Home / WORLD / Netanyahu says strikes on Iran “will continue as long as necessary”
The Independent March 1, 2026 WORLD
JERUSALEM | Xinhua | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday said the ongoing combat operations against Iran “will continue as long as necessary to ensure that Iran no longer poses a threat.”
Israel “will strike thousands of targets in the coming days,” he said in a live broadcast statement, noting that the Israeli army is prepared for any scenario of response from “Iranian proxies” in the region.
The initiative, he claimed, is now in the hands of Israel and the United States, which he said are acting in full coordination.
In the statement, Netanyahu also said that there are “increasing signs” that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is “gone,” adding that the strikes have destroyed Khamenei’s compound and killed commanders of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps.
Israeli media on Saturday evening reported that Khamenei was killed in U.S.-Israeli attacks and his body has been found. Yet Iranian officials say the supreme leader and the president are “safe and sound” and that “the enemy is resorting to mental warfare.” ■
