Are we a Free Iran yet?
No, but hopefully soon...
Here is a timeline of events leading up to what we hope will be the fall of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the establishment of a Free Iran:
- Mar 17, 2026 — Ali Larijani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and de facto leader of Iran, is killed in an Israeli airstrike in Tehran; Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani and ~300 Basij officials are also killed in overnight strikes on field offices
- Mar 16, 2026 — Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref narrowly survives an Israeli assassination attempt in Tehran
- Mar 16, 2026 — Senior Kata’ib Hezbollah commander Abu Ali al-Askari is killed in a strike in Baghdad
- Mar 15, 2026 — Massive joint US-Israel airstrikes hit multiple Iranian cities including Isfahan, Shiraz, Hamadan, and the port of Jask, causing extensive damage to military and port infrastructure
- Mar 14, 2026 — Two senior Khatam al-Anbiya intelligence commanders are killed in an Israeli airstrike in Tehran
- Mar 13, 2026 — An Iranian missile strike on Zarzir, Israel damages ~300 homes and injures at least 60 civilians
- Mar 12, 2026 — Mojtaba Khamenei makes his first public statement as Supreme Leader, vowing to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed
- Mar 11, 2026 — The IRGC attacks the Thai-flagged bulk carrier Mayuree Naree in the Strait of Hormuz, setting it ablaze; at least three commercial ships are struck, bringing the total to 14 since Feb 28
- Mar 11, 2026 — The IEA orders the largest-ever release of government oil reserves (~400 million barrels) to stabilize prices amid Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz
- Mar 11, 2026 — The UN Security Council passes a resolution demanding Iran cease attacks on Gulf shipping and neighboring states
- Mar 10, 2026 — The IRGC launches drone and missile strikes on US bases in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, explicitly targeting the al-Harir Air Base
- Mar 10, 2026 — US forces destroy 16 Iranian mine-laying vessels near the Strait of Hormuz to prevent further mining of the waterway
- Mar 10, 2026 — An Iranian drone strike causes a fire at ADNOC’s Ruwais Industrial Complex in Abu Dhabi, forcing precautionary shutdown of a major refinery
- Mar 9, 2026 — Senior IRGC official Ali Hashemi is killed in an Israeli airstrike in Isfahan
- Mar 9, 2026 — A second Iranian drone attack near Bahrain’s Sitra refinery injures 32 Bahraini citizens
- Mar 8, 2026 — Abolghasem Babaeian, head of the military office of the Supreme Leader and chief of staff of Khatam al-Anbiya HQ, is killed in an Israeli airstrike in Tehran
- Mar 8, 2026 — Mojtaba Khamenei is appointed Supreme Leader of Iran by the Assembly of Experts, succeeding his father; he was injured in the Feb 28 strikes that killed Ali Khamenei
- Mar 8, 2026 — An Israeli Navy strike on a hotel in Beirut kills five senior IRGC Quds Force commanders
- Mar 5, 2026 — The US State Department closes the US Embassy in Kuwait due to sustained Iranian strikes
- Mar 5, 2026 — An Iranian missile strike hits Bahrain’s Bapco Sitra refinery, causing a blaze; Bapco Energies later declares force majeure on operations
- Mar 5, 2026 — Israel launches ground operations in southern Lebanon, targeting Hezbollah infrastructure
- Mar 4, 2026 — Rahman Mokadam, the IRGC officer behind the 2024 plot to assassinate President Trump, is killed
- Mar 3, 2026 — A “Shahid Soleimani”-class IRGC vessel is destroyed by US/Israeli strikes at the port of Bandar Abbas
- Mar 2, 2026 — Iran effectively closes the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping; maritime traffic drops ~97% as the IRGC warns all vessels must obtain permission to transit
- Mar 2, 2026 — Hezbollah launches rockets and drones into northern Israel for the first time since the 2024 ceasefire, explicitly retaliating for Khamenei’s assassination; Israel strikes back across Beirut and the Beqaa Valley
- Mar 2, 2026 — Iranian drones target Saudi Aramco’s Ras Tanura refinery, the largest in Saudi Arabia, causing a debris fire and precautionary shutdown
- Mar 2, 2026 — An Iranian drone strikes the US Embassy in Kuwait City
- Mar 1, 2026 — An Iranian drone strikes a US command center at Shuaiba Port, Kuwait, killing six US soldiers
- Mar 1, 2026 — Ali Khamenei’s death is confirmed by Iranian state media; 40 days of mourning are declared
- Feb 28, 2026 — Iran launches 234 ballistic missiles and 422 drones targeting Kuwait, striking Kuwait International Airport, Ali Al Salem Air Base, and Camp Buehring
- Feb 28, 2026 — 48+ senior military and political leaders are killed, including:
- Mohammad Pakpour — IRGC Commander-in-Chief
- Ali Shamkhani — Secretary, Defense Council
- Abdolrahim Mousavi — Chief of Staff, Iranian Armed Forces
- Aziz Nasirzadeh — Defense Minister
- Mohammad Shirazi — Head, Military Office of the Supreme Leader
- Feb 28, 2026 — Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is killed in a strike on his compound in Tehran
- Feb 28, 2026 — Operation Roaring Lion (Israel) and Operation Epic Fury (US) commence
- Feb 28, 2026 — Iran retaliates with missile and drone strikes on US bases across Iraq, Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, and the UAE
- Jan 2026 — The regime cracks down: the 2026 Iran massacres begin — thousands of protesters are killed
- Dec 2025 — Massive protests erupt across 100+ Iranian cities amid economic collapse; the rial enters hyperinflation
- Jun 24, 2025 — A ceasefire is announced after the Twelve-Day War
- Jun 22, 2025 — The US joins the fight, striking the Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear sites
- Jun 15, 2025 — IRGC Intelligence Chief Mohammad Kazemi is killed in airstrikes
- Jun 13, 2025 — IRGC Commander-in-Chief Hossein Salami, Armed Forces Chief of Staff Mohammad Bagheri, IRGC Aerospace Force Commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh, and Khatam al-Anbiya Commander Gholam Ali Rashid are killed in opening strikes
- Jun 13, 2025 — Israel launches Operation Rising Lion; strikes Iranian nuclear facilities and IRGC headquarters
- Dec 8, 2024 — The Assad regime falls as rebel forces enter Damascus; Bashar al-Assad flees to Russia, ending 53 years of Assad family rule and dealing a major blow to Iran’s regional influence
- Nov 27, 2024 — A ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon takes effect after 14 months of conflict
- Oct 26, 2024 — Israel launches Operation Days of Repentance, openly striking Iran for the first time by hitting air defense systems and missile sites
- Oct 16, 2024 — Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar is killed in Gaza
- Early Oct, 2024 — Hashem Safieddine, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s presumed successor, is killed in a massive Israeli bunker-buster strike in Beirut
- Oct 1, 2024 — Iran launches nearly 200 ballistic missiles at Israel in retaliation for the assassinations of Haniyeh, Nasrallah, and Nilforoushan
- Oct 1, 2024 — Israel launches a ground invasion of Lebanon, targeting Hezbollah in the south
- Sep 27, 2024 — Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah is killed in a Beirut airstrike during Operation New Order; IRGC commander Abbas Nilforoushan is also killed
- Sep 17–18, 2024 — Thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah detonate simultaneously across Lebanon, killing dozens and severely crippling the group’s communications network
- Jul 31, 2024 — Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh is assassinated in Tehran
- Jul 30, 2024 — Senior Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr is assassinated in Beirut
- Jul 13, 2024 — Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif is killed in a massive Israeli airstrike in Gaza
- May 19, 2024 — Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian are killed in a helicopter crash
- Apr 2024 — First direct Israel-Iran missile exchange in history; Israel strikes the Iranian consulate in Damascus, killing IRGC Quds Force commander Mohammad Reza Zahedi, and Iran retaliates with Operation True Promise
- Jan 28, 2024 — An Iran-backed militia drone strike kills three US soldiers at the Tower 22 outpost in Jordan. The US retaliates with massive airstrikes across Iraq and Syria
- Jan 3, 2024 — Two bombings in Kerman during a Qasem Soleimani memorial kill 94 people; the deadliest attack in Iran in decades. Iran retaliates with strikes in Iraq, Syria, and Pakistan
- Jan 2, 2024 — Hamas Deputy Political Leader Saleh al-Arouri is assassinated in a drone strike in Beirut
- Dec 25, 2023 — Senior IRGC commander Razi Mousavi is killed in an Israeli airstrike in Damascus
- Late 2023 — Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen launch a sustained anti-shipping campaign in the Red Sea, triggering US and UK coalition airstrikes
- Oct 8, 2023 — Iran-backed Hezbollah opens a northern front, firing rockets into Israel
- Oct 7, 2023 — Iran-backed Hamas launches Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, a surprise attack on Israel; ~1,200 are killed, and 240+ hostages are taken