Special Episode: Regime Change or Regional War? U.S. and Israel Kill Iran’s Supreme Leader

In this special episode of Hold Your Fire! , Richard is joined by Crisis Group’s Iran director Ali Vaez and Gulf and Arabian Peninsula director Yasmin Farouk to discuss the U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran, the regional fallout, and what could come next. Richard first speaks with Ali about the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and what it means for Tehran’s leadership and decision-making. They assess the damage to Iran’s missile capabilities, the risks posed by its remaining nuclear stockpile, and escalation dynamics as Iran retaliates against Israel and countries in the Gulf. Richard then speaks with Yasmine about how Gulf states are responding, their concerns about escalation and the “day after” in Iran, and their anger at Iran’s barrage of missiles and drones. Click here to listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify . For more, check out our Iran page. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Special Episode: Regime Change or Regional War? U.S. and Israel Kill Iran’s Supreme Leader is an episode from Hold Your Fire! by International Crisis Group.

This episode is 43:01 long.

This episode was published on Mar 1, 2026.

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