JERUSALEM/DUBAI/WASHINGTON: Israel launched widescale strikes against Iran on Friday, saying it targeted nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders during the start of a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran from building an atomic weapon.
Iran had launched about 100 drones towards Israeli territory in retaliation, which Israel is working to intercept, Israeli military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said.
Iranian media and witnesses reported explosions including at the country’s main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, while Israel declared a state of emergency in anticipation of retaliatory missile and drone strikes.
REVOLUTIONARY GUARDS CHIEF HOSSEIN SALAMI KILLED
Iranian state television reported that Hossein Salami, the chief of the elite Revolutionary Guards corps, had been killed and the unit’s headquarters in Tehran had been hit. Several children had been killed in a strike on a residential area in the capital, it said.
Firefighters work at the scene of a damaged building in the aftermath of Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, on June 13, 2025.
“We are at a decisive moment in Israel’s history,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a recorded video message.
“Moments ago Israel launched Operation Rising Lion, a targeted military operation to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel’s very survival. This operation will continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat.”
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a statement that Israel had “unleashed its wicked and bloody” hand in a crime against Iran and that it would receive “a bitter fate for itself”.
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An Israeli military official said Israel was striking “dozens” of nuclear and military targets including the facility at Natanz in central Iran. The official said Iran had enough material to make 15 nuclear bombs within days.
The United States said it had no part in the operation, which raises the risk of a fresh escalation in tensions in the Middle East, a major oil producing region.
Alongside extensive air strikes, Israel’s Mossad spy agency led a series of covert sabotage operations inside Iran, Axios reported, citing a senior Israeli official. These operations were aimed at damaging Iran’s strategic missile sites and its air defence capabilities.
Iranian state media reported that at least two nuclear scientists, Fereydoun Abbasi and Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi were killed in Israeli strikes in Tehran.
People gather in the street in the aftermath of Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, on June 13, 2025.
Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport was closed until further notice, and Israel’s air defence units stood at high alert for possible retaliatory strikes from Iran.
“Following the pre-emptive strike by the State of Israel against Iran, a missile and UAV (drone) attack against the State of Israel and its civilian population is expected in the immediate time frame,” Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement.
Israeli military Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said tens of thousands of soldiers had been called up and “prepared across all borders”.
“We are amidst a historic campaign unlike any other. This is a critical operation to prevent an existential threat, by an enemy who is intent on destroying us,” he said.
Israeli Minister Gideon Saar was holding “marathon of calls” with counterparts around the world regarding Israel’s attack on Iran, the foreign ministry said in a statement.
ISRAEL BANS GATHERINGS, SHUTS SCHOOLS AND OFFICES
In a statement issued by an Israeli military spokesperson, a ban has been ordered “on educational activities, gatherings, and workplaces, with the exception of essential businesses” across the country starting at 0000 GMT (0300 local time).
The order comes after reports that Israel has struck targets in Iran.
The statement said that an “immediate change will take place” in the country’s defence policy.
“As part of the changes, it was decided to move all regions of the country from a full activity level to a necessary activity level.”
TALKS WITH IRAN
U.S. President Donald Trump said that Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb and that the United States was hoping to get back to the negotiating table, in an interview with Fox News after the start of the Israeli air strikes on Iran.
“We will see,” Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin quoted Trump as saying in a post on X.
U.S. officials have repeatedly said that any new nuclear deal with Iran – to replace a failed 2015 accord between Tehran and six world powers – must include a commitment to scrap enrichment, viewed as a potential pathway to developing nuclear bombs.
The Islamic Republic has repeatedly denied such intentions, saying it wants nuclear energy only for civilian purposes, and has publicly rejected Washington’s demand to scrap enrichment as an attack on its national sovereignty.
Iran’s government said in a statement that Israel’s “cowardly” attack shows why Tehran insists on enrichment, nuclear technology and missile power.
Trump would convene a meeting of the National Security Council on Friday morning, the White House said. He had said on Thursday an Israeli strike on Iran “could very well happen” but reiterated his hopes for a peaceful resolution.
Iran’s armed forces spokesperson said Israel and its chief ally the United States would pay a “heavy price” for the attack, accusing Washington of providing support for the operation.
While the U.S. tried to distance itself from Israel’s military operation, an Israeli official told public broadcaster Kan that Israel had coordinated with Washington on Iran.
‘US NOT INVOLVED’
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States was not involved in the strikes and Tel Aviv had acted unilaterally for self-defence.
“Let me be clear: Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel,” he said.
The attacks triggered sharp falls in stock prices in Asian trade on Friday, led by a selloff in U.S. futures.
Global crude oil benchmark Brent had surged 7.3% to $74.40 by 0556 GMT, its highest since April 2, before Trump’s sweeping tariffs announcement.
NUCLEAR TALKS
U.S. and Iranian officials were scheduled to hold a sixth round of talks on Tehran’s escalating uranium enrichment programme in Oman on Sunday, according to officials from both countries and their Omani mediators.
A U.S. official said those talks were still scheduled to proceed despite the Israeli attack.
The Israeli military said on Friday that it was forced to act based on new intelligence information showing that Iran was “approaching the point of no return” in the development of a nuclear weapon.
Israel has severely weakened Iran’s Middle East allies since the war in Gaza erupted in October, 2023, assassinating top leaders of the Palestinian militant group Hamas and Lebanon’s Hezbollah.
A source familiar with U.S. intelligence reports said there had been no recent change in the U.S. intelligence assessment that Iran was not building a nuclear weapon and that Khamenei had not authorised the restarting of the nuclear weapons programme that was shuttered in 2003.
IAEA CHIEF GROSSI: ‘EXERCISE MAXIMUM RESTRAINT’
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi described the attacks as “deeply concerning”.
“I have repeatedly stated that nuclear facilities must never be attacked regardless of the context or circumstances as it could harm both people and the environment.
Such attacks have serious implications for nuclear safety, security, and safeguards, as well as regional and international peace and security,” he said in a statement.
“I call on all parties to exercise maximum restraint to avoid further escalation. I reiterate that any military action that jeopardizes the safety and security of nuclear facilities risks grave consequences for the people of Iran, the region, and beyond.”
Grossi said the IAEA was monitoring the situation closely and stood ready to provide technical assistance.
“I have indicated to the respective authorities my readiness to travel at the earliest to assess the situation and ensure safety, security and non-proliferation in Iran,” he added.
FLIGHT DISRUPTIONS
Emirates airline said flights to and from Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Iran had been cancelled after Israel’s strikes sparking concerns of a wider escalation.
Several flights scheduled for Friday and one Tehran flight on Saturday were listed as cancelled on the airline’s website, with the Dubai international airport also reporting that “some flights at [DXB] and DWC — Al Maktoum International have been cancelled or delayed due to airspace closures over Iran, Iraq, and Syria” in a statement on X.
The United Arab Emirates capital’s international airport warned of flight disruptions.
“Flight disruptions are expected through today at Zayed International Airport. Passengers are advised to check with their airline for the latest status of their flights before travelling to the airport,” the Abu Dhabi airport said in a statement on X.
