Israeli airstrikes targeted a high-level meeting of Iran's Assembly of Experts in the city of Qom on Tuesday, striking the building where top mullahs gathered to count votes for a new supreme leader following the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The Israeli Air Force hit the assembly's headquarters overnight, flattening the structure amid the ongoing conflict with Tehran.

Iran's semi-official Mehr News Agency described the targeted building as an old facility no longer used for meetings, and no deaths or injuries were immediately reported from the Qom strike. A senior Israeli official stated the military struck precisely "while they were counting the votes for the appointment of the supreme leader." Separate attacks hit a leadership complex in central Tehran, including the presidential bureau and headquarters of Iran's Supreme National Security Council.

The raid occurred as Iran operated under a temporary three-man council comprising President Masoud Pezeshkian, Judiciary Chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, and Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, pending selection of Khamenei's successor by the 88-member clerical body. Potential candidates included former parliament speakers Ali Larijani and Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf.

This marked day three of coordinated US-Israeli operations codenamed Roaring Lion by Israel and Epic Fury by the United States, launched February 28 to dismantle Iran's nuclear program, missile capabilities, and leadership. Initial strikes killed Khamenei at his Tehran compound, along with family members, former Supreme National Security Council head Ali Shamkhani, Armed Forces Chief Abdolrahim Mousavi, and at least 47 other senior figures. Over 1,000 Iranian combatants have died, with civilian tolls reaching 787 according to Iran's Red Crescent Society.

Iran retaliated with Operation True Promise IV, firing missiles and drones at Israeli cities, US bases in the Gulf, and allies including Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain. Attacks damaged Dubai's airport, hit the US embassy in Riyadh, and targeted oil facilities like Saudi Aramco's Ras Tanura refinery. Six US service members and 12 Israelis have been killed, with hundreds injured regionally.

US President Donald Trump warned the campaign could last weeks, stating Iranian air defenses and leadership had been decimated while rejecting negotiations. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu echoed that the war would not drag on for years. The US closed embassies in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia and urged citizens to leave 14 countries.

Strikes have also expanded to Hezbollah targets in Beirut and southern Lebanon, where Israel seized areas amid rocket fire. Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, spiking global energy prices, while allies like Qatar and Saudi Arabia conducted limited counterstrikes.

The international community expressed alarm, with the UN warning of instability and the EU calling for restraint. Iranian diaspora groups celebrated potential regime change, but protests erupted worldwide.