Monday, March 2, 2026 | Vol. 69 No. 125 | 26 Pages Reg.No MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 1541/1957 M.p.c.s office Mumbai. PIN 400001 THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL HAPPY HOLI WORLD TEEN MENTAL WELLNESS DAY INDIA EDITION | www.freepressjournal.in ● Leader in E-paper circulation l E-paper edition is not a replica of the print edition GAMES NATION Countdown for BJP’s exit has begun, says AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal Cinema Times are scary, very tough, says actress Esha Gupta Alyssa Healy smashes 158 in her last ODI to power Australia to 185-run victory over India Edit It’s validation for Kejriwal but is it enough for AAP’s revival? KHAMENEI KILLED, WAR ESCALATES Iran vows revenge, targets Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bahrain, Kuwait Agencies DUBAI Iran vowed revenge on Sunday after the killing of its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and traded strikes with Israel, which launched a new wave of strikes on Tehran. Hours after the US and Israel said an air strike killed Khamenei, Iran’s state media confirmed the 86-year-old leader had died. “You have crossed our red line and must pay the price,” Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, said in a televised address Sunday. “We will deliver such devastating blows that you yourselves will be driven to beg.” Trump warned that the US would hit Iran “with a force that has never been seen before” if it strikes back after the attacks on it. The US military said three service members were killed and five seri- 3 US soldiers killed in Iran op, 9 Israelis dead in Iran strikes Israel renews attacks, wave of strikes hits ‘heart of Tehran’ ously wounded in the Iran operation. US and Israeli strikes — and Iranian retaliation — sent shockwaves through sectors from shipping to air travel to oil, amid warnings of rising energy costs and disruption to business in the Gulf, a strategic waterway and global trade hub. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said a leadership council composed of himself, the judiciary head and a member of the powerful Guardians Council had temporarily assumed the duties of Khamenei. The US military said it had sunk an Iranian ship, while Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had launched an attack on the US aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln with four ballistic missiles, state media reported. 4Contd on | nation 4See also | money, nation, world, cinema Modi speaks to UAE prez PM Narendra Modi on Sunday spoke with UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and condemned the Iranian attacks on the West Asian nation. The PM also condemned the loss of lives and thanked the UAE president for taking care of the Indian community there. In a post on X, Modi said India wants peace in the region, and called for a de-escalation. "Strongly condemned the attacks on the UAE and condoled the loss of lives in these attacks. India stands in solidarity with the UAE in these difficult times," Modi said. China: Blatant killing “The blatant killing of the leader of a sovereign state and the incitement of regime change are unacceptable,” China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi said. “These actions violate international law and basic norms governing international relations.” Protests at US mission in Karachi, 10 dead PTI At least 10 people were killed, and several injured on Sunday as clashes broke out between police and protesters as they tried to storm the gates of the US consulate in Pakistan’s Karachi, following the killing of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a US-Israeli air strike. Dr Sumaiya Syed said so far TO OUR READERS The editorial, business and printing departments of The Free Press Journal are closed today on account of Holi. There will, therefore, be no edition of the newspaper dated March 03, 2026. Readers can access the epaper edition at https://epaper. freepressjournal.in/. From J&K to UP, anger in India. P9 10 bodies have been brought to the Civil Hospital, and some appeared to have bullet wounds. The protesters began gathering on the road leading to the consulate building as soon as Khamenei’s death was confirmed. Syed said that around 30 injured persons are getting No-fly zone: Dreams stranded at airport Dhairya Gajara Why 2 villages in Karnataka and UP are in mourning Vinay Madhava Gowda & Biswajeet Banerjee Inside the gleaming, high-ceilinged Terminal 2 of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) on Sunday morning, usually the busiest day of the week, the usual hum of global transit was replaced by a heavy, anxious stillness. Under treatment at the hospital’s trauma centre. The injured include four policemen. Senior police official, SSP Asad Reza, said the cops had to use tear gas shells and rubber bullets when the crowd attacked them. The police also baton-charged the crowd, but a protester later told a TV channel that they also opened fire. 4Contd on | nation Blast at Nagpur factory, 17 dead FPJ News Service NAGPUR the cold glow of flight information displays, travelers stood with their eyes fixed on the red text blinking across the boards declaring 'Cancelled'. For the second consecutive day, the escalating West Asia conflict paralysed India’s westbound air corridors. At least 17 persons were killed and 18 injured in a powerful explosion at an explosives manufacturing factory in Maharashtra’s Nagpur district on Sunday morning, officers said. The blast occurred at the SBL Energy Limited facility, a manufacturer of mining and industrial explosives, located in Raulgaon in Katol tehsil, about 50 km from the district headquarters, police said. Many of the victims were charred beyond recognition, prompting authorities to collect DNA samples from family members to establish their identities. 4See also | city 4Contd on | nation For the latest news, check https:// www.freepressjournal.in/ MUMBAI BENGALURU/LUCKNOW Divided by hundreds of kilometres yet united in grief, two villages in Karnataka and UP are mourning the killing of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Alipur, a small village about 100 km from Bengaluru in Gauribidanur taluk of Karnataka’s Chikkaballapura district, has declared a three-day mourning period. The village was draped in black flags, and residents held a protest march on Sunday afternoon, led by the Anjuman-e-Jafariya Committee. Khamenei had visited Alipur in 1986, a connection that continues to resonate with locals. A regional channel, Ali TV, regularly telecasts his sermons. 4Contd on | nation Play it again, Samson Unbeaten 97 powers India to semifinal against England Haridev Pushparaj MUMBAI Sanju Samson was the toast of the night for India playing the most significant knock of his T20I career with a fantastic 97 as the defending champions knocked out West Indies at a packed Eden Gardens by five wickets to enter the ICC Men's T20 World Cup semifinals, here on Sunday. India will now play England at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai in the second semifinal on March 5. Samson's 97 off 50 balls with Revolutionary Guards attack USS Abraham Lincoln with 4 missiles CIA intel fed Israel ‘precise operation’ Agencies JERUSALEM Iranian Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was targeted in a “precise, large-scale operation”, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said on Sunday, sharing details of the attack. The Israeli army said in a statement: “Ali Khamenei was targeted in a precise, largescale operation carried out by the Israeli Air Force, guided by accurate IDF intelligence, while he was in his central leadership compound in the heart of Tehran, where he was together with additional senior officials.” CIA had been tracking Khamenei for months, according to people familiar with the operation. It learned that Khamenei would attend a meeting of top Iranian officials on Saturday morning at a leadership compound in the heart of Tehran, NYT reports. US passed the CIA intelligence to Israel and the two countries, who had been planning the operation for months, decided to adjust the timing of their attack. They had originally planned to launch a strike at night under the cover of darkness. 4Contd on | nation US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Iran's new leadership wants to talk to him and that he has agreed, according to an interview with Atlantic magazine. "They want to talk, and I have agreed to talk, so I will be talking to them. They should have done it sooner. They should have given what was very practical and easy to do sooner. They waited too long," Trump said. He told Fox News that 48 Iranian officials were killed in the joint US-Israel strikes. Talking to CNBC, Trump said the operation in Iran was “moving along very well, very well, ahead of schedule.” “It’s a very violent regime, one of the most violent regimes in history,” Trump said. “We’re doing our job not just for us but for the world. And everything is ahead of schedule.” Cynical murder: Putin Russian President Vladimir Putin said the killing of Khamenei and members of his family was “cynical” murder that violated all the norms of human morality and international law. North Korea said Israel’s attacks on Iran and the US military operation were “illegal aggression”. KARACHI US military strikes Iranian warship at a port on Gulf of Oman READY TO TALK: TRUMP 12 fours and four massive sixes at a strike rate of 194 helped India top a challenging West Indies target of 196 as they finished with 199/5 in 19.2 overs. Tilak Varma chipped in with 27 off 15 with four boundaries and a six while Hardik Pandya gave Samson good company for a bit as they reached the business end of the chase with a 17 off 14 balls. Samson was unstoppable as he reached 69 off 39 balls with eight fours and three sixes at a strike rate of 176.92 with India at 136/3 after 14 overs and the team well placed to overhaul the West Indies target. 4Contd on | nation 4See also | games Who’ll be the new Supreme Leader? Agencies TEHRAN Alireza Arafi was appointed on Sunday as the jurist member of Iran’s Leadership Council, the body tasked with carrying out the supreme leader’s duties until the Assembly of Experts selects a successor. A cleric member of the Guardian Council, Arafi will serve on the temporary council alongside President Masoud Pezeshkian and Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei. Arafi, who was appointed to the Guardian Council in 2019 by late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, is also a member and deputy chairman of the Assembly of Experts, which is responsible for choosing the next leader. He heads Iran’s seminary system, leads the Basij paramilitary force and previously chaired Al-Mustafa International University in Qom. Described as tech-savvy and fluent in Arabic and English, he has authored 24 books and articles and is regarded as a seasoned cleric with experience across key institutions. 4Contd on | nation