US warship reported heading toward Mideast as Iran, Israel fight
At 13:45 GMT, the carrier was traveling through the Malacca Strait toward the Indian Ocean, according to Marine Traffic, a ship-tracking site.
A Vietnamese government official confirmed to AFP that a planned reception aboard the USS Nimitz on June 20, as part of the ship's expected June 19-23 visit to Danang, had been cancelled.
The official shared a letter from the US embassy announcing that the Defense Department was cancelling the event due to "an emergent operational requirement."
The US Embassy in Hanoi declined to comment to AFP, as did a spokesman for the Nimitz.
The movement of one of the world's largest warships came on day four of the escalating air war between Israel and Iran, with no end in sight despite international calls for de-escalation.
Israel's strikes have so far killed at least 224 people, including top military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians, according to Iranian authorities.
In retaliation, Iran said it had struck Israel with a salvo of missiles and warned of "effective, targeted and more devastating operations" to come.
US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Monday said that Iran's missile barrage had lightly damaged a building used by the American embassy in Tel Aviv.
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Euronews
38 minutes ago
- Euronews
Israel strikes Iran's 'propaganda' TV station during live broadcast
An Iranian state television reporter had to stop a live broadcast on Monday when an explosion occurred an hour after Israel issued a warning to evacuate the area of Tehran where the TV studios are located. Smoke was seen rising from at least three sites in the Iranian capital. The reporter for the Islamic Republic of Iran News Network said the studio was filling with dust after "the sound of aggression against the homeland, the sound of aggression against truth and righteousness." Anchor Sahar Emami rushed off-camera as the screen behind her cut out and people were heard saying "Allahu akbar," Arabic for God is great. The broadcast quickly switched to pre-recorded programmes. Later, state TV aired live video of the building on fire. Soon, Emami came back live from another studio and was seen speaking with another anchor. She said that "bodies of reporters" were at the site of the initial broadcast, and images showed smoke and flames in the sky. Israel's defence minister Israel Katz took credit for the attack as he called it a strike on the "propaganda broadcast authority." "The Iranian regime's propaganda and incitement broadcasting authority was attacked by the IDF after a widespread evacuation of the area's residents. We will strike the Iranian dictator everywhere," he said in a statement. An hour earlier, the Israeli military had issued an evacuation warning affecting up to 330,000 people in a part of central Tehran that includes the country's state TV and police headquarters, as well as three major hospitals. In response to the attack, Iran also issued evacuation warnings for Israeli news channels, Iranian state TV reported. The attack came on the fourth day of the escalating conflict, as the IDF claimed it had achieved air superiority above the Iranian capital and could fly over the city without facing major threats. Israel and Iran exchanged a barrage of airstrikes on Monday, the fourth day of fighting in an escalating conflict that began after an unprecedented Israeli attack on Tehran last week. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the aerial attack targeting Iran's nuclear, missile, and military complex that his forces carried out early Friday was an operation to "roll back" the Iranian threat to Israel's survival. According to a former Israeli spokesperson, Eylon Levy, the current Israeli campaign may go on longer than expected. Speaking in an interview with Euronews, Levy said, "We are likely to be looking at several weeks at least of Israeli military action because the Iranian regime's nuclear program is massive." "Let's remember the Iranian Regime hasn't built one or two reactors to develop uranium for medical isotopes or civilian energy. It built its nuclear facilities often underground; Fordow is under a mountain because it's part of a nuclear weapons programme." Levy added that Iran began the war with 360 ballistic missile launchers. Israel has destroyed one-third of them, he said. "It started with 2,000 ballistic missiles. Most of them are still intact. So this is going to take Israel time to neutralise the regional threat of the Iranian regime, but so far, Israel has been working very quickly," Levy explained. As of Monday afternoon, at least 220 people have been killed across Iran by Israeli strikes, while the death toll from Iran's missile strikes in Israel was at least 24. As concerns about the conflict widening into a regional war grow, Iran has said it won't negotiate a ceasefire while under Israeli attack. But Levy believes Tehran is not in any position right now to dictate the terms of a negotiation. "Israel has killed the head of its military, the head of its air force, and the intelligence; it's taken out a third of its ballistic missile launchers, and it controls the skies of Iran, and it is bombing Iran's illegal nuclear weapons facilities at will," he said. "If the Iranian regime wants to peacefully dismantle the enrichment program it built in order to build nuclear weapons in order to destroy Israel, it is welcome to do so. But it's not going to get an unconditional ceasefire so that it can go back to dragging out time and holding fake negotiations while racing towards a nuclear bomb". Tehran accuses the United States of being complicit in Israel's attacks on the Islamic Republic, something Washington denies, despite conflicting statements from US President Donald Trump. During late Friday's emergency session at the United Nations Security Council, the US urged Tehran that it would "be wise" to negotiate over its nuclear programme.
Local France
41 minutes ago
- Local France
France shuts Israeli weapons booths at Paris Air Show
The decision added drama to the major aerospace industry event, which was already under the shadow of last week's deadly crash of Air India's Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Black walls were installed around the stands of five Israeli defence firms at the trade fair in Le Bourget, an airfield on the outskirts of Paris. The booths displayed "offensive weapons" that could be used in Gaza - in violation of agreements with Israeli authorities, a French government source told AFP. Advertisement The companies - Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Rafael, Uvision, Elbit and Aeronautics - make drones and guided bombs and missiles. An Israeli exhibitor wrote a message in yellow chalk on one of the walls, saying the hidden defence systems "are protecting the state of Israel these days. The French government, in the name of discrimination is trying to hide them from you!" French Prime Minister François Bayrou defended the decision during a Monday press conference at the air show. "The French government's position was very simple: no offensive weapons at the arms exposition," he said. "Defensive weapons were perfectly acceptable," he added. Bayrou cited the ongoing conflict in Gaza as the rationale behind the ban. "Given the situation in Gaza... which is extremely serious from a humanitarian and security point of view, France was keen to make it clear that offensive weapons should not be present at this exposition," Bayrou said. Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he was shocked by the "outrageous" closure of the pavilions and said the situation should be "immediately corrected". "Israeli companies have signed contracts with the organisers... it's like creating an Israeli ghetto," he said on French television channel LCI. The Israeli defence ministry said in a statement that the "outrageous and unprecedented decision reeks of policy-driven and commercial considerations". Advertisement "The French are hiding behind supposedly political considerations to exclude Israeli offensive weapons from an international exhibition - weapons that compete with French industries," it said. "This is particularly striking given Israeli technologies' impressive and precise performance in Iran." Israel launched surprise strikes on Iranian military and nuclear sites on Friday, killing top commanders and scientists, prompting Tehran to hit back with a barrage of missiles. The presence of Israeli firms at Le Bourget, though smaller than in the past, was already a source of tension before the start of the Paris Air Show, because of the conflict in Gaza. A French court last week rejected a bid by NGOs to ban Israeli companies from Le Bourget over concerns about "international crimes". Advertisement Local lawmakers from the Seine-Saint-Denis department hosting the event were absent during Bayrou's visit to the opening of the air show in protest over the Israeli presence. "Never has the world been so disrupted and destabilised," Bayrou said earlier at a roundtable event, urging nations to tackle challenges "together, not against each other". The row over Israel cast a shadow over a trade fair that is usually dominated by displays of the aerospace industry's latest flying wonders, and big orders for plane makers Airbus and Boeing. Airbus announced an order of 30 single-aisle A320neo jets and 10 A350F freighters by Saudi aircraft leasing firm AviLease. The European manufacturer also said Riyadh Air was buying 25 long-range, wide-body A350-1000 jets. But Boeing chief executive Kelly Ortberg last week cancelled plans to attend the biennial event, to focus on the investigation of the Air India crash. "Our focus is on supporting our customers, rather than announcing orders at this air show," a Boeing spokeswoman told AFP on Monday. The London-bound Dreamliner crashed shortly after take-off in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad, killing 241 passengers and crew and another 38 on the ground. One passenger survived.
Euronews
2 hours ago
- Euronews
IDF military campaign may last for weeks, former Israeli official says
Israel and Iran exchanged a barrage of airstrikes on Monday, the fourth day of fighting in an escalating conflict that began after an unprecedented Israeli attack on Tehran last week. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the aerial attack targeting Iran's nuclear, missile, and military complex that his forces carried out early Friday was an operation to "roll back" the Iranian threat to Israel's survival. According to a former Israeli spokesperson, Eylon Levy, the current Israeli campaign may go on longer than expected. Speaking in an interview with Euronews, Levy said, "We are likely to be looking at several weeks at least of Israeli military action because the Iranian regime's nuclear program is massive." "Let's remember the Iranian Regime hasn't built one or two reactors to develop uranium for medical isotopes or civilian energy. It built its nuclear facilities often underground; Fordow is under a mountain because it's part of a nuclear weapons programme." Levy added that Iran began the war with 360 ballistic missile launchers. Israel has destroyed one-third of them, he said. "It started with 2,000 ballistic missiles. Most of them are still intact. So this is going to take Israel time to neutralise the regional threat of the Iranian regime, but so far, Israel has been working very quickly," Levy explained. As of Monday afternoon, at least 220 people have been killed across Iran by Israeli strikes, while the death toll from Iran's missile strikes in Israel was at least 24. As concerns about the conflict widening into a regional war grow, Iran has said it won't negotiate a ceasefire while under Israeli attack. But Levy believes Tehran is not in any position right now to dictate the terms of a negotiation. "Israel has killed the head of its military, the head of its air force, and the intelligence; it's taken out a third of its ballistic missile launchers, and it controls the skies of Iran, and it is bombing Iran's illegal nuclear weapons facilities at will," he said. "If the Iranian regime wants to peacefully dismantle the enrichment program it built in order to build nuclear weapons in order to destroy Israel, it is welcome to do so. But it's not going to get an unconditional ceasefire so that it can go back to dragging out time and holding fake negotiations while racing towards a nuclear bomb". Tehran accuses the United States of being complicit in Israel's attacks on the Islamic Republic, something Washington denies, despite conflicting statements from US President Donald Trump. During late Friday's emergency session at the United Nations Security Council, the US urged Tehran that it would "be wise" to negotiate over its nuclear programme. Germany has announced it is increasing security around Israeli and Jewish sites within its borders due to growing concerns about potential attacks from Iran. France has also put similar measures in place. Amichai Chikli, Israel's Minister for Diaspora Affairs, spoke to Euronews, warning that the threat to Jewish communities and Israeli embassies is now greater than ever. "It is obvious that after we managed to hit the top leadership of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, they would want revenge and to hit Israeli embassies, [and] Jewish communities, and therefore we need to be much more alert than usual," Chikli said. "We are monitoring everything we can based on OSINT. And obviously we have security services who are working with foreign security services to make sure that embassies, Jewish community centres are being protected." The recent protests in Brussels have raised alarm for the safety of the Jewish community in Belgium. At least 75,000 people participated in the "red line" protests against Israel's actions in Gaza on Sunday. Chikli expressed his concerns regarding the violence and anti-Semitic sentiment visible during the march. "We are highly concerned about what's happening now in Belgium. We see violent demonstrations. We see signs of 'wanted people' against Jewish leaders, rabbis in the streets of Belgium and we've seen no condemnation. We've seen no action from the authorities in Belgium and we hope that we will be able to see more serious steps to protect the Jewish community in Belgium," Chikli said. In response to Israel's recent attack on Iran, EU leaders have called for restraint and diplomacy. The President of the European Commission reaffirmed Israel's right to defend itself and protect its citizens, while urging all parties to work towards a peaceful resolution.
