Caitlyn Jenner flees Israel amid Iran missile attacks and praises President Trump: 'Bye bye terrorists'
Caitlyn Jenner fled Israel Saturday amid ongoing missile attacks from Iran.
The Olympic gold medalist, 75, departed the area, after sharing snippets of her trip via social media, according to the Times of Israel.
The Mount Kisco, New York-born celebrity said on X Saturday: 'What an incredible way it has been to celebrate Shabbat.
'I am here in Israel, in Tel Aviv with you all. I am a friend, advocate, ally, and thank you to the Israeli people for making me family. We will prevail and liberate the poor Iranian people held hostage by terrorist thugs!'
She added: 'The leadership by @IsraeliPM Bibi, and Israel's closest ally President @realDonaldTrump will not allow this reckless violence towards so many continue. Israeli jets overhead in Iran now. (Bye bye terrorists).
'We will liberate Irans citizens Thank you to all allies! PEACE FOR ALL!'
Jenner and conservative CNN commentator Scott Jennings appeared in good spirits as they shared snaps from inside an Israeli bomb shelter and hotel, seeking refuge while bombs rained down in Tel Aviv.
A group of Americans visiting Israel - including the former Olympian and conservative commentator - were prevented from leaving the country on Friday, as the military strike against Iran and the ensuing retaliatory effort locked down the nation's airports.
Jennings, 47, was on his first ever trip to the region, visiting major cities such as Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, as well as kibbutz Nir Oz - the site of the Nova music festival massacre on October 7, 2023, according to Hollywood Reporter.
But on Friday, Iran launched a barrage of ballistic missiles at Israel in revenge for strikes on its nuclear sites, prompting a state of emergency and the forced closure of airports amid the escalation.
The next day, as Jennings prepped for a remote CNN interview from his hotel, he received the first emergency alert on his phone.
'I stood out on the balcony in my hotel and watched,' he told the Hollywood Reporter. 'In fact, I'm looking at a military jet fly overhead right now.'
'Airspace is closed, airports are closed,' he added. 'The thing we know the least about is how are we going to get out of here.'
The Israeli military subsequently warned citizens to take cover in bomb shelters on Friday evening, noting that 'dozens' of Iranian ballistic missiles were en route to Israel.
Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept missiles over Tel Aviv, Israel, after Iran launched a barrage of ballistic missiles at the region in revenge for strikes on its nuclear sites on Thursday evening
Hours later, Jennings posted a video to X, capturing the view outside his window: missiles streaking through an orange-hued sky as air raid sirens blared in the background.
During the video, Jennings counted three missiles that appeared to be intercepted in midair.
'Air raid sirens in Tiberias, Israel just after 5am,' he captioned the post. 'Missiles visible in the sky. Incoming from Iran.'
Jenner, 75, traveled to Tel Aviv last week to headline Friday's Pride parade, and posted photos of herself in some of the region's most iconic spots - including Jerusalem's Western Wall - just before the unrest began.
In her posts, she expressed support for the country.
'I am excited to share that I will be in Israel this week,' she wrote 'I'm visiting the resilient people of Israel as the nation continues to recover and restore its place in the Middle East. Stay tuned!'
'My heart is here, with the beautiful people, in Israel,' she wrote on another post.
But the night before the parade, Israel carried out its military strike against Iran, prompting organizers to cancel the parade out of safety concerns.
Similar to Jennings, the former reality TV star ended up stranded in the country as the airports shut down, Daily Mail exclusively revealed.
As ballistic missiles soared through the sky during the counterstrike, Jenner assured loved ones that she is taking every precaution to be safe, including seeking shelter.
'Please pray,' the 75-year-old texted one family member from a secure area. 'I'm holding up okay.'
When asked if the bombs were loud, Jenner merely responded, 'Yes.'
The family member told the Daily Mail that Jenner had phone service throughout the first wave of the attack and handed situation calmly.
On Friday afternoon, Regev Gur - an Israeli influencer - shared a photo to X alongside the former gold medalist as they took shelter together.
'What were you doing with the alarms?' he captioned the post. 'Because I'm drinking wine with Caitlyn.'
In the photo, the pair appear relaxed as they sit against a row of lockers - Gur flashing a wide, toothy smile while Jenner raises a glass of red wine toward the camera.
🚨 🚨 air raid sirens in Tiberias, Israel just after 5am. Missiles visible in the sky. Incoming from Iran. pic.twitter.com/EmqHTYZegd
— Scott Jennings (@ScottJenningsKY) June 14, 2025
'She told us not to worry,' a family member told Daily Mail. 'She says she'll be fine and that Israel will protect her.'
Jenner has been in contact with the American Embassy in Tel Aviv, who advised her to shelter in a windowless area near her hotel.
As the bombs began to drop, she posted an image of the missile defense system lighting up the skies on social media.
''Quiet' night in Tel Aviv. Pray for us all. We will prevail,' the post read. 'I am happy to stand with Israel today, now more than ever.'
For now, her family is watching the news and is constant contact with Jenner, who is in 'good spirits' and 'doesn't seem overly worried at the moment - just trusting that everything is going to be okay'.
After news broke that several Americans were 'trapped' inside Israel, social media was quickly flooded with opinions - many questioning their decision to travel to the region in the first place.
'God works in strange ways!' a user on X wrote. 'Who had it on their Bingo card that two of the most evil inhumane cruel inhabitants of earth are stuck in Israel! Don't come back. You deserve one another!'
Shortly after, Jenner responded to the post, writing: 'Ahhh @ScottJenningsKY we have a fan in common!! LOL'.
The lockdown comes after Israel launched a blistering surprise attack on Iranian nuclear and military sites, killing several top generals - including nine senior scientists and experts involved in the program, Associated Press reported.
Thursday's attack also claimed the lives of 78 people and left more than 320 wounded, according to an Iranian official.
Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei vowed to 'inflict heavy blows' in a threat to civilians in Tel Aviv as he blamed Israel for starting the war, while Benjamin Netanyahu warned 'more is on the way'.
Dramatic footage shows Israel's Iron Dome intercepting the salvo of missiles above the city's skyline, but some could not be stopped - including one that blasted into the side of a building with people reportedly trapped inside.
Israel's emergency services say at least 34 people in Gush Dan, or the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, were injured in the strikes - including one woman in critical condition and one seriously injured man. At least three were killed.
Netanyahu promised that more attacks are 'on the way', adding that 'the regime does not know what hit them, or what will hit them. It has never been weaker'.
As missiles rained down on Tel Aviv for hours, he called on Iranians to 'rise up' and overthrow Tehran's 'evil and oppressive regime' as tensions in the Middle East continue to escalate.
A second wave of Iranian missiles also targeted Jerusalem early on Saturday morning, according to Israel's military - with witnesses reporting explosions over the ancient city.
Defense Minister Israel Katz chillingly warned that 'Tehran will burn' if more missiles are fired at Israel.
Katz said: 'The Iranian dictator is turning the citizens of Iran into hostages and bringing about a reality in which they - especially the residents of Tehran - will pay a heavy price because of the criminal harm to Israeli civilians.
'If (Ayatollah Ali) Khamenei continues to fire missiles toward the Israeli home front - Tehran will burn.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sky News
35 minutes ago
- Sky News
Israel-Iran conflict poses new cost of living threat - here's why
The UK's cost of living crisis hangover is facing fresh pressure from the Israel-Iran conflict and growing tensions across the Middle East. Whenever the region, particularly a major oil-producing country, is embroiled in some kind of fracas the potential consequences are first seen in global oil prices. The Middle East accounts for a third of world output. Iran's share of the total is only about 3% but it is the second largest supplier of natural gas. Add to that its control of the key Strait of Hormuz shipping route, you can understand why any military action involving Iran has huge implications for the global economy at a time when a US-inspired global trade war is already playing out. Global oil prices jumped by up to 13% on Friday as the Israel-Iran conflict ramped up. It was the biggest one day leap seen since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, which gave birth to the energy-driven cost of living crisis. From lows of $64 a barrel for Brent crude, the international benchmark, earlier this month, the cost is currently 15% higher. Iran ships all its oil to China because of western sanctions so the world's second-largest economy would have the most to lose in the event of disruption. Should that happen, China would need to replace that oil by buying elsewhere on the international market, threatening higher prices. 1:42 How are natural gas prices holding up? UK day ahead prices are 15% up over the past week alone. Europe is more dependent on Middle East liquefied natural gas (LNG) these days because of sanctions against Russia. The UK is particularly exposed due to the fact we have low storage capacity and rely so much on gas-fired power to keep the lights on and for heating. The day ahead price, measured in pence per therm (I won't go into that) is at 93p on Monday. It sounds rather meaningless until you compare it with the price seen less than a week ago - 81p. The higher sum was last seen over the winter when demand is at its strongest. 0:18 What are the risks to these prices? Market experts say Brent crude would easily exceed $100 a barrel in the event of any Iranian threats to supplies through the Strait of Hormuz - the 30-mile wide shipping lane controlled by both Iran and Oman. While Iran has a history of disrupting trade, analysts believe it will not want to risk its oil and gas income through any blockade. What do these price increases mean for the UK? There are implications for the whole economy at a time the chancellor can least afford it as she bets big on public sector-led growth for the economy. We can expect higher oil, gas and fuel costs to be passed on down supply chains - from the refinery and factory - to the end user, consumers. It could affect anything from foodstuffs to even fake tan. Increases at the pumps are usually first to appear - probably within the next 10 days. Prices are always quick to rise and slow to reflect easing wholesale costs. Energy bills will also take in the gas spike, particularly if the wholesale price rises are sustained. The energy price cap from September - and new fixed term price deals - will first reflect these increases. How does this all play out in the coming months? So much depends on events ahead. But energy price rises are an inflation risk and potential threat to future interest rate cuts. While LSEG data shows financial markets continuing to expect a further two interest rate cuts by the Bank of England this year, the rate-setting committee will be reluctant to cut if the pace of price growth is led higher than had been expected. At a time when employers are grappling higher taxes and minimum pay thresholds and consumers a surge in bills following the 'awful April' hikes to council tax, water and other essentials, a fresh energy-linked inflation spike is the last thing anyone needs.
BreakingNews.ie
38 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Israel's military claims ‘aerial superiority' over Iran's capital
Israel's military claimed on Monday to have achieved 'aerial superiority' over Iran's capital. The military says it has degraded Iranian air defences and missile systems to the point that its planes can now operate over Tehran without facing major threats. Advertisement It says Israel now controls the skies from western Iran to Tehran. It came after Iran fired a new wave of missile attacks on Israel early on Monday, triggering air raid sirens across the country as emergency services reported at least five killed and dozens more wounded in the fourth day of open warfare between the regional foes. One missile fell near the American consulate in Tel Aviv, and its fallout caused minor damage, US Ambassador Mike Huckabee said on X. There were no injuries to American personnel. The site where an Iranian missile struck in Haifa, Israel (Ariel Schalit/AP) Iran announced it had launched some 100 missiles and vowed further retaliation for Israel's sweeping attacks on its military and nuclear infrastructure, which have killed at least 224 people in the country since Friday. Advertisement Israel said so far 24 people have been killed and more than 500 injured as Iran launched more than 370 missiles and hundreds of drones. In response the Israeli military said fighter jets had struck 10 command centres in Tehran belonging to Iran's Quds Force, an elite arm of its Revolutionary Guard that conducts military and intelligence operations outside Iran. Powerful explosions, likely from Israel's defence systems intercepting Iranian missiles, rocked Tel Aviv shortly before dawn on Monday, sending plumes of black smoke into the sky over the coastal city. Authorities in the central Israeli city of Petah Tikva said that Iranian missiles had hit a residential building there, charring concrete walls, shattering windows and ripping the walls off multiple apartments. Advertisement The Israeli Magen David Adom emergency service reported that two women and two men — all in their 70s — and one other person were killed in the wave of missile attacks that struck four sites in central Israel. 'We clearly see that our civilians are being targeted,' said Israeli police spokesman Dean Elsdunne outside the bombed-out building in Petah Tikva. 'And this is just one scene. We have other sites like this near the coast, in the south.' Petah Tikva resident Yoram Suki rushed with his family to a shelter after hearing an air raid alert, and emerged after it was over to find his apartment destroyed. 'Thank God we were OK,' the 60-year-old said. Advertisement Despite losing his home, he urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to keep up the attacks on Iran. 'It's totally worth it,' he said. 'This is for the sake of our children and grandchildren.' In addition to those killed, the MDA said paramedics had evacuated another 87 wounded people to hospitals, including a 30-year-old woman in serious condition, while rescuers were still searching for residents trapped beneath the rubble of their homes. 'When we arrived at the scene of the rocket strike, we saw massive destruction,' said Dr Gal Rosen, a paramedic with MDA who said he had rescued a four-day-old baby as fires blazed from the building. Advertisement During an earlier barrage of Iranian missiles on central Israel on Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that Iran will stop its strikes if Israel does the same. People evacuate after a missile launched from Iran struck Tel Aviv on Monday (Baz Ratner/AP) But after a day of intensive Israeli aerial attacks that extended targets beyond military installations to hit oil refineries and government buildings, the Revolutionary Guard struck a hard line on Monday, vowing that further rounds of strikes would be 'more forceful, severe, precise and destructive than previous ones'. Health authorities also reported that 1,277 were wounded in Iran, without distinguishing between military officials and civilians. Rights groups, such as the Washington-based Iranian advocacy group called Human Rights Activists, have suggested that the Iranian government's death toll is a significant undercount. Human Rights Activists says it has documented more than 400 people killed, among them 197 civilians. Israel argues that its assault on Iran's top military leaders, uranium enrichment sites and nuclear scientists was necessary to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Iran has always insisted its nuclear programme is peaceful, and the US and others have assessed that Tehran has not pursued a nuclear weapon since 2003. But Iran has enriched ever-larger stockpiles of uranium to near weapons-grade levels in recent years and was believed to have the capacity to develop multiple weapons within months if it chose to do so.
Reuters
43 minutes ago
- Reuters
IAEA chief says no further damage at Iranian enrichment facilities
VIENNA, June 16 (Reuters) - U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi provided an update on Monday on the situation at Iran's nuclear facilities after Israel launched military strikes and said there was no sign of further damage at the Natanz or Fordow enrichment sites. Grossi and the International Atomic Energy Agency he heads had previously reported that the smallest of Iran's three enrichment plants, an above-ground pilot plant at the sprawling Natanz nuclear complex, had been destroyed. While there was no sign of a physical attack on the bigger underground enrichment plant at Natanz, its power supply was destroyed, which may have damaged the uranium-enriching centrifuges there. No damage was seen at the Fordow plant dug into a mountain. "There has been no additional damage at the Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant site since the Friday attack, which destroyed the above-ground part of the Pilot Fuel Enrichment Plant," Grossi said in a statement to an exceptional meeting of his agency's 35-nation Board of Governors. Having said over the weekend that Israeli strikes damaged four buildings at the Isfahan nuclear facilities including the uranium conversion facility that processes "yellowcake" uranium into uranium hexafluoride, the feedstock for centrifuges, so it can be enriched, he elaborated on the damage there. "At the Esfahan nuclear site, four buildings were damaged in Friday's attack: the central chemical laboratory, a uranium conversion plant, the Tehran reactor fuel manufacturing plant, and the UF4 (uranium tetrafluoride) to EU metal processing facility, which was under construction," he said. "The (International Atomic Energy) Agency is and will remain present in Iran. Safeguards inspections in Iran will continue as soon as safety conditions allow, as is required under Iran's NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty) safeguards obligations," he added.
