Your World Tonight - U.S. and Israel launch air attacks against Iran

Episode Date: February 28, 2026

The United States President announced a massive and ongoing military operation against Iran - unleashing a large air assault that hit hundreds of targets across the country. President Trump says the mission is aimed at toppling Iran's regime. And tonight, Trump took to social media - claiming that Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is dead. The attack prompted a broad response from Iran, which launched ballistic missiles not only at Israel - but at targets across the Middle East. We have extensive coverage of today's events - including reaction from around the world and in Canada.Plus: Ukraininan refugees worry about changing immigration laws in Canada, Canadian's rethinking trips to Mexico after recent violence, and more.

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This is a CBC podcast. Benjamin Netanyahu says there are signs that Iran's supreme leader is dead. U.S. President Donald Trump is being more definitive, posting that Ayatollah Ali Hamenei has been killed. The United States in Israel attacked Iran with a large air assault, hitting hundreds of targets across the country. A mission, Trump says, that's aimed at toppling Iran's regime. That attack prompted a broad response from. Iran, which launched ballistic missiles not only at Israel, but at targets across the Middle East.

This is your world tonight. I'm Kate McGilfrey, also on the podcast. Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada stands behind the U.S. actions in Iran and urges Canadians there to shelter in place. And... Let us act responsibly and together to pull the region and our world back from the brink. The United Nations chief issues a dire warning. saying that anything other than immediate de-escalation could lead to a wider conflict

and upend international peace and security. Donald Trump says Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Hamenei is dead. The U.S. President announced his death on social media saying Hamenei was killed in a massive joint air attack by the U.S. and Israel. It had hundreds of targets across the country. Those attacks aimed at overthrowing Iran's regime. Katie Nicholson brings us the day's events. from Washington.

As jets thundered up into the air from U.S. carriers and missiles arced in the morning sky over Iran, hitting hundreds of targets below. To the great proud people of Iran, I say tonight that the hour of your freedom is at hand. U.S. President Donald Trump posted this eight-minute video on social media, pushing for regime change in Iran. When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. And made a frank admission of what the opposite. a historically mammoth U.S. buildup in the Middle East could cost.

The lives of courageous American heroes may be lost and we may have casualties that often happens in war. But the U.S. Constitution says declaring war is up to Congress. Trump's decision to attack without seeking congressional approval infuriated Democrats. Right now I have zero confidence in this president who has so flagrantly violated our Constitution. Democratic Senator Andy Kim sits on the Homeland Security Committee. That is why we should have Congress immediately go back into session for the war powers vote to reassert the American people's will, which again, they don't want to be at war. The administration is planning briefings for members of

the House and Senate, where Democrats will probe Trump's justification for the assault on the heels of a previous attack on three Iranian nuclear facilities in June. Seth Moulton sits on the House-armed Services Committee. That's very hard to look at what's going on in Iran right now. Where Trump clearly lied about obliterating their nuclear weapons program just months ago and clearly has no plan

for what comes next and not see Iraq war written all over this. But most Republicans in Congress are standing by Trump. I think the president made the right choice. Representative Merlin Stutzman says if it comes to a vote, he's all in for the military operation.

This regime has been a troublemaker for 40-some years, and this is also about keeping America safe. And yet, in the wake of the attack, the FBI's counterterrorism and intelligence teams are on high alert. The State Department has warned U.S. nationals around the world to exercise a high degree of caution, all in fear that Iran, a state sponsor of terrorism and its proxies, may retaliate. The U.S. President kept a low profile at his Mar-a-Lago residents, but in the late afternoon posted on truth social, saying that the strikes had killed Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini,

who he called one of the most evil people in history, and pledged to continue bombing the country, quote, uninterrupted throughout the week, or as long as necessary to achieve our objective of peace throughout the Middle East and indeed the world. Katie Nicholson, CBC News, Washington. For more on today's news from the Middle East, We'll go now to Crystal Gumansing in Jerusalem.

Crystal, Donald Trump says Iran's Supreme Leader is dead. But we did hear a slightly different message from Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier today. So what did he say? Yeah, Kate, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stopped short of saying the Supreme Leader was dead. He made a statement in Hebrew and he said there are many signs that this tyrant is no longer.

Now, what we can say for sure is that Israel and the U.S. launched stripes this week. morning on the compound of the Supreme Leader Ayatollah al-Hamenei. Now, the initial attack by Israel in the U.S. was launched in the morning in daylight because officials wanted to strike when they knew that the regime's leadership was going to be gathering. Israeli media, the Reuters News Agency, and some American outlets are reporting based on comments from a senior Israeli official that Haminae was killed. But there has been no official confirmation from Israel, despite there have been two official media briefings tonight.

Now, the IDF did say seven top Iranian commanders were killed, including the Minister of Defense, Aziz Nazer Zeda, as well as Ali Shamhani, that is the advisor to the Supreme Leader. According to Iran State Media, the head of public relations in the Supreme Leader's office says claims of Hamini being dead are mental warfare. Okay. Those joint attacks from the U.S. and Israel did prompt a big response from Tehran today. What did they target?

Yeah, Iran sent a barrage of missiles and drones towards Israel. At last count, local estimates was more than 150 missiles and drones. Nearly all were intercepted before they made their way into Israeli territory. Central Israel has been heavily targeted, including Tel Aviv. Late tonight, there was a direct hit. several high rises were destroyed with multiple fires burning. Several people were injured. First responders say one woman has succumbed to her injuries.

Here in Jerusalem, there have been several air raids throughout the day, and there have been multiple explosions from interceptions, but not as many in Tel Aviv. Iran says the U.S. and Israel attacked it, because it has killed more than 200 civilians. that includes 80 children that were killed when there was a strike on a girl school in southern Iran. There were also strikes in Gulf nations. Iran has said that Israel and U.S. bases are legitimate targets, and we saw strikes and fires in Bahrain and Dubai.

In the UAE, Jordan and Qatar, there were launches with interceptors. They shot down incoming missiles and drones from Iran. In fact, we heard from the Ministry of Defense from the UAE tonight. It said that 137 missiles were detected. 132 were destroyed. Five fell in the sea. And 209 drones were detected. 195 intercepted.

That's Crystal Gumancing in Jerusalem. Thank you so much, Crystal. You're welcome. In the first day of this conflict, the U.S. and Israel are targeting weapons facilities and Iran's leadership. more on the strategy behind those strikes, we've brought in the CBC's David Common, who's been keeping track of that part of the story. David, what areas of Iran have been hit so far? So we are talking about multiple areas, really across the country. We've seen in Tehran,

the capital, in Western Iran as well. What is the motive here for the Americans in the opening hours of this campaign? Number one, they've made clear this is about regime change, and so they are trying to kill senior leadership. That might explain why this was launched in daylight hours, very unusual for a military campaign to do so, particularly involving the Americans. They may have had intelligence about where, for instance, the Supreme Leader Khomeini was and decided to strike at that moment. Second motivation here is to really take out the command and control, the ability of the senior political and military leadership to maintain control over what's going on and communicate and say, you know, hit back. You're trying to degrade that ability so that people can't talk to one another. And thirdly, degrade their ability to respond.

So taking out missile sites, taking out areas that you know they may have mobile missile launchers, taking out airfields from which they launch drones, kill their ability for a wider response. And that includes a naval response because the Strait of Hormuz, this critical area through which so much of the world is not just oil, but commercial shipping passes through. There's a choke point in the Strait of Hormuz. And the Iranians have repeatedly practiced shutting it down. They've made some attempts to do so over the course of the day. The Americans are trying to prevent them from doing that by striking, for instance, their vessels.

But Iran's ability to defend itself has not been completely wiped out here. What are its capabilities? No question it's been degraded, but also no question it continues to have an ability. We've seen a lot thrown out of Iran today at multiple targets. At least five other countries have had some sort of interaction with them. And they include everything from ballistic missiles to drones. even the suggestion of hypersonic missiles, those are very fast travelers, very hard, therefore, to intercept and to shoot down. It may well be in the interest to the Iranians at this point

to not try to conserve any of the munitions they have, but to throw everything they have before it is destroyed on the ground to inflict as much damage as they can on those they see as their adversaries. Okay, and this is an air campaign right now. There are no American or Israeli boots on the ground. What does that tell us about where this conflict could be going? So a few things. Number one, it is very hard to do regime change simply doing it from the air. And so that is why you hear the president, Trump, as well as the Israeli prime minister, saying, Iranians, this is on you.

Now, it's a very tall order for a regime to go up against a regime that has proven, including in recent weeks, that it is there to suppress and repress its people and will do so violently and with lethal force. There is no indication that the Americans are going to put boots on the ground. To do so would require a multi-month build-up of 100, 200,000 soldiers in the region. They haven't done anything like that. But they do have a very large build-up of air power, naval power that's in that region. And so this is likely to be a sustained campaign.

At some point, the Iranians' ability to respond to it will become much more degraded. And if they can't take on the Americans and the Israelis at the same game, then they will go for other. options. It's going to be very hard. This is a regime that has prepared for a moment like this, essentially for its entire existence and has shown that it will, with lethal force, repress and suppress its own people. That's host and CBC senior correspondent David Common, joining me in studio in Toronto. Still ahead, we have international reaction to the attacks on Iran, and the war in Ukraine is hitting its fourth anniversary. As newly arrived, Ukrainians in Canada, fear new immigration rules could force them to leave. That is coming up on your world tonight.

The attacks against Iran have drawn calls for de-escalation from across the globe. While many U.S. allies urged Iran to stop retaliating and abandon its nuclear weapons program, the United Nations is directing all sides to immediately end hostilities. Philip Lyshanak reports. We are witnessing a grave threat to international peace and security. United Nations, Secretary General. General Antonio Gutierrez addresses an emergency meeting of the Security Council, held at the request of several countries, including Russia and China,

who call the U.S. strikes an unprovoked act of aggression. Gutierrez worries that the U.S. and Israel have ignited a chain of events that no one can control in the most volatile region of the world. Let us act responsibly and together to pull the region and our world back from the bring. The U.N. says the attack, not only risks a wide, regional conflict, it's against international law to use force to threaten the territorial integrity or political independence of any state. Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, urged the U.S. to exercise restraint, respect international law and resume talks with Iran.

It is civilians who end up paying the ultimate price. Bombs and missiles are not the way to resolve differences. Among allies of the U.S. and Israel positions are more delicate. British Prime Minister Kier Starmor put the blame on Iran. Iran can end this now. They should refrain from further strikes and cease the appalling violence against the Iranian people. In a joint statement, Germany, France and the United Kingdom condemned Iran for its nuclear program and repression of its own people.

French President Emmanuel Macron called on a return to diplomatic efforts to avoid destabilizing the region. The Assad regime in Syria has. fallen and that was the only state ally that Iran had in the region. Tomaz, you know, is a professor of public and international affairs at the University of Ottawa. He says that Iran is isolated and desperate and is attacking its neighbors in the Gulf region. Its neighbors who are for now pretty much siding with the U.S. because they really resent being targeted. Saugen Gohel is International Security Director at the Asia Pacific Foundation. He says what's happening is unprecedented,

and unpredictable. This is effectively now a fight to the death for the Iranian regime. They have now nothing left to lose. So for them, they are going to throw everything at the U.S., at their neighbors, even at their own people. While the U.N. considers a resolution to de-escalate the situation, people in Iran may bear the brunt of the chaos unleashed. Philip Lyshenock, CBC News, Toronto.

Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada is close. closely following the situation in the Middle East and said today that Canada supports the U.S. efforts to end Iran's nuclear program. Carney made those comments from Mumbai. He's in India right now for his first visit as Prime Minister. But the news out of Iran meant he had to quickly shift focus. J.P. Tasker reports. It is a serious conflict.

In a serious conflict, you have to make choices. In India, to build new trade ties, air strikes in nearby Iran, forced Prime Minister Mark Carney to pivot. and he responded to the American attacks with an endorsement. Canada supports the United States acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent its regime from further threatening international peace and security. Asked by a local journalist if that means Canada will play a military role in the conflict, Carney said that's not on the table.

We have not been party to the military buildup to this or the military planning of this, so it is not envisioned that we would be part of it moving forward. While leaders from France, Germany and the U.K. called for a negotiated solution after the attack and didn't state explicit support for the American military maneuvers, Carney called for a hard line. The Islamic Republic of Iran is the principal source of instability and terror throughout the Middle East. As the benefactor behind Hamas in Gaza,

the Houthis in Yemen and violent militias in Iraq, Carney said the Iranian regime must be dealt with decisively. That was a very strong statement by the Canadian Prime Minister. Very, very strong statement. Janice Stein from the Monk School of Global Affairs, said Carney is going further than he might have just a few months ago. I suspect because of that extraordinary episode of killing that the Iranian regime engaged in against his own people.

She says Iran's recent crackdown on air. anti-government protesters may have been a motivating factor. According to one estimate, more than 36,000 people have died in the last six weeks alone, as the regime tries to snuff out the opposition. It's about establishing stability in the region, the will of the Iranian people being respected. While supporting the strikes on Iran, Carney urged the countries involved to think of the civilians. There are at least 3,000 Canadians in the country, according to government figures. The Prime Minister said they should shelter in place.

Now is not the time to leave. J.P. Tasker, CBC News, Mumbai. Thousands turned up at rallies across Canada today celebrating news of the attack and the possible death of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Hamenei. I hear about that the dictator of Hamerai, they kill him, and I'm thankful for Trump. They do it. This is the first time as Iranians, we feel like our future is going to be brighter than ever. optimistic about future and I'm sure this is the end of the dictatorship in Iran.

My country is going to be free soon, hopefully. Thanks to President Trump. My family, they're in Iran and they can feel the relief. He's a dictator. He's the killer. Thanks God. He's dead. He's dead. He's dead.

This past week saw a different conflict cross the four-year mark. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022. Since then, roughly 300,000 Ukrainians have found refuge in Canada, but some of them are now worried that changes to immigration rules might force them out of the country. Helena Mihalik explains. Olegandra Stupak is trying to create happier memories

for her six-year-old daughter, Carolina, who has already seen more violence than most children ever will. In Ukraine, war, it's very terrible, and it's terrible. for children. Stupak and her daughter fled Ukraine two years ago, but her husband is still there, working the front lines as a guard. For her, it's very hard because two years she don't met her father. Stupac says she's built a life in Saskatchewan, but worries about how long she can stay. Recent changes to the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program have reduced the number of people who will be granted permanent residency or be able to stay on a work permit.

Stupak says she's struggling to get permanent residency and is running out of options. Now I will be work with immigration lawyer. It's very expensive, but I have only one chance. Cutbacks across Canada are making it difficult for Ukrainians who want to stay. In BC, the provincial nominee program now has 5,254 yearly spots, down from 8,000 spots in 2020. In Alberta, changes have been made to the rural renewal stream. Some communities now have strict caps on the number of endorsement letters they can issue. An eligibility has been removed for lower skilled workers. Those who represent Ukrainians say the changes are concerning.

That's the mindset of Danilo Puderac, executive director of the Ukrainian Congress of Canada's Saskatchewan branch. And it's becoming very frustrating, very scary for those displaced Ukrainians. they're scrambling to extend their work permits. The federal government tells CBC news that no Ukrainians will be kicked out of the country and forced back to a war zone. It also says more opportunities have been created to help Ukrainians extend their stay in Canada.

But that the demand for these programs are too high. Alexandra Stupak says her daughter loves life in Saskatoon and hopes working with an immigration lawyer means they can stay. All people have a permanent resident and they live in stress because we don't know what to be tomorrow. Stupak hopes her husband can join them in Canada soon, so their family of three can be reunited after more than two years apart. Helena Maholic, CBC News, Saskatoon. Last week's violence in Mexico has calmed down.

But even so, as we enter the busy March break travel season, many Canadian travelers are rethinking. their vacation plans. Jenna Benchitrit has more on that. I'm just sort of waiting to see in the next couple days what might come of this, but I am concerned. Days after the death of cartel leader El Mancho triggered violence across the country. Canadians like Sydney Red Mile are feeling uneasy about their upcoming trips to Mexico. Red Mile and her 18-year-old daughter were set to travel from B.C. to Cancun, where the situation has largely been stable.

But the single mom worries that could change fast. I'm 50-50. I'm on the fence about canceling because I am going with my youngest daughter and her safety is utmost importance to me. Air Canada and Westjet have resumed flights to Puerto Vallarta in the country's Halisco region after a shelter-in-place order was lifted. But Global Affairs Canada is still warning travelers about the potential for violence across Mexico. And for those who'd rather not risk the trip down south, canceling could be costly. Mackenzie McMillan is a managing partner at the travel group. For people that are traveling next week or the week after, can cancel your trip, but you're on the hook for any non-refundable costs.

So just wait and see is a frustrating piece of advice, I think, but it's the only advice that they can really offer at the moment. The exception is for people who've purchased cancellation insurance. But even that might not get them very far. That's according to Will McAleer of the Travel Health Insurance Association of Canada. He says that only a cancel for any reason insurance policy will offer full coverage. If he bought standard cancellation insurance before the violence broke out, there could be some coverage, but not just because you want to change your mind about, let's say, going down to the Cancun.

If she cancels, Red Mile will get a travel credit thanks to her insurance policy. She was hoping for a full refund. Jenna Bentitra, CBC News, Toronto. Venice, Italy is a city that has a city that has. has been increasingly bought up by outside money. Luxury hotel chains are buying up historic palazzo's and even whole islands in the city's lagoon. But there is one tenacious exception, locals banding together to bid on and now run an island that was once up for sale. As Megan Williams reports, it's become a quiet test of who gets to decide Venice's future.

It's early on a Sunday winter morning on the Venetian island of Judenka. As we head off in a boat, community organizer Patrizia Veclani recalls how, while reading a local paper at a cafe here in 2014, she and friends learned to their shock that a small nearby island they often rode to was up for sale. We spotted a tiny announcement in the paper that said Povilia, the island that you see in the distance with the bell tower, was being auctioned off, she says.

Similar auctions in recent years had led to live. luxury hotels snapping up small lagoon islands, virtually shutting them off to locals. So she and friends formed a group to raise money to take part in the auction, a way to say to the local administration, you can't keep selling off our islands without consulting the public. They were hoping to raise about 30,000 Canadian dollars. Instead, 700,000 poured in. What began as a symbolic gesture turned into a citizen's movement to keep Povina. for Venetians. Twelve years later, dozens of volunteers

clipped back thorny bramble and drive shovels into the ground to plant trees. Last summer, the citizen group finally won their bid to protect the island, turning part of it into a natural park. Venice Elementary Schoolteacher and Volunteer Michaela Ungeri says the island offers a green respite in a city of stone and water.

I love this place. I find it very beautiful to have a place to care in Venice. Among the volunteers are engineers, urban planners and qualified European tree technicians, like Luca Mamprin, who have helped shape the park's long-term plan. We need to manage the tree risk. The first step is to create a map. Electrical engineer Fabio Boscolo points to three or four islands, where he used to play as a kid, now privatized.

In that direction, there is a Rose Island. It was an hospital for breathed problem. Now a luxury hotel. For Bosco, Povilia isn't just about childhood memories. It's about preserving wild space, he says. There are many things you can do, but just also staying here, feeling the atmosphere, stay with people in the completely natural place where you can really enjoy what Venice,

nature. Still, the space is fragile. In six years, the island could once again be put up for auction. But this small island is for now something rare. A piece of Venice still held in common. Megan Williams, CBC News, Venice. And as we end our show, a look back at our top story. The massive air assault on Iran carried out by the United States and Israel. President Donald Trump is promising to devastate the country's military. wipe out its nuclear program and enable a change in its government, saying that heavy bombing will continue as long as is necessary. As for Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khomeini,

Trump says he's been killed. Israeli military officials say that top members of the Iranian military are dead, and state media in Iran say more than 200 people were killed. Iran retaliated broadly to these attacks, firing waves of ballistic missiles at Israel. It also attacked several Gulf countries, including Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. The federal government is advising Canadians to avoid all travel to a number of countries in the Middle East for their own safety. You can follow the latest updates on this developing story on the CBC News homepage. This has been your world tonight for Saturday, February 28th.

I'm Kate McGilfrey. Good night. For more CBC podcasts, go to cBC.ca. Podcasts.