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Straits Times
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Israel's strikes on Iran were years in the making: Analysts
Fire of Israeli attack on Sharan Oil depot is seen following the Israeli strikes on Iran, in Tehran, on June 15. PHOTO: REUTERS Israel's strikes on Iran were years in the making: Analysts PARIS - Israel's unprecedented strikes on Iran, which have killed top military leaders and nuclear scientists, required years of meticulous intelligence gathering and infiltration, experts say. Israel said it hit hundreds of targets on June 13 alone, and has since continued its attacks, striking a defence facility and fuel depots on June 15 . The fiercest-ever exchange of fire between the arch foes came in the midst of ongoing talks between Tehran and Washington seeking to reach a deal on Iran's nuclear programme. 'Israel has been following the nuclear programme for 15 years,' Israeli analyst Michael Horowitz told AFP. 'The strikes we see are the result of years of intelligence gathering and infiltration of the Islamic republic.' Israel has previously carried out more limited attacks against Iranian military sites, including in October 2024. 'It seems that this week's operation had been in preparation for months, with an acceleration after the operation last year significantly weakened Iranian air defences,' Mr Horowitz said. The United States and other Western countries, along with Israel, accuse Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon. Tehran denies that, but has gradually broken away from its commitments under a 2015 nuclear deal it struck with world powers, which the United States withdrew from during President Donald Trump's first term. The landmark accord had provided Iran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its atomic programme. 'Impressive' precision Israel is long believed to have carried out sabotage operations inside Iran through its Mossad espionage agency, but the attacks that started on June 13 are by far the broadest in scope. The campaign has shown Israel to be capable of precisely locating and taking out high-ranking Iranian officials and nuclear scientists. A European security source said the strikes showed 'an impressive degree of precision and mastery'. Israel says it has killed 20 military and security targets, including the armed forces' chief of staff and the head of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, as well as nine nuclear scientists. Mr Danny Citrinowicz, of the Tel Aviv-based Institute for National Security Studies, said the ability to take out high-ranking officials showed 'intelligence, but also operational superiority of Israel over Iran'. 'It's highly connected to the ability to collect information, intelligence in Iran for years, excellent intelligence that actually allows you to detect where they're living, the seniors, also the nuclear scientists,' he told AFP. The latest targeted strikes come after Israel killed Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, in a Tehran guesthouse in July 2024 . Haniyeh had been in town for the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and was reportedly killed by an explosive device that Israeli operatives had placed in the guesthouse weeks before. Analysts at the time saw the attack as a major intelligence failure by Iran. But 'still Iran didn't learn and didn't have the ability to lock the holes in their system', said Mr Citrinowicz. Smuggled drone News site Axios reported that Mossad agents inside Iran helped prepare the J une 13 strikes, pre-positioning weapon systems near air defence targets, including by hiding them inside vehicles, and launching them when the attack started. An Israeli intelligence official told Axios that Mossad had 'established an attack drone base inside Iran with drones that were smuggled in long before the operation'. A former Israeli intelligence official told The Atlantic that 'Iranians opposed to the regime make for a ready recruiting pool', and that 'Iranians working for Israel were involved in efforts to build a drone base inside the country'. Mr Alain Chouet, the former number three in the French intelligence, said he was convinced Israel had 'half a dozen cells capable of acting at any moment' inside Iran. Iran regularly executes people it accuses of spying for Israel. It is unclear what role, if any, Israel's key military and diplomatic ally the United States had in the latest strikes. Before the attack early on June 13 , Mr Trump publicly urged Israel to allow time for diplomacy, as a sixth round of US-Iranian nuclear talks were set to be held in Oman at the weekend. The US president on June 15 said Washington 'had nothing to do' with ally Israel's campaign. But Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on June 15 said Tehran had 'solid proof of the support of the American forces and American bases in the region' for the attacks. And Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on June 14 his country was acting with 'the clear support of the president of the United States'. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Standard
16 hours ago
- Politics
- The Standard
Germany, France and UK ready to hold talks with Iran, says German minister
Iranian flags fly as fire and smoke from an Israeli attack on Sharan Oil depot rise, following Israeli strikes on Iran, in Tehran, Iran, June 15, 2025. (Reuters)
Straits Times
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Germany, France and UK ready to hold talks with Iran, says German minister
FILE PHOTO: Germany's Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul looks on as he speaks to the media with Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani (not pictured) after a bilateral meeting at Villa Madama in Rome, Italy, June 12, 2025. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo Iranian flags fly as fire and smoke from an Israeli attack on Sharan Oil depot rise, following Israeli strikes on Iran, in Tehran, Iran, June 15, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS BERLIN - Germany, France and Britain are ready to hold immediate talks with Iran over Tehran's nuclear programme in an effort to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said. Wadephul, who is on a visit to the Middle East, said he was trying to contribute towards a de-escalation of the conflict between Israel and Iran, noting that Tehran had previously failed to take the opportunity of constructive talks. "I hope that's still possible," Wadephul told German public broadcaster ARD late on Saturday. "Germany, together with France and Britain are ready. We're offering Iran immediate negotiations about the nuclear programme, I hope (the offer) is accepted." "This is also a key prerequisite for reaching a pacification of this conflict, that Iran presents no danger to the region, for the state of Israel or to Europe." Wadephul, who is in Oman on Sunday, said the conflict would be ended only when influence is exerted on Iran and Israel from all sides. "There's a shared expectation that within the next week, a serious attempt must be made on both sides to interrupt the spiral of violence," he said. When asked whether he believed the Iranian government could fall, Wadephul said his assumption was that it was not Israel's intention to bring down the administration in Tehran. Turning to Gaza, Wadephul said the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave was unacceptable and urged Israel to allow unrestricted access to aid organisations. "The hunger, the dying, the suffering of the people in Gaza must come to an end," he said, adding that Hamas was to blame for the conflict and that the Islamist group must release hostages held since Hamas-led militants raided Israel in October 2023. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
GMA Network
a day ago
- Politics
- GMA Network
Israel and Iran strike at each other in new wave of attacks
The Sharan Oil depot is seen burning after an Israeli strike in Tehran, Iran on Sunday, June 15, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS TEL AVIV/DUBAI - Israel and Iran launched fresh attacks on each other overnight into Sunday, stoking fears of a wider conflict after Israel expanded its surprise campaign against its main rival with a strike on the world's biggest gas field. Tehran called off nuclear talks that Washington had said were the only way to halt Israel's bombing, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attacks were nothing compared with what Iran would see in the coming days. Israel's military said more missiles were launched from Iran towards Israel overnight, and that it was attacking military targets in Tehran. Rescue and security personnel work at an impact site in central Israel following a missile attack from Iran on Israel on Sunday, June 15, 2025. REUTERS/Tomer Appelbaum Early Sunday morning, air raid sirens blared across Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Several missiles were seen streaking through the sky over Tel Aviv, while interceptor rockets were launched from the ground. Explosions echoed in both cities. Israel's ambulance service said three women were killed and 10 other people injured in an earlier missile strike near a house in northern Israel. Emergency responders with flashlights were seen searching the rubble of the partially collapsed home in Tamra, a predominantly Palestinian city. Around 2:30 a.m. local time, the Israeli military warned of another barrage launched from Iran and urged the public to seek shelter. By 3:30 a.m., at least four people had been killed and 36 were reported injured in multiple overnight missile attacks. Israeli media published an image of a 10-story residential building, reportedly in central Israel, showing extensive damage after a strike. Iran said the Shahran oil depot in Tehran was targeted in an Israeli attack but that the situation was under control, and that a fire had erupted after an Israeli attack on an oil refinery near the capital. Israeli strikes also targeted Iran's defense ministry building in Tehran, causing minor damage, Iran's Tasnim news agency said on Sunday. Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Iranian missiles and drones targeted Israel's energy infrastructure and facilities for fighter jet fuel production. The elite force warned Tehran's attacks will be "heavier and more extensive" if Israel continues its hostilities. US President Donald Trump had warned Iran of worse to come, but said it was not too late to halt the Israeli campaign if Tehran accepted a sharp downgrading of its nuclear program. A round of US-Iran nuclear talks that was due to be held in Oman on Sunday was canceled, with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi saying the discussions could not take place while Iran was being subjected to Israel's "barbarous" attacks. In the first apparent attack to hit Iran's energy infrastructure, the semi-official Tasnim news agency said Iran partially suspended production at the world's biggest gas field after an Israeli strike caused a fire there on Saturday. The South Pars field, offshore in Iran's southern Bushehr province, is the source of most of the gas produced in Iran. Fears about potential disruption to the region's oil exports had already driven up oil prices 9% on Friday even though Israel spared Iran's oil and gas on the first day of its attacks. An Iranian general, Esmail Kosari, said on Saturday that Tehran was reviewing whether to close the Strait of Hormuz controlling access to the Gulf for tankers. Iran says scores killed Iran said 78 people were killed on the first day of Israel's campaign, and scores more on the second, including 60 when a missile brought down a 14-storey apartment block in Tehran, where 29 of the dead were children. Iran had launched its own retaliatory missile volley on Friday night, killing at least three people in Israel. With Israel saying its operation could last weeks, and Netanyahu urging Iran's people to rise up against their Islamic clerical rulers, fears have grown of a regional conflagration dragging in outside powers. B'Tselem, a leading Israeli human rights organization, said on Saturday that instead of exhausting all possibilities for a diplomatic resolution, Israel's government had chosen to start a war that puts the entire region in danger. Tehran has warned Israel's allies that their military bases in the region would come under fire too if they helped shoot down Iranian missiles. However, 20 months of war in Gaza and a conflict in Lebanon last year have decimated Tehran's strongest regional proxies, Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, reducing its options for retaliation. Israel sees Iran's nuclear program as a threat to its existence, and said the bombardment was designed to avert the last steps to production of a nuclear weapon. Tehran insists the program is entirely civilian and that it does not seek an atomic bomb. However the UN nuclear watchdog reported it this week as violating obligations under the global non-proliferation treaty. —Reuters
