Iran confirms damage at Natanz nuclear site, extent unknown
DUBAI: Iran's nuclear facility in Natanz was damaged in an Israeli attack on Friday, the country's atomic energy organisation said in a statement, but investigations have not shown any radioactive or chemical contamination outside the site.
'The attack has damaged several parts of the facility. Investigations are ongoing to assess the extent of damages,' the statement said.
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United News of India
23 minutes ago
- United News of India
US air defence systems involved in shooting down Iranian missiles: Reports
Jerusalem, June 14 (UNI) Israel received help from US air defence systems and a Navy destroyer in shooting down Iranian missiles launched in response to Israel's attack on Iran, The Washington Post reported, citing US officials. A US official told RIA Novosti on Friday that the United States was assisting Israel in shooting down Iranian missiles. Anonymous US officials told The Washington Post that the US has both ground-based Patriot missile defence systems and Terminal High Altitude Air Defence systems (THAAD) in the Middle East. American air defence systems, as well as a US Navy destroyer in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, were used to shoot down Iranian missiles heading toward Israel, the officials said. US fighter jets are also patrolling the sky in the Middle East and the US is shifting its military resources, including ships, in the region, The Washington Post reported. Iranian permanent representative to the United Nations Amir Saeid Iravani told the UN Security Council (UNSC) on Friday that Israel's aggression against Iran was intentional and fully backed by Washington. Iravani emphasized that Iran "will not forget that our people lost their lives as [a] result of the Israeli attacks with American weapons. These actions amount to a declaration of war." Iravani said that at least 78 people were killed and 320 others were injured as a result of Israel's strikes against Iran, which started in the early hours of Friday, as part of Operation Rising Lion. Attacks across Iran - including Tehran - killed top military officials and Iranian nuclear scientists. US Representative Pitt McCoy said on Friday during a UNSC meeting that the United States was informed about Israeli strikes against Iran ahead of time but was not militarily involved in the operation. Iran launched a counter-offensive, dubbed Operation True Promise 3, against military targets in Israel on Friday, in response to Israel's strikes. Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei has called Israel's attacks a crime and vowed Israel would face a "bitter and terrible fate." UNI SPUTNIK ARN PRS
Mint
24 minutes ago
- Mint
Strait of Hormuz: Will Tehran shut the vital oil artery of the world?
As tensions escalate following Israeli strikes on Iran, fears rise that Tehran could choke the Strait of Hormuz. However, patterns in history indicate that while there might be temporary disruption in maritime traffic, Iran might refrain from choking the Strait of Hormuz, as it will pinch its friends more than its enemies. Mint explains why the Strait of Hormuz is significant geopolitically, and economically and what it means for India and Iran-US talks. Why is the Strait of Hormuz significant geopolitically and economically? The Strait of Hormuz is significant for its strategic location. It lies between Oman and Iran, linking the sea passage from the countries on the Gulf (Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates) with the Arabian Sea and beyond. The strait is only 33 km wide at its narrowest point. According to available statistics, it sees roughly 20 million barrels per day of oil, and oil products shipments, and accounts for nearly one-fifth of global oil shipments. Further, one-third of the world's liquified natural gas LNG passes through the route. The maritime sea lanes, as the critical outlet for Gulf countries, are watched by the US Navy's Fifth Fleet based in Manama, Bahrain. The Strait of Hormuz is the vital oil artery for the world, and any disruptions, or even temporary closure, will send global oil shocks across the world. Also Read: India concerned about crude oil supply disruptions in Strait of Hormuz Will Tehran, or can Tehran, actually shut the Strait of Hormuz? With the Israeli air strikes on its military and nuclear establishments, Tehran has threatened to shut the Strait of Hormuz. But will it do so? Or is Iran using Hormuz as bargaining chip that leverages the fears of global oil shock and oil vulnerability of its friends, and enemies alike? While there could be some disruption- Iran might actually refrain from a full-scale blockade. There are three significant reasons why Iran might not actually do so, even while signalling that it might do so rhetorically. First, it will hurt Iran's friend, China, the world second-largest economy, and Iran's largest trading partner. China, is number one importer of oil, accounting for nearly three quarter of its oil export. So China, will not like to see any disruption in its maritime oil shipments, and might actually use its economic leverage with Iran to prevent Iran from closure of the narrow lane. Second, it will rupture Iran's relationship with Oman (which owns the southern half of the strait) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC States). With Oman, careful crafting of a relationship has resulted in greater dependency for Iran on wide-ranging issues. Further, Oman has been a strong advocate of freedom of navigation in the sea passage. On the other hand, while there has been a history of difficult relationships between GCC states, in the recent past there has been a détente of sorts, and Iran risks a fallout if it was to close the Strait of Hormuz. Third, domestically this might not work for the interest of the regime, as any economic hits or closure of its oil exporting terminal, will see a surge in prices, and fuel popular discontent, which might impact both regime stability, and reformist tendencies for President Masoud Pezeshkian. Also Read: Javier Blas: An Israel-Iran war may not rattle the oil market Where does this leave US-Iran talk? The US is giving clear indications that it will attend Sunday's talks with Iran in Oman with a focus on limiting Iran's ability to build a nuclear bomb- a move that Iran has vehemently resisted. While the US claims it has no role or remains unaware of Israel's strikes on Tehran, the timing of the strikes raises a pertinent question. This comes just before the crucial 15 June talks between the US and Iran in Oman. While the US and Trump deny any role, it remains doubtful that Netanyahu and Israel would act without a green signal from the US. So, it seems the attacks serve a dual purpose, for the US, it pushes Tehran to re-engage in talks with the US that it has put on the slow burner in the past few weeks. For Israel, a tacit US support in any case works, given it sees Iran, and its nuclear programme as an existential threat. Further, Netanyahu, would anyway want to see the collapse of the deal between US and Iran, and has for the longest time opposed it. However, despite strategic denials by the US, the killing of Iranian nuclear scientists, and the reported wounding of one of its negotiators many actually convince a anyways belligerent to Iran, to walk down the path towards a nuclear weapon to build its own nuclear deterrence. Will China rein in Iran? In the recent past, China has strategically drawn in Iran into the Belt and Road Initiative, which Tehran joined in 2019. China has been working to build new connectivity opportunities, for instance, railway projects for Iran that serve two significant aims: first, it provides opportunities for bringing in Central Asian countries and Iran into the connectivity matrix. And second, it helps counter US hegemony, and can offset the US sanctions that are imposed time and again. In the moment of the current crisis, if Hormuz is choked, China will be hit, given it's the largest exporter of Iranian Oil. So China, might actually reign in Iran, given its impending economic interest, and disruption in global oil supply chain, will impede its own economic interest first and foremost. Also Read | Israel's war on Iran to hit Indian workforce What will this mean for India? For India, over two-thirds of its oil imports and nearly half of its liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports transit through the Strait of Hormuz. This surely puts India in a tight spot, given that any disruption in the global supply chain will hit India, particularly in the LNG sector—given that it imports a major chunk of its LNG from Qatar and UAE. According to available reports, January-November 2024, India imported 9.82 million tonnes of LNG from Qatar, which accounted for 38.8 per cent of India's overall LNG imports. So a closure of Strait of Hormuz through which a chunk of LNG exported by Qatar and UAE passes, will hit countries like India. Further, in the recent past, India has strengthened strategic ties with Israel, particularly in the sectors of defence, intelligence, and technology. So for India, it is tightrope walk, given the need to do balancing act between Israel, and Iran. Further in terms of India's connectivity interest. both Chabahar port and IMEC corridor anyways stand in a freeze mode, given the ever growing tensions between Israel, and Iran. Shweta Singh is associate professor, Department of International Relations, Faculty of International Studies, South Asian University
Scoop
27 minutes ago
- Scoop
The West's War On Iran
I have visited Iran twice. Once in June 1980 to witness an unprecedented event: the world's first Islamic Revolution. It was the very start of my writing career. The second time was in 2018 and part of my interest was to get a sense of how disenchanted the population was - or was not - with life under the Ayatollahs decades after the creation of the Islamic Republic. I loved my time in Iran and found ordinary Iranians to be such wonderful, cultured and kind people. When I heard the news today of Israel's attack on Iran I had the kind of emotional response that should never be seen in public. I was apoplectic with rage and disgust, I vented bitterly and emotively. Then I calmed down. And here is what I would like to say. Just last week former CIA officer Ray McGovern, who wrote daily intelligence briefings for the US President during his 27-year career, reminded me when I interviewed him that the assessment of the US intelligence community has been for years that Iran ceased its nuclear weapons programme in 2003 and had not recommenced since. The departing CIA director William Burns confirmed this assessment recently. Propaganda aside, there is nothing new other than a US-Israeli campaign that has shredded any concept of international laws or norms. I won't mince words: what we are witnessing is the racist, genocidal Israeli regime, armed and encouraged by the US, Germany, UK and other Western regimes, launching a war that has no justification other than the expansion of Israeli power and the advancement of its Greater Israel project. This year, using American, German and British armaments, supported by underlings like Australia and New Zealand, the Israelis have pursued their genocide against the Palestinians in both the West Bank and Gaza, and attacked various neighbours, including Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, Iraq and Iran. They represent a clear and present danger to peace and stability in the region. Iran has operated with considerable restraint but has also shown its willingness to use its military to keep the US-Israeli menace at bay. What most people forget is that the project to secure Iran's borders and keep the likes of the British, Israelis and Americans out is a multi-generational project that long predates the Islamic Revolution. I would recommend 'Iran: A modern history' by the US-based scholar Abbas Amanat that provides a long-view of the evolution of the Iranian state and how it has survived centuries of pressure and multiple occupations from imperial powers, including Russia, Britain, the US and others. The country was raped by the Brits and the Americans and has won a hard-fought independence that is being seriously challenged, not from within, but by the Israelis and the Western warlords who have wrecked so many countries and killed millions of men, women and children in the region over recent decades. I spoke and messaged with Iranian friends today both in Iran and in New Zealand and the response was consistent. They felt, one of them said, 10 times more hurt and emotional than I did. Understandable. A New Zealand-based Iranian friend had to leave work as soon as he heard the news. He scanned Iranian social media and found people were upset, angry and overwhelmingly supportive of the government. 'They destroyed entire apartment buildings! Why?', 'People will be very supportive of the regime now because they have attacked civilians.' 'My parents are in the capital. I was so scared for them.' Just a couple of years ago scholars like Professor Amanat estimated that core support for the regime was probably only around 20%. That was my impression too when I visited in 2018. Israel and the US have changed that. Nationalism and an existential menace will see Iranians rally around the flag. Something I learnt in Iran, in between visiting the magnificent ruins of the capital of the Achaemenid Empire at Persepolis, exploring a Zoroastrian Tower of Silence, chowing down on insanely good food in Yazd, talking with a scholar and then a dissident in Isfahan, and exploring an ancient Sassanian fort and a caravanserai in the eastern desert, was that the Iranians are the most politically astute people in the region. Many I spoke to were quite open about their disdain for the regime but none of them sought a counter-revolution. They knew what that would bring: the wolves (the Americans, the Israelis, the Saudis, and other bad actors) would slip in and tear the country apart. Slow change is the smarter option when you live in this neighbourhood. Iranians are overwhelmingly well-educated, profoundly courteous and kind, and have a deep sense of history. They know more than enough about what happened to them and to so many other countries once a great power sees an opening. War is a truly horrific thing that always brings terrible suffering to ordinary people. It is very rarely justified. Iran was actively negotiating with the Americans who, we now know, were briefed on the attack in advance and will possibly join the attack in the near future. US senators are baying for Judeo-Christian jihad. Democrat senator John Fetterman was typical: 'Keep wiping out Iranian leadership and the nuclear personnel. We must provide whatever is necessary—military, intelligence, weaponry—to fully back Israel in striking Iran.' We should have the moral and intellectual honesty to see the truth: Our team, Team Genocide, are the enemies of peace and justice. I wish the Iranian people peace and prosperity. Eugene Doyle Eugene Doyle is a writer based in Wellington. He has written extensively on the Middle East, as well as peace and security issues in the Asia Pacific region. He hosts the public policy platform
