations” are underway to eliminate Tehran’s nuclear program and bring about a change in its government
© Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said British aircraft were “in the sky today” in the Middle East as part of “co-ordinated regional defensive operations to protect our people, our interests and our allies.”
His comments came after the US and Israel launched an attack on Iran on Saturday, with President Donald Trump confirming that “major combat operations” were under way.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said the US and Israel had struck military and civilian targets, “blatantly violating” the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. Iran’s military has since launched a wave of retaliatory strikes towards Israel.
Explosions were also reported in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Kuwait, all of which host US military assets.
World leaders have urged all sides to de-escalate and return to negotiations. In a statement on Saturday morning Moscow condemned what it called a ”premeditated and unprovoked act of armed aggression against a sovereign and independent member state of the UN.”
The UK, France and Germany issued a joint statement condemning Iran’s retaliatory attacks on neighboring countries, but stopped short of offering full support for the US-Israeli strikes on Tehran.
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28 February 2026
14:22 GMT
World reacts to US-Israeli strike on Iran
The strikes came after indirect nuclear talks in Geneva between Tehran and Washington ended without a breakthrough on Friday and amid a major US military build-up in the region.
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- Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi, who has mediated the latest nuclear talks in Geneva, said the US-Israeli action had undermined peace efforts. “Neither the interests of the United States nor the cause of global peace are well served by this,” he said.
- In Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin convened a Security Council meeting by videoconference to discuss the situation, the Kremlin said. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov condemned the move as an “unprovoked armed attack” and urged an immediate halt to the strikes, saying Russia was ready to work through the UN Security Council to seek a diplomatic solution.
- French President Emmanuel Macron warned that an “outbreak of war” in the Middle East would carry grave consequences for international peace and security.
- Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez criticized what Madrid described as unilateral US and Israeli military action, saying it represented an escalation and risked deepening global instability.
- A British government spokesperson said Iran “must never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon” and called for a negotiated solution.
- UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said “bombs and missiles are not the way to resolve differences,” urging restraint and a return to negotiations.
- Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Ottawa supported American efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and from threatening international peace and security.
- Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said it would not accept being drawn into matters that threaten its security and unity.
- Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said that while Israel had described its action as preventive, such strikes were not in line with international law without an imminent threat.
- In Tehran, a spokesperson for Iran’s armed forces general staff said the Islamic Republic would teach what he called “criminal” Israel and the “aggressive” United States a lesson they had “never experienced in their history,” adding in a televised interview that the strikes had taken place during negotiations with Washington.
- 13:57 GMT
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Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi, spokesman for Iran’s armed forces general staff, said Tehran would teach “criminal” Israel and the “aggressive” US a lesson they had “never experienced in their history.”
In a televised interview following the US-Israeli strikes, he urged Iranians not to worry and said the attacks had come during negotiations with Washington.
He added that, as previously promised by the Revolutionary Guards, Iran had launched missile strikes against American bases and locations used to support Israel’s operations.
- 13:35 GMT
Russian President Vladimir Putin has held a Security Council meeting by videoconference to discuss the situation surrounding Iran, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.
- 12:57 GMT
Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi, a key mediator in the US-Iran nuclear talks, has said that US-Israeli strikes against Iran have undermined peace negotiations. “Neither the interests of the United States nor the cause of global peace are well served by this,” he stressed.
I am dismayed. Active and serious negotiations have yet again been undermined. Neither the interests of the United States nor the cause of global peace are well served by this. And I pray for the innocents who will suffer. I urge the United States not to get sucked in further.…
— Badr Albusaidi — بدر البوسعيدي (@badralbusaidi) February 28, 2026
The third round of the negotiations finished in Geneva only two days ago.
- 12:55 GMT
Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran’s late US-backed shah who was toppled in 1979 and who hasn’t been on Iranian soil for decades, welcomed the US-Israeli strikes, calling it “a humanitarian intervention” and thanking Donald Trump for delivering on his promise for aid.
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Disorder instead of protest: Who tried to radicalize Iran’s streets – and why it failedHe went on to urge Iranians to prepare for new protests, saying “it is we, the people of Iran, who will finish the job in this final battle.”
- 12:54 GMT
An unverified clip from Qatar shows what looks like a downed Iranian missile falling on a residential area in Doha, with an explosion and fire ensuing.
🇶🇦🚀 Moment an intercepted missile falls in Doha, Qatar👍 US-Israel-Iran war | @geopolitics_prime pic.twitter.com/KlSpgzy6c0
— Malcolm X (@malcolmx653459) February 28, 2026
- 12:54 GMT
The Houthis in Yemen, who have had traditionally close ties with Iran, have vowed to resume strikes on Red Sea shipping routes and Israel, two sources with the movement have told the AP.
- 12:32 GMT
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held a phone call with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Aragchi on Saturday, according to the Foreign Ministry in Moscow.
Lavrov condemned the “unprovoked armed attack” by the US and Israel on Iran, and urged an immediate halt to the strikes. He stressed that Russia is ready, including in the UN Security Council, to facilitate the search for peaceful solutions based on international law, mutual respect, and a balance of interests.
- 12:32 GMT
French President Emmanuel Macron has warned that the “outbreak of war” in the Middle East “carries grave consequences for international peace and security” while urging for a UN Security Council meeting.
He insisted that Iran must “understand that it now has no other option but to engage in good faith in negotiations to end its nuclear and ballistic programs.”
- 12:29 GMT
A UK government spokesperson has said Iran “must never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon” while calling for a “negotiated solution.”
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UK urges Israel to reverse West Bank moveThe spokesman stressed that while “we do not want to see further escalation into a wider regional conflict,” the UK “stand[s] ready to protect our interests.”
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28 February 2026
07:35 GMT
Farhad Ibrahimov, a lecturer at the Higher School of Economics (HSE) in Moscow and a specialist on Iran and the Middle East, says Israel’s strikes on Iran were similar to the June 12-13 attack last year.
On the eve of those events, US President Donald Trump announced a new round of negotiations with Tehran, and the following day Israel struck Iran, he posted on his Telegram channel. “The same thing is happening today,” Ibrahimov, a regular RT contributor, added.
Israel carried out what it described as a “pre-emptive strike” on Tehran and a number of other Iranian cities, fully aware that Iran would respond, he posted. “And if Iran responds, the Americans will step in and the negotiations will be over.”
- 07:36 GMT
Tehran is preparing retaliatory measures and its response will be devastating, an Iranian official told Reuters.
- 07:37 GMT
The current attack on Iran will be far larger in scale than US strikes on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear facilities in June last year, American officials told the New York Times.
The strikes were reported to have come after US President Trump expressed dissatisfaction with the progress of negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program. - 07:42 GMT
US forces have begun a military operation against Iran, President Trump confirmed in a video posted on Truth Social. He said the aim of the operation was to protect the American people by eliminating what he described as the “threat” posed by the Iranian government.
He said the “major combat operation” against Iran was aimed at its nuclear and missile programs and added that Tehran would never obtain a nuclear weapon.
The White House and Trump administration, via Donald Trump, have just released a video saying they have attacked Iran and "defend the American people and eliminating the Iranian regime…a vicious group of very hard, terrible people". pic.twitter.com/bpEZOXQ69m
— unusual_whales (@unusual_whales) February 28, 2026
- 08:01 GMT
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was not harmed in the US and Israeli attack, Mehr news agency reported, citing a source.
Israel is preparing for four days of strikes in the initial phase of the operation against the Islamic Republic, Channel 12 reported.
- 08:08 GMT
At least five explosions were heard in Tehran and were also reported in other cities – including Qom, Isfahan, Kermanshah and Karaj – Iranian news agencies have reported.
The military operation has been named “Roar of the Lion” for the Israeli phase and “Shield of Judah” for the joint operation with Washington.
© RT
- 08:16 GMT
An air raid alert has been declared in Israel, with launches detected from Iran, authorities said.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has urged his people to remain steadfast “in the coming days” following the start of the operation against Tehran.
© Social media
- 08:18 GMT
According to RT sources, the IDF is focusing its strikes on taking out missiles.
A source familiar with the matter also said a security meeting is currently taking place chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. - 08:27 GMT
‘Thick black smoke RISING’ over Tehran after Israeli strikes, RT correspondent Saman Kojouri reports
‘I’m hearing ANOTHER EXPLOSION right now’ as Iran warns of a ‘decisive response’
- 08:30 GMT
The US has begun evacuating personnel from Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar following the attack on Iran, Reuters has reported, citing a source.
The facility is the largest American military installation in the Middle East, hosting about 10,000 service members. In June 2025, the base was targeted by an Iranian missile strike in response to a US and Israeli attack against nuclear sites in the Islamic Republic.
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