As the sun rose on a chilly winter morning in Iran, the country's supreme leader was going about his daily activities inside his compound.
The Ayatollah had largely avoided the public eye since June 2025, when Iran last came under attack by Israel and the United States, but he was still very much in charge, ruling the nation with an iron fist.
That is ultimately what made him a prime target for Israel and the US when the time came to launch a military operation inside Iran.
After weeks of American military build-up in the Middle East and tense negotiations over a possible nuclear deal, the planners of Saturday's attack knew that if they hoped to decapitate Iran's leadership, it had to be done in the first strike.
It was presumed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was off grid, reportedly moving from one secret, underground hideaway to another.
But it turned out he was hiding in plain sight.
Real-time intelligence and tracking systems monitored his whereabouts, US President Donald Trump wrote in a Truth Social post, and located him in his residence.
Those same systems also discovered Iran's highest military and intelligence officials were gathering at the country's National Security Council offices for a high-level meeting on Saturday morning, according to US officials cited by The Times.
It meant that at 9:45am, local time, the US and Israeli intelligence services knew exactly where Iran's major players were and, with the element of surprise on their side, the two nations struck, enacting a plan that had been weeks in the making.
"This morning, in a powerful surprise strike, the compound of the tyrant Ali Khamenei was destroyed in the heart of Tehran … and there are many signs that this tyrant is no longer alive," Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised statement after the mission.
Khamenei was the Middle East's longest-serving head of state and had faced assassination attempts before.
In June 1981, when he was serving as Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's personal representative on the Supreme Defence Council, a bomb hidden in a tape recorder placed in front of Khamenei exploded.
He survived, but his right arm was permanently paralysed from his brush with death.
This time Khamenei wasn't so lucky. It took just 12 hours for Mr Trump to confirm he had been killed in the wave of strikes unleashed on Iran, alongside the minister of defence, the head of the armed forces and the head of the powerful Revolutionary Guards.
No matter what happens next, the death of Iran's leader will fundamentally reshape the Middle East.
This is how the attack unfolded.
Military build-up
For weeks, there had been clear signs the US was preparing an attack on Iran following major protests breaking out on December 28.
The demonstrations in major cities, including Tehran, over soaring prices prompted a nationwide internet shutdown across the country that lasted for more than two weeks.
As reports emerged of thousands of Iranians being killed in the protests, Mr Trump announced help was "on its way" on January 13.
Shortly afterwards, the ABC began to track a steady flow of military assets moving into Europe and the Middle East.
Mr Trump's so-called armada included carrier strike groups, dozens of refuelling tankers, strategic bombers and additional air defence systems, along with thousands of troops from all branches placed on heightened alert.
"By the time operations began, only essential forces remained on our bases and in theatre, already capable to respond," Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman General Dan Caine said.
As this build-up was happening, Iran and the US began indirect nuclear negotiations in Geneva, mediated by Oman, with the aim of reaching a new deal to curb Tehran's nuclear programme.
Throughout February, both sides met for three rounds of talks, with the third concluding on February 26.
A mediator claimed after the last meeting that there had been "significant progress", but senior US officials told Reuters that Iran had not been willing to give up its ability to enrich uranium.
Just one day later, Mr Trump gave the final go-ahead to his defence secretary for the military operation inside Iran.
"The president directed, and I quote: 'Operation Epic Fury is approved. No aborts. Good luck.'" General Caine said.
What followed next was a brazen daylight attack on February 28 that resulted in the death of key Iranian leadership figures.
Attack centred on 'an intelligence effort'
Well after dawn broke in Iran, the skies surged to life.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed Israel had launched a "pre-emptive attack against Iran to remove threats against the state of Israel" not long after the first strikes hit around 10:00am (5:30pm AEDT).
In a video posted on Truth Social, Mr Trump announced that "major combat operations" were underway and urged Iranians to "take over your government" when they were finished.
"It will be yours to take. This will probably be your only chance for generations," he said in an address on Saturday.
Dubbed Operation Epic Fury in the US and Operation Roaring Lion in Israel, the calculated attacks sought to destroy the Iranian high command and batter Iran's air defences, defence officials told The New York Times.
"More than 100 aircraft launched from land, sea fighters, tankers, airborne early warning electronic attack bombers from the states and unmanned platforms, forming a single synchronised wave," General Caine said.
The operation was "highly classified" to ensure "speed, surprise, and violence of action", he said.
"The attack was based on an operational plan developed over several months, centred on an intelligence effort … to identify an operational opportunity at the moment when senior regime officials would convene," an Israeli official told The Times.
"Three sites where gatherings of the Iranian terror regime were taking place were struck simultaneously, and several senior figures essential to the management of the campaign and the regime's governance were eliminated."
The other target was Iran's defence systems.
General Caine said the US Joint Force delivered "synchronised and layered effects designed to disrupt, degrade, deny and destroy Iran's ability to conduct and sustain combat operations on the US side".
"This marked the culmination of months, and in some cases years, of deliberate planning and refinement against this particular target set," he said.
"From precision strikes against key military infrastructure to persistent intelligence and targeting integration, to the close coordination of the components across vast distances."
Cyber operations
As part of the focus in the initial phase, General Caine said the US conducted "coordinated space and cyber operations".
"[This] effectively disrupted communications and sensor networks across the area of responsibility," he said.
"Leaving the adversary without the ability to see, coordinate, or respond effectively.
"The combined impact of these strikes, swift, precise, and overwhelming, has resulted in the establishment of local air superiority."
That "air superiority" left Iran exposed to air strikes.
Waves of strikes include B-2 bombers and drones
Over the next 12 hours, Israel's military said, some 200 fighter jets completed the largest flying mission in its history, hitting 500 targets throughout Iran.
They were joined by the US military, which carried out hundreds of strikes from land, sea and air.
The first wave of attacks included the Tomahawk Land Attack Missile, a long-range cruise missile typically launched from sea to attack targets in deep-strike missions. The shooters conducted strikes across the southern flank in Iran, according to General Caine.
"This was a massive, overwhelming attack across all domains of warfare, striking more than 1,000 targets in the first 24 hours," he said.
Just like in Operation Midnight Hammer last year, B-2 stealth bombers were also deployed, flying a 37-hour round trip from the US to strike at hardened, underground Iranian missile facilities across the southern flank with bombs weighing 907 kilograms.
And, for the first time, one-way attack drones modelled after Iran's Shahed drones were used, the Pentagon said.
"Over the course of the last two days, the Joint Force has launched hundreds of missions from land and sea and delivered tens of thousands of pieces of ordnance. The effort continues to scale," General Caine said.
"Additionally, Israel has separately executed hundreds of sorties against hundreds of targets beyond Air Force and Navy aircraft strike packages."
On social media, Mr Trump said the US had destroyed nine Iranian naval ships and "largely destroyed their Naval Headquarters".
Retaliation
Iran was quick to retaliate, launching hundreds of drones and high-speed ballistic missiles to defend itself.
Its targets included Israel, US bases and the Middle Eastern countries where they are located.
[data wrapper map Iran targets]Three people were reported killed in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), while nine people were killed and about 50 wounded when a missile hit a bomb shelter in the Israeli town of Beit Shemesh.
In response to the attacks, Gulf states — including the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait — have vowed to defend themselves, including by "responding to the aggression" if need be.
Iran has also declared the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping route closed and its proxy, militia group Hezbollah, entered the war on Sunday, claiming responsibility for projectiles fired from the state.
[map]The Israel Defense Forces responded by saying it was striking Hezbollah targets across Lebanon in retaliation.
What happens next?
It's unclear how long the war will last but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Sunday that its attacks would "escalate in the days ahead".
Mr Trump has said that the US-Israeli operation in Iran could be a "four-week process".
"We're already substantially ahead of our time projections," he said on Monday.
"Right from the beginning we projected four to five weeks, but we have capability to go far longer than that."
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