Tehran fires 100 missiles at Tel Aviv; nuclear tensions rise
Iranian missiles struck Israel's Tel Aviv and the port city of Haifa before dawn on Monday, killing at least eight people and destroying homes, prompting Israel's defence minister to warn that Tehran residents would "pay the price and soon". Iran said its parliament was preparing a bill to leave the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), adding that Tehran remains opposed to developing weapons of mass destruction. Passing the bill could take several weeks. Israel is presumed to have a sizable nuclear arsenal but neither confirms nor denies it. It is the only Middle East state that has not signed the NPT. Israel's military, which has gutted Iran's nuclear and military leadership with airstrikes, said on Monday it had killed four senior intelligence officials, including the head of the Revolutionary Guards' intelligence unit.
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First Post
24 minutes ago
- First Post
Trump denied it, but what role did US play in Israeli strikes on Iran?
As missile exchanges escalate, conflicting accounts emerge over Washington's role in Israel's assault on Iran's nuclear infrastructure, according to a report read more The US has repeatedly denied any role in Israel's initial strike on Iran, a claim Tehran disputes, as missile exchanges between the two countries continue and fears grow of a broader escalation involving the world's most powerful military. Since Friday, the conflict has left hundreds dead and over a thousand wounded in Iran, while 19 people have been killed and hundreds injured in Israel as of Monday morning. Despite official denials, several reports suggest Washington may have played a more active role than acknowledged. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD According to a Time report, unnamed US officials told multiple news outlets on Sunday that President Donald Trump rejected an Israeli proposal to assassinate Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. 'Have the Iranians killed an American yet? No. Until they do we're not even talking about going after the political leadership,' Reuters quoted an official as saying. While Israel has denied any such plan, the reported rejection by Trump implies a degree of coordination between the US and Israel. The Israeli strike came during extended US-Iran negotiations over Tehran's nuclear programme. Although Trump has pushed for a diplomatic resolution, frequently citing his deal-making prowess, both Iran and Israel have ignored growing international calls for de-escalation and launched fresh attacks early Monday. Iran has vowed to retaliate against the US, too, while Trump has warned, 'If we are attacked in any way, shape, or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before.' Israel launched its offensive 'Operation Rising Lion' early on Friday, striking Iran's nuclear facilities, top military officials, and nuclear scientists. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Israeli leaders vowed the campaign would 'continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat' posed by Iran's nuclear programme. In response, Iran fired missiles at Tel Aviv and Jerusalem on Friday evening and has continued its retaliatory attacks since. Iran claims 'solid evidence' of US involvement Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claimed Tehran possesses 'solid evidence' that the US supported the Israeli strikes, reported Time. The Iranian Foreign Ministry echoed this in a statement, asserting the attacks 'could not have been carried out without coordination with and approval of the United States' and warning that Washington would be 'held responsible for the dangerous consequences of Israel's adventurism,' added the report. The US has firmly denied any involvement, a position the Trump administration has reiterated multiple times since the strikes began. 'We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region,' Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement issued shortly after the attacks began, calling Israel's actions a 'unilateral action.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Rubio acknowledged that Israel had informed the Trump administration ahead of the operation, a point both President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have since confirmed. In anticipation of the strike, the US evacuated embassy personnel across the region a day prior. In a Truth Social post on Friday, Trump urged Iran to 'make a deal' and hinted he was aware of 'the next already planned attacks,' which he warned would be 'even more brutal.' When asked later that day by The Wall Street Journal if Israel had given him advance notice, Trump replied, 'Heads-up? It wasn't a heads-up. It was, we know what's going on.' On Saturday night, after another wave of strikes, President Trump again said, 'The US had nothing to do with the attack on Iran, tonight.' While Israel's assault had been in the works for months, earlier reports suggested the Trump administration would steer clear, especially amid US efforts to revive nuclear talks with Tehran. 'Clear US green light' According to an Axios report on Friday, Israeli officials claimed the operation was in fact coordinated with Washington, alleging that while the US publicly distanced itself, it privately gave a 'clear US green light' According to multiple outlets including Reuters, AP, and CNN, US officials said they had been briefed on a credible Israeli plan to assassinate Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, and that the White House stepped in to block it. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's spokesperson, Omer Dostri, dismissed the reports as 'fake.' Asked on Fox News Sunday about the claim, Netanyahu responded, '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, we'll do what we need to do. And I think the United States knows what is good for the United States.' The conflicting narratives may reflect diverging priorities between Washington and Tel Aviv. Trita Parsi, executive vice president of the Quincy Institute, told NPR,' Clearly there had been coordination and some form of a green light' from the Trump administration. 'Trump is making a major gamble here, thinking that this actually will soften the Iranian position and make them capitulate,' Parsi was quoted as saying. 'If they don't, what are his options? And this is where I think the Israelis are hoping that the Iranians will not capitulate and that will force the United States into the war,' Parsi added. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD With inputs from agencies
Time of India
30 minutes ago
- Time of India
'It's basically Hitler's nuclear team': Netanyahu compares Iran's scientists to Nazis amid calls to target Khamenei
Trump rejected Israeli plan to kill Khamenei Live Events 'Hitler's nuclear team' On Iran, Trump, and America first Casualties mount, talks dismissed 'Not just our enemy, your enemy too' (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he is not ruling out targeting Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei , adding that such a move would bring the conflict to a close rather than inflame it.'It's not going to escalate the conflict, it's going to end the conflict,' Netanyahu told ABC News in a wide-ranging interview aired Monday. His remarks came amid reports that former US President Donald Trump had previously rejected an Israeli proposal to eliminate by ABC's Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl about those reports, Netanyahu neither confirmed nor denied them but reiterated, 'We will do what we need to do.'According to Reuters and CBS News, Israeli officials had recently informed the Trump administration of an opportunity to assassinate Khamenei. However, Trump is said to have vetoed the idea. One US official told CBS News, 'The Israelis had the opportunity… and Mr Trump conveyed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that it wasn't a good idea.'A second US source said, 'Have the Iranians killed an American yet? No. Until they do, we're not even talking about going after the political leadership.'When asked again about the story on Fox News, Netanyahu said, 'There's so many false reports of conversations that never happened and I'm not going to get into that.'A spokesperson for the Israeli PM later told CBS the reports were 'false,' though a separate Israeli official in Washington admitted that 'in principle,' Israel doesn't assassinate political leaders. 'We are focused on nuclear and military. I don't think anyone making decisions about those programs should be living free and easy,' the official said, suggesting Khamenei was fair his ABC interview, Netanyahu painted a stark picture of the Iranian regime.'We've targeted their top nuclear scientists,' he said, without naming individuals. 'It's basically Hitler's nuclear team.' He insisted Israel's actions were aimed at stopping Tehran's nuclear ambitions, not provoking war.'What Israel is doing is preventing this, bringing an end to this aggression,' he said. 'We can only do so by standing up to the forces of evil.'He claimed the Ayatollah-led regime had driven the Middle East towards what he called a 'forever war' and was bringing the world 'to the brink of nuclear war.'In a defence of his country's military campaign, Netanyahu invoked American security.'Today, it's Tel Aviv. Tomorrow, it's New York,' he said. 'Look, I understand 'America First'. I don't understand 'America Dead'. That's what these people want. They chant 'Death to America'.'He thanked former President Trump for backing Israel. 'That's what President Trump understands. Sometimes you have to take a stand against evil. And that's what the American people instinctively understand. Most of them, I have to say.'Trump himself has not publicly confirmed or denied the assassination reports. However, on Sunday he warned Tehran via Truth Social: 'If we are attacked in any way… the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before.'The conflict between Israel and Iran entered its fourth day on Monday. According to Iran's health ministry, Israeli strikes have killed at least 224 people and injured over 1,200. On the Israeli side, Iranian missile and drone attacks have killed 24 people and wounded nearly 600, according to Netanyahu's asked about a Wall Street Journal report that Iran is seeking to resume nuclear talks, Netanyahu dismissed it outright.'I'm not surprised,' he said. 'They want to continue to have these fake talks in which they lie, they cheat, they string the US along.'He added, 'They want to keep building their nuclear weapons and mass ballistic missile arsenal, which they're firing at our people. That's not going to happen.'Netanyahu also responded to criticism from American conservatives who argue the US should avoid entanglement in the Iran-Israel Carlson recently wrote, 'The United States should not at any level participate in a war with Iran.' But Netanyahu insisted that Iran threatens the world.'They chant 'Death to Israel, death to America',' he said. 'We're simply on their way. And this could reach America soon.''We're taking the action. America is supporting us in defence. Deeply, deeply appreciated,' he US State Department has since upgraded its travel advisory for Israel and the West Bank to Level 4: Do Not Travel.
News18
38 minutes ago
- News18
‘Will Turn The Night Into Day': Iran's Stark Warning As Israel Threatens Strikes ‘Everywhere'
Last Updated: The statement comes amid escalating hostilities between Iran and Israel, signalling the possibility of intensified retaliation from the Iranian side Israel-Iran Conflict: Iran's Supreme National Security Council issued a stark warning on Monday, declaring that its forces 'will turn tonight into a day" for the Israelis. The statement comes amid escalating hostilities between Iran and Israel, signalling the possibility of intensified retaliation from the Iranian side following a series of deadly airstrikes and missile exchanges between the two countries. On the other hand, Israel warned that its forces would strike 'everywhere" against the regime of Iranian 'dictator" Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, just moments after airstrikes that targeted Iran's state broadcasting headquarters in Tehran. The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) struck the headquarters of the Islamic Republic of Iran News Network (IRINN), operated by IRIB, abruptly halting its live broadcast. 'The propaganda and incitement broadcasting authority of the Iranian regime was attacked" by Israeli forces, Defense Minister Israel Katz said, noting that the strike came after a 'vast evacuation of residents in the area." He added: 'We will strike the Iranian dictator everywhere." Earlier in the day, Israel also targeted a military base in western Tehran, with explosions reported across multiple areas of the Iranian capital, according to Iran's Fars news agency. Israel's retaliation targeting Tehran came after Iran launched another barrage of missile strikes targeting Israel early on Monday, resulting in the deaths of at least eight people. 'They have to make a deal, and it's painful for both parties, but I'd say Iran is not winning this war, and they should talk, and they should talk immediately before it's too late," Trump told reporters at a G7 summit in Canada. Significantly, this follows a statement by Donald Trump just a day earlier, expressing hope that Israel and Iran could reach an agreement. Before departing for the G7 summit, he had also reiterated the United States' commitment to supporting Israel's defence. Israel and Iran continued exchanging deadly attacks for a fourth consecutive day on Monday, marking their most intense direct confrontation to date and raising concerns of a prolonged conflict that could destabilise the broader West Asia region. The two adversaries have long been engaged in a shadow war involving covert actions and proxy forces. Since October 2023, Israel has been fighting multiple Iran-aligned groups in the region, including Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Iran Wants Ceasefire? Iran has reportedly reached out to Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Oman, requesting them to urge Trump to leverage his influence over Israel to agree to an immediate ceasefire, according to two Iranian and three regional sources cited by Reuters. In return, Tehran is said to have signalled potential flexibility in stalled nuclear negotiations, indicating a willingness to re-engage diplomatically if hostilities with Israel are halted. The appeal underscores Iran's growing concern over the escalating conflict and reflects its efforts to seek regional mediation amid rising tensions. First Published: June 16, 2025, 22:57 IST
