Ghoncheh Habibiazad
Senior reporter, BBC Persian

Iran Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei earlier said on ABC News that both Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian are “safe and sound”.

Meanwhile, the head of public relations at the office of Khamenei, Seyyed Mehrdad Seyyed Mahdi, says that “the enemy has resorted to psychological warfare. We should all be careful about it”, the semi-official ISNA news agency reports.

In different neighbourhoods in Tehran, people are cheering and celebrating, sources tell BBC Persian - people are honking horns, screaming in celebration, they say.

Earlier, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said there were "growing signs" that Iran's supreme leader is "gone", but this has not yet been confirmed.

Image source, Getty Images

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has been supreme leader since 1989, is the most powerful figure in Iran.

He is head of state and commander-in-chief.

He also has authority over the national police and the morality police.

Khamenei controls the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which is in charge of internal security, and its volunteer wing, the Basij Resistance Force - used to quell dissent in Iran.

Following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying there are "growing signs" that Iran's supreme leader is "gone", we are seeing unconfirmed reports that he has been killed by US-Israeli strikes.

Reuters, citing a senior Israeli official, reports that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's body has been found.

Axios, citing a source, says Israeli ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter has informed US officials that Khamenei was killed in the strike on his compound in Tehran.

And multiple Israeli outlets, including News 12 and Times of Israel, are citing Israeli officials also claiming that the supreme leader has died.

Image source, Reuters

There are several options for "off ramps" to de-escalation after the US' military operation in Iran, Donald Trump says.

"I can go long and take over the whole thing, or end it in two or three days and tell the Iranians: 'See you again in a few years if you start rebuilding [your nuclear programme],'" he tells Axios.

It's the first time the US president has commented on the operation since announcing the strikes on Saturday morning.

He says he finally took the decision to green-light the strikes due to the lack of progress over nuclear negotiations this week.

"The Iranians got close and then pulled back — close and then pulled back. I understood from that that they don't really want a deal," he says, according to the US outlet, which says they spoke to Trump for five minutes over the phone.

Image source, US Central Command

There have been no reports of US casualties or injuries following retaliatory strikes by Iran, according to US Central Command (Centcom), a sub-section of the US military whose coverage area include the Middle East and large parts of Asia.

"Centcom forces successfully defended against hundreds of Iranian missile and drone attacks," it says in a statement. "Damage to US installations was minimal and has not impacted operations."

Iran launched airstrikes targeting Israel and neighbouring countries that host US military installations.

The US used "low-cost one-way attack drones for the first time in combat," the statement adds.

Tinshui Yeung
Live page editor

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has just said that there's growing signs that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is "gone".

It's not clear exactly what he means.

BBC Verify obtained satellite imagery taken over Tehran this morning which shows significant damage to part of the compound of Leadership House - Khamenei's office in the Iranian capital.

We haven't heard from the supreme leader today, and there's no confirmation yet on whether he's dead or alive.

The closest we've heard about him was during an NBC News interview with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who said the leader was "alive" as far as he was aware.

We'll bring you any updates as soon as we have them.

Image source, EPA

Netanyahu discusses the attack on the Tehran compound of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which we reported on earlier.

There are growing signs "this dictator" is "gone", Netanyahu says.

The Israeli prime minister ends his remarks by calling on the citizens of Israel to listen to safety advice from the country's Home Front Command after suggesting the operation against Iran will continue "as long as necessary".

Netanyahu addresses the Iranian people, saying the strikes will help them "unshackle themselves from tyranny".

He says they have a "once in a generation chance" to overthrow the Iranian regime.

"Take to the streets en masse" and "get the job done", he says.

It is "high time you come together" and "unite for a historic mission", he says.

Image source, GPO

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is speaking now.

Press watch live to follow along at the top of the page. We'll also bring you text updates.

Qatar condemns Iran after missile seen falling on streetpublished at 18:52 GMT

18:52 GMT

By Merlyn Thomas and Joshua Cheetham

Verified footage shows a missile appearing to fall uncontrollably, external, possibly after being intercepted, in a residential area of Qatar.

The person filming can be heard saying, "Move to the side, run!" The camera then pans to show dozens of people running away and screaming as the missile falls.

A huge fireball erupts as the missile hits the ground and a dark black plume of smoke follows as people continue running.

The man then briefly turns the camera and says, "it’s just in front of my room" before saying "may God protect us".

Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a statement, external strongly condemning "the targeting of Qatari territory with Iranian ballistic missiles" and said it considers it "a flagrant violation of its national sovereignty, a direct infringement on its security and territorial integrity" and an "unacceptable escalation".

Iranian officials say at least 85 people have died after an airstrike hit a girls’ school in Minab. That’s according to the semi-official Mehr News Agency, which is quoting a Minab prosecutor.

Earlier, officials said 53 people had been killed. An official also said the school was "targeted by three missile attacks" today.

The BBC has not been able to independently verify this - international news organisations are often refused visas to Iran which severely limits their ability to gather information there.

Ghoncheh Habibiazad
Senior reporter, BBC Persian

Three members of Iran’s paramilitary Basij, a subordinate force under the command of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), have been killed in the West Azerbaijan province, according to the semi-official Mehr News Agency.

The report, citing the PR of the Basij forces in Shahin Dezh, a city in West Azerbaijan, identifies them as “Salim Emami,” “Omid Hasanpour,” and “Eslam Tamjid.”

Blaming Israel and the US for the attack that led to their deaths, the report states that their funerals will take place tomorrow.

Daniel Bush
Washington Correspondent

Vice President JD Vance was in the Situation Room at the White House last night monitoring the US attack on Iran, according to a source familiar with the matter who asked not to be named.

Vance was joined by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Energy Secretary Chris Wright. The group was dialled into a conference line with President Trump and his national security team, who were monitoring the strikes from the president's Florida estate Mar-a-Lago, the source says.

The new detail helps fill in the picture on the administration's planning and execution of Operation Epic Fury, as senior officials in Washington and Florida followed the air strikes unfolding in real time in Iran.

Trump has not spoken further on the strikes after delivering brief remarks earlier announcing that the operation was underway.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that Trump "monitored the situation overnight at Mar a Lago".

A little earlier, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) put out an urgent alert on its Farsi page on X, warning "all personnel" in an industrial zone in Iran's Isfahan region to "immediately evacuate".

A translation of the post says: "In a few minutes, the Israeli army will attack military infrastructures in this zone".

Residents of Mazraeh, a village in the province, were told to stay inside their homes until the morning, and to avoid approaching the industrial zone after the attack.

Isfahan is home to important nuclear and military-industrial facilities.

Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu
US reporter

Image source, Getty Images

• Israel and the US carried out airstrikes on Iran in the early hours of Saturday morning. Several key locations have been targeted including the compound of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
• Over 200 people have been killed in Iran, according to the Iranian Red Crescent

• Iran has retaliated with airstrikes of its own targeting Israeli cities and several neighbouring countries where US forces are stationed. Several airlines have halted flights to the region
• Iranian airstrikes have been reported in Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Iraq, and more
• At least four people were injured in an incident at a luxury hotel in Dubai and a civilian was killed by falling debris in Abu Dhabi after a strike "involving Iranian ballistic missiles"
• In an overnight address to the nation, Trump confirmed "major combat operations" and said the US launched strikes to eliminate Iran's missile programme and its navy

• Trump called on the Iranian people to "take over your government" adding that "the hour of your freedom is at hand"
• World leaders have raised serious concerns about the outbreak of conflict and called for a return to diplomatic efforts. The UN Security Council is set to hold an emergency meeting in the coming hours
• In the US, Democrats, along with some Republicans, have called for the Trump administration to seek congressional approval to launch these kinds of attacks

Attack on Iran on entirely different scalepublished at 18:03 GMT

18:03 GMT

Sarah Smith
North America editor

Image source, Getty Images

This attack on Iran was launched by the same Donald Trump who promised American voters “no new foreign wars” and railed against previous American attempts at regime change – in Iraq and Afghanistan.

President Trump’s appetite for foreign military intervention has increased since his bombing campaign against Iran last year and the capture of Venezuela’s president last month. No Americans were killed in either of those limited actions.

The attack on Iran is on an entirely different scale. And he is warning of the likelihood of American casualties as a result of this operation, even if the plan seems to be to remove the regime in Tehran without putting American boots on the ground.

Many of his own supporters may feel that this is not what they voted for.

American presidents usually rely on vote in Congress to give them the authority to launch this kind of military offensive. Donald Trump did not consult them.

And the president did not use a more traditional television address to the nation to explain why he felt the need to take action. Instead, he used a short video posted on social media at 02:30 in the morning to inform the American people that he had launched a massive attack against Iran.

Image source, ISNA/WANA/Reuters

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says approximately 200 fighter jets completed "the largest ever military flyover in the history of the Israeli Air Force" earlier today.

Writing on the messaging app Telegram, the IDF says the jets "completed an extensive attack against the missile array and the defense systems of the Iranian terror regime in western and central Iran".

Jets dropped "hundreds of munitions targeting approximately 500 objectives", it adds. It claims to have "severely degraded the offensive capabilities of the Iranian regime".

"The IAF continues to operate in Iran," it adds.

• In the last hour we've seen reports of fresh explosions in Tehran

Ghoncheh Habibiazad
Senior reporter, BBC Persian

Iranian Red Crescent spokesperson Mojtaba Khaledi says that so far 201 have been killed in today's attacks on the country, Iranian outlets reported.

Khaledi says that 747 have been injured, adding that 24 provinces out of Iran's 31 have been hit.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei says he's "not in a position to confirm" whether members of Iran's senior leadership targeted by the US and Israel are unharmed.

Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told NBC News that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is “alive” as far as he is aware but Iran “may have lost one or two commanders”.

Following reports that Khamenei's offices and residences were targeted, BBC News chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet presses Baghaei to confirm or deny the reports.

"I can tell you that many places, many targets were hit across the country," Baghaei says, claiming more than 150 girls were killed and maimed.

• Iran's state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) earlier reported that dozens of people had been killed in a strike on a girls' school in the country's Hormozgan province

Put to him that it was understood the school was near an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps base, he replies: "That's simply a way of normalising atrocity and atrocious crime."

Other Arab countries have also reportedly been struck by Iran. Baghaei says the US had used those countries to launch aggressive strikes against Iran, adding "we value our friends".

"We are not attacking any country in the region, we have no problem with our Arab neighbours. The only thing we are doing is to conduct an act of self-defence on those [US] bases," he says.