Follow live: First US troops killed in Middle East conflict, air travel and global shipping falls into chaos

Soccer never sleeps and, amid the chaos, thoughts are being spared for how the violence will impact Iran’s upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup performance.

Preparations will be hampered, as no matches will be played during the 40-day mourning period for supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and there is suggestion the country could drop out of the tournament completely.

Iran's football federation president Mehdi Taj gave a gloomy prospectus, telling sports portal Varzesh3 on Sunday: "What is certain is that after this attack, we cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope."

Iran have been drawn into group G at the games, which start in June. They are scheduled to play New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles and Egypt in Seattle.

FIFA says it's monitoring the situation.

- Jack Revell and AAP

The US says three US troops have been killed and five seriously hurt in the latest fighting with Iran — marking America’s first casualties in the conflict.

US Central Command, which oversees the Middle East, reported the deaths on X but did not say when and where they occurred.

The Pentagon also isn’t saying when or where these deaths happened, only that the situation’s "fluid".

The statement said "several others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions" and were going to return to duty.

Iran's claiming it hit the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln with missiles, but US officials have flat out denied this, saying the attacks didn’t even come close.

President Donald Trump also hasn't addressed the deaths directly, but over the weekend warned American troops could be killed or injured in the operation, saying "that often happens in war. But we're doing this not for now. We're doing this for the future".

Before the conflict erupted, Trump built up the largest US military presence in the Middle East in decades, boosting warships and aircraft carriers in the region — including the world's largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford.

- Caroline Riches and AAP

Reuters is reporting three tankers have been damaged off the Gulf coast, and one seafarer has been killed as Iran retaliates against US and Israeli strikes.

The tankers belonged to the Marshall Islands and Palau, while the nationality of the third tanker is unknown.

It's not immediately clear who launched the projectiles and drones that targeted or damaged the ships.

More than 200 vessels have dropped anchor in the Strait of Hormuz — located between Oman and the UAE on one side, and Iran on the other — over the last 24 hours as the risk to commercial shipping surges.

Iran has closed navigation through the critical waterway, prompting major shipping lines to re-route vessels around the Cape of Good Hope.

Shipping membership organisation BIMCO warns "ships with business connections to US or Israeli interests are more likely to be targeted, but other ships may also be targeted deliberately or in error".

Meanwhile US President Donald Trump has said the United States has already destroyed nine Iranian navy ships, pummelled Iran's naval headquarters and is "going after the rest" of Iran's warships.

- David Smith, with reporting from Reuters.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was supreme leader of Iran from 1989 until his death on Saturday in US and Israeli strikes.

While some like Russian president Vladimir Putin have been strident in their condemnation of the strikes, others have expressed hope that Khamenei's death will give the Iranian people a chance to reshape their country.

Here are some pretty powerful quotes from world leaders on Khamenei's death and what may come next:

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian: "The martyrdom of the Supreme Leader at the hands of ‌Israel and the criminal America was a great disaster for our country... America and Israel should know that it will bring them nothing but embarrassment."

Russian president Vladimir Putin:

"Please accept my deep condolences in connection with the murder of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Seyed Ali Khamenei, and members of his family, committed in cynical violation of all norms of human morality and international law."

Pope Leo XIV:

"I ‌address ⁠a heartfelt appeal to the parties involved to assume the moral responsibility to stop the spiral of violence before ⁠it ‌becomes an irreparable abyss. Stability and ‌peace are not built through mutual threats or through weapons ... but only through reasonable, genuine, and responsible dialogue."

European Commissioner Ursula Von Der Leyen:

"With Khamenei gone, there is renewed hope for the people of Iran. We must ensure that the future is theirs to claim and shape. At the same time, this moment carries a real risk of instability that could push the ‌region into a spiral ‌of violence."

French government spokeperson Maud Bregeon:

"He was responsible for the deaths of thousands of civilians in his country and in the region, so one can only welcome ⁠his disappearance. It is now up to the Iranian people to choose their ‌own destiny."

Indonesia's Ulema Muslim Clerical Council:

"The United States, which is playing a central role in managing the Palestinian conflict through the BoP (Board of Peace), faces a major question: is this strategy truly aimed at a just peace, or is it actually strengthening an unequal security architecture and burying Palestinian ⁠independence?"

- David Smith and AAP

We're witnessing the sharpest aviation shocks in recent years.

Global air travel remains heavily disrupted with the war in Iran keeping major Middle Eastern airports including Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha shut or with severely restricted services as much of the region's airspace remains closed.

Thousands of flights have been affected across the Middle East, with airspace over Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Israel, Bahrain, the UAE and Qatar remaining virtually empty, maps by Flightradar24 show.

The region and its airlines have become used to travel disruption over the past few years, but such a prolonged closure of the skies — more than 24 hours — and the shutdown of all three major Gulf transit hubs is unprecedented, analysts say.

The ripple effects ‌have been felt far beyond the Middle East, with tens of thousands of passengers stranded around the world as airlines cancel or reroute flights.

Dubai International Airport sustained damage during Iran's attacks while airports in Abu Dhabi and Kuwait have also been hit.

The Gulf is also a major intersection for air cargo, putting further pressure on trade lanes on top of disruption at sea.

- Sydney Lang and AAP

Australians are waking up to some major developments that have happened overnight in the fast-moving conflict between the US, Israeli and Iranian forces in the Middle East.

As the crisis unfolds, the death toll is rapidly rising. The US has announced the first casualties on the American side, though at this point we don't know how or where these casualties occurred. An Iranian missile attack in central Israel has left at least nine people dead, while strikes on Iran's capital Tehran have reportedly targeted a hospital. Others have died in pro-Iranian protests.

Here are the top lines:

• Three US service members have been killed and five seriously wounded in fighting against Iran — the first American casualties of the war.

• After killing Iran's supreme leader Hosseini Khamenei on Saturday, the US and Israel are continuing heavy bombardments, with Iran striking back at US bases in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

• Iranian news agency ISNA has reported that Gandhi hospital in northern Tehran has been targeted by strikes — we're unsure of the damage at this stage.
• An Iranian missile attack on the central Israeli city of Beit Shemesh has killed at least nine people and left 11 missing, police said, in the deadliest strike in the country since the war began.
• At least 17 people have been killed across Pakistan as pro-Iranian protesters, angered by the death of Iran’s supreme leader, took to the streets.

• US President Donald Trump has made no mention of US losses but highlighted the sinking of nine Iranian naval ships. He told Fox News that 48 Iranian leaders had been killed "in one shot". In another interview with CNBC, he said "things are evolving in a very positive way right now".
• The conflict has sent global air travel into chaos that analysts are calling unprecedented.
• The Middle East conflict is expected to send oil prices soaring when markets open today, with fears a prolonged conflict could hit the global economy.

We'll be bringing you updates throughout the day.

- Caroline Riches