Trump calls unconditional surrender by Iran

Iran and Israel launched new missile strikes at each other on Wednesday as the air war between the two longtime enemies entered a sixth day despite a call from US President Donald Trump for Tehran's unconditional surrender, reports Reuters.

The Israeli military said two barrages of Iranian missiles were launched toward Israel in the first two hours of Wednesday morning. Explosions were heard over Tel Aviv.

Israel told residents in a southwestern area of Tehran to evacuate so its air force could strike Iranian military installations. Iranian news websites said Israel was attacking a university linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the east of the capital.

Iranian news websites said Israel was also attacking a university linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the country's east, and the Khojir ballistic missile facility near Tehran, which was also targeted by Israeli airstrikes last October.

The US Office of the Director of National Intelligence says Iran is armed with the largest number of ballistic missiles in the Middle East. Iran has said its ballistic missiles are an important deterrent and retaliatory force against the US, Israel and other potential regional targets.

Trump warned on social media on Tuesday that US patience was wearing thin. While he said there was no intention to kill Iran's leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei "for now," his comments suggested a more aggressive stance toward Iran as he weighs whether to deepen US involvement.

"We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding," he wrote on Truth Social. "We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now ... Our patience is wearing thin."

Three minutes later Trump posted, "Unconditional Surrender!"

Trump's contradictory and cryptic messaging about the conflict between close US ally Israel and longtime foe Iran has deepened the uncertainty surrounding the crisis. His public comments have ranged from military threats to diplomatic overtures, not uncommon for a president known for an often erratic approach to foreign policy.

A source familiar with internal discussions said Trump and his team are considering a number of options, including joining Israel on strikes against Iranian nuclear sites.

A White House official said Trump spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by phone on Tuesday.

Trump also met for 90 minutes with his National Security Council on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the conflict, a White House official said. Details were not immediately available.

The US is deploying more fighter aircraft to the Middle East and extending the deployment of other warplanes. The US has so far only taken indirect actions in the current conflict with Iran, including helping to shoot down missiles fired toward Israel.

A source with access to US intelligence reports said Iran has moved some ballistic missile launchers, but it is difficult to determine if they were targeting US forces or Israel.

 

 

 

 

Muslim countries reject Israeli attacks on Iran

Twenty Arab and Islamic countries, including Saudi Arabia, affirmed their condemnation and rejection of the Israeli attacks on Iran, reports Saudi Gazette.

In a joint statement released by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, foreign ministers of these countries expressed their concern over the dangerous escalation that threatens the security and stability of the region.

The foreign ministers called for de-escalation with an immediate ceasefire. The signatory countries include Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Bahrain, Brunei Darussalam, Turkey, Chad, Algeria, the Union of the Comoros, Djibouti, Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Libya, and Mauritania.

The foreign ministers expressed their condemnation and rejection of the launch of the Israeli attacks on Iran since the dawn of June 13, as well as practices that violate international law and the principles of the UN Charter.

They emphasized the need to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, the principles of good neighborliness, and the peaceful resolution of disputes.

The foreign ministers stressed the importance of making the Middle East a zone free of nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction in accordance with international resolutions.

They urged all countries in the region to join the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) without selectivity.

The signatory states rejected targeting nuclear facilities under International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards, as this constitutes a flagrant violation of international and humanitarian law under the 1949 Geneva Convention.

The foreign ministers called for the resumption of negotiations as soon as possible as the only way to reach a sustainable agreement on Iran's nuclear program.

They emphasized the importance of respecting freedom of navigation in international waterways in accordance with international law and preventing any threat to maritime security.

The Islamic countries emphasized that diplomatic solutions and dialogue are the only way to resolve regional crises, while adhering to the principles of good neighborliness and the UN Charter. They emphasized that military solutions will not contribute to resolving the crisis.

Trump joins Israel in erasing Iranian nuclear facilities

US President Donald Trump said he wanted a "real end" to the nuclear dispute with Iran. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said meanwhile that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei could face the same fate as Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, who was toppled in a US-led invasion and eventually hanged after a trial, reports Reuters.

"I warn the Iranian dictator against continuing to commit war crimes and fire missiles at Israeli citizens," Katz told top Israeli military officials.

Speaking to reporters after his early departure from Canada, where he attended the Group of Seven nations summit on Monday, Trump predicted that Israel would not be easing its attacks on Iran.

Trump said his departure from the G7 summit had "nothing to do with" working on a deal between Israel and Iran, after French President Emmanuel Macron said the U.S. had initiated a ceasefire proposal.

Khamenei has seen his main military and security advisers killed by Israeli air strikes, leaving major holes in his inner circle and raising the risk of strategic errors.

Israel's military said Iran's military leadership is "on the run" and that it had killed Iran's wartime chief of staff Ali Shadmani overnight four days into his job after replacing another top commander killed in the strikes.

 

 

G7 at height of hypocrisy

The Group of Seven nations expressed support for Israel in a statement issued late on Monday and labeled its rival Iran as a source of instability in the Middle East, with the G7 leaders urging broader de-escalation of hostilities in the region, reports Reuters.

The air war between Iran and Israel - which began on Friday when Israel attacked Iran with air strikes - has raised alarms in a region that had already been on edge since the start of Israel's military assault on Gaza in October 2023.

"We affirm that Israel has a right to defend itself. We reiterate our support for the security of Israel," G7 leaders said in the statement.

"Iran is the principal source of regional instability and terror," the statement added and said the G7 was "clear that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon."

Israel attacked Iran on Friday in what it called a preemptive strike to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons. Since then the two Middle Eastern rivals have exchanged blows, with Iranian officials reporting over 220 deaths, mostly civilians, while Israel said 24 civilians were killed.

It is on record that Iran is not seeking nuclear weapons and has said it has the right to develop nuclear technology for peaceful purposes, including enrichment, as a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Israel, which is not a party to the NPT, is the only country in the Middle East widely believed to have nuclear weapons. Israel does not deny or confirm that.

Although the US has been saying it is not involved in the Israeli attacks, Trump has admitted he was aware of Israel's strikes in advance and called them "excellent." Washington has warned Tehran not to attack US interests or personnel in the region.

An Israeli strike hit Iran's state broadcaster on Monday while Trump said in a social media post that "everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran."

Separately, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also discussed the Israel-Iran war in phone calls with his British, French and European Union counterparts on Monday.

 

Trump and Netanyahu ask Iranians to leave Tehran immediately

US President Donald Trump has warned residents of the Iranian capital, Tehran, to immediately evacuate, hinting at a possible major Israeli bombardment.

“Iran should have signed the “deal” I told them to sign. What a shame, and waste of human life,” said Trump in a post on his own social media platform, Truth Social.

“Simply stated, Iran nan not have a nuclear weapon. I said it over and over again! Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!,” added Trump.

Israel on Monday warned some 300,000 people in Tehran to evacuate ahead of airstrikes.

It’s the fifth day of conflict between Israel and Iran. Both countries have intensified their strikes on each other in recent days, with exchanges of missiles resulting in dozens of casualties between the two countries.

The conflict started when Israel moved to strike multiple targets in Iran, including nuclear and military sites in a surprise attack in the early hours of Friday.

The first wave of attacks also eliminated top Iranian officials, including the armed forces’ chief of staff, Mohammed Bagheri, and head of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Corp, Hossein Salami.

Israel says the decision to attack Iran was “preemptive selfdefense”, as it expressed concerns over Iran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program. Israel has repeatedly warned of the threat an Iran equipped with a nuclear weapon would pose on its very survival.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed Monday that the strikes have set Iran’s nuclear program back “years" and said he is in touch daily with Trump.

Iran’s Foreign Minister and chief nuclear deal negotiator Abbas Araghchi says Israel’s attacks on his country deal a huge blow to diplomacy. The comments were made during a call with his French, British and German counterparts.

Iran signed a nuclear deal in 2015 with these three countries, along with the EU, US, China and Russia. Washington later unilaterally withdrew from the deal in 2018 under Trump’s first term in office.

Meanwhile, the US says it’s deploying “additional capabilities” to bolster its defenses in the Middle East. The announcement was made by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in a post on social media platform X.

“Over the weekend, I directed the deployment of additional capabilities to the United States Central Command Area of Responsibility,” said Hegseth.

“Protecting US forces is our top priority and these deployments are intended to enhance our defensive posture in the region,” he added.

Israel: Iranian attacks expose bunker shortages

A ballistic missile fired from Iran struck the wall of a building in central Israel on Monday, breaching a reinforced shelter. At least four people were killed, three inside the shelter and one in a nearby building, reports Euronews.

The incident has sparked widespread concern across Israel and intensified public anger towards the government amid reports that bunkers are failing to withstand strikes from heavy missiles.

The Israel Hayom daily paper quoted the Israeli Home Front Command as stating that approximately 40% of Tel Aviv residents live in buildings without shelters that meet current safety standards, and that tens of thousands of older buildings in the city lack proper protective infrastructure.

Tel Aviv and Haifa are already facing a severe shortage of bomb shelters amid escalating Iranian attacks. Israel Hayom quoted residents in the capital as saying they "have no shelter", adding that neighbors "are closing their shelter doors to us."

The shelter crisis gained renewed urgency after a spokesperson for the Iranian army declared that "shelters are no longer safe" and urged Israelis to evacuate all territories.

Israel's 1951 Civil Defense Law mandates that all residential and commercial buildings must include bomb shelters, although multiple buildings may share a single shelter.

Arab communities within the Green Line, the 1949 international boundary between Lebanon and Mandatory Palestine, also face significant gaps in preparedness against rocket attacks, largely due to longstanding neglect.

This includes a lack of adequate shelters and what many view as clear discrimination in the Israeli air defense system, which often designates Arab towns as "open areas," effectively excluding them from active protection during emergencies.

There is also a noted lack of compliance among some Arab citizens with Home Front Command guidelines, further complicating emergency response efforts.

On Saturday, Israeli air defenses failed to intercept an Iranian missile, which hit a building in the city of Tamra. Four were killed in that strike, and several others were injured.

Tamra's Mayor Musa Abu Rumi told international media that only 40% of the town's 37,000 residents have access to safe rooms or adequate shelters. He also noted that Tamra lacks public bunkers, which are common in most Israeli cities and towns.

In conflict zones like Iran, Lebanon and Yemen, authorities often rely on metro stations and schools as makeshift shelters, as purpose-built fortified rooms are scarce.

 

Israel hiding its damages

Israeli authorities have imposed strict censorship, blocking the dissemination of information about the aftermath of Iran’s attacks. However, footage captured by residents reveals widespread destruction in the port city of Haifa, with thick plumes of smoke rising from multiple locations and fires breaking out in several areas.

Iran launched missiles at Israel on Friday evening in response to the Israeli operation against the Iranian nuclear program at dawn on Friday.

The country’s leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said in a televised address to the nation that the Israeli leadership "unleashed a war" against Iran, so Iran will not let Israel go unscathed and will "use all force" to make that country regret what it has done.

General Ahmad Vahidi, adviser to the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said the Iranian retaliation will continue as long as necessary.

TASS has put together the key facts about the shelling of Israel:

The strikes hit more than 150 targets, including air bases hosting F-35, F-16 and F-15 fighter jets, along with refueling and transport aircraft, command and control posts and electronic warfare centers.

Also attacked were military centers and defense plants used to produce missiles, military equipment, and other weapons, as well as other military targets.

The strikes were carried out in phases, with at least three waves taking place.

According to the IRGC, dozens of missiles hit designated targets.

Missiles twice struck the Israeli Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv.

Several missiles also hit the Israeli Ministry of National Security in Tel Aviv.

A small leakage of radioactive substances occurred at Iran's Natanz nuclear facility following an Israeli strike. Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said no contamination has spread to the outside environment and people are safe in terms of radiation levels.

IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi told a UN Security Council meeting that radiological and chemical contamination has been detected at Iran's Natanz nuclear facilities following Israeli strikes. He said the type of radiation found inside the facility - mainly alpha particles - can be controlled with proper measures.

Iran's Fars news agency reported that Iran's air defenses shot down several Israeli warplanes, including two F-35 fighter jets.

According to the Tasnim news agency, the female pilot of one of the downed jets was taken prisoner.

Israel

The US government confirmed to TASS that the US participated in repelling Iran's retaliatory missile strike.

A woman injured in Israel during the first wave of the Iranian attacks died in the hospital from injuries.

CNN reported that and Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz are in a shelter, assessing the situation after Iran's retaliatory strikes. Several Israeli ministers and senior defense officials are also taking part in the assessment.