Dubai, 28 Feb

The United States and Israel launched an attack Saturday on Iran, with the first apparent strike happening near the offices of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iranian media reported strikes nationwide, and smoke could be seen rising from the capital.

President Donald Trump said in a video posted on social media that the US had begun “major combat operations in Iran.” He claimed Iran has continued to develop its nuclear program and plans to develop missiles to reach the US.

Bahrain says several sites attacked

Bahrain's state news agency says that several facilities were hit inside the kingdom as a result of “an aggression” from outside the country.

The agency called the attack “a flagrant violation of the kingdom's sovereignty and security," and said authorities in Bahrain are implementing “emergency measures.”

“The kingdom of Bahrain strongly condemns this treacherous aggression that forms a direct threat to the kingdom and its citizens,” it said.

In Qatar, warning alerts went off on mobile phones, urging people to take shelter.

Sirens and blasts reported in Kuwait

Witnesses heard sirens and explosions in Kuwait, home to US Army Central. There was no immediate word on any damage.

Strikes in Iran by Israel and the US suggest “shaping actions” designed to degrade air defences in a pattern typical of a wider military campaign, a Dutch intelligence firm said.

“The broader pattern suggests preparatory shaping actions,” said Eric Schouten, CEO of Dyami security intelligence firm in the Netherlands. “This appears less like a symbolic strike and more like the opening phase of a coordinated campaign designed to establish air superiority and operational freedom of movement.

“Neutralising radar systems, surface-to-air missile batteries, and command nodes would create more permissive conditions for sustained air operations over Iranian territory.”

Streets in Israel are empty as sirens wail

In Israel, the public was instructed to stay close to shelters. Streets were mostly empty as a series of sirens continued to sound for most of Saturday morning. Israel's main news programs shifted their broadcasts to bomb shelters as well.

Associated Press journalists in Damascus and in the city of Sidon in southern Lebanon heard sounds of explosions Saturday, apparently as a result of Israeli air defences intercepting Iranian missiles.

US embassies or consulates in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Israel posted on social media that they told staffers to shelter in place and recommended all Americans “do the same until further notice.”

Iranian state television aired footage of heavily damaged buildings in Tehran, with rescuers digging through the rubble, looking for survivors.

Trump was dissatisfied with the Iran talks

Trump on Friday began to voice a degree of frustration and impatience over the lack of satisfactory progress in negotiations to stop Iran's ability to develop nuclear weapons, after having stayed relatively cryptic on his plans earlier in the week.

“I'm not happy with the fact that they're not willing to give us what we have to have,” Trump told reporters as he left the White House on Friday for Texas. “They cannot have nuclear weapons.”

The president also said before the attack that there was a risk of a prolonged conflict with Iran.

But he declined to telegraph his intentions when asked about a possible strike, saying to reporters: “I'd rather not tell you.”