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Straits Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
A miscalculation by Iran led to Israeli strikes' extensive toll, officials say
Rescuers working at the site of a damaged building, in the aftermath of Israeli strikes in Tehran, on June 13. PHOTO: REUTERS Iran's senior leaders had been planning for more than a week for an Israeli attack should nuclear talks with the United States fail. But they made one enormous miscalculation. They never expected Israel to strike before another round of talks that had been scheduled for June 15 in Oman, officials close to Iran's leadership said on June 13. They dismissed reports that an attack was imminent as Israeli propaganda meant to pressure Iran to make concessions on its nuclear programme in those talks. Perhaps because of that complacency, precautions that had been planned were ignored, the officials said. This account of how Iranian officials were preparing before Israel conducted widespread attacks across their country on June 13, and how they reacted in the aftermath, is based on interviews with half a dozen senior Iranian officials and two members of the Revolutionary Guard. They all asked not to be named to discuss sensitive information. Officials said that the night of Israel's attack, senior military commanders did not shelter in safe houses and instead stayed in their own homes, a fateful decision. General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the Revolutionary Guard's aerospace unit, and his senior staff ignored a directive against congregating in one location. They held an emergency war meeting at a military base in Tehran and were killed when Israel struck the base. By the evening of June 13, the government was just beginning to grasp the extent of damage from Israel's military campaign that began in the early hours of the day and struck at least 15 locations across Iran, including in Isfahan, Tabriz, Ilam, Lorestan, Borujerd, Qom, Arak, Urmia, Ghasre Shirin, Kermanshah, Hamedan and Shiraz, four Iranian officials said. Israel had taken out much of Iran's defence capability, destroying radars and air defences; crippled its access to its arsenal of ballistic missiles; and wiped out senior figures in the military chain of command. In addition, the aboveground part of a major nuclear enrichment plant at Natanz was severely damaged. In private text messages shared with The New York Times, some officials were angrily asking one another, 'Where is our air defence?' and 'How can Israel come and attack anything it wants, kill our top commanders, and we are incapable of stopping it?' They also questioned the major intelligence and defence failures that had led to Iran's inability to see the attacks coming, and the resulting damage. 'Israel's attack completely caught the leadership by surprise, especially the killing of the top military figures and nuclear scientists. It also exposed our lack of proper air defence and their ability to bombard our critical sites and military bases with no resistance,' Mr Hamid Hosseini, a member of the country's Chamber of Commerce's energy committee, said in a telephone interview from Tehran. Mr Hosseini, who is close to the government, said Israel's apparent infiltration of Iran's security and military apparatus had also shocked officials. Israel has conducted covert operations in Iran against military and nuclear targets and carried out targeted assassinations against nuclear scientists for decades as part of its shadow war with Iran, but the June 13 attack was multi-pronged and complex, involving fighter jets and covert operatives who had smuggled missile parts and drones into the country suggested a new level of access and capability. Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has been moved to an undisclosed safe location where he remained in contact with remaining top military officials, said in a televised speech that Israel had, with its attacks, declared war on Iran. As he spoke, vowing revenge and punishment, Iran launched several waves of missile attacks on Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. 'They should not think they attacked and it is over,' Mr Khamenei said. 'No, they started it. They started the war. We will not allow them to escape from this crime unharmed.' Earlier on the morning of June 13, Iran's Supreme National Security Council, a 23-person council responsible for national security decisions, held an emergency meeting to discuss how the country should respond. In the meeting, Mr Khamenei said he wanted revenge but did not want to act hastily, according to two officials familiar with the discussions. Divisions emerged on when and how Iran should respond, and whether it could sustain a prolonged war with Israel that could also drag in the United States, given how badly its defence and missile capabilities were damaged. One official said in the meeting that if Israel responded by attacking Iran's infrastructure or water and energy plants, it could lead to protests or riots. A member of the Revolutionary Guard briefed on the meeting said that officials understood that Mr Khamenei faced a pivotal moment in his nearly 40 years in power: He had to decide between acting, and risking an all-out war that could end his rule, or retreating, which would be interpreted domestically and internationally as defeat. 'Khamanei faces no good options,' said Mr Ali Vaez, the Iran project director of the International Crisis Group. 'If he escalates, he risks inviting a more devastating Israeli attack that the US could join. If he doesn't, he risks hollowing out his regime or losing power.' Ultimately, Mr Khamenei ordered Iran's military to fire on Israel. Initially, the plan was to launch up to 1,000 ballistic missiles on Israel to overwhelm its air defence and ensure maximum damage, according to two members of the Guard. But Israel's strikes on missile bases had made it impossible to move missiles quickly from storage and place them on launchpads, they added. In the end, Iran could only muster about 100 missiles in its first waves of attacks. At least seven sites were struck around Tel Aviv, killing one person and injuring at least 20 more, and damaging residential buildings. On June 13, after Israeli attacks had somewhat subsided for part of the day, Iran's military hurried to repair some of its damaged air defences and install new ones, according to officials. Iran's airspace remained closed with flights grounded and airports closed. Some residents of Tehran spent June 13, a holiday, waiting in gas station lines to fill up their vehicles' tanks and flocking to grocery stores to stock up on essentials like bread, canned food and bottled water. Many families gathered in parks late into the night, spreading blankets and picnics on the grass, and said in telephone interviews they feared remaining indoors after Israel had struck residential buildings in various neighbourhoods targeting scientists and military and government officials. Mr Mehrdad, 35, who did not want his last name used because of fears for his safety, shared a video of his kitchen wall and windows destroyed when an Israeli missile struck the high-rise next door in his upscale neighbourhood in northern Tehran. He said that he had been lucky to have been in the bedroom when the attack occurred, but some civilians in the neighbourhood, including children, had been injured. In the early hours of June 14, Israel resumed its attacks on Tehran. Some residents, including Ms Fatemeh Hassani, who lives in the Mirdamad neighbourhood, said they heard drones buzzing overhead and non-stop explosion sounds followed by the rat-tat-tat of air defences firing in eastern and central Tehran. Ms Mahsa, a 42-year-old computer engineer who lives in the capital's north and similarly did not want to give her last name out of fear of her safety, said she and her family were unable to sleep. They not only could hear the booms but also could see traces of fire and smoke from their window. 'We are in the middle of a war, this much is clear to all of us, and we don't know where it will go or how it will end,' she said. NYTIMES Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hans India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Iran confirms Israeli strike killed head of missile prog
Dubai: Iran has confirmed that Israel killed Gen Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the head of the Revolutionary Guard's missile programme. Iranian state television made the acknowledgment Friday afternoon. Israel a short time earlier said it killed Hajizadeh. Hajizadeh was a major commander within the Guard, overseeing its ballistic missile arsenal.
The Hill
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Who are the officials killed in the Israeli attack on Iran?
(NewsNation) — Israel launched an attack on Iran on Friday, which resulted in a major blow to Iran's military chain of command. The strikes targeted Iran's nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders to prevent Tehran from developing an atomic weapon, killing at least three top military leaders and six nuclear scientists. At least 20 senior Iranian commanders, including Aerospace Force Commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh, were killed in the strikes, two regional sources told Reuters. Here's what we know about those killed: Four other scientists killed in Friday's strikes are Abdolhamid Manouchehr, Ahmad Reza Zolfaghari, Amirhossein Feghi and Motalibizadeh. The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
News18
2 days ago
- Politics
- News18
At Least 5 Killed, 12 Injured In Israeli Strikes On Iran's Tabriz
Agency: Last Updated: Most of the senior leadership of the Revolutionary Guards' air force were killed in the Israeli air strikes as they gathered at an underground command centre At least five people were killed and 12 others injured in Israeli strikes on the city of Tabriz, the capital of Iran's East Azerbaijan province, local media reported. Most of the senior leadership of the Revolutionary Guards' air force were killed in the Israeli air strikes as they gathered at an underground command centre. Shortly after the Israeli defence ministry announced that 'most of the Revolutionary Guard air force leadership was neutralised," the military clarified that several senior commanders had been 'eliminated". It said that air force commander Amirali Hajizadeh, the drone force commander, and the aerial command chief were all killed by an Israeli air strike. 'The senior chain of command of the air force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) had assembled in an underground command centre to prepare for an attack on the State of Israel," the military said. 'As part of the combined opening strike, Israeli air force fighter jets struck the command centre where the commander of the IRGC's air force, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, was located along with other senior officials." It said that Hajizadeh had played a central role in Iran's 'plan for Israel's destruction", which Israel has said its attack was intended to foil. 'In addition, the senior officials who were eliminated led the attack on Saudi Arabia's oil facilities in September 2019," the statement added. The Revolutionary Guards control Iran's arsenal of ballistic missiles and are involved in defending the country's airspace. (With AFP inputs) Location : Tehran, Iran First Published: June 13, 2025, 16:25 IST
Time of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Iran-Israel conflict: Iran confirms Israeli strike killed general Amir Ali Hajizadeh, head of Revolutionary Guard's missile programme
Israel has claimed that it killed Iran's general Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the country's revolutionary guard aerospace force. According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Hajizadeh was among several senior officials killed overnight as fighter jets struck an underground command centre inside Iran. The site, the military said, was being used to coordinate attacks on Israel. Besides Hejizedah, the heads of the IRGC's drone and air defence divisions were also killed. The IDF accused the officers of planning and executing past assaults, including Iran's missile and drone strikes on Israel in April and October 2024, and the 2019 drone attack on Saudi oil facilities. 'Hajizadeh publicly pledged allegiance to the idea of destroying Israel on multiple occasions in recent years and played a central role in formulating the plan to destroy Israel,' the Israeli military said in a statement, quoted by the Times of Israel. Iran also confirmed the death of its aerospace guard. Internet restrictions have also been introduced in Iran after Israel's wave of strikes. "Temporary restrictions have been imposed on the country's internet," Tehran's communications ministry said, quoted by ISNA news agency. Further addinf that the restrictions "will be lifted once the normalcy returns." The strike forms part of Israel's offensive launched early Friday, targeting Iran's nuclear infrastructure and military sites. The operation marked what analysts are calling Iran's most serious direct attack since the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. In retaliation, Iran also fired a wave of drones at Israel, prompting fears of a rapid escalation. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a stern warning, promising 'severe punishment' in response.
