 | This article needs to be updated. (April 2026) |
 | This article is about a current military conflict. (February 2026) |
| 2026 Iran war | |||||||||
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| Part of the Middle Eastern crisis (2023–present) | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
Bases targeted: Defensive countries:
*Note: These countries have participated only in shooting down Iranian UAVs and ballistic missiles and at the same time, they were not attacked by Iran. | |||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Units involved | |||||||||
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See order of battle | |||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
Total military deaths: 175 deaths
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Total military deaths: 1,735 fighters
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For naval losses, see this list  Lebanon: 2,294 killed, 7,544 injured, 1,200,000+ displaced in Lebanon2 civilians killed in Israel  Iraq: 26 soldiers and 23 civilians killed, 180 injured United Arab Emirates: 2 soldiers and 11 civilians killed, 224 injured Kuwait: 4 soldiers and 6 civilians killed, 77 soldiers and 32 civilians injured Qatar: 4 soldiers killed and 20 injured Palestine, West Bank: 14 killed and 15 injured Bahrain: 3 killed and 42 injured Oman: 3 killed and 15 injured Turkey: 1 soldier and 2 civilians killed Saudi Arabia: 2 killed and 16 injured France: 2 soldiers killed and several injured Syria: 1 killed Jordan: 19 injured Azerbaijan: 4 injured | |||||||||
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The 2026 Iran War is a military conflict that commenced on February 28, 2026. The war was initiated by the major wave of surprise airstrikes made by the United States and Israel on Iran. The war is the biggest combat in the Middle East since the 2003 Invasion of Iraq.
The war was preceded by conflict of several years regarding the nuclear program of Iran and its assistance to the actions of such groups as Hezbollah and Hamas. At the beginning of 2026, Iran experienced the most widespread demonstrations in decades domestically, which the Iranian government broke down with violence.
In the initial 12 hours on February 28, the U.S and Israeli forces targeted almost 900 strikes. Such attacks assassinated some of the senior Iranian leaders including the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. The U.S. claimed that it aimed at ensuring Iran did not acquire a nuclear weapon and it would be stopping imminent threats in the region.
The attacks were retaliated by Iran firing hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles. These targeted:
- Israel: Bombing Tel Aviv, Haifa.
- U.S. Military Bases: Particularly the ones in Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait and UAE.
- Neighboring Countries: Jordan and Saudi Arabia were reported to have been struck.
The Iranian military too tried to shut the Strait Of Hormuz which is a narrow waterway through which 20 percent of the oil in the world flows. This has resulted in a significant shock of energy which has seen a tremendous increase in the price of oil and gas globally.
The war is still on as of 19th Of April 2026. Although the U.S. and Israel have demolished most of the military installations in Iran, the Iranian regime has replaced Ali Khamenei by Mojtaba Khamenei and is still struggling. Peace talks have not been successful yet as the United Nations and many countries have demanded a ceasefire. These have seen the killing and injury of thousands of soldiers and civilians in the region. Several commentators have compared Iran's strategy during the war to Muhammad Ali's 'rope-a-dope' tactic against George Foreman, arguing that the Iranians sought to absorb initial military strikes while gradually exhausting their adversaries through strategic and economic costs.