Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said he expected the war against Iran was "not going to take years", as the conflict widens with Israel attacking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon and Iran hitting Gulf states that host US bases.

The Pentagon is playing down concerns that the attack on Iran risked plunging the US into a new, open-ended conflict in the Middle East, even as officials declined to give a timeline.

Israel launched new air strikes targeting Iran and expanded its assault to include attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon, as Tehran said it launched a new wave of missiles that had "opened the great gates of fire" on Israel.

Demonstrations against the US-Israeli bombing campaign in Iran turned violent in Pakistan and Iraq, while elsewhere Iranian exiles took to the streets to celebrate the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.