Netherlands summons Iranian ambassador over alleged assassination attempts
THE HAGUE, April 24 (Reuters) - Iran's ambassador to the Netherlands was summoned on Thursday after the Dutch intelligence agency said it suspected Tehran of being behind two assassination attempts in Europe, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.
The Dutch general intelligence agency, known as the AIVD, said in its annual report published on Thursday that two men were arrested in June 2024 in the Dutch town of Haarlem after an assassination attempt there on an Iranian residing in the country.
One of the suspects is also suspected of the failed assassination attempt on Spanish politician and Iran critic Alejo Vidal-Quadras in Madrid in November 2023, it said.
"The two assassination attempts fit into the modus operandi that Iran has been using for years: using criminal networks in Europe to silence purported opponents of the regime. Based on intelligence, it is likely that Iran is responsible for the two liquidation attempts," the AIVD said.
Several months after surviving the shooting attack, Vidal-Quadras, who co-founded the Spanish far-right party Vox, said he believed that Iran's government had hired hitmen to assassinate him over his links to an Iranian dissident group, without providing evidence of the assertion.
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Reuters
34 minutes ago
- Reuters
Israel used long-planned subterfuge in attack on Iranian nuclear targets, Israeli sources say
JERUSALEM, June 13 (Reuters) - Israel sent Mossad commandos deep into Iran to destroy Iranian weapons systems during Israel's attack on nuclear and military targets, an Israeli security source said, while another official said Israel used a ploy to suggest the strike was not imminent. The Israeli officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the clandestine nature of the operations, described secret and lengthy preparations that went into an attack that sent oil prices sharply higher on fears of regional escalation. Reuters could not independently verify the accounts. Iranian officials who spoke to Reuters shortly before the attack had been dismissive about any imminent action and repeatedly said talk of strikes was just "psychological pressure" to influence U.S.-Iranian nuclear negotiations that were due on Sunday. Iran has not given a detailed account of what its Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called "unlawful and cowardly attacks", but it has promised a harsh response. Iran's mission at the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Israel's covert operation and other subterfuge related to the attacks. Ahead of the strike, Israel gave the impression its focus was still on U.S. diplomacy towards a nuclear deal with Iran, briefing journalists that its spy chief would go to Washington before the next negotiations. Instead, Israel said it sent 200 warplanes to conduct a wave of air strikes across Iran before dawn on Friday, hitting nuclear facilities and missile factories, and killing military commanders and nuclear scientists, in a culmination of its efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Iran says its nuclear programme is purely civilian. The Israeli security source said Israel's military and Mossad had worked for years on the intelligence needed for the strikes, which killed the commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps among others. The security source said Mossad commandos had covertly deployed weapons across Iran, including explosive drones that were launched at a surface-to-surface missile base near Tehran. The Mossad commandos also fired precision-guided weapons systems at Iranian surface-to-air missile systems as the Israeli attack got underway, reducing the threat to Israeli warplanes. A grainy black and white video distributed by Mossad showed what it said were the organization's operational force - two camouflaged figures crouched in what looks like desert terrain, deploying the precision weapons system meant to destroy Iran's air defence systems. Some of the operation's components would have taken years to be put together, said Sima Shine, a former chief Mossad analyst and now a researcher at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies (INSS). The decision to strike Iran was made on Monday, the same day Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump spoke by phone, when Netanyahu, Defence Minister Israel Katz and military chief Eyal Zamir decided the operation would begin on Friday, said a second source, an Israeli defence official. Their discussion was held after the conversation between Trump and Netanyahu, a third official, close to Netanyahu, said. The final green light was given by Netanyahu's security cabinet, which convened on Thursday night. In the days leading up to the strikes, Israel played out a ploy to create the impression an attack was not imminent, according to a fourth source, also an Israeli official. False reports suggesting that a rift between Israel and the United States had emerged during Netanyahu and Trump's phone call on Monday were not denied, the fourth source said. A press release about a visit by Katz, Zamir and the head of Israel's Air Force Tomer Bar to an air force base mentioned Gaza, Yemen and Lebanon - but not Iran. The fourth source said that the ruse included misleading information given in press briefings. As the attack unfolded in the early hours of Friday, some Israeli journalists pointed to one such briefing, according to which Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Mossad Head David Barnea were to be sent to Washington ahead of the next round of nuclear talks on Sunday. Dermer later appeared seated with Netanyahu at Israel's defence headquarters bunker in Tel Aviv, in a video distributed by the prime minister's office. A fifth, military source said that Israel had been able to surprise Iran but since the operation was not over, there could be "difficult days" ahead. Iran, which fired ballistic missiles at Israel when they traded blows last year, has promised "harsh punishment" in response to the attack. Israel said it had intercepted many of the 100 drones launched towards Israeli territory in retaliation.
North Wales Chronicle
40 minutes ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Israel attacks Iran's nuclear sites and kills top military leaders
It said the barrage was necessary before its adversary got any closer to building an atomic weapon. The operation raised the potential for all-out war between the countries and propelled the region, already on edge, into even greater upheaval. Iran quickly retaliated, sending a swarm of drones at Israel as Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned of 'severe punishment'. Iran had been censured by the UN's atomic watchdog a day earlier for not complying with obligations meant to prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon. Israel had long threatened such a strike, and successive US administrations had sought to prevent it, fearing it would ignite a wider conflict across the Middle East and possibly be ineffective at destroying Iran's dispersed and hardened nuclear programme. But a confluence of developments triggered by Hamas' October 7, 2023, attack and the election in the US of President Donald Trump created the conditions that allowed Israel to finally follow through on its threats. Israel had told the Trump administration that the large-scale attacks were coming, officials in the US and Israel said. On Wednesday the US pulled some American diplomats from Iraq's capital and offered voluntary evacuations for the families of US troops in the wider Middle East. עדכון חשוב >> — Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) June 13, 2025 The United States is shifting military resources, including ships, in the Middle East in response to Israel's strikes on Iran and a possible retaliatory attack by Tehran, two US officials said. Countries in the region condemned Israel's attack, while leaders around the globe called for immediate de-escalation from both sides. Iran asked for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. Israel's military said about 200 aircraft were involved in the initial attack on about 100 targets. Its Mossad spy agency positioned explosive drones and precision weapons inside Iran ahead of time, and used them to target Iranian air defences and missile launchers near Tehran, according to two security officials. Among the key sites Israel attacked was Iran's main nuclear enrichment facility at Natanz, where black smoke could be seen rising into the air. Israel also said it destroyed dozens of radar installations and surface-to-air missile launchers in western Iran. Israel military spokesman Effie Defrin said the Natanz facility was 'significantly damaged' and that the operation was 'still in the beginning'. Among those killed were three of Iran's top military leaders: one who oversaw the entire armed forces, General Mohammad Bagheri; one who led the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, General Hossein Salami; and the head of the Guard's ballistic missile programme, General Amir Ali Hajizadeh. Iran confirmed all three deaths, significant blows to its governing theocracy that will complicate efforts to retaliate. Khamenei said other top military officials and scientists were also killed. In its first response, Iran fired more than 100 drones at Israel. Israel said the drones were being intercepted outside its airspace, and it was not immediately clear whether any got through. Mr Trump urged Iran to reach a deal with Washington on its nuclear programme, warning on his Truth Social platform that Israel's attacks 'will only get worse'. 'Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left, and save what was once known as the Iranian Empire,' he wrote. 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The type of radioactive contamination present inside the facility, mainly alpha particles, can be managed with appropriate protective measures.' – DG @rafaelmgrossi — IAEA – International Atomic Energy Agency ⚛️ (@iaeaorg) June 13, 2025 On Friday, Israelis rushed to supermarkets in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and elsewhere to buy bottled water and other supplies. But, otherwise, streets and parks were mostly deserted. For Mr Netanyahu, the operation distracts attention from Israel's ongoing and increasingly devastating war in Gaza, which is now more than 20 months old. Khamenei said in a statement that Israel 'opened its wicked and blood-stained hand to a crime in our beloved country, revealing its malicious nature more than ever by striking residential centres'. Mr Netanyahu expressed hope the attacks would trigger the downfall of Iran's theocracy, saying his message to the Iranian people was that the fight was not with them, but with the 'brutal dictatorship that has oppressed you for 46 years'. 'I believe that the day of your liberation is near,' he said. US secretary of state Marco Rubio said Israel took 'unilateral action against Iran' and that it believed the strikes were necessary for its self-defence.
Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
Kim Jong-un finally ‘launches a ship WITHOUT sinking it': Despot tours ‘repaired destroyer' a month on from humiliation
TYRANT Kim Jong-un has reportedly relaunched his 5,000-tonne colossal warship - after it spectacularly capsized during its first launch last month. The North Korean dictator witnessed his new destroyer's successful maiden voyage - after a humiliating blunder last month which saw the vessel end up on its side. 9 Kim Jong-un, pictured with his daughter Kim Ju Ae (L), relaunched his huge warship which capsized last month Credit: EPA 9 The successful launch was witnessed by Kim at Rajin Port Credit: Reuters 9 The huge 5,000 ton warship half-sunk into the water in May Credit: EPA Satellite pictures previously revealed the huge warship, named Kang Kon, floundering sideways - with its stern partially sunk and its bow lying on the harbour jetty. Furious Kim deemed to find and punish those found responsible for the embarrassing fail. He slammed the "criminal act" caused by "absolute carelessness" in a rare admission of failure - and arrested four officials. But state media have now claimed that the intimidating warship has finally been restored. READ MORE WORLD NEWS KIM'S RAGE Bungling NK officials 'face being shot' over humiliating Kim warship disaster Experts have questioned whether the boat's repairs are actually sufficient, given the reported speedy turnaround. Kim and his daughter, Kim Ju Ae, are understood to have witnessed the triumphant launch at Rajin Port in the north of the country, according to KCNA. Images showed the smiling despot wearing a thin summer hat as he walked cheerfully in front of clapping navy officers. It comes after the half-sunk was seen being hauled upright using giant balloons after it capsized. North Korea's state broadcaster also reported that sections of the hull had been crushed. The highly-secretive authorities appeared to have tried to hide the disaster by placing blue tarpaulin across the wreck. North Korea's half-sunk warship hauled UPRIGHT with giant balloons as cause of disaster that humiliated Kim is revealed Pictures from May 29 showed workers standing on the quay pulling ropes attached to the boat. And at least 30 balloons appeared to have been connected along one side - presumably to haul it upright. On launch day, crews had attempted to slide the ship sideways into the water. A malfunction meant that the stern entered while the bow remained on the launch gear. It is likely that the launch mechanism snagged the bow, preventing it from plopping into the sea, reports 38north. This theory is supported by satellite imagery from May 29, which seems to show damage to the bow. Seething Kim demanded that the repairs be completed by the end of June - and it now appears that engineers have managed to do this in time. 9 Around 30 large balloons can be seen attached to the boat along with ropes Credit: Pleiades NEO/ Airbus DS 9 Kim Jong Un (C) and daughter Ju Ae (center L) boarding the destroyer Credit: AFP 9 The dictator was fuming in the wake of the embarrassment, and said it brought shame on the country. Four people have been arrested so far, including chief engineer Kang Jong Chol, hull workshop head Han Kyong Hak, and deputy manager Kim Yong Hak. It's unclear what punishment they will face, though an expert told The Sun their fates could be fatal. Michael Madden, founder of North Korea Leadership Watch, said: "Some people will lose their party memberships and be sent to jail for short sentences." But, more alarmingly, he claimed "some people are going to be shot to death behind this". 9 A view of the warship before its failed launch Credit: AFP 9 The boat after being restored to an upright position Credit: Pleiades NEO/ Airbus DS 9 Kim boarding the destroyer 'Kang Kon' at the Rajin shipyard Credit: AFP The launch failure marked a huge setback for Kim, who has been modernizing his navy to keep up with the West. The huge Kang Kon naval destroyer is believed to be the same class as the Choe Hyon - North Korea's largest warship yet. North Korea's state media - which also serves as Kim's leading propaganda machine - reported that the vessel was equipped with the "most powerful weapons". Now it is seemingly upright and operational, the destroyer will surpass the current largest vessel in North Korea, a 1,360-tonne frigate.
