Israel warns Iranians near weapons facilities to leave
Israel is warning Iranians living near weapons production facilities in Tehran to evacuate as the two nations continue to exchange missile attacks.
"The Israeli military will strike these sites and will continue to peel away the Iranian snake's skin in Tehran and everywhere - targeting nuclear capabilities and weapons systems," Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement on Sunday.
Israel had earlier issued an evacuation warning to Iranians residing near weapons facilities in Iran, an Israeli military spokesperson said in a post on X in Arabic and Farsi.
The spokesperson said the warning included all weapons factories and supporting facilities.
Israel launched its biggest military strike against Iran on Friday, saying its goal was to stop Iran from developing atomic weapons and to take out Iran's ballistic missile capabilities.
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The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
Israel's attacks on Iran hint at a bigger goal: toppling the regime
But despite the damage inflicted by the unprecedented Israeli attack, decades of enmity towards Israel – not only among Iran's rulers but its majority-Shiite population – raises questions about the prospect for fomenting enough public support to oust an entrenched theocratic leadership in Tehran backed by loyal security forces. Loading Singh cautioned that no one knows what conditions would be required for an opposition to coalesce in Iran. Friday's assault was the first phase of what Israel said would be a prolonged operation. Experts said they expected Israel would continue to go after key Iranian nuclear infrastructure to delay Tehran's march to a nuclear bomb – even if Israel on its own does not have the capability to eliminate Iran's nuclear program. Iran says its nuclear program is for civilian purposes only. The UN nuclear watchdog concluded this week that it was in violation of its obligations under the global non-proliferation treaty. Israel's first salvoes targeted senior figures in Iran's military and scientific establishment, took out much of the country's air defence system and destroyed the above-ground enrichment plant at Iran's nuclear site. 'As a democratic country, the State of Israel believes that it is up to the people of a country to shape their national politics, and choose their government,' the Israeli embassy in Washington said. 'The future of Iran can only be determined by the Iranian people.' Netanyahu has called for a change in Iran's government, including in September. US President Donald Trump's administration, while acquiescing to Israel's strikes and helping its close ally fend off Iran's retaliatory missile barrage, has given no indication that it seeks regime change in Tehran. The White House and Iran's mission to the United Nations in New York also did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the matter. Israel has much further to go if it is to dismantle Iran's nuclear facilities, and military analysts have always said it might be impossible to totally disable the well-fortified sites dotted around Iran. The Israeli government has also cautioned that Iran's nuclear program could not be entirely destroyed by means of a military campaign. 'There's no way to destroy a nuclear program by military means,' Israel's National Security Adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, told the country's Channel 13 TV. The military campaign could, however, create conditions for a deal with the US that would thwart the nuclear program. Analysts also remain sceptical that Israel will have the munitions needed to obliterate Iran's nuclear project on its own. Loading 'Israel probably cannot take out completely the nuclear project on its own without the American participation,' said Sima Shine, a former chief Mossad analyst and now a researcher at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies. While setting back Tehran's nuclear program would have value for Israel, the hope for regime change could explain why Israel went after so many senior military figures, potentially throwing the Iranian security establishment into confusion and chaos. 'These people were very vital, very knowledgeable, many years in their jobs, and they were a very important component of the stability of the regime, specifically the security stability of the regime,' Shine said. 'In the ideal world, Israel would prefer to see a change of regime, no question about that.' Loading But such a change would come with risk, said Jonathan Panikoff, a former US deputy national intelligence officer for the Middle East who is now at the Atlantic Council. If Israel succeeds in removing Iran's leadership, there is no guarantee the successor that emerges would not be even more hardline in pursuit of conflict with Israel. 'For years, many in Israel have insisted that regime change in Iran would prompt a new and better day – that nothing could be worse than the current theocratic regime,' Panikoff said. 'But history tells us it can always be worse.' Reuters
Perth Now
2 hours ago
- Perth Now
Israeli military confirms attack on Yemen
The Israeli military has confirmed overnight air strikes on Yemen's capital following reports of loud explosions in Sana'a. Israeli fighter jets "struck in Sana'a, Yemen," military spokesman Effi Defrin said. Broadcaster al-Arabiya reported the Israeli strikes might have hit a meeting of high-ranking Houthi officials. 🎯 WATCH where we struck in both Iran and Yemen:This is what the scale of our operational activity to eliminate Iran's influence across the region looks like: Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 15, 2025 According to the Times of Israel, citing Israeli officials, the attack was aimed at the military chief of the Iran-aligned Houthi militia, Muhammed al-Ghamari. The Israeli military did not comment on the report when asked, stating only that it would report on the results of the attack. Yemen's Houthi rebels, who control large parts of the civil war-torn country, have been attacking Israel with missiles and drones since the beginning of the Gaza Strip war in October 2023, in what they say are acts of solidarity with Palestinian militant group Hamas. The attacks have intensified again since mid-March, prompting Israel to launch air strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen. According to unconfirmed media reports, the Houthi forces joined Iran in firing missiles at Israel overnight amid the military escalation between the two regional rivals triggered by Israeli attacks on Friday.
Perth Now
3 hours ago
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Trump says calls 'taking place' for Iran-Israel peace
Iran and Israel will have peace "soon," US President Donald Trump says in a social media post, adding that there were many unspecified meetings happening and that the two countries should make a deal. Israel and Iran launched fresh attacks on each other overnight into Sunday, killing scores. "Iran and Israel should make a deal, and will make a deal," Trump said on Truth Social, adding that "we will have PEACE, soon". "Many calls and meetings now taking place," he said. Trump did not offer any details about the meetings or evidence of progress toward peace. His assertion contradicted comments by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said on Saturday that Israel's campaign against Iran would intensify. A White House spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment on how Trump and the White House were working to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East. Trump, who portrays himself as a peacemaker and has drawn criticism from many of his supporters for not being able to prevent the Israel-Iran conflict, cited other disputes that he took responsibility for solving, including between India and Pakistan, and lamented not getting more praise for doing so. "I do a lot, and never get credit for anything, but that's OK, the PEOPLE understand. MAKE THE MIDDLE EAST GREAT AGAIN!" he wrote. Israeli rescue teams combed through rubble of residential buildings destroyed by Iranian missiles on Sunday, using sniffer dogs and heavy excavators to look for survivors after at least 10 people, including children, were killed, raising the two-day toll to 13. Sirens rang out across Israel after 4pm in the first such daylight alert, and fresh explosions could be heard in Tel Aviv. In Iran, images from the capital Tehran showed the night sky lit up by a huge blaze at a fuel depot after Israel began strikes against Iran's oil and gas sector - raising the stakes for the global economy and the functioning of the Iranian state. Iranian authorities have not given a full death toll but said 78 people were killed on Friday and scores more have died since, including in a single attack that killed 60 on Saturday, half of them children, in a 14-storey apartment block flattened in Tehran. At least 14 Iranian nuclear scientists have been killed in Israeli attacks since Friday, including in car bombs, two sources in the Gulf said on Sunday. Israel launched "Operation Rising Lion" with a surprise attack on Friday morning that wiped out the top echelon of Iran's military command and damaged its nuclear sites, and says the campaign will continue to escalate in coming days. Iran has vowed to "open the gates of hell" in retaliation. The Israeli military warned Iranians living near weapons facilities to leave. "Iran will pay a heavy price for the murder of civilians, women and children," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said from a balcony overlooking blown-out apartments in the town of Bat Yam where six people were killed. An official said Israel still had a long list of targets in Iran and declined to say how long the offensive would continue. Those attacked on Saturday evening included two "dual-use" fuel sites that supported military and nuclear operations, he said. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran's responses will grow "more decisive and severe" if Israel's hostile actions continue.
