Reactions and statements from the international community
On the first day of Farvardin 1405, Axios reported that Mojtaba Khamenei's absence during Nowruz has raised questions about his physical condition, whereabouts, and role in governing the Islamic Republic of Iran.
On Nowruz 1405, for the first time in four decades, Iran began the New Year without the presence or image of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, as the country faced ongoing bombardments, marking a unprecedented and turbulent start to the holiday.
The US military, under the command of Brad Cooper of CENTCOM, has struck over 8,000 targets in Iran since attacks began three weeks ago, including 130 Iranian vessels and an underground facility used to store anti-ship cruise missiles and other equipment threatening international shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
A video released by Iranian state media shows a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps whose hands and feet were amputated in an Israeli and American attack at a missile launcher base, watching the burial ceremony for his severed limbs.
An IRGC aerospace commander lost both hands and both feet in an airstrike on a launchpad in Iran. The previous month, IRGC forces were reported to have killed tens of thousands of Iranian civilians during the revolution.
On Saturday, the first of Farvardin in the year 1405 (March 21, 2026), the Israeli air force conducted an extensive offensive flight over Tehran, targeting dozens of sites related to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iran's security institutions, including missile production and storage facilities and a Ministry of Defense complex for missile fuel production.
Piers Morgan asked Masih Alinejad why Iranians aren’t protesting for regime change, to which she responded that it is not a moral question when people face guns and military force. Alinejad also questioned why the UK government attended a celebration at the Islamic Republic’s embassy after the reported massacre of over 32,000 people.
On Saturday, the first of Farvardin (March 21), 22 countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and several European nations, announced their participation in ensuring safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz and condemned Iran's closure of the strategic waterway. The countries cited Iranian attacks on civilian ships and infrastructure as justification for their actions, with the Strait remaining blocked since the start of the U.S. and Israel's war with Iran on February 28, 2025.
On Saturday, the Israeli army conducted airstrikes in Tehran, targeting dozens of sites affiliated with the Iranian regime, including the IRGC Central Complex for producing ballistic missile components, a storage site for missile components, a Ministry of Defense complex responsible for producing missile fuel, and a site for producing ballistic missile components. According to the Israeli military, these strikes significantly impair Iran's capability to produce ballistic missiles.
CENTCOM announced that the U.S. military has destroyed more than 8,000 military targets in Iran, including 130 Iranian ships and thousands of missiles and drones, with over 8,000 combat flights conducted and the longest field artillery strike in U.S. history carried out just two days prior.
The Israeli Air Force conducted a widespread attack in Tehran, targeting several ballistic missile production sites and storage facilities of the Revolutionary Guards and the Ministry of Defense. Among the sites attacked were a central complex for producing missile components, a storage site for missile parts, and a complex responsible for missile fuel production.
Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, announced that the United States has conducted more than 8,000 combat flights over Iran, achieving air superiority and significantly weakening Tehran's ability to threaten shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Cooper also stated that U.S. operations targeted 130 Iranian vessels and over 8,000 military targets in Iran, diminishing the Islamic Republic's missile and drone capabilities.
