While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, June 14, 2025
Fire and smoke rising from a building in central Tel Aviv, after it was reportedly hit by a missile fired from Iran, on June 13. PHOTO: AFP
While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, June 14, 2025
Iran fires back at Israel after targeting of nuclear facilities
Iran fired a barrage of ballistic missiles at Israel in a counter-strike on June 13, after an unprecedented onslaught hammered the Islamic republic's top military brass and targeted its nuclear facilities and bases.
Iran said it had activated its air-defence system on the night of June 13 and explosions could be heard on the night of June 13 across Tehran, AFP reporters said.
Air raids sirens and explosions rang out across Israel after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to the airwaves to warn he expected 'several waves of Iranian attacks' in response.
Smoke could later be seen billowing above the skyscrapers in downtown Tel Aviv, an AFP journalist reported, as Iran's Revolutionary Guard said it had attacked dozens of targets in Israel.
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Israel used long-planned subterfuge in Iran attack
Israel sent Mossad commandos deep into Iran to destroy Iranian weapons systems during Israel's attack on nuclear and military targets, an Israeli security source said, while another official said Israel used a ploy to suggest the strike was not imminent.
The Israeli officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the clandestine nature of the operations, described secret and lengthy preparations that went into an attack that sent oil prices sharply higher on fears of regional escalation.
Iranian officials who spoke to Reuters shortly before the attack had been dismissive about any imminent action and repeatedly said talk of strikes was just 'psychological pressure' to influence US-Iranian nuclear negotiations that were due on June 15.
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War, trade, Air India crash cast cloud over Paris Air Show
War, tariffs and the Air India crash will cast a shadow over the Paris Air Show as the aerospace industry's biggest annual gathering opens on June 16.
More than 2,400 companies from 48 countries are showing off their hardware at the week-long event at Le Bourget airfield on the outskirts of Paris.
The sales rivalry between Airbus and Boeing usually drives the headlines as the world's top civilian planemakers announce many of their biggest orders at the air show.
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Two men jailed for stealing $7m, 18-carat gold toilet
Two men were jailed on June 13 for stealing an 18-carat golden toilet that had been on display as an artwork in an exhibition at Sir Winston Churchill's birthplace.
The fully functioning toilet - a work titled America, by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan - was stolen from the Churchill family seat of Blenheim Palace in southern England, a major tourist attraction and Unesco World Heritage Site.
Prosecutor Julian Christopher told jurors at the start of the trial at Oxford Crown Court in February that a group of five men had driven two stolen vehicles through locked wooden gates into the palace grounds before dawn on Sept 14, 2019.
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Zheng beats Raducanu at Queen's after change of shoes
Top seed Zheng Qinwen beat home favourite Emma Raducanu 6-2 6-4 to move into the semi-finals at the Queen's Club Championships on June 13, while 37-year-old Tatjana Maria upset 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina to reach the last four.
In an entertaining battle at the Andy Murray Arena, Zheng showed she could be a worthy contender heading into Wimbledon as she marched into her first semi-final on grass when she converted her fourth match point.
Zheng has won singles titles on clay and hardcourts but she is still adapting to grass, with the 22-year-old showing a marked improvement in her match with Raducanu after she changed her shoes midway through a game when the Briton was serving.
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Straits Times
16 minutes ago
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Trump vetoed Israeli plan to kill Iran's supreme leader, US officials say
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as he attends a military parade to commemorate the U.S. Army's 250th Birthday, on the day of his 79th birthday, in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 14, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo FILE PHOTO: Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei looks on, in a televised message following the Israeli strikes in Tehran, Iran, June 13, 2025. Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump vetoed an Israeli plan in recent days to kill Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Sunday. "Have the Iranians killed an American yet? No. Until they do we're not even talking about going after the political leadership," said one of the sources, a senior U.S. administration official. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said top U.S. officials have been in constant communications with Israeli officials in the days since Israel launched a massive attack on Iran in a bid to halt its nuclear program. They said the Israelis reported that they had an opportunity to kill the top Iranian leader, but Trump waved them off of the plan. The officials would not say whether Trump himself delivered the message. But Trump has been in frequent communications with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. When asked about Reuters report, Netanyahu, in an interview on Sunday with Fox News Channel's "Special Report With Bret Baier," said: "There's so many false reports of conversations that never happened, and I'm not going to get into that." "But I can tell you, I think that we do what we need to do, we'll do what we need to do. And I think the United States knows what is good for the United States," Netanyahu said. Trump has been holding out hope for a resumption of U.S.-Iranian negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program. Talks that had been scheduled for Sunday in Oman were canceled as a result of the strikes. Trump told Reuters on Friday that "we knew everything" about the Israeli strikes. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Trump tells ABC ‘it's possible' US gets involved in Iran-Israel conflict
US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after walking off Air Force One on June 10, at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. PHOTO: AFP Trump tells ABC 'it's possible' US gets involved in Iran-Israel conflict WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump told a news network June 15 the United States could become involved in the Iran-Israel conflict, and that he would be 'open' to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin being a mediator. The Republican president, according to ABC News, also said talks over Iran's nuclear programme were continuing and that Tehran would 'like to make a deal,' perhaps more quickly now that the Islamic republic is trading massive strikes with Israel. 'It's possible we could get involved' in the ongoing battle between the Middle East arch-foes, Mr Trump said in an off-camera interview with ABC News senior political correspondent Rachel Scott that was not previously publicised. He stressed that the United States is 'not at this moment' involved in the military action. As for Mr Putin being a potential mediator in the conflict: 'He is ready. He called me about it. We had a long talk about it,' Mr Trump said. Israel and Iran traded heavy aerial assaults for a third straight day June 15, with casualties mounting following Israel's large-scale attacks aimed at crippling Iran's nuclear and military infrastructure, sparking retaliation. Oman, which has acted as a mediator on the nuclear issue, has said a sixth round of talks between Iran and the United States planned for this weekend had been cancelled. But Mr Trump said the two sides were continuing discussions. 'No, there's no deadline' on negotiations, he told ABC when asked whether there was a time limit for Tehran to come to the table. 'But they are talking. They'd like to make a deal. They're talking. They continue to talk,' Mr Trump said, according to Ms Scott. Mr Trump suggested that something like the clash between Israel and Iran 'had' to happen to spur talks on a nuclear agreement. It 'may have forced a deal to go quicker, actually,' Mr Trump said. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Israel's strikes on Iran were years in the making: Analysts
Fire of Israeli attack on Sharan Oil depot is seen following the Israeli strikes on Iran, in Tehran, on June 15. PHOTO: REUTERS Israel's strikes on Iran were years in the making: Analysts PARIS - Israel's unprecedented strikes on Iran, which have killed top military leaders and nuclear scientists, required years of meticulous intelligence gathering and infiltration, experts say. Israel said it hit hundreds of targets on June 13 alone, and has since continued its attacks, striking a defence facility and fuel depots on June 15 . The fiercest-ever exchange of fire between the arch foes came in the midst of ongoing talks between Tehran and Washington seeking to reach a deal on Iran's nuclear programme. 'Israel has been following the nuclear programme for 15 years,' Israeli analyst Michael Horowitz told AFP. 'The strikes we see are the result of years of intelligence gathering and infiltration of the Islamic republic.' Israel has previously carried out more limited attacks against Iranian military sites, including in October 2024. 'It seems that this week's operation had been in preparation for months, with an acceleration after the operation last year significantly weakened Iranian air defences,' Mr Horowitz said. The United States and other Western countries, along with Israel, accuse Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon. Tehran denies that, but has gradually broken away from its commitments under a 2015 nuclear deal it struck with world powers, which the United States withdrew from during President Donald Trump's first term. The landmark accord had provided Iran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its atomic programme. 'Impressive' precision Israel is long believed to have carried out sabotage operations inside Iran through its Mossad espionage agency, but the attacks that started on June 13 are by far the broadest in scope. The campaign has shown Israel to be capable of precisely locating and taking out high-ranking Iranian officials and nuclear scientists. A European security source said the strikes showed 'an impressive degree of precision and mastery'. Israel says it has killed 20 military and security targets, including the armed forces' chief of staff and the head of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, as well as nine nuclear scientists. Mr Danny Citrinowicz, of the Tel Aviv-based Institute for National Security Studies, said the ability to take out high-ranking officials showed 'intelligence, but also operational superiority of Israel over Iran'. 'It's highly connected to the ability to collect information, intelligence in Iran for years, excellent intelligence that actually allows you to detect where they're living, the seniors, also the nuclear scientists,' he told AFP. The latest targeted strikes come after Israel killed Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, in a Tehran guesthouse in July 2024 . Haniyeh had been in town for the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and was reportedly killed by an explosive device that Israeli operatives had placed in the guesthouse weeks before. Analysts at the time saw the attack as a major intelligence failure by Iran. But 'still Iran didn't learn and didn't have the ability to lock the holes in their system', said Mr Citrinowicz. Smuggled drone News site Axios reported that Mossad agents inside Iran helped prepare the J une 13 strikes, pre-positioning weapon systems near air defence targets, including by hiding them inside vehicles, and launching them when the attack started. An Israeli intelligence official told Axios that Mossad had 'established an attack drone base inside Iran with drones that were smuggled in long before the operation'. A former Israeli intelligence official told The Atlantic that 'Iranians opposed to the regime make for a ready recruiting pool', and that 'Iranians working for Israel were involved in efforts to build a drone base inside the country'. Mr Alain Chouet, the former number three in the French intelligence, said he was convinced Israel had 'half a dozen cells capable of acting at any moment' inside Iran. Iran regularly executes people it accuses of spying for Israel. It is unclear what role, if any, Israel's key military and diplomatic ally the United States had in the latest strikes. Before the attack early on June 13 , Mr Trump publicly urged Israel to allow time for diplomacy, as a sixth round of US-Iranian nuclear talks were set to be held in Oman at the weekend. The US president on June 15 said Washington 'had nothing to do' with ally Israel's campaign. But Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on June 15 said Tehran had 'solid proof of the support of the American forces and American bases in the region' for the attacks. And Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on June 14 his country was acting with 'the clear support of the president of the United States'. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
