The war that began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, 2026, tracked week by week: the fighting in Iran, President Donald Trump's posts on Truth Social, the price of Brent crude, and the fronts in Lebanon and Yemen. Updated through Sept. 15, 2026.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, settled at $73 a barrel on Feb. 27. U.S. crude settled at $67. About a fifth of the world's oil passed through the Strait of Hormuz. A month earlier the U.S. Energy Information Administration had forecast Brent to average $58 in 2026.
President Donald Trump authorized Operation Epic Fury on Feb. 27 while flying to Texas aboard Air Force One. U.S. Central Command announced the first strikes early the next morning. Israel, calling its part Operation Roaring Lion, said it hit 500 military targets in the largest combat sortie in its history. U.S. and Israeli forces carried out nearly 900 strikes in the first 12 hours against missiles, air defenses, military infrastructure and the country's leadership. The attack came in the middle of talks over Iran's nuclear program and during Ramadan.
At 2:30 a.m. EST on Feb. 28, Trump posted a video announcing that the U.S. military had begun "major combat operations" in Iran. He presented regime change as a goal and urged Iranians to take over their government. Brent crude had settled at about $73 the day before.
The opening wave killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who had ruled Iran since 1989, along with dozens of other officials. Iran confirmed his death on March 1. A missile struck a girls' school next to a naval base in Minab, near Bandar Abbas, killing about 170 people. The Iranian Red Crescent said 24 provinces were hit on the first day.
Trump announced Khamenei's death on Truth Social before Iran confirmed it, calling him "one of the most evil people in History." He said it was the Iranian people's best chance to take back their country and claimed that parts of the security forces no longer wanted to fight.
Iran answered within hours with missiles and drones under the name Operation True Promise IV, aiming at Israel and at U.S. bases, embassies and oil infrastructure across the Gulf. Iranian state media called it the Ramadan War. On March 1 a missile hit a residential neighborhood in Beit Shemesh, west of Jerusalem, killing nine Israeli civilians, the deadliest single Iranian strike on Israel of the war.
Tankers stopped moving through the Strait of Hormuz, which carried about a fifth of the world's oil, after the Revolutionary Guard warned it would set ablaze any vessel attempting the passage. The U.S.-flagged tanker Stena Imperative and the Honduras-flagged Athe Nova were struck on March 2. The U.S. Embassy in Kuwait was hit the same day and closed indefinitely. The International Energy Agency later called the shutdown the largest disruption to global energy supplies in history.
Hezbollah fired rockets and drones at northern Israel on March 2, its first claimed attack since the November 2024 ceasefire, in retaliation for Khamenei's killing. Israel struck Beirut's southern suburbs and targets across Lebanon. The Israeli military told residents of about 50 towns and villages in the south and east to leave. Lebanon's government banned military activity by Hezbollah.
Brent rose to $82.08, its highest since January 2025, as tanker flows through Hormuz stalled. Saudi Aramco temporarily suspended operations at Ras Tanura, the kingdom's largest refinery, after a drone strike.
The submarine USS Charlotte sank the frigate IRIS Dena in the Indian Ocean, about 40 nautical miles south of Galle, Sri Lanka. The ship was sailing home from an international fleet review and naval exercise hosted by India at Visakhapatnam. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said no U.S. submarine had attacked an enemy ship this way since World War II.
Israeli strikes hit oil storage sites around Tehran, killing four people. Burning fuel poured into streets near the depots, black smoke covered the capital and residents reported acidic rain. The same day the U.S. sent a third aircraft carrier, the USS George H.W. Bush, to the region.
Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei, the late leader's second son, as supreme leader on March 8. The Revolutionary Guard, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, security chief Ali Larijani and President Masoud Pezeshkian pledged allegiance. Five days later the new leader declared that the Strait of Hormuz would stay shut.
Brent jumped to nearly $120 on March 9 as Gulf producers began cutting output, then settled at $94, according to the EIA. It fell below $93 the next day after Trump said the campaign was ahead of schedule, promised to waive oil sanctions and offered Navy escorts through the strait. The EIA raised its 2026 forecast to $79.
The Israeli military began what it called a targeted ground operation on March 16 and sent a second division into southern Lebanon the next day. Defense Minister Israel Katz said displaced Lebanese could not return south until Hezbollah no longer threatened northern Israel. Unannounced strikes on central Beirut on March 18 killed at least 10 people.
Israel, coordinating with Washington, struck the South Pars gas field in the Persian Gulf and nearby refineries. Iran retaliated against Ras Laffan in Qatar, the world's largest liquefied natural gas production facility. Trump said he had no knowledge of the South Pars attack. Two days earlier China and European NATO members had turned down his call to help reopen the strait; Trump called that a "very foolish mistake."
U.S. aircraft dropped bunker-busting bombs on the Natanz nuclear site. Adm. Brad Cooper, head of Central Command, said U.S. forces had struck more than 8,000 targets in Iran, including 130 vessels. Yemen's Houthis warned Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, which had offered to join a campaign to reopen the strait, that they would be the first to lose.
Trump gave Iran 48 hours to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz or see the U.S. destroy its power plants, "STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!" Tehran said it would hit U.S. and Israeli energy, technology and desalination sites across the region if its plants were struck. Brent traded above $113 on the morning of March 23.
Writing in capital letters, Trump said the two countries had held "VERY GOOD AND PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS" and that he had ordered a five-day pause in strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure. Brent fell more than 10% to about $100 within hours. Iran's Fars news agency denied that any talks had taken place.
Brent traded above $113 on the morning of March 23 under Trump's power-plant ultimatum. It fell more than 10% to about $100 after he posted that strikes on Iranian energy sites would be postponed for five days. Iran's Fars agency denied that any talks had taken place.
Lebanon declared Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Reza Sheibani persona non grata and gave him until that Sunday to leave. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the next day for a security zone in southern Lebanon. Three Indonesian U.N. peacekeepers were killed on March 29 and 30, one of them when Israel shelled a U.N. position.
An Iranian missile and drone attack on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia damaged several U.S. refueling aircraft and an E-3 Sentry radar plane and injured at least 15 U.S. troops. It came one day after Trump and Hegseth said Iran's military had been neutralized. The Revolutionary Guard said the same day that the strait was closed to any ship going to or from U.S., Israeli or allied ports.
Houthi forces fired a ballistic missile at Beersheba, Israel, their first attack on Israel since the 2025 Gaza ceasefire. Israeli air defenses intercepted it. The group had held back for four weeks, unlike the rest of Iran's alliance. More missiles and drones followed on March 30 and April 1, 2, 4 and 6.
Brent settled at $112.78 on March 30, up about 55% for the month, the largest monthly gain since the contract began in 1988. The previous record, 46%, came in September 1990 during the first Gulf War. U.S. crude settled at $102.88.
In an address to the nation on April 1, Trump said attacks on Iran would escalate over the next two to three weeks, to "bring them back to the Stone Ages." The next day two U.S. strikes brought down the B1 bridge between Tehran and Karaj, described as the highest bridge in the Middle East. Eight people were reported killed and 95 wounded.
Brent jumped 8% to above $109 after Trump's address signaled weeks more fighting and no plan to reopen the strait. Dated Brent, the physical benchmark, passed $140, the highest since 2008. Britain convened a virtual meeting of about 40 countries on reopening the shipping route.
Iranian forces shot down a U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle over Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province, the first such loss in more than 20 years. The pilot was rescued the same day. The weapons systems officer was recovered alive 48 hours later by special operations forces backed by 155 aircraft.
About 12 hours before his deadline, Trump wrote that "a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again." Democratic critics called the post sick and genocidal. The ceasefire was announced that evening.
Trump announced a two-week suspension of the bombing, citing requests from Pakistan's Sharif and Munir, on condition of the "COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING" of the strait. Brent fell 13% the next day, its biggest one-day drop since April 2020.
Less than two hours before Trump's 8 p.m. deadline to destroy Iran's power plants and bridges, the U.S. and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire mediated by Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir. Iran was to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Both sides claimed victory. Israel and the U.S. said the truce did not cover Lebanon; Pakistan said it did. Iran halted traffic in the strait again after Israeli attacks in Lebanon.
Hours after the U.S.-Iran ceasefire, Israel launched Operation Eternal Darkness, hitting more than 100 Hezbollah targets across Beirut, southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley within 10 minutes. Lebanon's Health Ministry said 182 people were killed, the highest one-day toll of the war. Netanyahu said the ceasefire did not extend to Lebanon.
Brent fell 13.29% to $94.75, and U.S. crude dropped 16.41% to $94.41, the largest one-day declines for both since April 2020. The Dow rose 1,325 points. Brent was still well above its prewar $73.
Vice President JD Vance and Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf met in Islamabad on April 11-12, the highest-level direct contact between the two countries since the 1979 revolution. The session lasted 21 hours. Vance said Iran had refused to accept U.S. terms. Trump ordered a naval blockade.
Hours after the Islamabad talks failed, Trump posted that the U.S. would blockade ships entering or leaving Iranian ports from 10 a.m. EDT on April 13. Central Command confirmed the blockade would apply only to traffic bound to or from Iran.
The U.S. Navy began stopping ships bound to or from Iranian ports at 10 a.m. EDT on April 13, with an exception for humanitarian cargo. Central Command said it redirected more than 140 ships and disabled nine during this phase. The Guardian called the result a "dual blockade": the Navy could seal Iran's ports but could not force the strait open for anyone else.
Trump announced that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to a 10-day truce. It was extended more than once, though Israeli strikes continued. Iran briefly allowed commercial ships through Hormuz during the truce, then reimposed restrictions when Trump kept the blockade in place.
On April 21, the day before the truce was due to expire, Trump said he expected "to be bombing" if negotiators failed. Later that day he extended the ceasefire until Iran presented a proposal. On April 23 he ordered the Navy to destroy any Iranian boat laying mines in the strait.
Trump wrote that countries with ships trapped in the Gulf, "neutral and innocent bystanders," had asked for help and that the U.S. would guide those ships out. The escort effort, Project Freedom, began May 4 and was paused May 5.
Central Command began Project Freedom on May 4, a day after Trump announced it, to guide stranded ships out of the Gulf. Officials said about 22,500 mariners on more than 1,550 commercial ships were trapped. The operation was paused on May 5. Central Command said Iranian forces had fired on commercial ships at least nine times and seized two container vessels. The New York Times reported that Saudi Arabia had refused the U.S. use of its airspace and bases for the mission.
On May 17 Trump warned Iran that "the Clock is Ticking." A day later he said he would hold off on a planned attack at the request of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The UAE last reported incoming Iranian weapons in May.
Lebanon's Health Ministry said on May 18 that more than 3,000 people had been killed. Israeli strikes killed 51 people on May 10 alone. A Hezbollah drone badly wounded an Israeli brigade commander on May 20. The U.S. had scheduled Israel-Lebanon talks in Washington for May 14-15.
Israeli troops captured Beaufort Castle, a Crusader-era fortress on a strategic ridge in southern Lebanon, on May 31. Hezbollah fired rockets at northern Israel on May 30 and 31 without injuring civilians.
Israel and Lebanon reached a U.S.-brokered agreement on June 3. The framework, signed in late June, ties a gradual Israeli withdrawal to Hezbollah's disarmament and the deployment of the Lebanese army, starting in pilot zones. Hezbollah rejected disarmament. The Council on Foreign Relations estimates Israel holds about 20% of Lebanon and more than 1 million Lebanese are displaced.
The Israeli military said it struck military sites in Iran, with explosions reported in Tehran, Isfahan and Tabriz, after an exchange of fire that followed Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs. The Houthis fired two missiles at Israel. A U.S. helicopter went down near the strait on June 9; The New York Times reported its crew was rescued. On June 11 Trump threatened to hit Iran "VERY HARD TONIGHT" and to take Kharg Island.
The U.S. and Iran reached an initial agreement on June 15 to extend the ceasefire and reopen the strait, The Associated Press reported. Pakistan said the final text had been agreed on June 12, and Vance said negotiators signed it digitally on June 14. Iran said the draft committed it never to produce or acquire nuclear weapons while letting it dilute its highly enriched uranium inside the country. Trump said he had authorized the end of the blockade.
On the day the initial deal was announced, Trump wrote that Iran had agreed never to have a nuclear weapon and called reports of a $300 million U.S. payment to Iran fake news. The detailed terms were published two days later, when the memorandum was signed.
Trump signed the 14-point memorandum at a dinner hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron at the Palace of Versailles after the Group of Seven summit. Pezeshkian signed in Tehran. The text promised U.S. oil sanctions waivers, a toll-free strait for 60 days, an Iranian pledge not to acquire nuclear weapons and a $300 billion reconstruction fund tied to a final deal. Central Command lifted the blockade on June 18.
The morning after the Versailles signing, Trump wrote that oil was flowing, stock markets were roaring and prices were dropping, and signed off with "YOU'RE WELCOME!" Within a week Brent had briefly erased all of its wartime gains.
Trump announced a renewed ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, facilitated by the U.S., Qatar and Iran, after the Versailles memorandum called for an end to the war on all fronts. On June 20 Hezbollah said it attacked Israeli forces trying to capture Ali al-Taher near Nabatieh. Israel kept striking the south.
Brent lost about $17 over the four sessions through June 17 as the memorandum was signed, then briefly erased all of its wartime gains as traffic through Hormuz picked up. It closed up about 2% on June 24 after a projectile hit a ship off Oman. U.S. crude settled near $72.
After a projectile struck a commercial tanker in the strait, U.S. aircraft hit Iranian missile and drone depots and coastal radar sites. Kuwait and Bahrain reported incoming missiles and drones overnight. U.S. officials said on June 28 that both sides would pause hostilities and let ships transit freely while technical talks continued.
Trump said U.S. aircraft had struck Iranian missile and drone depots and coastal radar sites because Iran had violated the ceasefire "AGAIN!" He warned that if the U.S. were forced to finish the job, the Islamic Republic would cease to exist.
Iran struck three commercial vessels on July 6-7 that had bypassed its approved route through the strait. The U.S. bombed Iranian targets overnight. At the NATO summit in Ankara on July 8, Trump said he considered the ceasefire over. The Wall Street Journal reported two days later that Israel had passed the U.S. intelligence on a new Iranian plot to assassinate Trump.
Brent rose 5.2% to $78.02 and U.S. crude gained 4.4% to $73.52 after Trump threatened to bomb Iran and restore the blockade. Exports through Hormuz had only begun to recover.
Sharing footage of strikes, Trump called them "retribution for yesterday's bombing of ships by Iran" and warned that a repeat would bring worse. Brent rose 5.2% that day to $78.02.
Saudi Arabia reportedly struck Sanaa International Airport to stop a Mahan Air flight, said to be carrying Revolutionary Guard commanders and weapons, from landing. After the U.S. restored its blockade on July 14, a senior Houthi official said the group was ready to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Trump announced the return of the blockade and said the U.S. would be known as "THE GUARDIAN OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT," reimbursed at 20% of all cargo shipped. The fee lasted one day.
Trump announced on July 13 that the U.S. would reinstate the blockade and collect 20% of the value of cargo moving through the strait. He dropped the fee the next day, when the blockade took effect. The council of the International Maritime Organization said member states should reject Iran's claim of sovereignty over the waterway. The Revolutionary Guard navy said it had closed the strait until further notice.
Trump wrote that oil was flowing "like never before" and announced a full blockade limited to ships serving Iranian ports or carrying Iranian cargo, with no mention of the 20% fee. He credited Hegseth, Gen. Dan Caine and Adm. Brad Cooper.
The Houthis announced a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia, calling it "siege for siege." On July 22 they attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea with missiles and drones. Saudi aircraft struck the port of Hodeidah and Kamaran Island on July 24. Reuters had reported on July 16 that Iran asked the Houthis to be ready to close the Bab el-Mandeb.
The remains of 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad and Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton arrived at Dover Air Force Base on July 22. Thirteen U.S. service members had already been killed by mid-June, Sen. Bill Cassidy said. BBC Verify found new damage at nine U.S. bases in satellite images taken between July 12 and Aug. 1. Farzin Nadimi of The Washington Institute said Iran's attacks in the renewed fighting were more extensive and more effective than before.
Brent climbed back above $90 after Iran fired ballistic missiles at U.S. forces. Iran was attacking tankers in Hormuz, and the Houthis had declared an embargo on Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea, putting both of the region's shipping chokepoints in play. Brent passed $100 in late July, CBS News reported.
Trump wrote that the U.S. was "locked and loaded" but had canceled an attack after Iran and other Middle Eastern countries said the outlines of a deal had been agreed. Iran's armed forces denied asking for any delay.
Trump said he and Israel had called off a large strike, planned as the biggest U.S. operation since World War II, after Iran asked for more time to reach a deal. Qatar had worked to head it off, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had voiced concern. Iran's armed forces denied making any such request and called Trump's account a lie.
Israel resumed strikes on southern Lebanon on Aug. 5, citing a Hezbollah violation, while the two governments held U.S.-sponsored talks in Rome. Beirut said at least one person was killed. Israel issued its first evacuation warning in weeks. Lebanon is seeking a phased Israeli withdrawal.
Brent rose 3.8% to $82.49 after Iranian state media published a draft plan with restrictive conditions for ships in the strait. Prices had fallen about 8% that week after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said a deal could come within a day. Under the reported Iran-Oman terms, inbound ships would use Iranian waters and outbound ships Omani waters.
U.S. forces fired at the rudder of a Panama-flagged ship trying to run the blockade in the Gulf of Oman on Aug. 11. No one was hurt. Two days later Hegseth said the U.S. could keep the blockade in place indefinitely. Central Command said on Aug. 3 that the renewed blockade had redirected 44 ships, disabled two and boarded two.
The June memorandum lapsed on Aug. 17 with no final deal. Trump said he would not seek an extension and threatened to bomb Oman if it got in the way. Iran said it was negotiating shipping routes only with Oman. A day earlier Iran's army chief, Amir Hatami, offered a $30,000 bounty for killing or capturing invading U.S. soldiers, doubled if the attacker is a woman.
Brent gained 2.7% to $90.87 as the 60-day memorandum expired. Only three ships crossed Hormuz on Aug. 16, compared with about 130 a day before the war, according to Kpler. Bob McNally of Rapidan Energy said China had cut crude imports by 4 million barrels a day and predicted a move back toward $100 as it resumed buying.
U.S. forces said they struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island after Revolutionary Guard crews were seen preparing rockets that carry sea mines toward the strait. The Guard said the strike killed and wounded soldiers and civilians.
After a tanker leaving the strait was hit by three projectiles, the U.S. struck Revolutionary Guard targets and tankers owned by the National Iranian Oil Company under what it called a tanker-for-tanker policy. Iranian state media said a U.S. strike in Kuhestak hit a wedding, killing five people, including two children. On Sept. 3 Iran said it had targeted Ahmad al-Jaber Air Base in Kuwait and Al Minhad Air Base in the UAE.
Trump announced strikes near the strait in retaliation for a failed Iranian attempt to lay sea mines and for eight missiles fired at a U.S. base in Jordan, all of which he said were shot down. He warned that the biggest attack of all was still waiting.
Trump asked whether the Strait of Hormuz should be renamed "TRUMP STRAIT," now that it was, in his words, under U.S. control. The night before, he wrote that he could not care less whether Iran signed an agreement.
Heavy fighting broke out on Sept. 3 between the Houthis and forces of Yemen's internationally recognized Presidential Leadership Council. About 100,000 Yemenis had been displaced by Sept. 13.
After Iran fired ballistic missiles toward U.S. Navy ships, U.S. forces struck three Iranian oil tankers, sinking one, NBC News reported. The Revolutionary Guard said it hit three tankers crossing the strait without its approval. Only four ships passed through the strait on Sept. 5 and six on Sept. 6.
The Houthis attacked Abha International Airport, King Khalid Air Base and Aramco facilities in Abha and Jizan, injuring at least 73 people, the Saudi-led coalition said. Saudi Arabia struck back in the worst fighting since the two sides declared a truce four years earlier. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said "the Iranian hand" was behind the attacks. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called Trump twice on Sept. 10 urging strikes on the Houthis; Trump declined, Axios reported.
Central Command said it destroyed five Iranian tankers in the Gulf of Oman and near Kharg Island after further attempted missile attacks on a U.S. warship. It rejected Revolutionary Guard claims of hits on two destroyers. Jordan said it intercepted 18 of 20 ballistic missiles launched from Iran. The other two fell in uninhabited areas.
Brent rose above $100 on Sept. 9 for the first time since July, after U.S. forces destroyed five Iranian tankers and Houthi attacks hit Saudi energy sites. Goldman Sachs had raised its December Brent forecast by $5 to $85 and warned prices could top $120 in 2027 if Gulf output stayed 4 million barrels a day below prewar levels.
The Houthis captured Perim Island, also called Mayyun, at the southern entrance to the Red Sea on Sept. 11, along with the mainland town of Dhubab. They had taken the port of Mocha and the Hanish and Zuqar islands earlier in the week. An analyst told Al Jazeera the group now controlled Yemen's entire Red Sea coastline. Pakistan's defense minister warned that Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia could trigger the two countries' defense pact.
Trump wrote that "the failing Nation of Iran" wanted a deal quickly and that he alone would decide whether the U.S. engaged. Crude rose more than 4% when markets reopened that Monday. Iran's security council chief rejected talks the next day.
Trump said on Sept. 14 that the U.S. was open to a deal, after weeks of saying it was too early. Oman postponed a planned meeting of Iran and Gulf states on reopening Hormuz; Iran said Saudi Arabia had asked for the delay. Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said there would be no talks until Iran's conditions, including war reparations and the lifting of sanctions, were met. Iran also published a list of 77 ships it said had broken its rules in the strait.
Brent rose $3.21 to $107.82 after a drone attack from Iraq temporarily shut Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline, the kingdom's route to the Red Sea while Hormuz is disrupted. War-risk insurance for a Hormuz transit had climbed to 3% to 10% of a ship's hull value, from about 0.25% before the war, an analyst told Al Jazeera.