Latest news with #IranWar
Al Jazeera
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Israeli's 'not ready for 'this level of destruction' in Iran war
Elijah Magnier, a military and political analyst, says while some people in Israel support war on Iran, many were not prepared for the cost of the escalating conflict.
The Independent
5 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
US issues ‘do not travel' warning for Israel, Gaza and West Bank as war escalates with Iran
U.S. State Department officials on Monday updated a travel advisory for Israel, Gaza and the West Bank territory to 'do not travel' as casualties mount on both sides of Israel's escalating war with Iran. The advisory states that Israel remained a target with high potential for terrorist attacks while also stating that the danger posed by missile strikes and UAV (drone) strikes continues to be present. 'The security situation in Israel, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem is unpredictable, and U.S. citizens are reminded to remain vigilant and take appropriate steps to increase their security awareness as security incidents, including mortar and rocket fire and armed UAV intrusions and missiles, can take place without warning,' it reads. More than 200 are dead in Iran and at least 18 are dead in Israel as the two Middle Eastern powers show no signs of coming to the end of a conflict that US critics of Israeli policy, including some allies of Donald Trump, believe was launched with the purpose of ending negotiations between the Trump administration and Iranian government over the latter's nuclear program. After five rounds of talks, progress was being made slowly but surely as Iranian officials signaled an openness to new concessions that made an agreement unlikely but possible. That ended with a dizzying round of Israeli airstrikes against Iranian targets including top officials involved with the nuclear program. Israeli forces are said to have underestimated the ability of Iran's millitary to regroup after initial losses, and Monday's announcement by the State Department is a sign that Iran's military capabilities, including the ability to strike Israeli cities including Tel Aviv are far from neutralized. Members of the G-7 have called on the two countries to de-escalate, but the Trump administration is reportedly not planning to sign on to those calls. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, took the opposite tactic on Monday — even as he rejected the idea that his publicly-stated openness to assassinating Iran's supreme leader could cause the conflict to spiral out of control. "It's not going to escalate the conflict, it's going to end the conflict,' he told ABC News of that potential effort in an interview. Attacks launched by the two countries continued on Monday; evacuation orders were issued for parts of both Tehran and Tel Aviv. Trump surprised many in his voting coalition by publicly backing the Israeli strikes on Iran after it was reported earlier this year that the US president waved off a plan to support a similar operation with US assets. Reporting about the president's shift in position has pointed to new evidence presented by US brass concerning the status of Iran's nuclear weapons development as being a pivotal factor in his endorsement of the attack. Americans are not banned from travel to Israel or any of the Palestinian territories under this pronouncement from the State Department, which the agency does not have the power to do. But officials warned Americans who choose to travel to Israel to avoid crowded places including security checkpoints, and 'maintain a high degree of situational awareness and exercise caution at all times.'
Daily Mail
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Tucker Carlson warns that Fox News 'liars' influencing Trump could END his presidency over nuclear war
Journalist Tucker Carlson traveled to Washington, DC on Monday, publicly urging the president away from an escalating war in the Middle East and warning him it could lead to the 'end' of his presidency. Carlson said he was in town for a series of interviews and appeared on the War Room with Steve Bannon show to discuss the ongoing debate about the war in Iran and the role that the United States should play in the conflict. He revealed that he 'loved' President Trump and wanted him to be successful, but warned that the Israeli military operations against Iran threatened to get the United States further mired into the conflict. 'A full-scale war with Iran,' he argued, ' would end, I believe, Trump's presidency, effectively end it, so that's why I'm saying this.' Carlson said if he could speak to Trump about the conflict, he would urge him to act in America's interests and bring peace to the region. 'I would say to him, you're the only person who can bring peace. You should continue to try and do that, it's difficult, it takes a long time but your timetable is the only timetable that matters, don't get bum rushed,' he said. Carlson said he was hopeful that the president would move to deescalate the conflict. 'We're in the final stages of being able to pull back and pretty soon there's no pulling back,' he said, calling for 'active steps to prevent the inevitable' war in the Middle East that could escalate into 'world war.' Carlson was angry at what he described were 'lies' about Trump's commitment to peace in Iran, criticizing reports suggesting the president only used the peace process to lure Iran into complacency while Israel planned their attacks. 'They're lying about him. He sincerely believes now that this could be a predicate to a peace deal, he really thinks that and wants that,' he said. Carlson spoke as the president was in Canada for the G7 summit talks on Monday. 'I wish the president was not in Canada. I don't wish a trip to Canada on anyone ... I hope he gets home soon because you don't want any of that Canadian to rub off on you while you're there,' he said. He warned that Israeli president Bibi Netanyahu would continue to try to get the United States further involved in their war, but urged him to deliver a tough message to Israel. 'I think this can be stopped but it's going to require a really tough step which is to say to our client state which is to say, "We love you, we want to help you, we don't think you're acting in your own interest ... what we're not going to do is imperil American national security, the American economy, or America itself on your behalf,' he said. Carlson addressed attacks from Fox News host and radio legend Mark Levin and other pro-Israel figures in the United States who have escalated attacks against him for criticizing Israel's military strikes on Iran. 'My interest is really simple, I don't want the United States be meshed into another Middle Eastern war that doesn't serve our interests,' he said. Carlson revealed he supported Israel, but believed the recent conflict with Iran was not in their national interests. 'If you think I'm anti-Israel, then you've lost the plot son,' he said, recalling a conversation he had with an Israeli official. He said his positions was a 'disaster for me personally' and that many of his previous colleagues and friends from Fox News continued to attack him for his views. 'It's crazy how people that are against killing are the criminals all of a sudden,' he said. Levin has escalated his attacks against Carlson in recent weeks, giving him the nickname 'Chatsworth Qatar-lson' and accusing him of getting funded by Qatar to share his views. 'I always liked Mark Levin, I got along with him, he's a blowhard, sad personal life, and all that but I was never mad at Mark Levin,' he said. Carlson defied the idea that he was working for the Qatari government. 'I've never taken a dime from any foreign country or anybody actually,' he said. He questioned the motives of his critics, accusing them of 'projecting' their own weaknesses on him. 'They're the ones that have these weird complex motives,' he said, declaring that his critics had 'empty, tormented personal lives.' Carlson also addressed the Fox News platform, challenging they were committed to the vision of escalating military interventionism in the Middle East. 'Anyone who stands in their way will be destroyed,' he said. Carlson said that Mark Levin was 'terrible on TV' but questioned why the veteran radio host was 'all over primetime' championing America's commitment to Israel's fight. He tried to soften his criticism of Fox News, saying he personally liked Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan and the people who worked there. 'What they are doing is what they always do, which is just turning up the propaganda hose to full blast and just trying to knock elderly Fox viewers off their feet and make them to subject to more wars, he said, adding that he 'respected their sincerity,' but 'fundamentally disagreed' with their views. Trump responded to Carlson and others who warned that supporting Israel's war in Iran was against his campaign promise act on an 'American First' agenda. 'Well, considering that I'm the one that developed America First, and considering that the term wasn't used until I came along, I think I'm the one that decides that,' he said in an interview with The Atlantic. Trump argued that military action to disrupt Iran's nuclear program was essential to peace.
Reuters
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Israeli resilience tested as Iranian missile strikes hit home
TEL AVIV/JERUSALEM, June 16 (Reuters) - Four days into their war with Iran, Israelis are shaken and anxious, yet remain resilient, still backing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's decision to confront a longstanding foe. Netanyahu ordered a surprise attack on Iran in the early hours of Friday, vowing to end Tehran's nuclear ambitions, which he says represent an existential threat to his nation. In response, Iran has fired nightly barrages of ballistic missiles that have brought destruction in their wake -- and also stirred defiance among some of those who have suffered. "We trust God and Bibi Netanyahu," said Suki Yoram, standing in front of his partially destroyed block of flats in the Petah Tikva neighbourhood, just east of Tel Aviv, which was hit by a missile overnight, killing four people. "We are with you till the end, do not stop, go on... There is no other choice," he told Reuters. Dozens of apartment blocks and other buildings in central and northern Israel have been wrecked by the waves of missiles since Friday, leaving 24 dead and hundreds injured. The severity and depth of the damage have outstripped anything that either Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip or Hezbollah fighters in neighbouring Lebanon have managed to inflict on Israel in decades of confrontation. "It's very sad. And we don't want to lose any people. But what can you do," said Adi Shindler, 71, a Jerusalem resident. Israel's longest-serving prime minister, Netanyahu has repeatedly warned that Iran was looking to build nuclear weapons and wanted to turn them on Israel -- a small nation home to nearly half the world's Jews. Iran has said its nuclear programme is purely for civilian purposes, but Israelis, whose society has been shaped by the memory of the Nazi Holocaust, think otherwise. "We don't have a choice. It's better this way than to have missiles come at us, nuclear missiles. And then we're all dead," said Shindler. Israel's own airstrikes have gutted Iran's nuclear and military leadership. Iran's death toll has reached at least 224, with civilians accounting for 90% of the casualties, an Iranian official said. Thousands of residents of Tehran are fleeing their homes and stockpiling essential supplies for fear that Israel's campaign will escalate in the coming days. Netanyahu is a deeply divisive figure in Israel. Many blame him for failing to prevent the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas on southern Israel, that killed around 1,200 people and triggered a brutal war in Gaza that is still grinding on. Opposition politicians have accused him of prolonging that conflict to stave off a reckoning over the 2023 security failings. But they have closed ranks since the Israeli airforce launched its mass assault on Iran on June 13. "When it comes to the security of the people of Israel in the face of our enemies, we are one people, with one mission. Our children will not live in fear of an Iranian nuclear bomb. Not today, not ever," said opposition leader Yair Lapid. A poll released on Monday by Agam Labs researchers said 70% of Israelis supported the military assault on Iran -- a number that rose to 83% among the country's Jewish population. Only 16% of people surveyed opposed the operation. Nonetheless, the nightly rush to air raid shelters and scenes of bombed-out homes is jangling nerves. When an Iranian rocket, which typically carries between 300-700 kg (660-1,540 pounds) of explosives, makes a direct hit near the heavily populated coast, the boom can be distinctly heard 55 km away (35 miles) in Jerusalem. In Tel Aviv, 31-year-old chef Guydo Tetelbaun stood on smashed glass and debris outside what had once his apartment. "It's terrifying because it's so unknown," he said in the early hours of Monday. "This could be the beginning of a long time like this, or it could get worse, or hopefully better, but it's the unknown that's the scariest." While there is undoubtedly broad support for the attack on Iran, not everyone agrees with the war -- the biggest conflagration of the past 20 months during which time Israel has also squared off against Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. "I don't think it will bring any good," said Ben Keller, an Israeli studying for a doctorate in Britain and currently back home to see his family. "I never really believed Iran would use a nuclear weapon. It's just something people like to have in order to make threats, but they won't actually use it," he said. Investors, however, seemed to take the view that the conflict would ultimately be good for Israel, betting that Netanyahu would win his military gamble and manage to destroy Iran's nuclear ambitions, removing a long shadow over the country and its economy. The shekel gained more than 3% against the dollar on Monday -- its biggest daily percentage gain since at least 2008 -- while the Tel Aviv stock market rose 2%. "Reducing Israel's geopolitical risk significantly is likely to reduce the risk premium priced into the bond market and provide Israel with a more positive growth outlook," said Jonathan Katz, chief economist at Leader Capital Markets.
Wall Street Journal
a day ago
- Politics
- Wall Street Journal
Israel Takes Control of Iran's Skies—a Feat That Still Eludes Russia in Ukraine
Within 48 hours of starting its war on Iran, Israel said it gained air superiority over the western part of the country, including Tehran. Israeli warplanes began dropping bombs from within Iranian skies instead of relying on expensive long-range missiles. That is a feat that the giant Russian air force has been unable to achieve in Ukraine in 3½ years of war. This setback is one of the reasons why Moscow's troops have been bogged down in grinding trench warfare, sustaining staggering losses, ever since they failed to rapidly seize Kyiv in February 2022.
