Here's the latest
• New leader: Iran’s Assembly of Experts is close to picking the country’s next supreme leader, reported state media. Israel’s military has vowed to target the successor.
• Onslaught against Iran: Israel launched a fresh wave of attacks on Iran, after it said it was targeting Tehran’s energy resources. A CNN team in Tehran reported blackened rainwater fell this morning after fuel storage sites were hit.
• Gulf attacks continue: Meanwhile, countries across the Persian Gulf reported aerial attacks and interceptions. In Bahrain, three people were injured while Kuwait said a government building and fuel depot were struck.
• Trump dismisses threats: US President Donald Trump brushed aside threats from Iran’s top security official, saying “I couldn’t care less.” He had signaled that attacks on Iran will intensify this weekend. There have been conflicting statements from top Iranian officials. Read CNN’s analysis on Tehran’s messaging.
Fuel supplies in Tehran disrupted after intense strikes
Fuel distribution in Tehran has been disrupted after intense overnight strikes on storage tanks, according to the governor of the Iranian capital.
Mohammad Sadegh Motamedian said “the problem is being resolved,” according to state news agency IRNA.
There was no shortage of fuel, Motamedian said, but complete restoration of the network might take some time. He appealed to people to “manage their fuel consumption.”
Iranian state media said that fuel and oil storage tanks in three areas of Tehran were hit by Israeli-American missiles on Saturday night.
One official was quoted by the Fars news agency as saying that several fuel storage tanks at the Tehran oil depot were struck but claims that the refinery itself was hit were incorrect.
Fars said that it was currently impossible to fully extinguish the fire.
At another fuel storage facility in Shahran, the fire was being managed, with fire fighters “extinguishing flames that appear in water channels and along the streets,” Fars said.
“The fire has not been fully extinguished yet, but the situation is being managed, and it is expected that as the amount of fuel decreases, the blaze will be extinguished in the coming days,” Fars reported.
"It feels like we're suffocating," Tehran resident says after fresh strikes
A Tehran resident told CNN Sunday the city feels apocalyptic after fresh Israeli attacks targeted Iran’s oil storage sites and saw a huge fireball erupt in the Iranian capital.
“The city is dark, the sky is black,” they told CNN.
“I saw the explosion last night light up the sky it was unlike anything I’d ever seen before. It looked like the end of times, or the way I’d imagine hell,” they added.
“The fire was close to our house, I think it’s sheer luck that we’re ok right now.”
Our team on the ground earlier reported the city awoke this morning to a sky overcast with thick black clouds and blackened rainwater following the Israeli strikes.
The Israeli military said it struck fuel sites in Tehran on Saturday evening that distribute fuel “to various consumers, including military entities in Iran.”
Bahrain says water supplies unaffected by desalination strike
Bahraini authorities have told CNN that water supplies have not been disrupted by an Iranian strike that damaged a desalination plant Sunday.
Across the Gulf, water desalination plants are critical infrastructure, providing between 60% and 90% of drinking water by desalination of seawater. Bahrain relies on this for the vast majority of its municipal supply.
Gulf nations report fresh strikes on Sunday morning
Countries across the Persian Gulf reported a new wave of drone and missile strikes on Sunday morning.
The Kuwaiti Army said that a “wave of hostile drones” targeted fuel storage at the Kuwait International Airport on Sunday local time, and that shrapnel and debris from interceptions had damaged some civilian infrastructure. The armed forces also intercepted a number of ballistic missiles, state media reported.
Kuwait’s Public Institution for Social Security building was hit in a drone strike, according to state-run media. Footage geolocated by CNN showed the roughly 22-story building in flames in the early hours. State media said there were no injuries.
Two Kuwaiti border security personnel were killed on Sunday morning “while performing their national duty,” state media reported, without giving other details. It’s not clear if the incident was related to the strikes at the airport and government building.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defense has also said it endured drone attacks, intercepting at least 21 drones in the wee hours of Sunday morning.
Across the King Fahd Causeway in Bahrain, the Interior Ministry said three people were wounded and a university building was damaged by falling “missile fragments.” A water desalination plant was also damaged, it said. But in statement to CNN the Electricity and Water Authority said the attack had no impact on water supplies or water network capacity.
Air defenses in the UAE were “currently responding to a missile threat,” the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority wrote in a post on X early Sunday.
The various drone and missile attacks come after Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian apologized to Gulf nations on Saturday for the many drone and missile attacks of the past week on US bases in the region, saying Iran would stop striking its neighbors unless it came under attack.
Pezeshkian’s office later clarified that he meant “if regional countries do not cooperate in America’s attack on us, we will not attack them.”
This post has been updated with additional information.
Israel military vows to go after Khamenei's successor
Israel’s military will target the successor of slain Iranian ruler Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and those involved in selecting the leader, it warned on Sunday. Iranian state media had reported that Tehran is close to choosing its next supreme leader.
“After the elimination of the tyrant Khamenei, the Iranian terrorist regime is attempting to regroup and choose a new Supreme Leader,” the Israel Defense Forces wrote.
“I want to emphasize that the long arm of the State of Israel will continue to pursue the successor and anyone who tries to appoint him,” it added.
The IDF warned those taking part in the session in choosing the successor.
“We will not hesitate to target you as well. Consider yourselves warned,” it said.
Pakistani national killed by missile debris in Dubai
A Pakistani national was killed in Dubai’s Al Barsha neighborhood after debris from a missile intercepted by air defenses fell into the neighborhood, Pakistan’s embassy in the United Arab Emirates said Sunday.
“In this hour of grief, we share in the family’s pain and offer our most sincere prayers,” the embassy said.
The latest death adds to a growing toll on civilians across the Gulf as the conflict between Iran, Israel and the US widens. Many of those reported killed in recent days have been South Asian nationals.
Laborers from South Asian countries are a pillar of the Gulf’s prosperity, working in construction, services and other essential sectors. Yet they are also among its most exposed residents, often employed in low-wage jobs and living in conditions that can leave them vulnerable when violence spills beyond its intended targets.
The International Labor Organization estimates there are more than 24 million migrant workers in the Arab states.
Iran close to choosing next supreme leader, says state media
Iran’s Assembly of Experts has more or less decided on the country’s next supreme leader after its longtime ruler Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a US-Israeli strike.
“A decisive and overwhelming opinion - which represents the majority view - has been formed,” assembly member Ayatollah Mohammad Mehdi Mirbagheri said in a video published by Iranian state-affiliated Fars News Agency.
However, no name was announced. Mirbagheri said that “in these difficult circumstances, there are obstacles” and “this work must be carried out carefully so that it is not subject to dispute.”
Khamenei, who ruled with an iron fist for nearly four decades, was killed without an officially declared heir, leaving the choice of his successor to the country’s clerical regime.
The next supreme leader will be selected by the Assembly of Experts, an elected body of 88 senior clerics.
Iranian official says Trump is "burning America's interests"
A prominent Iranian official has accused President Donald Trump of “burning America’s interests” and warned that global oil supplies risk being irrevocably damaged.
“If the war continues like this, there’ll be neither a way to sell oil nor the capacity to produce it,” Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, wrote on X.
Iran's infrastructure is under attack in a fresh wave of strikes. Here's what we know
Israel has launched a fresh wave of attacks on infrastructure across Iran, its military said early Sunday.
Catch up on the headlines:
Oil storage sites targeted: Israel has begun striking oil storage sites in Iran as part of the next phase of the war, an Israeli source said. CNN’s team in Tehran reported that blackened rainwater fell after fuel storage sites were hit. The Israel Defense Forces also said it hit an unspecified number of Iran’s F-14 fighter jets.
Gulf states repel attacks: Countries across the Persian Gulf reported a new wave of drone and missile strikes. In Kuwait, a government building was hit, as well as fuel depots at its international airport. The UAE said air defenses were “currently responding to a missile threat.”
Israel’s main airport resumes flights: Around 2,000 travelers are set to depart on 40 scheduled flights from Ben Gurion, in the first outbound flights from the airport since the war began.
Trump dismisses threats: US President Donald Trump brushed aside threats from Iran’s top security official, saying “I couldn’t care less.” Iran’s Ali Larijani had vowed to retaliate against the president, saying Iran “will not let Trump go,” and that he “must pay the price.”
Foreign leaders respond: Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani warned in a call with Trump that the ongoing escalation in the war could have “dangerous repercussions” for the world. China’s foreign minister Wang Yi reiterated Beijing’s call for an immediate ceasefire and warned of the “spread of the flames of war.”
Israeli says it struck fighter jets in Isfahan, resident recalls "horrifying" night
Strikes by Israel’s Air Force hit an unspecified number of Iran’s F-14 fighter jets at the Isfahan airport on Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces said, as a local witness recalled a night of heavy bombardment across the city.
“Around 40 to 50 locations were targeted. It was really horrifying,” an Isfahan resident, who requested anonymity, told CNN.
The man said a range of facilities and infrastructure were struck, calling it as a “hell of an operation.”
The IDF said its Air Force also targeted Iran’s detection and air defense systems.
It will “continue to target all systems of the Iranian terror regime across Iran and will expand its aerial superiority,” the Israeli military said.
The latest round of strikes came a day after the Israeli military took out 16 aircraft belonging to the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps at the Mehrabad Airport in Tehran, according to the IDF.
Historic city: Located in central Iran, Isfahan is one of the country’s most beautiful cities, packed with historical architecture, particularly from the Safavid era. It was also repeatedly struck during Israel’s 12-day war with Iran last summer, which the US eventually joined.
Blackened rain falls on Tehran, reports CNN's Fred Pleitgen
Tehran’s nearly 10 million people have woken to a morning overcast by thick black clouds after Israeli strikes hit Iran’s oil storage sites, CNN’s Fred Pleitgen reports from the capital.
“You can see that the rain, the rainwater is actually black – also saturated, it appears, with oil,” Pleitgen reported.
“So that’s what’s coming down this morning, this sort of oil-filled rain that we have right now on the Iranian capital, after the strikes took place.”
The Israeli military said it struck fuel sites in Tehran on Saturday evening that distribute fuel “to various consumers, including military entities in Iran.”
Video from Reuters also showed flames and smoke rising from the Shahran oil refinery in Tehran.
“This is a significant strike that constitutes an additional step in deepening the damage to the military infrastructure of the Iranian terrorist regime,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.
CNN is able to report in Iran only with the Iranian government’s permission.
Americans express concerns about the war's impact on gas prices
Residents filling up yesterday at an Arco gas station in Atlanta’s upscale Buckhead neighborhood expressed concern about both the war with Iran and the impact it’s having on gas prices.
Tracy Scott, a schoolteacher who said she also drives Uber to make ends meet, said she feels the Trump administration made the decision to go to war without considering the impact it may have on lower- and middle-class people.
Tamira Moncur, an Atlanta resident who is a part-time teacher and Lyft driver, called the spike in gas prices “startling.” She told CNN that a coworker had warned her earlier in the week to fill up before prices climbed further.
A man who declined to provide his name said that, while he’s concerned about rising gas prices and inflation, he fully supports Trump’s decision to attack Iran, even if it means paying more at the pump. “We must support our troops,” he said.
How Iranians are working around the loss of internet access
Iran is experiencing a near total internet blackout — and has been for more than a week.
See how residents are creating communication networks among themselves to work around the connectivity issues:
In the midst of war, Iranians are still dealing with the internet blackout limiting their access to loved ones, information and critical news. CNN's Leila Gharagozlou spoke to Iranians who have created networks of communications among themselves in an effort to work around the blackout.
After Iran and Venezuela, North Korea's Kim Jong Un must decide how to handle Trump
Last weekend, North Korean state media condemned the United States and Israel for launching a “war of aggression” against Iran, but did not report the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with dozens of members of Iran’s top leadership.
That omission was not accidental. North Korea’s political system is built around the near-mythic authority and invulnerability of its leader. Publicly broadcasting the violent removal of another supreme leader would introduce a dangerous precedent. It would remind North Korean citizens that even the most powerful figure in a tightly controlled state can be tracked, targeted and eliminated. That is not a narrative Pyongyang has any incentive to circulate at home.
Indeed, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may be asking himself if the time has come to pick up the phone and call US President Donald Trump. As the US and Israel press on with their military campaign that plunged the Middle East into crisis, Kim and his small circle of party and military officials who oversee national security are undoubtedly analyzing every aspect of the US military operation. And they are certainly taking note of Trump’s ability to pivot quickly from diplomacy to force.
Trump is expected back in Asia later this month for a summit with China’s Xi Jinping. While there is no word of any plans for a meeting with Kim while in the region, Chad O’Carroll, founder and CEO of Korea Risk Group, a research group that closely tracks North Korea and publisher of NK News, says he would not rule it out.
China warns "flames of war" spreading, calls on US to help manage differences
China’s top diplomat cast his country as a defender of peace and stability as war in Iran rages, while striking a conciliatory tone towards the United States ahead of a highly anticipated summit between the two nation’s leaders.
“This was a war that should never have happened, and a war that benefited no one,” Wang Yi, China’s foreign minister, said at a Sunday news briefing on the sidelines of the annual assembly of China’s rubber-stamp legislature.
Wang, touting China as “the world’s most important force of peace, stability and justice,” reiterated Beijing’s call for an immediate ceasefire to “prevent the situation from escalating and avoid the spillover and spread of the flames of war.”
“All parties should return to the negotiating table as soon as possible and resolve their differences through equal dialogue,” he added.
China’s growing concern about the war with Iran comes as its top leader Xi Jinping prepares to host US President Donald Trump in Beijing for crucial talks between the world’s two largest economies toward the end of this month.
Trump brushes aside Iranian official's threat: "I couldn't care less"
US President Donald Trump on Saturday brushed aside threats from Iran’s top security official, dismissing warnings that he could “pay the price” for the war in the Middle East.
In a phone interview with CBS News, Trump reacted to comments by Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, who has emerged as a prominent figure in Tehran since the February 28 killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The president said the military campaign would continue as he demands Iran’s “unconditional surrender,” portraying Iran’s leaders as weakened and diminished.
“He intended to take over the Middle East and he’s conceded and surrendered to all of those countries because of me,” Trump said in the CBS interview. “He’s already surrendered to all of the Middle Eastern countries because he was trying to take over the entire Middle East.”
Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, earlier appeared to soften Tehran’s posture, issuing remarks apologizing for Iranian strikes on Gulf states. But in a later “explanation,” his office vowed to continue striking US targets in the region.
Qatari emir warns war escalation will create "dangerous repercussions" in phone call with Trump
Qatar’s leader has warned in a call with US President Donald Trump that the ongoing escalation in the war between Iran and the United States and Israel could have “dangerous repercussions” for the world.
Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani held a phone call with Trump on Saturday, the country’s official Qatar News Agency reported.
“The call dealt with discussing the latest developments in light of the continued and unjustified Iranian attacks on Qatar and countries in the region, in addition to efforts made to contain the current escalation,” the readout said.
He also said his country will not hesitate to defend its sovereignty, security and national interest, the news agency reported, adding that both the US and Qatar concluded on “supporting political avenues that could address current tensions.”
CNN has reached out to the White House for comment.
For context: Qatar hosts the biggest US military installation in the Middle East and has faced a barrage of missiles from Iran as fighting escalated in the region. Earlier this week, Qatari planes shot down Iranian bombers minutes before they were about to strike the US military base, sources previously told CNN.
Iran’s president apologized on Saturday for strikes on other Gulf states, only to backtrack shortly after following criticism from other Iranian leaders. Aerial attacks have continued against Gulf countries that host US troops.
Qatar is a major investor in the US and the emir has long been close to Trump.
Last year Qatar gave Trump a Boeing 747 aircraft. The luxury jet is being converted into a new Air Force One by the US Air Force, expected to be delivered this summer.
Together with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Qatar pledged to invest around three trillion dollars in the US economy when Trump visited the region last year.
Amid airstrikes and anger, CNN reports on how a tense Lebanon has been dragged into war
CNN’s Matthew Chance reports from Beirut, where he and his team are navigating an increasingly unpredictable environment as Lebanon is dragged into the Iran war.
CNN’s Matthew Chance reports from Beirut where he and his team are navigating an increasingly unpredictable environment as Lebanon is dragged into the Iran war.
Iran’s mixed messages cloud next steps in war
Conflicting statements and scattered messaging from Iranian officials on Saturday underscored a possible divide within Tehran’s ruling establishment following the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Earlier on Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian issued remarks apologizing for Iranian strikes on Gulf states. He backtracked shortly after following criticism from other Iranian leaders. Countries in the Persian Gulf reported airstrikes and interceptions early Sunday morning.
Iran’s top security official Ali Larijani gave a televised address to the nation later on Saturday, calling for unity and denying leadership rifts. He also said US President Donald Trump must “pay the price” for war.
The shifting tones reflect deep-seated competing pressures inside Iran’s political system.
While hardliners seek revenge over the killing of Khamenei, pragmatists still hope diplomatic efforts can resolve the conflict, Alex Vatanka, director of the Iran Program at the Middle East Institute, told CNN.
“There have always been factions, rivalries and competition inside the Islamic Republic,” Vatanka said. “That’s true today as well.”
This comes as reports that Iran’s Assembly of Experts is set to choose their next supreme leader soon. But the rush to establish a new leader is not necessarily operational. “The Supreme Leader is more of a symbolic move to basically tell the regime base that nothing has changed fundamentally, that the Islamic Republic is still standing,” Vatanka said.
Iran has already established mechanisms to function without an immediate permanent successor. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which has effectively shaped strategic decisions for at least two decades, will ensure no immediate personnel vacuum halts operations. They will also play the decisive role in any successor selection and broader policy direction, Vatanka explains.
Vatanka said the choice of the new supreme leader is more about what the IRGC wants to show to the rest of the world and the Iranian public. “It won’t amount to much in practice, but at least they can pretend that they care about hearing people’s expressions of frustration,” he explained, referring to anti-government protests which broke out in Iran earlier this year.
Israel unleashes fresh strikes against Iran
Israel has launched a fresh wave of attacks on infrastructure across Iran, its military said early Sunday.
“The IDF has initiated a wave of strikes targeting the Iranian terror regime military infrastructure across Iran,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.
