Modern wars · 2025 to 2026

Iran War

After a 12-day war in June 2025, US and Israeli strikes began a wider war on 28 February 2026 in which Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was killed. Iran hit Israel, US bases and Gulf states and closed the Strait of Hormuz. A ceasefire mediated by Pakistan in April broke down in July.

The site of the battle on the 2026 map. Shaded: Countries hit by major wars since 1979, Gaza and the West Bank.

Key facts

When: 2025 to 2026
Where: Iran and the Gulf
Sides: US and Israel vs Iran
Result: Ongoing as of October 2026
Type: Modern wars
Chapter: 7. The Modern Muslim World

The wider picture: Nation states and modern wars

Most Muslim lands won independence between the 1920s and the 1960s. Since then the region has seen more war than almost anywhere else: Israel's wars with its neighbours, two Afghan wars, the Iran Iraq war, American wars in Iraq, civil wars in Syria and Yemen, and in 2026 a war on Iran.

See the 2026 map Read chapter 7

More modern wars battles

All 18 modern wars in the muslim world battles · Battle explorer

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