Iran prepares for strikes on US bases in Middle East if Trump adds to Israel’s attack
President Donald Trump has demanded “unconditional surrender” from Tehran and warned the United States could easily assassinate its supreme leader as Iran and US ally Israel traded devastating fire for a fifth day.
The comments fuelled questions over whether Washington will join Israel’s attacks after insisting it had no hand in the campaign.
Israeli warplanes targeted drone and missile sites with at least two waves of strikes in western Iran on Tuesday (local time), the military said.
It also said it had killed senior Iranian commander Ali Shadmani in an overnight strike on a “command centre in the heart of Tehran”, just four days after his predecessor, Gholam Ali Rashid, was killed in Israel’s initial surprise attack.
STORY CONTINUES AFTER LIVE BLOG
Iranian leader vows to show ‘no mercy’ for Israeli leaders
Bradley Church
Iran’s supreme leader has promised his country will show no mercy towards Israel’s politicians, hours after US President Donald Trump demanded Tehran’s “unconditional surrender”.
“We must give a strong response to the terrorist Zionist regime. We will show the Zionists no mercy,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei posted on X.
Israel last week launched an unprecedented bombing campaign hitting Iranian nuclear and military facilities, as well as residential areas.
Iran has responded by launching missiles and drones, and early this morning said it had fired hypersonic missiles at Israel. Experts have raised doubts about the hypersonic ability of Tehran’s missiles.
- Daily Telegraph
Israel launches strikes with more than 50 jets on Iranian centrifuge and missile production sites
Bradley Church
Israel launched a wave of strikes involving more than 50 aircraft on Iranian centrifuge and missile production sites overnight, according to the military early on Wednesday, CNN reported.
“More than 50 Air Force fighter jets, under precise intelligence guidance from the Intelligence Branch, have completed a series of strikes on military targets in the Tehran area in recent hours,” the Israel Defecse Forces said.
Among those targets were sites used to manufacture both surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles, the military said.
Israel also said it had attacked a centrifuge production facility in Tehran in order to set back Iran’s “nuclear weapons development program.”
“The Iranian regime is enriching uranium intended for the purpose of developing nuclear weapons,” it said.
US military and intelligence officials have long said that the US and Israel often differ on how to interpret information on Iran’s nuclear programme.
As recently as March, US national intelligence director Tulsi Gabbar testified that the US intelligence community had assessed that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had not authorised the resumption of the nuclear weapons programme he suspended in 2003.
Photos from day five of strikes between Israel and Iran
Kendall Russell
Hypersonic missiles used during latest attack on Israel - Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps
Kendall Russell
Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps has said that hypersonic missiles were used during the latest attack on Israel, as fighting between the arch foes entered a sixth day.
"The 11th wave of the proud Operation Honest Promise 3 using Fattah-1 missiles" was carried out, the Guards said in a statement carried by state television, claiming that Iranian forces "have gained complete control over the skies of the occupied territories".
- AFP
Israel's air defences intercepting Iranian missiles over Tel Aviv earlier today
Kendall Russell
Israel begins fresh wave of strikes
Kendall Russell
Israel has announced a fresh wave of strikes around Tehran, both CNN and the Telegraph report.
The Israeli military said its warplanes had targeted 12 missile launch sites and storage facilities.
It said the air force was conducting strikes around Tehran on Wednesday morning (local time).
It comes as Israel’s military warned the population to stay close to shelters as Iran fired new salvos of missiles, but officials said most were intercepted. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards had issued a warned to people in a suburb of Tel Aviv to evacuate.
US closing embassy in Jerusalem for a few days
Kendall Russell
CNN reports the US embassy in Israel will be closed Wednesday through Friday (local time).
The embassy has also directed its employees and their families to shelter in place.
“As a result of the current security situation and ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, the US Embassy has directed that all US government employees and their family members continue to shelter in place in and near their residences until further notice,” the embassy said in a statement.
Consular services in Tel Aviv will also be closed until Friday, the statement said.
The embassy also said it has no announcement at this time about helping “private US citizens” leave the country. Israel’s largest international airport and the country’s seaports are currently closed, according to the statement.
Israelis says they're losing their sense of security
Kendall Russell
For five days, Iran’s ballistic missile salvos against Israel have torn through residential buildings and killed two dozen civilians, set cars and infrastructure ablaze.
The attacks have Israelis questioning their already fractured sense of security.
Read the piece by Washington Post's Shira Rubin here.
Iran preparing for possible retaliatory strikes on US bases - officials
Kendall Russell
According to CNN, the New York Times has reported that Iran has prepared for strikes on US bases in the Middle East if the United States joins Israel's attacks on Iran.
Read more here.
Trump speaks with Netanyahu, White House says
Kendall Russell
US President Donald Trump spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, according to the White House, the Washington Post reports.
Trump earlier said he was aiming for a "real end" to the conflict, not just a ceasefire after he departed the G7 Summit in Canada.
Oil prices jump, stocks drop amid Israel-Iran crisis
Kendall Russell
Oil prices jumped and stocks mostly fell on Tuesday (local time) after President Donald Trump abruptly departed G7 talks and concerns rose over a possible US intervention in the Israel-Iran war.
Investors' optimism the previous day that the conflict would not spread throughout the Middle East gave way to fears of further escalation as the fighting entered its fifth day.
"Middle East tensions are showing no signs of easing back, putting investors on high alert," said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
Trump said he was aiming for a "real end" to the conflict, not just a ceasefire after he departed the G7 summit in Canada.
In social media posts, Trump appeared to demand Iran's "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" while hinting at a possible US intervention to assist Israel.
After spending all of Monday in positive territory, US indices were in the red throughout Tuesday's session. The S&P 500 finished down 0.8%.
Contributing to the selling was a disappointing US retail sales report that suggested shoppers pulled back in May after accelerating purchases the prior months in anticipation of tariffs.
European equities ended the day lower, while Asia turned in a mixed performance: Hong Kong fell, while Shanghai was flat and Tokyo advanced.
Despite mounting calls to de-escalate, neither side has backed off from the missile blitz that began Friday, when Israel targeted Iranian nuclear and military facilities.
Oil prices surged more than 4% on Tuesday after swinging between gains and losses since Friday's initial surge.
Analysts have said the oil market is currently "sufficiently supplied," as Commerzbank said in a note.
However, the Iran-Israel conflict has the oil market on edge because of the significance of the Strait of Hormuz, through which around an estimated fifth of global oil supply traverses, according to the Commerzbank note.
Investors are looking ahead to the US Federal Reserve's decision on Wednesday, with policymakers expected to hold steady interest rates.
Dealers also kept tabs on the G7 summit, where world leaders pushed back against Trump's trade war, arguing it posed a risk to global economic stability.
Britain, Canada, Italy, Japan, Germany and France called on Trump to reverse course on his plans to impose even steeper tariffs on countries across the globe next month.
"Trump leaving the summit early means the prospects of any more deals look slim in the days ahead," said City Index and FOREX.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada.
The dollar advanced against the euro and other currencies, evidence of a revived flight to safety impetus among traders due to Middle East uncertainty.
- AFP
Trump meets National Security Council on Iran
Kendall Russell
President Donald Trump has met with his National Security Council to discuss the Iran-Israel war, the White House said, as the US leader considered whether to join Israel's air campaign against Tehran.
The meeting in the White House Situation Room lasted around one hour and 20 minutes, a White House official said on condition of anonymity, without giving more details.
The meeting comes after Trump said the United States would not kill Iran's supreme leader "for now" and demanded Tehran's "unconditional" surrender, as US ally Israel traded fire with its arch foe for a fifth day.
US officials said Trump was keeping all options on the table, while insisting that Washington had no hand in the campaign so far.
The most likely option under consideration by Trump would be the use of giant US "bunker-buster" bombs against Iran's deeply buried Fordow nuclear facility that Israel's bombs cannot reach.
The New York Times said Trump was also considering allowing US tanker aircraft to refuel Israeli combat jets so they could carry out long range missions.
US officials said dismantling Iran's nuclear programme - which Western countries say Tehran is using to seek a nuclear weapon, although the Iranian government denies this - remained Trump's priority.
But Trump's earlier comments implied that the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is back on the table, just days after a US official said he had waved off such a move by Israel.
- AFP
Air raid sirens briefly sound in northern Israel
Kendall Russell
Air raid sirens were activated briefly across a large swath of northern Israel warning of an incoming barrage of Iranian missiles, the military said.
"A short while ago, sirens sounded in several areas across Israel following the identification of missiles launched from Iran toward the State of Israel," the military said in the seventh such warning since midnight.
Israeli authorities issued a statement around 15 minutes later saying residents could leave their shelters, with no reports of strikes published by officials.
Israeli media is subject to strict restrictions from the military censor.
The latest warning of the day came hours after a previous barrage from Iran targeted the coastal hub of Tel Aviv and the north.
Israel's sophisticated air defence systems have been largely successful in intercepting Iranian missiles and drones.
- AFP
The latest exchanges
Kendall Russell
Israel's military said it launched at least two waves of strikes targeting missile and drone sites in western Iran.
AFP journalists heard multiple series of loud explosions across Tehran, while Iranian media reported blasts in Isfahan, which hosts nuclear facilities.
Israel said it intercepted "most" of a barrage of missiles fired from Iran after air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and northern parts of the country.
The Israeli military issued seven missile alerts for various parts of the country since midnight (local time).
Air raid sirens also sounded in Dimona, a town in southern Israel home to a nuclear facility, with no reports of any hits.
Iran has said its targets in Israel included "sensitive" security sites, claiming attacks on the headquarters of the Mossad spy agency and air force bases.
Abdolrahim Mousavi, the Iranian armed forces chief of staff, warned of imminent "punitive operations".
As of Sunday, Israeli attacks had killed at least 224 people and wounded more than 1200 in Iran, the health ministry said. The deaths include top military commanders and nuclear scientists.
At least 24 people have been killed and 592 wounded in Iran's attacks on Israel, according to Netanyahu's office.
- AFP
US Vice President JD Vance comments on Trump's social media posts
Kendall Russell
Trump says he won't kill Iran's supreme leader - 'for now'
Kendall Russell
US President Donald Trump has dramatically stepped up his rhetoric against Iran’s supreme leader, saying on social media that the United States knows where Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is located but will not kill him “for now”.
In another post, Trump also appeared to demand Iran’s “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!” as he fuelled questions about whether the United States would join Israel’s attacks on Tehran’s leadership and nuclear facilities.
“We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there - We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
“But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” said Trump.
- AFP
STORY CONTINUES
The new attacks drew retaliatory fire from the Islamic republic, with explosions heard over Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, and air raid sirens sounding around Dimona, a southern town home to a nuclear power plant. There were no immediate reports of hits.
Days after a senior US official said Trump had told Israel to back down from plans to assassinate top leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the US president appeared to reverse course.
“We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there - We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
Warning Iran against targeting US interests, he also posted:
“But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin,” he added, later posting a message saying: “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!”
Trump and his National Security Council met on Tuesday to discuss the conflict, ending after an hour and 20 minutes with no immediate public statement.
‘Punitive operations’
Despite international alarm, neither side has backed off from the long-range blitz that began on Friday, when Israel launched an unprecedented bombing campaign targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities.
Iranian media reported several explosions on Tuesday in the central city of Isfahan, home to nuclear facilities. Blasts were also heard across Tehran.
The Iranian armed forces warned residents in the Israeli cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa to evacuate “for the sake of their lives”, warning of “punitive operations” to come.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had launched an attack targeting Israeli air bases.
Residential areas in both countries have suffered deadly strikes since the fighting broke out, and foreign governments have scrambled to evacuate their citizens.
A cyber attack crippled Sepah Bank, one of Iran’s main state-owned banks, the Fars news agency reported.
Fearing the violence, many residents have fled Tehran.
Long queues stretched outside bakeries and petrol stations as the remaining residents rushed to stock up on fuel and basic supplies.
Trump late on Monday warned on social media that the entire population of Tehran should evacuate “immediately”, without offering any explanation.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the United States was deploying “additional capabilities” to the Middle East, with a US aircraft carrier reportedly heading to the region.
China accused Trump of “pouring oil” on the conflict, while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu of being “the biggest threat to the security of the region”.
‘Direct impacts’
After decades of enmity and a prolonged shadow war, Israel said its surprise air campaign aimed to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons – an ambition Tehran denies.
The UN’s nuclear watchdog said there appeared to have been “direct impacts on the underground enrichment halls” at Iran’s Natanz facility.
Israel has maintained ambiguity regarding its own atomic activities, but the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) says it has 90 nuclear warheads.
The conflict derailed a running series of nuclear talks between Tehran and Washington in recent weeks, with Iran saying after the start of Israel’s campaign that it would not negotiate with the United States while under attack.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump had a critical role in restarting diplomacy with Tehran and that attempts at regime change would bring “chaos”.
Since Friday, at least 24 people have been killed in Israel and hundreds wounded, according to Prime Minister Netanyahu’s office.
Iran said on Sunday that Israeli strikes had killed at least 224 people, including military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians. It has not issued an updated toll since then.
– Agence France-Presse