NEW | Evening Update, March 8, 2026: Iran’s Assembly of Experts selected former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, as the next Supreme Leader on March 8. Mojtaba’s selection as the Supreme Leader represents a victory for hardline factions over more pragmatic figures within the regime. Mojtaba is a hardline cleric who will likely pursue similar domestic and foreign policies to those of his father. Mojtaba will face several immediate challenges, including trying to establish his legitimacy and attempting to unite and gain the support of various regime factions. Mojtaba’s connections to the IRGC and the Office of the Supreme Leader may mitigate some of these challenges.
The US-Israeli combined force continued to target Iranian ballistic missile infrastructure in order to degrade Iranian missile capabilities and ultimately destroy the Iranian ballistic missile program. The IDF has attacked over 400 targets, including ballistic missile launchers and weapons production sites, in western and central Iran over the past day. The IDF has destroyed around 75 percent of Iran’s missile launchers.
The combined force continued to target Iranian internal security institutions in Tehran City and western Iran. OSINT accounts reported combined force airstrikes targeting LEC headquarters in Borujerd, Lorestan Province, Kuhdasht, Lorestan Province, Eslamabad-e Gharb, Kermanshah Province, and Abdanan, Ilam Province.
Iran continued to attack regional countries on March 7 and 8. Iran launched eight missile barrages at Israel between 3:00 PM ET on March 7 and 3:00 PM ET on March 8. An Iranian drone damaged a desalination plant in Bahrain. The Saudi Civil Defense Authority reported on March 8 that an unspecified projectile fell on a residential area in Kharj, Saudi Arabia, killing two individuals and wounding 12 others. Saudi Arabia reportedly warned Iran on March 5 that it may retaliate against Iran if Iran continues to attack Saudi territory and critical energy facilities.
The IDF has continued to conduct airstrikes targeting Hezbollah across Lebanon to degrade Hezbollah’s ability to launch attacks targeting Israeli forces and positions in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. The IDF has conducted over 100 strikes in Lebanon in the past 24 hours and a total of 600 strikes using 820 munitions in Lebanon since the war began on February 28.Institute for the Study of War (@TheStudyofWar)NEW: Geolocated satellite imagery published on March 7 confirms that the IDF struck the Shahroud Missile Facility in Semnan Province, northeastern Iran. The IDF struck buildings at the Shahroud Missile Facility during the June 2025 Israel-Iran War that had previously housed planetary mixers, which are essential for producing ballistic missile solid fuel. Satellite imagery published by the Associated Press in September 2025 showed that Iran had started repairing damaged mixer buildings at Shahroud.
The combined force has reportedly targeted at least five internal security sites in and around Esfahan City, central Iran, since CTP-ISW’s last data cutoff at 3:00 PM ET on March 7. These sites include the Esfahan Province Law Enforcement Command (LEC) Headquarters, which oversees LEC units in Esfahan Province.
The IDF has continued to conduct airstrikes against Hezbollah to degrade Hezbollah’s ability to launch attacks against IDF forces and positions in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. The IDF stated on March 8 that it has struck more than 600 Hezbollah targets and killed more than 200 Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon since February 28.
Iran has continued to target regional countries and Israel since CTP-ISW’s last data cutoff at 3:00 PM ET on March 7. Iran conducted two separate drone attacks against Kuwait on March 7, targeting the Kuwaiti Social Security Building and fuel storage tanks at the Kuwait International Airport. Unspecified security sources told Reuters that unidentified actors conducted a drone attack targeting the United Nations building in Sulaymaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan.— https://x.com/TheStudyofWar/status/2030758571470885100
— Institute for the Study of War (@TheStudyofWar) Mar 9, 2026
The post NEW | Evening Update, March 8, 2026: Iran’s Assembly of Experts selected former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, as the next Supreme Leader on March 8. Mojtaba’s selection as the Supreme Leader represents a victory for hardline factions over more pragmatic figures within the regime. Mojtaba is a hardline cleric who will likely pursue similar domestic and foreign policies to those of his father. Mojtaba will face several immediate challenges, including trying to establish his legitimacy and attempting to unite and gain the support of various regime factions. Mojtaba’s connections to the IRGC and the Office of the Supreme Leader may mitigate some of these challenges. The US first appeared on October Surprise 2016 – octobersurprise2016.org.
The post NEW | Evening Update, March 8, 2026: Iran’s Assembly of Experts selected former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, as the next Supreme Leader on March 8. Mojtaba’s selection as the Supreme Leader represents a victory for hardline factions over more pragmatic figures within the regime. Mojtaba is a hardline cleric who will likely pursue similar domestic and foreign policies to those of his father. Mojtaba will face several immediate challenges, including trying to establish his legitimacy and attempting to unite and gain the support of various regime factions. Mojtaba’s connections to the IRGC and the Office of the Supreme Leader may mitigate some of these challenges. The US first appeared on The World Web Times – worldwebtimes.com.
