Tehran (Diplomat.so) - The governments of United States and Israel carried out coordinated air and naval strikes across Iran early Saturday, targeting sites in and around central Tehran, according to Iranian state-affiliated media and multiple U.S. officials speaking on the record to international outlets.
Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency reported that seven missile impacts struck the Keshvar-Doust and Pasteur districts — a strategically sensitive zone that includes the presidential complex and the office of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
The Iranian Students' News Agency said smoke was observed rising from the Pasteur neighborhood shortly after dawn, underscoring the proximity of the strikes to Iran’s top leadership institutions.
A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Khamenei was not in the capital at the time and had been transferred to a secure location. Separately, Mehr News Agency confirmed that President Masoud Pezeshkian was "in good condition” and had not been harmed.
U.S. officials, cited by Reuters and CNN, said the operation focused on military infrastructure. The New York Times quoted an American official as stating that dozens of strikes were conducted using aircraft based in the Middle East, supported by at least one aircraft carrier in the region.
Israeli broadcaster Kan 12 reported the action as a joint U.S.-Israeli campaign targeting regime-linked and military sites.
Explosions were also reported in Isfahan and other cities. Iranian authorities have pledged a response, signaling a potential widening of hostilities.
For Diplomat News Network, regional analysts note that the scale and symbolic targeting mark a significant escalation beyond prior limited exchanges, raising the risk of a broader regional confrontation involving multiple state and proxy actors.
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