Latest news with #AyatollahKhameini
News18
17-07-2025
- Politics
- News18
Israel-Iran War: Targeting & Taming The Octopus
Last Updated: India enjoys good relations with both Iran and Israel and is not in a position to pick sides Israel and Iran war has moved into the second week with large exchange of aerial and ballistic missiles and with very little respite. In a much-anticipated preemptive air strike with 200 jet aircraft, Israel struck more than 100 targets in Iran last week targeting nuclear assets and the command structure of Iran. The Mossad had infiltrated and neutralised anti-aircraft assets of Iran by firing huge numbers of drones from within Iran. It may be recalled that Iran has a minority population of 10,000 Jews down from 1,00,000 before the Iranian revolution. Four Generals of top military command and ten scientists working on the nuclear installations were eliminated in the first offensive. Ten cities have been targeted and nuclear assets have been degraded up to some extent. In the second week, the United States of America (USA) has joined Israel in targeting and degrading the underground nuclear assets of Iran where the Israelis did not have the penetrating power. Operation Midnight Hammer was a lightning campaign in which B-2 Stealth Bombers attacked Iranian nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan and caused appreciable destruction to the underground assets. The stated strategic aim of Israel to carry out the preemptive strike was to neutralise the nuclear and ballistic assets and affect a regime change in Iran after a popular uprising among the people against the Mullahs. They also targeted and successfully eliminated the higher civil and military leadership with the aim of creating a psychological paralysis in the nerve centre of the besieged nation. The US, Israel and Iran may be in for a long haul, taking a cue from the Russian-Ukrainian war and the war in Gaza. In effect, Israel has helped the Iranian regime in rallying masses to show their commitment to their nation and for the timebeing all opposition to the Islamic regime has been put on the back burner. President Donald Trump has yet again proved to be a transactional leader. He lulled the Iranians into having fifth round of talks on Iranian nuclear programme and was fully in picture when the Israelis attacked just before the talks. While declaring that he will take up to two weeks to decide whether to attack Iran or not, he had already passed orders for deploying the forces. After the midnight attacks on Iran's underground nuclear assets which US claims to be a great success, he is again talking about peace and exhorting Iran to come to negotiation table! The peace seeking or the Nobel Prize-seeking President has come out in the open and attacked Iran which no other POTUS dared to do. Is North Korea listening and taking note? This brazen attack on the sovereignty and security of a distant nation by Israel and USA may also act as a carte blanche for China to move into Taiwan or Arunachal Pradesh. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khameini vowed punishment to the aggressor and launched hundreds of ballistic missiles onto the Israeli cities targeting Israel's cybersecurity centers and nuclear facilities mainly in the southern part of the country. For once, the volume of Iranian attack overwhelmed the Iron Dome and rendered it ineffective to a certain extent. Iran also claims to have eliminated the head of Mossad. While the casualties in Iran at the time of writing have been around 26 dead, the Israelis have lost around six persons. Israel and Iran have been locked in a proxy war for decades. When we went to Israel for an official visit from the National Defence College (NDC), New Delhi in 2009, we were briefed by their foreign and Defence Ministry senior officials and all were in unison to list their threat perception, their enemy No 1, 2 and 3 as Iran, followed by Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, Fatah in West Bank, the Syrian regime, militias in Iraq and Houthis from Yemen, in that order. When I later went there as Head of the Mission and Force Commander of United Nations Peacekeeping Force at Golan Heights between Israel and Syria from 2012 to 2015, the threat perception had not changed. I was the sponsor officer of the UAE naval officer doing the NDC and his dissertation was on Nuclear Programme of Iran. This officer along with the Saudi and the Egyptian officers always asked questions to the guest speakers on nuclear assets of Iran. Therefore, as early as the first decade of this millennium, it was not only the Israelis but also all GCC and Arab countries were equally wary of the Iranian nuclear assets and keenly watched their progress as they viewed it as a Shia Bomb. The Sunni world already had a nuclear bomb closer home in Pakistan and Jews had their own; but they have all been always apprehensive of Iran getting the expertise because of the theocratic power structure of Iran. The Iron Dome was built jointly by US and Israel in 2011 and I was shown its effectiveness during the previous Gaza war of 2014 that lasted 52 days. India rightly acquired the know-how from Israel and coupled it with the S-400 Triumf, surface-to-air anti-aircraft missile system from Russia, in creating Akashteer, a comprehensive air Defence system; its own version of Iron Dome that protected us from the enemy air assets during Operation Sindoor. Both China and Russia have jointly criticised the brazen Israeli offensive as an attack on Iran's sovereignty, security and territorial integrity. The E3 to include UK, France and Germany invited the Iranian Foreign Minister to Geneva for talks on the nuclear deal but the Iranians have kept the condition of bringing an end to Israeli attacks on their soil and further destruction of the country and causing large-scale death and destruction of their population as a prerequisite for the talks to recommence. Since October 7, 202 attack by Hamas cadres on Israeli military cadres and civilians, Israel has been systematically eliminating all sub-conventional and conventional threats in the region. For decades, Iran has been fighting a proxy war with Israel through Hizbullah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, Fatah in West Bank, erstwhile Syrian regime of Assad, Shia militias in Iraq and the Houthis from Yemen. Israel has termed Iran an Octopus and has very diligently crushed its arms of Hamas, Hezbollah, Bashar Al Assad, Shia militia of Iraq and Houthis from Yemen. In doing so, Israel has completely dismantled the so-called Shia Crescent and has now decided to go for the head of the octopus. It has got overwhelming success in the initial attacks but is now finding it hard to reach the head of the octopus. Before reaching the head of the octopus, Israel has to deal with the mantle, siphon and the beak! The Iran-Israel-USA war is not coming to an early end. Israel will ensure that Iran is weakened substantially and its nuclear-weapon ambition is pushed by five to ten years. However, Iran may walk out of Non-Proliferation Treaty and give impetus to its nuclear dream. A nuclear Iran will also be more secure as nuclear capability brings in a strategic deterrence. The non-contact wars have a limitation and there is very little possibility of Israel and US to commit troops on the ground. India enjoys good relations with both Iran and Israel and is not in a position to pick sides. India has historical, cultural and traditional relations with Iran spanning centuries, is managing the operations of the Chabahar Port project and has a stake in the International North-South Transport Corridor connecting ship, rail and road trade routes between Azerbaijan, Central Asia, Europe, India, Iran and Russia. It is also ensuring its energy security with help of Iran. With our dependence on Israel for our defence procurement especially in command and control and air defence sectors including the domain of information technology and cybersecurity, we have developed strategic partnership with Israel in the last three decades. India has to ensure a tightrope walk and in fact may be able to work towards bringing ceasefire and peace between the two varying sides, as it enjoys excellent relations with both the nations. The author was Head of the Mission and Force Commander of UN Peacekeeping Mission (UNDOF) between Israel and Syria at Golan Heights from 2012 to 2014. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views. view comments Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: June 23, 2025, 13:57 IST News opinion Opinion | Israel-Iran War: Targeting & Taming The Octopus Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Daily Mail
23-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Russia warns Trump he has opened 'Pandora's box' with strike on Iran as regime holds talks in Moscow and fears grow that the UK will now face terror backlash
Russia last night warned Donald Trump had opened 'Pandora's box' after the US President launched a 'bunker buster' raid on Iran. Trump said the audacious attack by a squadron of stealth bombers in the early hours of yesterday had 'taken the bomb right out of [Tehran's] hands'. But Moscow 's United Nations ambassador Vassily Nebenzia issued an ominous warning at an emergency meeting of the Security Council as he said: 'No one knows what new catastrophes and suffering it will bring.' And he claimed Russia had offered mediation talks to find a peaceful and mutually agreeable solution to Iran's nuclear program, but the US, especially its leaders, are 'clearly not interested in diplomacy today'. 'Unless we stop the escalation,' Nebenzia warned, 'the Middle East will find itself on the verge of a large scale conflict with unpredictable consequences for the entire international security system, plus the entire world might end up on the verge of a nuclear disaster.' Trump has sensationally called for a regime change in Iran as he held crisis talks with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Sunday. The US president took to his Truth Social page to share updates about the country's military attacks on Iran, when he suggested that the current regime 'is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN.' 'Why wouldn't there be a regime change,' Trump asked, rhetorically - even as he and Starmer urged Ayatollah Khameini to 'return to the negotiating table as soon as possible.' Russian ex-president Dmitriy Medvedev claimed in a post on X/Twitter early on Sunday that the US strikes on three sites in Isfahan, Natanz, and Fordow had backfired and led to the opposite result from what Trump had set out to achieve. In a taunting post, Medvedev claimed: 'Enrichment of nuclear material — and, now we can say it outright, the future production of nuclear weapons — will continue.' Medvedev, who has served as President of Russia from 2008 to 2012, further stated that 'Iran's political regime has survived — and in all likelihood, has come out even stronger'. He continued to claim that Iranians are 'rallying around the country's spiritual leadership, including those who were previously indifferent or opposed to it'. His anti-US and pro-Iran social media rant was posted in English and broken down into ten points - gathering more than three million views. Medvedev, who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020, has been regarded by some as a potential potential successor to Putin. There are fears Britain and other allies could face a terror backlash from the regime's supporters. Seven B-2 stealth bombers swept into Iranian airspace undetected yesterday, dropping 14 'bunker-buster' bombs on nuclear facilities as the US joined Israel in the biggest Western military action against the Islamic Republic since its 1979 revolution. The UK was informed of the mission, codenamed Operation Midnight Hammer, but played no part. Cabinet minister Jonathan Reynolds last night warned that Iranian activity in the UK was already substantial, and it was 'naive' to think it won't escalate. Britain's military bases in the region, such as RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus, were on the highest state of alert last night for revenge attacks, including by Iranian swarm drones. Defence Secretary John Healey said: 'The safety of UK personnel and bases is my top priority. Force protection is at its highest level and we deployed additional jets [to Cyprus] this week.' Other experts warned of a 'new era of terrorism' and US Vice President J D Vance said the FBI and law enforcement were on alert for threats on American soil. Sir Keir Starmer and President Trump discussed the need for Iran to return to the negotiating table in a phone call last night, No 10 said. A spokesman said: 'The leaders discussed the situation in the Middle East and reiterated the grave risk posed by Iran's nuclear programme to international security. 'They discussed the actions taken by the United States last night to reduce the threat and agreed that Iran must never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon. 'They discussed the need for Iran to return to the negotiating table as soon as possible. They agreed to stay in close contact in the coming days.' The Prime Minister urged all sides to return to negotiations but said he had taken 'all necessary measures' to protect British interests in the region if the conflict escalates. Before and after pictures of Fordow underground complex, taken on June 20 (left) and June 22 (right) In an address to the nation as the B-2s were flying home, Mr Trump said: 'Our objective was the destruction of Iran's nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world's number one state sponsor of terror. 'Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated. Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. 'If they do not, future attacks would be far greater and a lot easier.' President Trump boasted the US had 'taken the bomb right out of their hands (and they would use it if they could!)', while his Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed the US had offered Iran a civil nuclear programme but 'they rejected it'. He added: 'They played us. They wouldn't respond to our offers. They disappeared for ten days. The President had to take action as a response. 'We are not declaring war on Iran. We're not looking for war in Iran. But if they attack us, I think we have the capabilities they haven't even seen yet.' Last night, despite widespread calls to de- escalate, Iran president Masoud Pezeshkian said the US 'must receive a response for their aggression'. And a senior adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, warned: 'There will no longer be any place for the presence of the United States and its bases' in the region. Abbas Araghaci, Iran's foreign minister who described the US government as 'lawless and warmongering', is expected to meet Putin in Moscow today to discuss how to respond. Speaking hours after the US strikes, Business Secretary Mr Reynolds told Sky News the risk from Iran in the UK was 'not hypothetical'. He said: 'There is not a week goes by without some sort of Iranian cyber-attack on a key part of the UK's critical national infrastructure. 'There is Iranian activity on the streets of the UK, which is wholly unacceptable. 'It's already at a significant level. I think it would be naive to say that that wouldn't potentially increase.' A statement of the E3 group, with the UK alongside France and Germany, said: 'We call upon Iran to engage in negotiations leading to an agreement that addresses all concerns associated with its nuclear programme. 'We stand ready to contribute to that goal in coordination with all parties. 'We urge Iran not to take any further action that could destabilise the region.' But Iran threatened to hold the world hostage by closing the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway in the region and a chokepoint for world trade and oil transit. Last night, the head of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog said Iran's Natanz enrichment site was 'completely destroyed'. The extent of the damage at the Fordow site, built into a mountainside and reinforced with layers of concrete, is unclear. Discussing Fordow, Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said: 'There are clear indications of impacts. But, as for the assessment for the degree of damage underground... no one could tell you how much it has been damaged. One cannot exclude that there is significant damage there.'
News18
22-06-2025
- Politics
- News18
Opinion: As Trump Basks In Fordow Afterglow, Kremlin Has A Counterpoint
Last Updated: Russians believe Trump will scramble for peace in a hurry to hog credit for stopping Israel-Iran war. But Iran will invest all its energies to get past nuclear line in minimum time When bombs drop on the nuclear kitchens of the Ayatollah Khameini regime in Iran, billions rejoice. Some openly, some (especially the fast-transforming Sunni Arab powers) privately. Iran is a ruthlessly violent regime which has killed and targeted thousands of its own women for merely refusing to wear the hijab; runs terror proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis; and is widely seen as the biggest destabilising force in the Middle East. It has richly earned its comeuppance. But then the man who ordered the early morning bombings on Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan nuclear facilities is one who believes that jumping into every global conflict and claiming credit for solving those has earned him about five undelivered Nobel Peace Prizes so far. It is true that American B-2 stealth bombers have dropped six GBU-57, the deepest bunker-busting bomb in the world. Developed in the early 2000s, the Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) weighs 13,600 kg, is 6 meters long, has a diameter of about 80 cm, and contains nearly 2,500 kg of explosives. It can target structures up to 60 metres under the ground. The B-2 bombers flew non-stop for around 37 hours from its base in Missouri, US, refuelling several times mid-air. The Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran (AEOI) acknowledged the strikes. But it has downplayed these as superficial. No nuclear contamination detected after US strikes, it said. No changes in background radiation were detected in Saudi Arabia or other Gulf Arab states, the Saudi Nuclear and Radiological Regulatory Commission (NRRC) confirmed. Russia, Iran's steadfast ally, remains unimpressed by the airstrikes. Russian news agencies mocked Trump through its X handle. 'Force far greater than what was witnessed tonight," boasted Trump — the man who thinks he deserves FIVE Nobel Peace Prizes," Sputnik posted. But sources close to the Kremlin break down the US airstrikes more technically. Since Russia is Iran's biggest backer and has helped set up its nuclear infrastructure, there could be bias in its analysis. But it is nevertheless worth considering because beyond Trump's narcissistic boasts and the democratic world's confirmation bias to believe Iran's Ayatollah regime's nuke toys are finished, there could be a reality check. Six GBU-57 bombs (some now say 12) pounded Iran's Fordow nuclear plant. They rely on mass, not firepower. Imagine 30,000 pounds of tungsten, delayed fuses, inertial guidance, and geological stress sequencing. But Fordow was built for this, the Russians say. It is designed to counter the MOP. Hence the curved tunnels, offset caverns, anti-penetration strata, and layered redundancy across ventilation. Fordow apparently has C2 and IR-6 centrifuge chambers. A single hit does not affect much, but two strikes can open up a tunnel mouth. To truly destroy the core, you would need tight sequencing, vector convergence, telemetry confirmation, and real-time damage layering, says the source close to the Kremlin. That apparently didn't happen. At most, the American bombs sealed an entrance, he argues. Iran has so far reported no core disruption, no enrichment halt, and no internal collapse. Russians estimate that to drop six GBU-57 bombs, three B-2 stealth bombers together or two conducting multiple flyovers deep in contested airspace flew in without strike escort in one of the most monitored radar corridors on earth. If Fordow was gone, you would see craters, electromagnetic rupture, emergency airlifts, seismographs lighting up, and infrared flares beneath the mountain, they say. Tomahawk missiles on Natanz and Esfahan add nothing, they claim. Cruise missiles are subsonic, non-penetrative, and designed for surface-level disruption. 'You don't decapitate nuclear infrastructure with Tomahawk Block IV missiles. You flick switches. You scorch perimeters," the source says. 'A thousand-pound warhead does not cut into fuel halls or disrupt cascade chambers beneath 20 meters of hardened casing." This was bravado by Trump aimed at placating pro-Israel pressure groups, Russians believe. Apparently Jewish groups in the US have been long pressing Washington to join the war. 'As of now, there is no synthetic aperture radar (SAR) confirmation. No crater clustering. No multispectral flash analysis. No underground fire signature. No battle damage assessment (BDA) loop," says the Russian source. The Russians believe Trump will now scramble for peace in a hurry to hog credit for stopping the Israel-Iran war. But Iran will invest all its energies to get past the nuclear line in the minimum time now. And Russia is likely to help it. The last quip is particularly acerbic: 'If the centrifuge of Fordow still spins tomorrow, Washington just pulled off the most expensive influence op in bunker-busting history, only to watch Tehran climb the escalation ladder unscathed." top videos View all Although Benjamin Netanyahu thanked Trump and America, he would not be pleased if the airstrikes serve only as Trump's headline and photo-op and makes Iran even more determined to procure the Bomb. Abhijit Majumder is a senior journalist. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views. First Published:
AllAfrica
16-06-2025
- Politics
- AllAfrica
Will there be a deal with Iran?
All the signals point to a desperate Iran wanting a ceasefire and restart of negotiations with the United States. The Wall Street Journal and others report that the Iranians have signaled Israel asking for a deescalation of the attacks. President Trump may like this because he sees himself as a great negotiator. But he had better be careful here, because his original proposed deal is too vague and doesn't cut it as a solution to Iran's nuclear program and overall regional threat to Israel and its Arab neighbors. While the diplomatic feelers are filling the air, there are other reports that regime muckety mucks are leaving Iran on a secret airlift, maybe heading to Moscow but no one really knows. There is, as yet, no sign that Israel intends to slow its attacks which are, in part, now focusing on government institutions and regime leaders (other than Ayatollah Khameini who is, allegedly, off limits). Washington is building up its forces in the Middle East and is now sending the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier task force from the South China Sea heading 'in the direction' of the Middle East, where it would join the USS Carl Vinson carrier task force already on station. Other reports say that the US has sent a large number of aerial refueling tankers across the Atlantic, but without an as yet known destination. US warships have helped Israel shoot down Iranian missiles and drones. The UK also announced it is deploying Royal Air Force jet fighters to the Middle East. It is not clear whether negotiations with Iran will restart. Should that happen, the original US parameters for a deal would not solve the bigger problem that must be resolved if the war is going to end. Obviously the first priority is to end Iran's nuclear program. But what does that mean? Israel is unlikely to agree to inspection of Iranian nuclear sites as an adequate or reliable way to assure Iran does not resume its nuclear weapons programs. The Trump administration set down a red line saying 'no more uranium enrichment,' but has not clarified how that can be achieved. Relying on IAEA inspections is a formula that has proven a leaky vessel not only in Iran, but elsewhere. IAEA never saw the North Korean-Iranian-Syrian attempt to build a secret nuclear fuel reactor modeled on the North Korean Yongbyon reactor. Israel wiped it off the map. Nor did the IAEA ever grasp Iraq's nuclear bomb effort under Saddam Hussein. The IAEA so-called inspections in Iran don't include the massive Fordow complex, where Iran was readying enrichment to bomb-grade uranium, or other 'secret' facilities, such as the recently discovered tritium 'rainbow' facility, part of the effort to build either boosted nuclear bombs or hydrogen weapons. The only reliable way to end Iran's nuclear program is to destroy all the nuclear facilities in the country, while putting Iran's nuclear reactors under strict international control, not inspection. In addition to the nuclear issue, the US needs to demand limits on Iran's ballistic missile program. Just before the outbreak of hostilities, Iran tested an as yet unnamed intermediate-range ballistic missile that can carry a two ton warhead. This missile obviously is designed to deliver a nuclear warhead. It could be that when Israel saw this test it realized it had no choice but to act against Iran. Part of any deal must include scrapping heavy missiles and an agreement never to manufacture them again. Israel also will demand, and rightly so, the immediate release of all the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza and a guarantee that no weapons of any kind can be transferred to Hamas, Islamic Jihad or others who intend to attack Israel. Israel knows that if it smashes Iran, Hamas is finished because it utterly relies on weapons supplied by Iran. Finally, Iran has to agree to no transfers of weapons of any kind to the Houthis in Yemen. Israel will not tolerate missile attacks from the Houthis any more than it will tolerate Iranian attacks against Israel. If the Trump administration wants to negotiate a deal, either the deal has to address the nuclear issue and the hostages, and Yemen, or it isn't worth anything. Stephen Bryen is a special correspondent to Asia Times and former US deputy undersecretary of defense for policy.
