Live Updates: Israeli Strikes Target Iran's Nuclear Program

New York Times

2 days ago

Iranians on top of a hill after strikes in Tehran, Iran, on Friday.
The Israeli military said it struck Iran early on Friday morning, attacking dozens of military targets, including nuclear sites, in different areas of the country.
The scale of the attacks and the damage they caused were not immediately clear. But the strikes raised fears that the long-simmering conflict between the two countries could escalate into an all-out war involving the most two powerful militaries in the Middle East.
Here's what to know about the situation:
What happened in Iran?
Explosions rocked Iran's capital, Tehran, early on Friday. Iran's state media showed blasts across the city, with smoke and fire billowing from buildings. The skies were quickly cleared of civilian flights.
Mohammad Jamali, who was standing on a roof in Tehran, said he could see two Israeli jets attacking an air base of the Revolutionary Guards. 'What I can see is two massive flames and smoke coming from two military bases in eastern Tehran,' he said.
A senior Iranian official said that a compound in Tehran where senior military commanders live, Shahrak Shahid Mahalati, had been attacked, and that three residential buildings had been demolished.
Residents in the Iranian cities of Isfahan, Arak and Kermanshah, which house military and industrial complexes, have also reported hearing explosions.
A senior Iranian official said Iranian fighter jets had taken off to respond to the strike.
Mehdi Rahmati, a conservative political analyst in Tehran, said, 'There is now a real chance of a regional war.'
Why did Israel say it attacked Iran?
Israeli officials said the strike was 'pre-emptive,' though there was no immediate indication that Iran was planning to attack. In a statement, the Israeli military said it acted 'in response to the Iranian regime's ongoing aggression against Israel' and suggested there would be more to come, calling its attack 'the first stage.'
An Israeli military official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity to comply with protocol, said the strikes had targeted elements of Iran's nuclear program and the regime's long-range missile capabilities.
He said that Iran has been advancing a secret program to assemble a nuclear weapon, according to Israeli intelligence, and that it has enough material to assemble 15 nuclear bombs within days. The official did not provide details to support the assessment.
Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, called Iran's nuclear program 'a clear and present danger to Israel's very survival' in a video statement. He said that Israel had also attacked Iran's main nuclear 'enrichment facility in Natanz,' as well as 'Iran's leading nuclear scientists.'
Was the United States involved?
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement that the United States was 'not involved in strikes against Iran.' He added that 'Israel advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its self-defense.'
Mr. Rubio warned Iran against any form of retaliation aimed at the U.S. forces in the region: 'Let me be clear: Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel.'
The Israeli strike followed months of disagreement between President Trump and Mr. Netanyahu over how to handle Iran. Mr. Trump has discouraged Israel from attacking Iran while U.S.-Iran nuclear talks are ongoing.
Hours before the attack, Mr. Trump said that an attack would likely destroy the chances for a diplomatic solution. 'I think it would blow it,' he said, before adding, 'might help it actually, but it could also blow it.'
Anticipating a regional escalation, the United States withdrew diplomats from Iraq on Wednesday and authorized the voluntary departure of families of U.S. soldiers posted elsewhere in the Middle East.
Some 40,000 U.S. military personnel are stationed in the Persian Gulf and elsewhere in the Middle East to defend American bases and interests in the region, including the defense of Israel. The aircraft carrier Carl Vinson, armed with F-35 attack planes, is steaming in the Arabian Sea.