Key dates
- 28 February 2026 — the war begins with joint US (Operation Epic Fury) and Israeli (Operation Roaring Lion) strikes; Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is reported killed.
- 9 March 2026 — Mojtaba Khamenei is named Iran's new Supreme Leader (Iranian state media).
- April 2026 — a first ceasefire pauses the heaviest fighting; it collapses in early June.
- 10–11 June 2026 — Iran strikes US bases across the Gulf and declares the Strait of Hormuz fully closed.
- 14–17 June 2026 — the 14-point Islamabad Memorandum is signed (digitally on 14 June; hard copy at Versailles on 17 June); the 19 June Geneva ceremony is cancelled.
Not to be confused with the 2025 Twelve-Day War (13–24 June 2025), a separate Israel–Iran conflict in which the US Operation Midnight Hammer struck Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan on 22 June 2025. This page covers the distinct 2026 Iran war, which began on 28 February 2026.
When did the 2026 Iran war start?
The 2026 Iran war began on 28 February 2026, when the United States (Operation Epic Fury) and Israel (Operation Roaring Lion) launched coordinated airstrikes on Iran's nuclear, military and leadership targets and Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was reported killed. It is a distinct conflict from the 2025 Twelve-Day War. The full dated chronology — through the Strait of Hormuz closure, the attacks on US bases, and the June ceasefire memorandum — follows below.
How many people have died?
Casualty totals are contested and attributed by source and date in the table below. For the deal that paused the fighting, see the US–Iran peace deal.
| Country / party | Reported killed | Reported wounded | Source (as of) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iran | ≈3,500–7,600 killed (incl. ~1,700 civilians) | ≈26,500 | Iran Ministry of Health; HRANA (3,636 killed as of 7 Apr 2026) |
| Lebanon | ≈3,756+ killed | ≈11,632+ | Lebanese Ministry of Health (as of 13 Jun 2026) |
| Israel | ≈26–28 killed | thousands | Israeli authorities (mid-Jun 2026) |
| Iraq | ≈119+ killed | ≈370 | Iraqi officials (as of the Apr 2026 ceasefire) |
| Gulf states | ≈28–48 killed | — | National authorities, UAE/Kuwait/Bahrain/Saudi (2026) |
| United States | 13 killed | ≈373–381 | US Central Command (Operation Epic Fury, as of ~May 2026) |
Full timeline of the 2026 Iran war
- 13–24 Jun 2025 — 2025 Twelve-Day War (distinct conflict): Israel and the US strike Iran; US Operation Midnight Hammer hits Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan on 22 June 2025. A ceasefire ends that round.
- 28 Feb 2026 — War begins. The US (Operation Epic Fury) and Israel (Operation Roaring Lion) launch coordinated airstrikes on Iran's nuclear, military and leadership targets. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is reported killed. Iran terminates IAEA monitoring access the same day.
- Late Feb–Mar 2026 — Iran retaliates against Israel and US-aligned Gulf states and moves to block the Strait of Hormuz, spiking global oil prices.
- 3–8 Mar 2026 — Iran's Assembly of Experts meets to choose a successor amid IRGC pressure.
- 9 Mar 2026 — Mojtaba Khamenei announced as Iran's new Supreme Leader, per Iranian state media.
- 21 Mar 2026 — US bunker-buster strikes hit Natanz; Fordow and Isfahan are also struck during the opening campaign.
- Apr 2026 — A ceasefire pauses the heaviest fighting after roughly two months of strikes. By the April pause, US Central Command reports 13 US service members killed.
- 7 Jun 2026 — Iran fires multiple ballistic-missile barrages at Israel, shattering the truce.
- 8 Jun 2026 — Israel strikes targets across Iran, including Isfahan, Kermanshah, Tabriz and an Ahvaz petrochemical plant.
- 9–10 Jun 2026 — US forces strike Iranian air-defense, radar and communications sites, citing the downing of a US Army helicopter and stalled talks.
- 10–11 Jun 2026 — Iran's IRGC attacks US bases across the Gulf — Al Udeid (Qatar), Ali Al Salem (Kuwait), Al Dhafra (UAE) and the US Fifth Fleet HQ in Bahrain — and declares the Strait of Hormuz fully closed.
- 12 Jun 2026 — After mediation led by Pakistan (PM Shehbaz Sharif), with Qatar and Oman, the US and Iran reach a final agreed text for a 14-point ceasefire memorandum.
- 13–14 Jun 2026 — Trump publicly warns that Israeli strikes could threaten the deal after an Israeli strike south of Beirut; the MOU is digitally signed by both sides on 14 June.
- 15 Jun 2026 — VP JD Vance announces that the US and Iran have digitally signed the memorandum; details of the 14 points begin to emerge.
- 17 Jun 2026 — The US releases the 14-point text. Trump signs a hard copy over dinner at the Palace of Versailles; Iran's foreign ministry (spox Esmail Baghaei) confirms the electronic signing and says no Geneva ceremony will be held. A 60-day negotiating window for a final deal opens.
- 19 Jun 2026 — Date originally set for a formal Geneva signing ceremony — cancelled after the electronic signing; negotiating teams may still meet in Switzerland to begin final-deal talks.
Follow the whole Iran war & peace deal
This page is part of our Iran-war coverage cluster. Explore the connected analyses:
Frequently asked questions
When did the 2026 Iran war start?
It began on 28 February 2026 with coordinated US (Operation Epic Fury) and Israeli (Operation Roaring Lion) airstrikes on Iran's nuclear, military and leadership targets, in which Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was reported killed. It is distinct from the 2025 Twelve-Day War.
When did the Iran war ceasefire happen?
After an April 2026 ceasefire collapsed in early June, the US and Iran reached a final text on 12 June and digitally signed the 14-point Islamabad Memorandum on 14 June 2026. Trump signed a hard copy on 17 June, opening a 60-day window for a final deal.
How long has the 2026 Iran war lasted?
Measured from the first strikes on 28 February 2026 to the June ceasefire memorandum, the active war lasted roughly three and a half months, including an April truce that broke down before the June deal.
Is the 2026 Iran war the same as the 2025 Twelve-Day War?
No. The 2025 Twelve-Day War (13–24 June 2025), which included the US Operation Midnight Hammer against Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan, is a separate earlier conflict. The 2026 Iran war began on 28 February 2026.
Sources & further reading
Primary reporting and analysis used to build this page. Treat all wartime figures as contested estimates and verify against the original source before reuse.
- Wikipedia — 2026 Iran war
- Wikipedia — Casualties of the 2026 Iran war
- Al Jazeera — US–Israel attacks on Iran: death toll and injuries live tracker
- Military Times — 13 US troops killed in Operation Epic Fury
- CSIS — The United States and Iran Announce a Deal to End the War
- CNN — US releases official agreement with Iran: read the 14-point text
- NBC News — Text of the Iran–US memorandum of understanding
- CBS News — Read the 14 points of the agreement between Iran and the U.S.