For now, links to FIFTEEN-plus reports and analyses (so far about 30): from the Associated Press, the Electronic Intifada, ScheerPost, Middle East Eye, the Cradle, National Public Radio, and Indian Punchline; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials as highlighted. (Scroll down for IRAN 2-28-26, which includes link to Saturday evening discussion from Consortium News.) — MCM

–   –   –

NEWER  Iran’s ‘potential new leadership’ open to U.S. talks, Trump is ‘eventually’ willing, AP source says. Edited by Bridget Brown, Lorian Belanger, Ricardo Benassi and Hrvoje Hranjski | AP  A senior White House official says that “new potential leadership” in Iran has suggested they are open to talks with the United States after U.S. and Israeli forces launched a major attack on Iran, killing its supreme leader and other high-ranking officials. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

An enormous crime against Iran, by Ali Abunimah | The Electronic Intifada / ScheerPost  By early today, Iran announced that the United States and Israel had killed Khamenei as well as several members of his family. They join hundreds of Iranians already slain in the American-Israeli war, including scores of schoolgirls massacred at an elementary school in Minab, southern Iran. READ MORE . . . (This link includes video of a discussion in which Jeremy Scahill and Ryan Grim of Drop Site News are joined by Iranian-American commentator Hooman Majd.)

–   –   –

Iran kills nine Israelis and three U.S. soldiers as Pezeshkian vows revenge. From Middle East Eye. The U.S. said three of its soldiers had been killed as a result of its invasion of Iran. In Israel, six people have been confirmed dead following an Iranian strike on a city west of Jerusalem, Beit Shemesh. READ MORE . . . (This item links to other reports, including photos, frequently added by Middle East Eye.) Click HERE for report from the Cradle.

–   –   –

Israeli strikes rock Tehran as Iran’s counterattacks widen after the killing of its supreme leader, by Jon Gambrell,  Melanie Lidman, Josh Boak and Eric Tucker | AP  DUBAI — Israel and Iran traded strikes today as part of a widening war after the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a surprise U.S. and Israeli bombardment a day earlier. Blasts in Tehran sent a huge plume of smoke into the sky in an area where there are government buildings. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.   AP’s “live updates” are HERE.

FROM FEB. 28  Iranian state media confirms death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Edited by Curtis Yemen, Frank Griffiths, Luena Rodríguez-Feo Vileira, David Bryan, Brian P.D. Hannon and Lorian Belanger | AP  Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a major attack by Israel and the United States, Iranian state media confirmed early today, throwing the future of the Islamic Republic into doubt and raising the risk of regional instability. Click HERE for report including photos.

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 28  President Trump says Iran’s Supreme Leader is dead. What happens now? Mary Louise Kelly, Daniel Estrin and Greg Myre of NPR talk about the military strikes the United States and Israel launched against Iran. Click HERE to listen and, later read, and HERE for links to five other NPR reports on Saturday’s “All Things Considered.”

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 28  U.S. and Israel clash with Iran at emergency Security Council meeting. UN chief condemns attacks, by Edith M. Lederer and Farnoush Amiri | AP  UNITED NATIONS — The United States and Israel clashed with Iran at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Saturday where the UN chief and many countries urged a halt to their attacks and a return to negotiations to prevent the conflict from spreading further. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others. Click HERE for video of  the Saturday emergency session of the U.N. Security Council, via Consortium News.

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 28  Iran launches Operation True Promise 4, targets U.S. bases across Persian Gulf. From the Cradle. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced the start of Operation True Promise 4, targeting Israel and U.S. bases in the Persian Gulf region Friday, following a wave of unprovoked strikes across the Islamic Republic. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 28  Iran establishes Temporary Leadership Council to govern following supreme leader’s assassination. From the Cradle The unprovoked U.S.-Israeli war against Iran launched on 28 February had “been planned for months, and the ⁠launch date ⁠decided ⁠weeks ago,” even as the US and Iran carried out indirect nuclear negotiations, an Israeli defense official told Reuters. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

With Khamenei’s killing, U.S.-Iran relations have crossed a threshold. What next? by Elijah J Magnier | Middle East Eye  The assassination of Ali Hosseini Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, marks a shift from pressure tactics to deep structural destabilisation. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 28 [Completed before missiles started flying and bombs began dropping on Friday night]  The folly of India’s dalliance with Israel stands exposed, by M.K. Bhadrakumar | Indian Punchline  Any longtime observer of the U.S.-Iran hostility would know that appearances can be deceptive diplomacy. Over time, one gets to read the tea leaves with reasonable success with the help of intuitive cognition that gets sharpened out of experience. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

TO BE CONTINUED

NOTE: Scott Ritter joined The World This Week at Consortium News to discuss with CN editor-in chief Joe Lauria military, political and historical aspects of the U.S. and Israel’s war of aggression to overthrow the Iranian government.”  Ritter is a former U.S. Marine Corps intelligence officer, former United Nations Special Commission weapons inspector, author, and commentator. Click HERE for video.

–   –   –

Links to FORTEEN-plus reports: from the Jerusalem Post, Haaretz, Al Jazeera, the Associated Press, National Public Radio, Common Dreams, Middle East Eye, the Cradle, and Agence France-Presse, and to an article of commentary from Middle East Eye; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials as highlighted. NOTE: The NPR link links to eleven other reports from the service. L’Orient Today / L’Orient-Le Jour is another source of ongoing coverage in English and French. Le Devoir and Le Journal de Montréal carry mostly ongoing coverage from AFP. (Scroll down for IRAN 2-27-26.) — MCM

–   –   –

NEWER  Ali Khamenei assassinated in Iran, Israeli officials told. From the Jerusalem Post. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was assassinated in an Israeli strike on Tehran, with his body found under the rubble caused by an Israeli airstrike, senior Israeli officials were informed on Saturday evening. READ MORE . . . Click HERE and HERE for report from Haaretz and Al Jazeera.

–   –   –

Iran launches heavy retaliation after Israel, U.S. attack. From the Jerusalem Post. Sirens sounded across central Israel on Saturday during an Iranian missile attack on the country, launched in response to the joint Israeli, US preemptive strike earlier that morning. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

U.S. and Israel launch a major attack on Iran and Trump urges Iranians to ‘take over your government,’ by Jon Gambrell, Konstantin Toropin, Josh Boak and Aamer Madhani | AP  DUBAI — The U.S. and Israel launched a major attack on Iran today, and President Donald Trump called on the Iranian public to “seize control of your destiny” by rising up against the Islamic leadership that has ruled the nation since 1979. Iran retaliated by firing missiles and drones toward Israel and U.S. military bases in the region. Click HERE for report including photos and video, and HERE for text of same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others. Click HERE for the first of twelve reports from NPR related to the war — links to several other reports are at NPR.

NOTE: AP’s “live updates” are HERE.

–   –   –

Iran demands emergency United Nations action amid ‘criminal aggression’ by Iran, Israel, by Jake Johnson | Common Dreams / ScheerPost  As U.S. and Israeli bombs fell on Tehran, the Iranian Foreign Ministry on Saturday vowed that the country would defend itself against “criminal aggression” and implored the United Nations Security Council to take emergency action. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

At least 85 killed, mostly girls, in strike on elementary school: Iranian judiciary. From Middle East Eye. TEHRAN — At least 85 people, almost all of them young girls, have been killed in an air strike on a primary school in southern Iran, the Iranian judiciary said. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from the Cradle. 

–   –   –

What to know about the strikes, by Brian Melley | AP   The U.S. and Israel attacked Iran today in what President Donald Trump said was a massive operation to destroy the country’s military capabilities and eliminate the threat of it creating a nuclear weapon. Iran’s Foreign Ministry said it would defend its homeland and its Revolutionary Guard said it launched counterattacks, firing . . . READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

‘I just hope for a miracle,‘ by correspondent in Tehran and Alex MacDonald | Middle East Eye  TEHRAN / LONDON — As attacks rained down on Tehran and cities across the country, Iran’s National Security Council urged the public to leave the capital and other major targets. Roads have been choked with vehicles trying to make their way out of Tehran, a city of 9.5 million people. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 27  Dozens of U.S. support aircraft spotted at Saudi Arabia’s Prince Sultan Air Base amid Iran war preparations. From the Cradle. Satellite imagery shows an increase in U.S. military support aircraft, including refueling tankers and surveillance planes, at a Saudi airbase, Reuters reported on Friday, amid Washington’s threats to launch a new war on Iran. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

Israel engaged in ‘decisive, unprecedented’ operation in Iran: army chief. From AFP. 

HEADLINE ONLY IN ENGLISH.

–   –   –

Israel says intercepted multiple ‘hostile aircraft’ from Iran. From AFP.

HEADLINE ONLY. Click HERE for AFP report in French, and HERE for headlines of others.

–   –   –

Trump-Netanyahu war aims to entrap Iranians into unconditional submission, by Hamid Dabashi | Middle East Eye  Today, as President Donald Trump announced that the United States had launched a major attack on Iran, the Israeli military declared that the joint US-Israeli attack had targeted “dozens of military targets” in Iran. READ MORE . . .

.

NOTE:  This is the only entry for this date. Visitors may scroll down for previous entries on GAZA, WEST BANK, LEBANON, SYRIA, UKRAINE, CUBA, VENEZUELA, MEDIA, 9/11 TRUTH and other subjects, and go directly to other websites for related news and commentary. // Some items below were posted this morning later than desired, and a bit at a time, owing to rather extreme computer weirdness.

For today, links to ELEVEN items: reports from the Associated Press, Middle East Eye, Agence France-Presse, and Reuters; a Thursday afternoon discussion from Redacted w/ Clayton Morris via Rumble*; reports from National Public Radio, and the Cradle; and commentary from Middle East Eye. For other published material (including just headlines), click on their names or initials as highlighted. (Scroll down for IRAN 2-26-26.) — MCM

–   –   –

U.S. advises embassy employees in Israel to leave now if they want, as risk of war hangs over Middle East, by Sam Mednick and Sam Metz | AP  TEL AVIV — The U.S. Embassy in Israel today told its staff that it could leave the country and urged anyone considering departure to do so immediately, as the threat of an American strike on Iran looms. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for a report from Middle East Eye.

–   –   –  

UN nuclear watchdog to hold ‘technical’ discussions on Iran’s programme. From AFP. The International Atomic Energy Agency today confirmed technical discussions to try to reach a deal between Iran and the U.S. will take place in Vienna next week, according to a confidential report. Click HERE and HERE for report in English and French, and HERE and HERE for later report from AFP in English and French. Click HERE soon for an even later report from Reuters (the presentation of which by Newsmax at one point included a video clip from President Trump’s remarks on Iran in State of the Union address and audio of applause at the Capitol).

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 26  High Alert! Americans will die for Israel’s evil war with Iran. From Redacted w/ Clayton Morris. He and Natali Morris talk with former CIA officer John Kiriakou and retired U.S. Army Col. Douglas Macgregor about what appears to be a U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran by early March. Click HERE for video.

–   –   –

As U.S. and Iran wrap latest round of nuclear talks, Trump weighs his options. Reported by Franco Ordoñez and A Martínez | NPR  President Trump weighs his military options in Iran as his administration continues negotiating over Tehran’s nuclear program. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.  Click HERE for Feb. 26 report from the Cradle.

–   –   –  

Tehran urges Washington to drop ‘excessive demands’ as USS Ford approaches Israel. From the Cradle. “Success in this path requires seriousness and realism from the other side and avoidance of any miscalculation and excessive demands,” Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said today in a call with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty as the U.S. military buildup in the region continued. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

Iran continues crackdown on anti-government protesters despite Trump’s threat. Reported by Durrie Bouscaren | NPR  President Trump set a red line for Iran not to execute protesters, but dozens are being sentenced to death. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

–   –   –

How U.S. allies are bracing for Trump’s potential military action against Iran. Michel Martin of NPR asks former Ambassador and Middle East Special Envoy Dennis Ross about how U.S. allies are bracing for the possibility of U.S. military action against Iran. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 26  What happens next with Iran? Reported by Mary Louise Kelly and Greg Myre | NPR  Indirect talks between the U.S. and Iran have wrapped, and a deal was not reached on Tehran’s nuclear program. NPR’s weekly national security podcast Sources & Methods explores what’s next. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

–   –   –

‘Trump logic,’ by Sean Mathews | Middle East Eye  The U.S. “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear programme in June, President Donald Trump boasted on Tuesday during his State of the Union address, just before adding that the Islamic Republic is now on the verge of starting it “all over again.” READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

* Fast-forward to about 20 minutes in for intro and discussion.

Links to THREE items: an interactive map from the Moscow Times, the Associated Press and a documentary from KLA.TV; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for UKRAINE 2-25-26, and up or down for today’s IRAN, CUBA and VENEZUELA so far.) — MCM

–   –   –  

Two killed in Ukrainian drone strikes on western Russia. From the Moscow Times. Ukrainian drone strikes killed two people and injured six others in the border regions of Belgorod, Kursk and Bryansk over the past 24 hours, local authorities said. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 24  An interactive map of the war in Ukraine over four years, by Will Jarrett, Susie Blann and Illia Novikov | AP   On Feb. 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, plunging the entire country into a conflict that began when Moscow illegally annexed Crimea in 2014. Click HERE for more of introduction, and for instructions to use map.

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 24  Is Ukraine a key state to a new world order? From KLA.TV. On the fourth anniversary of Ukraine war, there is an increased coverage of the conflict in mainstream media. This war has inflicted untold suffering, casualties, death, displacement, and destruction. The essential point, however, is still being ignored by compulsory-fee paid media — and that is who are the real masterminds, shadow players, financial profiteers, and perpetrators? Click HERE for video and transcript.

–   –   –

TO BE CONTINUED

Links to THREE reports: from the Associated Press and National Public Radio, and to an interview from KLA.TV; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for CUBA 2-25-26, and up or down for IRAN, UKRAINE and VENEZUELA.) — MCM

–   –   –

NEWER  What to know about boat shooting in Cuban waters that killed 4, by Dánica Coto | AP  SAN JOSÉ  — A speedboat carrying 10 people approached Cuba’s north shore and opened fire on Cuban soldiers when they confronted the vessel, according to the Caribbean island’s government. Troops returned fire, killing four people and wounding six others who were detained Wednesday after the encounter. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

Cuba says four killed in speedboat shooting were attempting to infiltrate the country, by Andrea Rodríguez, Dánica Coto and Mattew Lee | AP  HAVANA  — Cuba’s government said late Wednesday that the 10 passengers on a boat that opened fire on its soldiers were armed Cubans living in the U.S. who were trying to infiltrate the island and unleash terrorism. The announcement came hours after Cuba said . . . READ MORE . . .

Cuban government says 4 killed on boat were trying to infiltrate the country. Reported by Eyder Peralta and Michel Martin | NPR  Cuba’s government says the 10 people on a Florida-registered boat that opened fire on its soldiers were terrorists trying to infiltrate the island. The country says its forces killed four people. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 23  Venezuela, Greenland, Palestine, Iran: Geopolitical consolidation?An unnamed staffer  at KLA.TV talks with investigative researcher James Corbett of the Corbett Report about “which greater goal is being achieved” by Venezuelan President Nícolas Maduro’s arrest and U.S. economic warfare against Cuba, and what “agenda” may be behind U.S.-Israeli aggression against Iran and Palestine. Click HERE for video and transcript.

.

A link to an interview from KLA.TV; other published material is accessible by clicking on its letters below. (Scroll down for VENEZUELA 2-18-26.  Scroll up for IRAN, UKRAINE and CUBA.) — MCM

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 23  Venezuela, Greenland, Palestine, Iran: Geopolitical consolidation?An unnamed staffer  at KLA.TV talks with investigative researcher James Corbett of the Corbett Report about “which greater goal is being achieved” by Venezuelan President Nícolas Maduro’s arrest and U.S. economic warfare against Cuba, and what “agenda” may be behind U.S.-Israeli aggression against Iran and Palestine. Click HERE for video and transcript.

.

Links to THREE items: two reports from the Associated Press and BizTech Weekly and an article of commentary from Consortium News; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for MEDIA 2-23-26 and CUBA, IRAN and UKRAINE.) — MCM

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 24  Warner Bros gets a higher offer from Paramount in heated fight with Netflix, by Wyatte Grantham-Philips | AP  NEW YORK — Warner Bros. Discovery says Paramount has raised the price of its takeover offer to $31 per share. The offer by Skydance-owned Paramount had previously stood at $30 per share since December, when it launched its hostile bid to challenge a deal Warner had struck with Netflix for $27.75 per share. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.  Click HERE for report from BizTech Weekly.

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 24  To whom are our liars lying & what Is the point of their lies? by Patrick Lawrence | Special to Consortium News  Last Oct. 25 I was reading the New York Post, as one must to keep one’s head clear in our complicated world — as well as Foreign Affairs, house organ of the Council on Foreign Relations.

.

Links to TWO items: a report from the Associated Press and commentary from Jonathan-Cook-net; others are accessible by clicking on their highlighted addresses or initials below. (Scroll down for CUBA 2-23-26, and up or down for MEDIA, IRAN and UKRAINE.) — MCM

–   –   –

Rubio is set for talks in St. Kitts with Caribbean leaders unsettled by Trump policies, by Matthew Lee and Dánica Coto | AP  BASSETERRE, St. Kitts and Nevis — Secretary of State Marco Rubio is attending a summit of the Caribbean Community, or CARICOM — after President Donald Trump ordered a military operation in January to remove and arrest Venezuela’s then-leader, Nicolás Maduro, stepped up aggressive tactics to combat alleged drug smuggling and turned up pressure on Cuba. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 21  Rubio declared a return to brutal western colonialism — and Europe applauded, by Jonathan Cook | Jonathan-Cook.net  U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s speech at the Munich Security Conference this month was another troubling declaration of intent by the Trump administration. READ MORE . . .

.

Links to THREE items: two reports from the Associated Press and commentary from Consortium News; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for IRAN 2-24-26, and up or down for MEDIA, CUBA and UKRAINE.) — MCM

–   –   –

Iran pushes back against Trump ahead of Geneva talks in face of major U.S. military deployment, by Jon Gambrell | AP  DUBAI — Iran pushed back today against U.S. President Donald Trump’s pressure tactics ahead of critical talks in Geneva over Tehran’s nuclear program, alternating between calling his remarks “big lies” to saying negotiations may yield an agreement through “honorable diplomacy.” The United States has assembled its biggest deployment of aircraft and warships to the Middle East in decades as Iran struggles at home with growing dissent. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 24  Iranians worry over American military buildup as last-chance round of talks nears, by Jon Gambrell | AP  DUBAI— Iranians warily await the next round of talks with the U.S. in Geneva this week — negotiations that many see as a last chance for their ruling theocracy to strike a deal with U.S. President Donald Trump. READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

FROM FEB. 24  To whom are our liars lying & what Is the point of their lies? by Patrick Lawrence | Special to Consortium News  To make the case that those who purport to lead the Western post-democracies lie routinely about what they are doing and why they are doing it will not help you win friends and influence people. READ MORE . . .

.