The cleric has ruled for more than three decades, spearheading a policy of backing proxy groups to wield influence across the Middle East.
Israel’s military campaign reminds some of America’s ill-fated Middle East interventions, which President Trump has long denounced.
Hezbollah, Iran’s most powerful regional ally, has signaled privately that it does not intend to attack Israel, but Lebanon’s military has bolstered its presence in the country’s south to prevent rocket fire.
Since shortly after it was founded in 1948, Israel has been intent on building a nuclear program to ensure its survival.
President Trump spent the first months of his term holding back Israel’s push for an assault on Iran’s nuclear program. With the war underway, his posture has gyrated as he weighs sending in the U.S. military.
Analysts say the Kremlin is prioritizing its own war against Ukraine, as well as its relations with Gulf nations that don’t want to see a stronger Iran.
Syria was once among the closest allies of the Islamic republic, but the new government resents Tehran’s support for the Assad regime and has pledged not to allow attacks on Israel from its territory.
Only the U.S. military has the 30,000-pound bomb capable of reaching the facility and the bomber that can carry it.
Stock markets rose even as the fighting between the two countries continued into its fourth day.