[0:00]Good evening. Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is dead, killed in his office after an extraordinary attack by Israel and the United States. Several strikes targeted the capital Tehran and more than a dozen other cities were hit. In retaliation, Iran launched missiles at neighboring Bahrain, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, and Israel. The regime is tonight threatening devastating revenge after the death of their dictator. Nine correspondent Hannah Sinclair begins our coverage. The first day of a new war. Iran's supreme leader killed with the fate of the Islamic regime in peril. Its fierce retaliation shook the Middle East. The full firepower of the US and Israel alliance unleashed on Iran. Wave after wave of missiles, targeting as many as 20 cities, including the capital Tehran. Reports at least 200 killed, including 108 at Primary schools. The operation dubbed Epic Fury. Described as the largest regional concentration of American military firepower in a generation. 200 Israeli jets were involved in the strikes, the largest military flyover in its history. Claiming more than 500 targets were hit. A massive and ongoing operation to prevent this very wicked radical dictatorship from threatening America and our core national security interests. to the great proud people of Iran. bombs will be dropping everywhere. When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. The US President announcing the demise of the nation's supreme leader, with the words, one of the most evil people in history is dead. I was responsible for the regime's ballistic missile and nuclear program and its brutal acts of violence and intimidation against its own people. He's responsible for orchestrating attacks on Australian soil. His passing will not be mourned. Iran vowed the response would be crushing, and it was. Israelis scrambling to bomb shelters in the face of non-stop fire. This missile evading the Iron Dome and slamming into Tel Aviv. One person was killed and at least 22 others injured. Other civilians caught in the crossfire as the regime targeted American assets in the Gulf. Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE. That is the Fairmont Hotel in Dubai. The famous hotel, one of several structures hit by debris. Another aerial interception of a missile, leaving the Burj Al Arab hotel ablaze. One person has died and seven have been injured at Abu Dhabi's Zayid Airport. Four more wounded at the international terminal in Dubai. Bahrain International Airport damaged by a drone. The strikes rattling a part of the region, long seen as an oasis of stability. Donald Trump says this could have been avoided. The bombardment coming amid stalled nuclear talks. That is why in Operation Midnight Hammer last June, we obliterated the regime's nuclear program. After that attack, we warned them never to resume their malicious pursuit of nuclear weapons, and we sought repeatedly to make a deal. The US president calling the shots, but here at the Pentagon, top military officials are coordinating this historic attack on Iran. This has been months in the planning with Israeli forces to neutralize what they say are imminent threats to national security. The lives of courageous American heroes may be lost and we may have casualties, but we're doing this not for now, we're doing this for the future. Iran now forced to look at its future, cheers throughout the capital. As news broke through the communications blackout, the hardline cleric who ruled for 36 years, is dead. Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urging Iranians Go out to the streets to complete the task and overthrow the regime of horrors that is imbittering your lives. Iran is tonight warning, this great crime will never go unanswered, and that a severe, decisive and regret-inducing punishment is coming. In Washington DC, Hannah Sinclair, nine news. And nine correspondent Hannah Sinclair is in Washington D.C. for us tonight. Hannah, the US President has just changed the course of history in the Middle East. Yeah, Pete, good evening. Donald Trump labels himself the President of peace and often talks about all the wars he has helped end. But now the 47th President has started a war so serious it's impacting people all over the world. President Trump is all about putting America first, but tonight his critics are questioning how this conflict helps his own citizens, labeling this attack a mistake and a war of choice. But his supporters say it's yet another show of the nation's extraordinary military might and is a stunning achievement. The Secretary of State briefing top law makers in advance, but the President did not have approval from Congress to wage this war, testing his powers as commander in chief. President Trump though doesn't seem fazed, he's been at fundraisers at his Maralago estate, dancing, telling the crowd he's got to get to work just moments before altering the fabric forever in the Middle East. Pete. Hannah, thank you. Countries visited by tourists and considered safe haven are tonight bearing the brunt of the conflict under fire from Iran as the country retaliates. Australian tourists and expats are caught up in the conflict, which is playing out in one of the world's busiest air corridors. Dubai and Doha are usually shielded from direct conflict in the Middle East, but not this time. Bahrain too caught in the carnage as America and Israel unleashed fury on Iran. The Islamic regime struck back. Hundreds of thousands of travelers were diverted or left stranded as the airspace across the region slammed shut. And airports weren't safe spaces. Dubai's is one familiar to many Australians and the world's busiest. Its international terminal damaged by air strikes. Australians Daniel Caltamo and Joge Sanwe are in Abu Dhabi. Once we got to the hotel, we heard the loudest boom. Once we're paying for the taxi, George was in a massive panic. Um, I looked outside and I saw there was missiles in the sky that were getting intercepted. They were meant to be coming home today, but for now, it's a waiting game. The loudest boom. I can't explain it to you, like the whole floor was just shaking, very scary. Australian born radio host Chris Fade lives in Dubai. We were all sleeping a moment ago and then you can hear it. You can actually hear the the missiles coming through. So I've got my kids. We're all in the one room together right now, actually, on the bottom floor of the house. Um, but yeah, you're hearing it. The air thick with anxiety and uncertainty. Could this be a 24-hour thing, a 48-hour thing, could it be a week, could it be longer? We're not sure, but right now, it's, you know, the the beginning part of it. The situation no clearer for those trapped in transit. Completely in limbo, waiting, waiting, waiting, for the air space to, to reopen. Penny Milton and her two children were on the way to watch her husband Michael Milton compete at the Paralympics in Italy. They're now delayed in Doha. Pretty uncomfortable. I don't like the fact that I'm, uh, still in the clothes that I left, left in 40 hours ago. This from the Foreign Minister, as the Department of Foreign Affairs activated its 24-hour crisis center. I upgraded our travel advice to do not travel for Israel, Lebanon, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. As the conflict's footprint widens across the Middle East, the reaction to it is rippling across the globe from Paris, to Los Angeles, and London. Celebrations for the death of a brutal dictator. Many of these protesters had almost given up expecting any action to be taken against the regime. They're hopeful for change, but mindful of the extended violence that could bring. Hopefully after 47 darkness, light is going to back to Iran. Absolutely excited, absolutely excited. People are full of joy now. The regime in Iran is utterly abhorrent. They have murdered thousands of their own people, brutally crushed dissent, and sought to destabilize the region. The reach of this war spiraling fast, instability in the region, and uncertainty for those trapped. In London, Josh Bavas, nine News. Well, here at home, the attack has received mixed reactions. As we go to air tonight, thousands of people are celebrating the demise of Iran's supreme leader in Sydney's Hyde Park. But for many others, the conflict has signaled the start of an emotional and unsettling time. The fallout from the attack on Iran spilling out into Sydney Airport. Within hours, air spaces were closed and flights canceled, hundreds bound for Dubai last night, left stranded. Of course I'm worried! I don't know what's next, no communication, no nothing, you know? And with Mardi Gra and Bad Bunny in town, many couldn't find accommodation. Instead, forced to sleep in the terminal. All the hotels were fully booked. We were just left to our own devices, no food, no water. This morning, the last flights to leave Doha and Dubai before the bombing began, landed in Sydney. Those on board thankful they made it out just in time. It was a big relief. Yeah, I've been awake most of the night, texting my auntie in England. Also touching down, the Iranian women's football team on the Gold Coast just before the airspace closed for the Asia Cup. The advice tonight if your flight's been canceled, or if you have an upcoming flight, beware, travel insurance policies do not cover war or armed conflict. Instead, this is what you should do. Do not cancel, let the airline cancel, that way you'll be entitled to rebooking or a total refund. Sydney is home to more than 21,000 Iranians. Many of them like Sarah Balouri still have family in Iran right now. We still haven't been able to make any contact. I think I've had one message go through today, but no response yet. But for Sarah, the emotions are mixed. This is our Berlin Wall moment.
[12:15]When it comes to the Iranian community here in Sydney, the attack has left many divided. Those in support of it and those who say it was not the right course of action. But what is uniting them, the fear and concern for their loved ones back in Iran. A group against the attack gathering this afternoon at town hall to protest. If they want to change the government of Iran, that is up to the Iranian people. While another in support, made at Hyde Park to celebrate. It's been 47 years. We've been waiting for this day. It's like emotional, really emotional. Massilia Aili, nine news. P, if you're struggling to hear us, that's because the crowd here at Hyde Park this evening has grown to up to 20,000 people. The people here tell us that for months they've been coming out to protest against the regime, and tonight is a celebration. We've seen people crying, laughing, chanting, dancing, dancing, holding up signs that say make Iran great again. And thank you, Donald Trump for what they're calling their day of freedom, Pete. Okay, Massilia Riley, we'll leave you there in Hyde Park. Thank you. Let's go to Camera now and our political editor Charles Croucher. Charles, good evening. What's Australia's position in all of this? Yeah, evening, Peter. Australia's long-held insistence on international order and laws has been suspended, it seems, because of the evils coming from Tehran and the Ayatollah. Tonight, the government's focus will remain on keeping Australians in the area safe and getting them out when possible. With Iran firing indiscriminately, it would only take one of the thousands of Australians to be in the wrong place at the wrong time for this to escalate. When you throw in Australian troops on the comment with US fleets in the region, the risk is magnified. The length of this conflict will be determined by a leaderless and ruthless Iranian regime and a totally unpredictable American president. And the longer this conflict goes on, the harder it will be for Australia to stay on the sidelines. Charles, thank you. The death of Iran's supreme leader marks the end of a brutal near four-decade rule. On the streets of Iran, there are celebrations over Ali Humnay's death, and tonight there's the potential for a seismic shift in the power dynamics of the Middle East. A 36-year iron rule over and there were celebrations in the streets of Iran. And tears on the TV as state-owned media announced the news Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Hamany was dead. Today those mourning him will be the orphans across the world. The 86-year-old taken out by Israeli strikes. Benjamin Netanyahu the first to break the news. For three and a half decades this tyrant dispatched terrorism across the world, the Israeli President said. Before Donald Trump also reported Hamany had been killed. He was unable to avoid our intelligence and highly sophisticated tracking systems and, working closely with Israel, there was not a thing he, or the other leaders that have been killed along with him, could do. Hamany grew up an activist, playing a behind-the-scenes role in Iran's Islamic Revolution. He served as president before becoming supreme leader in 1989, holding a deeply anti-American stance, always strongly backing Iran's nuclear program. His image plastered across billboards, state television covered his every move. A generation of Iranians don't know life without him. There has only ever been two supreme leaders since the Islamic Revolution in 1979. The death of Hamany plunges the Islamic Republic into crisis. There is no obvious successor with the president and two other top officials to assume leadership duties temporarily. So many uncertainties here. The ultimate verdict of this is a long way away. The US President declaring this is the greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their country. There were mass anti-government demonstrations across Iran in January, leading to the death of nearly 7,000 protesters. And while the US and now calling for an uprising, Iran is vowing revenge. A revenge is coming after Trump, after everybody who facilitated this assassination. He will pay the ultimate price. Jessica Millward, nine news.
