{"id":59248,"date":"2026-02-28T04:38:26","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T08:38:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/us-and-israel-launch-major-combat-operations-against-iran-global-markets-brace-for-escalation\/59248\/"},"modified":"2026-02-28T04:38:26","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T08:38:26","slug":"us-and-israel-launch-major-combat-operations-against-iran-global-markets-brace-for-escalation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/us-and-israel-launch-major-combat-operations-against-iran-global-markets-brace-for-escalation\/59248\/","title":{"rendered":"US and Israel Launch &#8220;Major Combat Operations&#8221; Against Iran; Global Markets Brace for Escalation"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>US and Israel launch coordinated &quot;Operation Roaring Lion&quot; and &quot;Operation Shield of Judah,&quot;<\/strong> targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, military headquarters, and government installations across multiple cities.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Major General Amir Hatami, Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Army, has reportedly been killed<\/strong> in the strikes, marking a significant decapitation of Iran&#39;s military leadership.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Iran has retaliated with a first wave of approximately 30 ballistic missiles<\/strong> launched toward Israel, triggering nationwide sirens and forcing citizens into bomb shelters.<\/li>\n<li><strong>President Donald Trump announced &quot;major combat operations&quot;<\/strong> intended to &quot;totally obliterate&quot; Iran\u2019s missile industry and navy, while calling on the Iranian people to overthrow their government.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Global energy markets are on high alert<\/strong> as airstrikes target naval bases in Bandar Abbas, raising the immediate risk of a closure of the <strong>Strait of Hormuz<\/strong>, a chokepoint for 31% of global seaborne crude.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The United States and Israel have initiated a massive, coordinated military campaign against the Islamic Republic of Iran, codenamed <strong>Operation Roaring Lion<\/strong> and <strong>Operation Shield of Judah<\/strong>. Explosions were reported early Saturday morning across <strong>Tehran, Qom, Isfahan, and Bandar Abbas<\/strong>, targeting what officials describe as &quot;imminent threats&quot; to regional security and the American homeland.<\/p>\n<p><strong>President Donald Trump<\/strong> confirmed the involvement of U.S. forces in a video statement, declaring that the military has begun &quot;major combat operations&quot; to dismantle Iran\u2019s nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Trump warned that &quot;bombs will be dropping everywhere&quot; for several days and urged the Iranian people to seize the opportunity to &quot;take over your government.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>In a major blow to the Iranian military hierarchy, reports have emerged confirming the death of <strong>Major General Amir Hatami<\/strong>, the Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Army. While Iranian state media has claimed President Masoud Pezeshkian is in &quot;full health,&quot; the strikes reportedly hit the homes of several senior ministers and military chiefs, as well as installations near the offices of <strong>Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Iran\u2019s state television announced immediate retaliation, with the <strong>Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)<\/strong> launching a first wave of roughly <strong>30 ballistic missiles<\/strong> toward Israeli population centers. Sirens sounded across Tel Aviv and northern Israel, and early reports indicate smoke rising from buildings in the Tel Aviv area as the <strong>Israel Defense Forces (IDF)<\/strong> activated the &quot;Arrow&quot; and &quot;David\u2019s Sling&quot; interceptor systems.<\/p>\n<p>The escalation has sent shockwaves through the energy sector (#OOTT), with airstrikes in <strong>Bandar Abbas<\/strong> specifically targeting Iranian naval assets to preempt any attempt to mine the <strong>Strait of Hormuz<\/strong>. The U.S. has already begun a partial evacuation of the <strong>Al Udeid Air Base<\/strong> in Qatar (<a href=\"\/stock\/QAT\">QAT<\/a>) as a precautionary measure against further Iranian missile strikes on American regional assets.<\/p>\n<p>Defense contractors saw immediate attention in <a href=\"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/movers\/premarket\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Premarket Movers\">pre-market<\/a> sentiment, with investors eyeing <strong>Lockheed Martin (<a href=\"\/stock\/LMT\">LMT<\/a>)<\/strong>, <strong>RTX Corporation (<a href=\"\/stock\/RTX\">RTX<\/a>)<\/strong>, and <strong>Northrop Grumman (<a href=\"\/stock\/NOC\">NOC<\/a>)<\/strong> as the U.S. prepares for a multi-day campaign. Meanwhile, the <strong>United States Oil Fund (<a href=\"\/stock\/USO\">USO<\/a>)<\/strong> and global crude benchmarks are expected to see significant volatility as the threat of a prolonged conflict in the Persian Gulf looms.<\/p>\n<p>Airspace across <strong>Israel, Iran, Iraq, and Jordan<\/strong> has been closed to civilian traffic, effectively severing major international flight corridors. Analysts warn that if the conflict expands to include Iranian proxies like <strong>Hezbollah<\/strong>, the economic and humanitarian impact could surpass the &quot;12-day war&quot; of June 2025, potentially pushing the <strong>SPDR <a href=\"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/indices\/sp500\/today\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"snp500 today\">S&amp;P 500<\/a> ETF Trust (<a href=\"\/stock\/SPY\">SPY<\/a>)<\/strong> into a period of extreme defensive positioning.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways US and Israel launch coordinated &quot;Operation Roaring Lion&quot; and &quot;Operation Shield of Judah,&quot; targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, military 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