ISRAEL BOMBS IRANS OIL REFINERIES.THE MAHDI WELL BOY KHEMINI BLACK TOOK DEATH CULT MUST GO TO HELL FIRE FOREVER, NEVER ENDING.

JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER. 1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)

 ISRAEL BOMBS IRANS OIL REFINERIES.THE MAHDI WELL BOY KHEMINI DEATH CULT MUST GO TO HELL FIRE FOREVER, NEVER ENDING.

DR DOCTORION-ANGEL OF THE MIDEAST
"The angel showed me that the United Nations shall be broken in pieces because of the crisis in the Middle East. There shall be no more United Nations. The angel with the sickle shall reap the harvest.

FIRST ANGEL: ASIA
But the angel said: "Millions will die in China and in India. Nation will be against nation, brother against brother. Asians will fight each other. Nuclear weapons shall be used, killing millions."Twice I heard the words, "Catastrophic! Catastrophic!"Then the angel said, "Financial crisis will come to Asia. I will shake the world."I was trembling while the angel was speaking.
SECOND ANGEL: MIDDLE EAST
Then I saw that the second angel had a sickle in his hand, such as is used in harvesting.The second angel said: "Harvest time has come in Israel and the countries all the way to Iran."I saw those countries in a few split seconds."All of Turkey and those [inaudible] countries that have refused me and refused my message of love shall hate each other and kill one another."I saw the angel raise the sickle and come down on all the Middle East countries. I saw Iran, Persia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, all of Georgia - Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, all of Asia Minor - full of blood. I saw blood all over these countries. And I saw fire; Nuclear weapons used in many of those countries. Smoke rising from everywhere. Sudden destruction – men destroying one another. I heard these words:"Israel, Oh Israel, the great judgment has come."

Jeremiah 6:14
14 They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace. 

Isaiah 57:21
21 There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.

1 Thessalonians 5:3 
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

Ephesians 2:2
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air,(LIBERAL GODLESS AIR WAVES) the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:

EZEK 39:11-16
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog (300 MILLION RUSSIA,GERMANY, IRAN, TURKEY, ARAB MUSLIMS) a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea: (IN THE JORDAN VALLEY) and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude: and they shall call it The valley of Hamongog.
12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land.
13 Yea, all the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord God.
14 And they shall sever out men of continual employment, (NUCLEAR SPECIALISTS) passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search.
15 And the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man's bone, then shall he set up a sign by it, till the buriers have buried it in the valley of Hamongog.
16 And also the name of the city shall be Hamonah. Thus shall they cleanse the land.

MEANING OF HAMONAH
Hamonah, ham-o'-nah (Heb.)-- host; multitude; noise; tumult; commotion of mind. The prophetic name of a city that is mentioned in conjunction with Hamon-gog: "And Hamonah shall also be the name of a city.
Metaphysical meaning of Hamonah (mbd) - Truth Unity

Strong's Lexicon-Hamonah: Hamonah-Original Word: הֲמוֹנָה
Part of Speech: Proper Name Location-Transliteration: Hamownah
Pronunciation: hah-mo-NAH-Phonetic Spelling: (ham-o-naw')
Definition: Hamonah-Meaning: Hamonah

Word Origin: Derived from the Hebrew root הָמוֹן (H1995), meaning "multitude" or "abundance."Corresponding Greek / Hebrew Entries: There is no direct Greek equivalent for "Hamonah" in the Strong's Greek Dictionary, as it is a specific Hebrew proper noun. However, the concept of a multitude or abundance can be related to Greek words like πλῆθος (G4128), meaning "multitude."Usage: The term "Hamonah" is used as a proper noun referring to a specific location mentioned in the prophetic literature of the Old Testament. It is associated with the aftermath of a significant battle, symbolizing the multitude of the slain.Cultural and Historical Background: In the context of the Hebrew Bible, names often carry significant meaning and are used to convey theological and prophetic messages. "Hamonah" is mentioned in the book of Ezekiel, a prophetic text that addresses the restoration of Israel and the judgment of the nations. The name reflects the abundance of God's judgment upon the enemies of Israel, serving as a reminder of divine justice and sovereignty.

DAMASCUS DESTROYED

ISAIAH 17:1,3,13-14
17 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
3 The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria: they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith the Lord of hosts.
13 The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
14 And behold at eveningtide trouble; and before the morning he is not. This is the portion of them that spoil us, and the lot of them that rob us.

JEREMIAH 49:23-27
23 Concerning Damascus. Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; there is sorrow on the sea; it cannot be quiet.
24 Damascus is waxed feeble, and turneth herself to flee, and fear hath seized on her: anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in travail.
25 How is the city of praise not left, the city of my joy!
26 Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the Lord of hosts.
27 And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad.(PALACES OF DAMASCUS)

ISRAEL WILL BE IN CONTROL OF JERUSALEM, THE SIGN OF THE START OF THE LAST GENERATION.

NEHEMIAH 2:17
17  Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we (ISRAELIS) are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste,(AD 70) and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem,(DAN 9:24-27) that we be no more a reproach.

LUKE 21:24
24 And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.(ISRAEL RECAPTURES JERUSALEM)(THE BEGGINING OF THE LAST GENERATION AND THE LAST END OF THE AGE OF GRACE.NOT THE END OF THE WORLD ,THE WORLD GOES ON FOREVER)

MATTHEW 1:17
17  So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations;(14)and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations;(14)and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.(14)(42 GENERATIONS DIVIDED BY 2160 YEARS = 51.4 YRS TO A GENERATION)

LUKE 3:38,23
38  Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God.
23  And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli,(SO HERE IN LUKE 3 WE HAVE 77 GENERATIONS FROM ADAM TO CHRIST-77 DIVIDED BY 4,000 YEARS = 51.9 YRS TO A GENERATIN)(SO A TRUE BIBLE GENERATION IS FROM 40 TO 51 YEARS)

MATTHEW 24:33-36
33  So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things,(ALL THE SIGNS OF PROPHECY HAPPENING IN THEIR BEGGINING STAGES AFTER ISRAEL BECOMES A NATION AND IN CONTROL OF JERUSALEM)(THEN) know that it is near, even at the doors.(THE RAPTURE)
34  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass,(1967-ISRAELS RECAPTURE OF JERUSALEM=40-51 YRS(A GENERATION)=2007-2018+) till all these things be fulfilled.(ALL THE LITERAL PROPHECIES OF THE BIBLE WILL BE FULFILLED(AT LEAST 500 WILL BE FULFILLED)
35  Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
36  But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

ISRAEL SATAN COMES AGAINST

1 CHRONICLES 21:1
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.

GENESIS 12:1-3
1  Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I (GOD) will shew thee:
2  And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
3  And I will bless them that bless thee,(ISRAELIS) and curse (DESTROY) him that curseth thee:(DESTROY THEM) and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

ISAIAH 41:11
11  Behold, all they that were incensed against thee (ISRAEL) shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing;(DESTROYED) and they that strive with thee shall perish.(ISRAEL HATERS WILL BE TOTALLY DESTROYED)

Turban complications-The turban represents the Shi'ite clergy that, ever since its creation in Iran almost four centuries ago, has had an ambivalent attitude towards the exercise of political power. Broadly speaking, turbans come in two contrasting colors. A white turban means that the man who wears it is not a descendant of the Prophet, and thus is of non-Arab origin. In contrast, the wearer of the black turban is marked as a descendant of the Prophet through one of the twelve imams of Twelver Shi'ism.The semiology of turbans is still more complicated. Students of theology are allowed to wear very thin turbans, denoting their position as novices. A hujjat al-Islam, or mid-ranking mullah, can wear a slightly fatter turban. The very fat turbans that require several yards of cloth are reserved for the grand ayatollahs. Rafsanjani’s white turban marked him as someone of non-Arab origin. Khatami and Khamenei both wear black turbans, as did Khomeini, denoting their Arab descent on the paternal side.The experience of the past three decades shows that many of the most senior clerics are not eager to enter the realm of politics. Once in power, however, a man with a thin turban could quickly thicken his headgear and grow a longer beard to bolster the religious aspect of his image. When first elected president, Ayatollah Khamenei was not a particularly senior cleric, but was promoted so that he could succeed Ayatollah Khomeini.

THE CITIZENS OF IRAN (ELAM IN THE BIBLE) MIGRATE TO ALL NATIONS ON EARTH.
JEREMIAH 49:34-39
34 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against Elam (IRAN) in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying,
35 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will break the bow of Elam,(IRAN) the chief of their might.(IRAN SUPLIES ARABS WITH WEAPONS AGAINST ISRAEL)
36 And upon Elam (IRAN)  will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven, and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam (IRAN) shall not come.(WORLD MIGRATION)
37 For I will cause Elam (IRAN) to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger,(REG BOMBS) saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:(GROUND TROOPS)
38 And I will set my throne in Elam,(IRAN) and will destroy from thence the king (KHEMEINI )and the princes,(IRANIAN GUARDS) saith the LORD.
39 But it shall come to pass in the latter days, that I will bring again the captivity of Elam,(IRAN) saith the LORD.

ISRAEL HAS 11 DEAD,HUNDREDS INJURED FROM DEATH CULT IRAN BALLISTIC MISSLES.NOW HOW COULD THE IRANIANS HAVE A WORLD MIGRATION THREW THIS ISRAELI BOMBARDMENT. WELL ISRAEL IS HITTING THE OIL REFINERIES. WHICH WILL SMOKE OUT SOME IRANIANS. BUT THE WAY I BELIEVE THERE WILL BE A MASS MIGRATION FROM IRAN. ISRAELS SENDS KHEMENINI TO HELL FIRE FOREVER. THE ISRAEL HITS AN UNDER GROUND RADIATION NUKE SITE. WHICH WOULD LEAK RADIATION TO THE FOUR CORNERS OF IRAN.POISONING THEM WITH RADIATION. AND THE MASS MIGRATION TO THE WORLD NATIONS WOULD BE ON. I HOPE AS WELL AS KHEMENINI BEING PINGED OFF. ISRAEL OFFS ALL THE DEATH CULT IRANIAN GUARDS. SO THEY CAN NOT SHOOT BALLISTIC MISSLES AT INNOCENT ISRAELIS. BUT WE KNOW JESUS AND MICHAEL ISRAELS WAR ANGEL WILL BE PROTECTING ISRAEL FROM IRANS MISSLES AND DRONES.

Tehran roads reportedly gridlocked as some seek to flee to rural north-Kilometer-long line for gas reported in capital as IDF warns Iranians to stay away from arms factories; Tehran council chair says metro, parking lots may be used for shelter By ToI Staff and Reuters Today, 3:28 pm-JUN 15,25

Some Iranians began to flee the capital, Tehran, on Sunday as Israeli airstrikes continued to target military infrastructure and nuclear facilities across the Islamic Republic for a third day.Citing residents, CNN said some were trying to flee to the country’s rural north, but roads have been paralyzed by traffic. A reporter for the German press agency dpa witnessed kilometer-long lines for gas in Tehran.“I don’t want to leave my home, but I am not going to put my young children in this situation,” a father of two, who didn’t want to be named, told CNN. “I hope that the US steps in to stop the attacks between both countries.”The man said his family is worried because regime officials reside within dense upper-middle-class neighborhoods, endangering civilians.As it launched its surprise onslaught on Iran early Friday, the Israeli Air Force carried out targeted strikes on the homes of top Iranian military officials and scientists, with some images showing precise attacks on specific apartments in residential buildings.Following overnight strikes between Friday and Saturday on Iranian air defenses, the Israel Defense Forces spokesperson declared the air force had achieved air superiority over Tehran.On Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces issued an unprecedented warning for Iranian civilians to evacuate areas around weapons factories.Trying to allay fears, Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani told state TV that Iranians can seek shelter in mosques and schools during Israeli attacks, as well as subway systems, which will be open at all times from Sunday night.“There is no problem with the provision of food, medicine, fuel,” she added.Tehran’s City Council Chairman Mehdi Charman said the city was seeking alternatives as it lacked bomb shelters.“Unfortunately, we in Tehran and in our other cities do not have shelters,” he said at a press conference, noting that the death toll in Israel was lower due to the country having bomb shelters and holding regular exercises for attacks.Chamran said basements were an option, and that in an “extreme” situation, the underground metro could be used, but it would need to be shut down.“We could prepare underground parking lots as well, similar to when Saddam bombed us,” Chamran said, referring to the war with Iraq under former dictator Saddam Hussein in the 1980s.Years of hostility between Israel and Iran exploded into open conflict early Friday morning when Israel launched a major offensive against Iran and its nuclear program, hitting nuclear sites, missile bases, and top military officials.Iran responded with overnight ballistic missile barrages on Friday and Saturday, killing at least 13 people in Israel and injuring hundreds.Israel said it had no choice but to attack Iran, which is committed to the destruction of the Jewish state, and that it had gathered intelligence showing that Tehran was approaching “the point of no return” in its pursuit of nuclear weapons.Israeli military officials said that the IDF was preparing for heavy fire from Iran, but asserted that “at the end of the operation, there will be no nuclear threat” from the Islamic Republic.

Iranian missile attacks damage Haifa oil refinery and Rehovot university buildings-Bazan says pipelines and transmission lines at sensitive industrial site struck, but work continuing; no injuries reported as Weizmann Institute hit, causing fire By ToI Staff Today, 5:30 pm-JUN 15,25

Missile barrages fired from Iran overnight caused damage to a major oil refinery in Haifa and to the campus of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot.There were no reports of casualties in either strike, which came as Tehran fired separate volleys of dozens of ballistic missiles late Saturday and early Sunday in response to military action Israel has launched against Iran’s nuclear program.The Bazan oil refinery, long a target of Israel’s enemies, suffered damage to pipelines and transmission lines running between facilities at the large Haifa complex, the company said in a filing to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.“As of now, refining facilities are continuing to operate, though other facilities in the complex have been shut down,” the company said.It added that it was examining the impact of the missile strike on its operations at the country’s largest refinery, as well as possible financial consequences. It was unclear when the affected facilities might come back online or what the impact might be.In the wake of the announcement, Bazan shares dropped 2.8 percent on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.A video shared on social media following the attack appeared to show two large fires burning at the industrial site.The facility, home to a distinctive cooling tower that looms over the densely populated Haifa Bay, has for years been threatened with attack by Israel’s adversaries, including Iranian proxy Hezbollah. It has never been known to have suffered a direct hit in the past.In October, Hezbollah published a video purporting to show one of its drones flying over the refinery site and other sensitive installations in the area.Residents, environmental activists and others have long lobbied for the Bazan facility to be shuttered and moved elsewhere, both due to the heavy pollution it brings to the area and fears of disastrous consequences should it be struck.The company’s statement made no mention of a possible environmental impact on Haifa residents.In 2022, the government voted to relocate the facility by 2030. Work on the removal of an array of large oil tanks adjacent to the site was set to begin this year.Elad Hochman, of the Green Course environmentalist lobby group, called the facility a “disaster waiting to explode … in the heart of a metropolis where there are hundreds of thousands of people, close to their homes, hospitals, and education sites. It is a strategic site in every way…therefore it must be moved immediately.”In Rehovot, the Weizmann Institute said Sunday that some buildings on its campus had suffered damage after being hit by a missile attack.Video and other footage shared with The Times of Israel, on condition that it not be published, showed extensive damage to one building on the university grounds, with a fire continuing to burn hours after the attack.One of the damaged buildings was said to contain labs, The New York Times reported.According to the university, there were no injuries from the strike on its campus, which came at around 3 a.m..“The institute is in contact with relevant security and emergency authorities, and is taking every step necessary to ensure the well-being of its workers and the campus,” the school said. Israel banned educational activities and other types of gatherings on Friday morning as a precaution, as it began striking Iran.Weizmann, home to a 280-acre campus in the north of the leafy central Israeli city, is considered among the world’s foremost research institutions, with regular announcements of landmark studies in life sciences, astrophysics, and other fields.At least 42 people elsewhere in Rehovot were wounded when a missile hit a residential area, destroying at least one apartment building, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service. One man was alive for hours under the rubble at the site of the strike until rescuers managed to extract him. First responders said that he was in good condition.At the missile impact site, Golan Levy, a medic for the United Hatzalah rescue services, told the Walla news site that a one-and-a-half-year-old baby and his mother were among the injured.“There were casualties with bleeding and fractures. Everyone was in a panic, screaming. The homes in the area — most are without bomb shelters as this is an old area — were damaged by the impact. Residents lay on the floor in front of the municipal market and waited for rescue. Some were rescued from a nearby bomb shelter,” he said.Iran’s overnight attacks on Israel included a total of 70 ballistic missiles and dozens of drones, according to the Israel Defense Forces’s latest estimates.During the attack aimed at Haifa, one projectile struck a home in the town of Tamra, killing a mother, her two daughters, and another woman; another struck Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv, killing at least seven civilians. Hundreds have been wounded in the attacks.Despite the widespread damage, which also included three killed in central Israel strikes early Saturday, the military says that Iran’s attacks are more limited than what the IDF had anticipated. The IDF had estimated far larger numbers of casualties and more significant damage.Iran is still believed to possess thousands of ballistic missiles.

NUMBERS 10:2-1
2-Make thee two trumpets of silver; of a whole piece shalt thou make them: that thou mayest use them for the calling of the assembly, and for the journeying of the camps.
3 And when they shall blow with them, all the assembly shall assemble themselves to thee at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
4 And if they blow but with one trumpet, then the princes, which are heads of the thousands of Israel, shall gather themselves unto thee.
5 When ye blow an alarm, then the camps that lie on the east parts shall go forward.
6 When ye blow an alarm the second time, then the camps that lie on the south side shall take their journey: they shall blow an alarm for their journeys.
7 But when the congregation is to be gathered together, ye shall blow, but ye shall not sound an alarm.
8 And the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow with the trumpets; and they shall be to you for an ordinance for ever throughout your generations.
9 And if ye go to war in your land against the enemy that oppresseth you, then ye shall blow an alarm with the trumpets; and ye shall be remembered before the LORD your God, and ye shall be saved from your enemies.
10 Also in the day of your gladness, and in your solemn days, and in the beginnings of your months, ye shall blow with the trumpets over your burnt offerings, and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; that they may be to you for a memorial before your God: I am the LORD your God.

A Shofar Call To Battle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bJqPqoKcdM&list=RD-HQnuS09R0E&index=2

The trumpets, according to Numbers 10:2-10, summons the people or to warn of battle and approaching of the enemy like a prayer to God for deliverance.“When you go to war in your land against the enemy who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, and you will be remembered before the Lord your God, and you will be saved from your enemies. 10 Also in the day of your gladness, in your appointed feasts, and at the beginning of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be a memorial for you before your God: I am the Lord your God.”The shofar often has the affect of an alarm as read in this scripture.  It jolts out of where we have been and gets us to where we need to be. When Israel engaged the enemy in battle, the Levites and the priests would blow the shofars preparing the way.A Shofar Call to Holiness-The shofar here introduces The High Holy Days. These are a series of feasts in the fall season starting with the Feast of Trumpets.  This feast is much like an alarm clock alerting us to the appointed times God has set up to encounter His people. The shofar blast calls the people into repentance and reflection leading up to the most holy day of the year, Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement.“And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the people of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a day of solemn rest, a memorial proclaimed with the blast of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work, and you shall present a food offering to the LORD.’” Leviticus 23:23-25-These fall feasts culminate with Sukkot or the Feast of Tabernacles. On this feast we remember the temporary dwelling places the Israelites lived in in the desert.  Also, we look forward to a time where the God of the universe will dwell with his people forever.A Glorious Future – The Second Coming Of The Messiah-The shofar blasts at the second coming of Jesus! It will announce King Jesus in all His glory! The shofar came before the written word of God was given at Mount Sinai. Similarly, it will blast again as the Living Word comes to dwell with us for good.1 Thessalonians 4:16 “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4: 16-18-We can learn much from the historical biblical uses of the shofar. It always had a purpose in it’s use.  The same applies for our present day worship.  There is a time and a place for shofar use.  It can be a powerful tool in the hands of the worshipper. The shofar sounds as an invitation to worship and rest, a call to spiritual warfare and repentance. Finally, a reminder of the glorious return that is to come.

Reporter's notebook-Deadly Iranian missile ‘brought out the hatred’ inside Israel, Tamra residents say-Coexistence tested after video shows Jewish Israeli man cheering projectile that killed four in the Arab Israeli community near Haifa By Diana Bletter-JUN 15,25-Today, 3:09 pm

Doaa Hmade, 24, a volunteer with the Home Front Command, stood on the street in the Arab Israeli city of Tamra, 27 kilometers (17 miles) from Haifa, on Sunday hours after a ballistic missile scored a direct hit on a house there.Manar Khatib and her two daughters, Hala, 20, and Shada, 13, were killed in the attack, along with another relative, Manar Khatib.“This is our neighborhood,” Hmade told The Times of Israel as she looked around, trying to take in the destruction in the quiet, residential section of the mostly Muslim town of 37,000.Everywhere were shattered cars, rubble, and strewn glass. Workers were trying to restore electricity and clean up the debris.When Hmade’s family heard the sirens in the middle of the night, she said they gathered in the safe room of their house and waited.“Then we heard the booms,” she said. “It felt really close.”When she walked outside, there was no electricity and no internet, but “I saw blood.”She said there was a protected room in the Khatib family house, “but it was a direct hit.”“How could a protected room help?” she said.The women’s funerals have not yet been scheduled, and the bodies are still at Rambam Medical Center in Haifa.The missile ‘brought out the hatred’“The missiles don’t differentiate between sects and religions,” said a town resident, Jabar, who asked that his last name not be used. “The Iranians are Shiite and we’re Sunni.”During the Israel-Hezbollah conflict in the wake of Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack, he said, Hezbollah-fired rockets from Lebanon landed in his field, killing his horse.What disturbed town residents the most, Jabar said, was that “the missile brought out the hatred.”He said that when rockets were fired on nearby towns during the Hezbollah-Israel war, people from Tamra went to help the Jewish residents.But soon after Sunday’s missile attack, he noted, there was a social media post showing people singing and saying that Tamra “should burn.'”The video was attributed to people in nearby Mitzpe Aviv, 5.5 kilometers (3.4 miles) away. But Ron Shani, the head of the community, wrote on Facebook that the video was not filmed in his moshav.“We don’t have tall buildings and a view like that,” Shani said, adding that he had spoken to Mussa Abu Rumi, the Tamra mayor, conveying condolences and sympathy, and offering assistance.“We do not know who distributed the video, and we condemn it in the strongest terms,” Shani said.Other videos on social media have shown Arab Israelis cheering at the sight of missiles heading toward Jewish population centers.Hisham Diab, 50, who also belongs to the Home Front Command patrol group, said he is a member of Mosaica, a national group that helps build bridges among Israelis.“It’s so important to work on coexistence,” Diab said in between helping Israel Electric Corporation workers.“We want peace. I’ve lived in Tamra for more than 40 years and I never heard of any antisemitism. I never heard anything about people not wanting to be part of Israel.”Diab said that Arab citizens have “decided to be citizens of this country but the government doesn’t always see us as citizens.”

Cyprus says it was asked by Iran to convey messages to Israel; Tehran denies it-Cypriot president says Tehran requested a line of communication with Jerusalem; Iranian Foreign Ministry says nothing sent via any third parties By Reuters and ToI Staff Today, 5:18 pm-JUN 15,25

NICOSIA — Iran has asked Cyprus to convey “some messages” to Israel, President Nikos Christodoulides said on Sunday, as the eastern Mediterranean island appealed for restraint in a rapidly escalating crisis in the Middle East.However, Iran swiftly denied the claim, with its Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei saying Iran did not send any message to Israel via a third country.The contradicting claims came as Iran fired barrages of rockets and drones at Israel, which has been conducting waves of airstrikes against the Islamic Republic to remove what it says is the “immediate” and existential threat of Iran’s nuclear development program.Christodoulides spoke to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, and he has also spoken to the leaders of Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Greece, his office said.Earlier, Christodoulides told journalists Iran had asked Cyprus to convey “some messages” to Israel, but he did not say who specifically the messages were from or what they said.Cypriot officials offered no clarity on the nature of the messages, which came after the Cypriot foreign minister spoke to his Iranian counterpart on Friday night.Christodoulides also said he was not happy with what he said was a slow reaction by the European Union to the unfolding crisis in the Middle East.Cyprus, the EU member situated closest to the Middle East, had asked for an extraordinary meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, he said. Projectiles sent by Iran to strike Israel were visible from various locations across Cyprus on Friday and Saturday night.“It is not possible for the EU to claim a geopolitical role, to see all these developments, and for there not to be at the very least a convening of the Council of Foreign Ministers,” Christodoulides told journalists.Cyprus has offered to assist in the evacuation of third-party nationals from the region, and has called on all sides to refrain from actions that could escalate the conflict.Though Israel has intercepted most of the rockets and drones fired by Iran, some have slipped through the defenses, and missiles overnight Saturday hit urban areas, killing 11 people and injuring over 200.Despite publicly rejecting nuclear arms, Iran’s leaders, who are sworn to destroy Israel, have stockpiled uranium enriched to 60% — far beyond what is needed for civilian use and a short technical step from weapons-grade.Netanyahu said Friday that he had given the order to attack Iran as it had become clear that Israel could not wait any longer to stop Iran’s nuclear weapon ambitions.

Netanyahu: Intel shows Iran planned to give its proxies nukes-Israeli jets strike Tehran, oil fields as PM vows to ‘hit every target’ in Iran’s regime-Senior official says ‘no declared goal’ of regime change, but all ‘on the table’ if Iran keeps attacking Israeli cities; security cabinet huddles, as new missile barrage hits Haifa By Emanuel Fabian,Lazar Berman,Agencies and ToI Staff Today, 2:07 am-JUN 14,25

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday that Israel had “paved the way to Tehran,” amid ongoing attacks, including in Iran’s capital, against the Islamic Republic’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, as well as strikes against fuel depots.“We will hit every site, every target belonging to the ayatollahs’ regime — everything that they’ve experienced until now will be nothing compared to what they will feel” in the coming days, the premier said in a Hebrew video statement.He defined Israel’s goal in its ongoing operation as “eliminating the double threat from Iran to destroy the State of Israel” — its nuclear program and its ballistic missile program.“Very soon, you will see IAF planes above Tehran’s skies. We will hit every target belonging to the ayatollahs’ regime,” Netanyahu added.Israel struck two fuel depots in Tehran, the Iranian oil ministry said early Sunday morning, shortly after Iran announced the launch of a new wave of strikes against Israel.The IDF confirmed early Sunday morning striking the Iranian Defense Ministry headquarters as well as the “headquarters of the SPND nuclear project, and additional targets.” Israeli jets also struck fuel depots in the country, the military confirmed, noting that it had completed “an extensive series of strikes on targets in Tehran related to the Iranian regime’s nuclear weapons project.”In a terse post on X shortly after midnight Sunday, Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote: “Tehran is burning.”Katz warned Saturday that “If [Iran’s leader Ali] Khamenei continues to fire missiles at the Israeli home front, Tehran will burn.”Iranian media earlier reported a “massive explosion” following an Israeli drone strike on the South Pars gas field.The semi-official Tasnim news agency said production of 12 million cubic meters of gas was suspended following the South Pars attack, which resulted in a fire that the Iranian oil ministry said was later extinguished.Oil fields — crucial to Iran’s economy — were not targeted in the first round of strikes, but a senior Israeli security official warned on Friday that if Iran were to target Israeli population centers with ballistic missiles — which it then did — Israel would target Iranian regime leaders and state infrastructure such as oil refineries.Later Saturday evening, the IDF confirmed it was conducting airstrikes on military targets in Tehran, in a statement issued as a fourth barrage of Iranian missiles was launched toward Israel. The barrage killed at least three people in the northern Arab city of Tamra.Iranian news agency Tasnim reported early Sunday that an Israeli strike had targeted the country’s defense ministry headquarters in Tehran and damaged one of its buildings.In “an attack on Tehran this evening by the air force of the Zionist regime, the headquarters of the defense ministry was targeted. One of the headquarters’ buildings was lightly damaged,” the agency said. The Iranian defense ministry did not comment.An Israel Defense Forces spokesman said Saturday evening that “Air Force pilots are continuing to strike and carry out significant blows in various areas in Iran — a sequence of strikes that has not stopped for 40 hours, including over 150 targets.”The spokesman, Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, focused on the Iranian capital, declaring that from Tehran, “the murderous terror regime is managed, which poses a threat to the entire Western world, and that “Tehran is no longer immune.”Following overnight strikes between Friday and Saturday on Iranian air defenses, Defrin said “hundreds of Israeli jets and aircraft are currently holding air superiority over western Iran and Tehran.”“The aircraft are completing a wave of strikes on strategic military industry targets, nuclear program targets, and senior officials in the Iranian terror leadership,” he added.The security cabinet met in an underground bunker Saturday night, with the meeting ongoing as of midnight.In footage of the sit-down released by the Prime Minister’s Office, Netanyahu was joined by, among others, Defense Minister Israel Katz, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, and Energy Minister Eli Cohen.Israelis across the country were also urged Saturday to remain near protected spaces — including apartment safe-rooms or building bomb shelters, but not underground spaces that aren’t specifically designated as safe — as the country braced for further missile barrages from Iran.Israeli officials have emphasized — in public and in private — that the country launched its campaign on Friday in order to avert an imminent, existential threat.Channel 12 reported Saturday that IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir had told Israel’s political leaders: “The operation in Iran is an operation to defend the existence of the Jewish people. History will not forgive us if we do not act now.” He reportedly added: “This is the last opportunity to effect change.”President Isaac Herzog called on world leaders in a public address on Saturday to support Israel “in an uncompromising manner” as it fights against Iran.“We are at a historic crossroads, for the entire Middle East — between a terrorist jihad that seeks to dominate the region and a horizon of partnership and peace, of the day after,” he said in a video address. “This is not our war alone, but of all those who seek a common future in our region.”He stressed that the Iranian regime “has worked against us for generations, to kill us. It has worked to create global and regional terrorism, to spread antisemitism and hatred of Israel, and above all – to develop nuclear weapons — in order to realize its ambition to destroy Israel.”He called for national unity domestically.PM: Iran planned to give its proxies nuclear bombs-Netanyahu said Saturday in an English-language video statement that Tehran didn’t just want to build a nuclear bomb for itself, but rather “was planning to give the nuclear weapons that they would develop to their terrorist proxies.”“That’s nuclear terrorism on steroids. That would threaten the entire world,” he said.But due to Israel’s attacks, Netanyahu said, “senior Iranian leaders are already packing their bags. They sense what’s coming.”He added that the operation has the “clear support” of US President Donald Trump, also wishing the American leader, and the US army, a happy birthday.Trump on Saturday said that stopping the Iranian nuclear program is a prerequisite for peace and a vital US interest.“For those people who say they want peace — you can’t have peace if Iran has a nuclear weapon,” the US president told the Atlantic. “Israel or not Israel — Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb.” He said, however, that Iran “still wants to make a deal” over its nuclear program despite the Israeli attacks.Iran, whose leaders are sworn to destroy Israel, has publicly denied seeking nuclear weapons. However, the Islamic Republic has amassed uranium enriched to 60% — far above what is necessary for civilian use, and a short step away from weapons-grade.Trump recently told Netanyahu that the US would consider striking Iran’s underground Fordo nuclear facility if such a move would become necessary to prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, Israeli journalist Barak Ravid said on Channel 12 on Saturday.The issue will be a critical issue in the coming days and weeks, Ravid said, asserting that if Fordo survives Israeli airstrikes, Iran’s nuclear infrastructure will remain intact and Tehran could even relocate the rest of its nuclear program to the facility, placing it beyond Israel’s reach and accelerating its path to a nuclear weapon.Regime change said ‘on the table’ if Iran keeps hitting civilians-While Jerusalem has repeatedly condemned the Islamic Republic, leaders have stopped short of declaring an intention to topple the regime — but some officials told media outlets that this could change based on Tehran’s actions.“There is no declared policy to bring down the regime. But if Iran continues to harm the civilian populace and cross red lines, all options will be on the table,” an Israeli official told Channel 12 on Saturday.Deputy Minister Almog Cohen — a minor player who is not among top officials guiding the war — also posted to X calling on Iranians to rise up against the regime.Nuclear program has suffered ‘heavy blows’ already-Netanyahu said Saturday that Israel had so far inflicted “serious damage” on Iran’s nuclear facilities, with the combination of strikes on physical sites as well as senior scientists delaying Tehran’s nuclear program for several years.A senior Israeli military official echoed this assessment, saying “Iran’s nuclear project has suffered heavy blows in two main areas: Damage to the production of the weapon core through strikes on uranium enrichment and conversion sites in Natanz and Isfahan [and] damage to the regime’s weaponization group through the elimination of nine nuclear scientists,” all of whom, he said, “had, over the years, been involved in developing the nuclear detonation device.”The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Saturday that four critical buildings at the Isfahan site had been damaged in an attack the previous day, including a uranium conversion facility and a fuel plate fabrication plant. It added that — like in the Natanz facility — there was “no increase in off-site radiation expected.”IAEA chief Rafael Grossi told the UN Security Council earlier that the above-ground section of the Natanz facility was destroyed. The main centrifuge facility underground did not appear to have been hit, but the loss of power could have damaged infrastructure there, he said.An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with official procedures, said that according to the army’s initial assessment “it will take much more than a few weeks” for Iran to repair the damage to the Natanz and Isfahan nuclear sites. The official said the army had “concrete intelligence that production in Isfahan was for military purposes.”No damage has been seen at Iran’s Fordo Fuel Enrichment Plant or the Khondab heavy water reactor under construction, the IAEA said.The IDF said it bombed an underground weapons facility in western Iran on Saturday, which it said was used by Iran to store dozens of ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as launch them.The military released footage of air force pilots striking missile launchers at that site and elsewhere, as well as footage of strikes on Iranian troops who launched missiles. Dozens of ballistic missile launchers have been destroyed so far in Israeli strikes, the military said.20 top Iranian commanders killed since Friday-The IDF confirmed Saturday afternoon that the chief of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ ballistic missile array, Mohammad Bagheri, was killed, as was the head of Iran’s military intelligence, Gholam-Reza Marhabi, in recent Israeli strikes.A top adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ali Shamkhani, has also died from wounds sustained in Israel’s initial wave of airstrikes early Friday, Iranian state media confirmed.In all, some 20 top military Iranian commanders have been killed since Israel launched its operation, the IDF said.Iranian state media on Saturday also announced the death of two IRGC members in a strike on the Zarandiyeh Basij military base in central Iran.A police chief and another officer were also killed, in a drone strike about 300 kilometres (186 miles) west of Tehran, the ISNA press agency reported, identifying them as police chief Major Habibollah Akbarian and second lieutenant Amir Hossein Seifi.Sam Sokol, Nava Freiberg, and Leon Kraiem contributed to this report.

Stranded Israelis told not to go to Larnaca, Athens; not to use Egypt, Jordan land crossings-With airspace closed amid conflict with Iran, authorities say it will take weeks before the tens of thousands of Israelis stuck abroad will get home; El Al works on rescue flight plan By Sharon Wrobel-Today, 3:03 pm-JUN 15,25

Israeli authorities have cautioned citizens stranded abroad against rushing to Larnaca or Athens in the hope of getting home sooner, as Israeli airspace remains closed for both arrivals and departures until further notice.The National Security Council on Sunday also ordered Israelis not to try to reach Israel by land through the border crossings from Jordan or Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Both countries are under Level 4 warnings, which means, according to the NSC website, that “travel to this destination is prohibited. Those who are already there must leave immediately.”Some 50,000 Israelis are believed to be stuck overseas — Channel 12 estimated Sunday that the figure was some 100,000 — after authorities closed Israel’s airspace early on Friday as the army carried out initial waves of strikes against Iran and its nuclear program. Ben Gurion Airport was closed to all arrivals and departures and has remained so “until further notice.”El Al Israel Airlines on Sunday canceled all flights till June 17, and dozens of flights until June 23, amid preparations to rescue stranded Israelis. “When approval is received from the relevant security and aviation authorities, we will do everything in our power to enable as many Israelis as possible to return home by gradually resuming a regular flight schedule, and operating rescue flights from destinations close to Israel,” El Al said.“There is no recommendation for Israelis staying abroad to travel to Larnaca or Athens at this stage, intending to board a flight back to Israel from there,” the Israel Airport Authority said. “Even when the security establishment allows the resumption of flights, the rate of flights will be limited to minimize risks and maintain the safety of passengers and aircraft.”“Passengers can expect to wait for days until a return flight is actually possible,” the airport authority warned.The authority is asking Israelis stranded abroad to “act responsibly, to wait for official updates.”The clarification came as the authority earlier on Sunday announced that it was collaborating with Israeli airlines on a systematic plan prepared by the Transportation and Road Safety Ministry and the Israel Civil Aviation Authority to bring back Israelis stranded abroad.“All air crews and aircraft are ready for action as soon as this becomes possible,” the airport authority said. “However, this may take a long time, depending on the security situation.”“A decision to resume flights to Israel will only be made once it is deemed safe to do so,” it added.During previous wars and rounds of conflicts, Larnaca and Athens have served as hubs to bring stranded Israelis back home. Last August, El Al Israel Airlines and other local carriers added flights from nearby destinations such as Greece and Cyprus to help Israelis stranded overseas return home after most foreign carriers halted their flight services to the country.Late on Saturday, Shmuel Zakai, the head of the Civil Aviation Authority, estimated that it would take weeks before all Israelis stranded abroad would be able to fly home.“We won’t restart airport operations at a full pace. It will be slow, in stages, and it may cease for certain periods,” Zakai said as he warned against “creating illusions” of a quick return home.In its statement Sunday, El Al said it would update its website and social media channels “when the option to book tickets for [rescue and resumed] flights opens.”“Registration for rescue flights will be done via a dedicated link on the El Al website,” El Al said. “The only way to reserve a seat on these flights is through registration on the El Al website only (registration at call centers will not be possible).”Some Israelis returned over land in the past two days, before the NSC issued its warning not to do so. John, who asked not to use his real name, arrived in Israel on Saturday after entering via the Taba land border crossing with Egypt, also known as the Menachem Begin Crossing. His journey started on Friday at 4 p.m. when he flew from Geneva on Turkish Airlines via Istanbul to the Egyptian coastal resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.“Arriving in Sharm el-Sheikh, I had a prebooked taxi, which took about 2.5 hours on a quite easy and good road to the crossing,” John, who holds dual Israeli-German citizenship, told The Times of Israel while traveling on a bus from Eilat to Tel Aviv. “I saw many Arab Israelis taking this route to come back, and there were holdups for some travelers,” John said.Israel targeted Iran’s nuclear facilities and ballistic missile factories overnight Thursday-Friday at the start of what it warned would be a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran, which vows to destroy Israel, from attaining nuclear weapons. In response, Iran has launched massive deadly barrages totaling hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones at Israel from Friday night into early Sunday morning.In addition to Israel, Iran, Iraq, Jordan and Syria have closed their airspaces. Hundreds of flights were forced to turn back or reroute when the strikes began. Early on Saturday, Jordan reopened its airspace for civilian air traffic but closed it again late that day. As of Sunday morning, the kingdom’s airspace had reopened for civilian air traffic.

Conflict to take 'weeks, not days,' officials say-Extensive strikes in Tehran after IDF warns Iranians near arms plants to evacuate-Military says it is hunting ballistic missile launchers aimed at Israel, and striking nuclear program targets; Katz warns Iranian leadership is turning Tehran into battered Beirut By Emanuel Fabian,ToI Staff and Agencies Today, 1:49 pm-JUN 15,25

Widespread Israeli Air Force strikes were reported in the Iranian capital, Tehran, on Sunday afternoon, hours after the military issued an unprecedented evacuation warning for Iranian civilians to evacuate areas around weapons factories.The strikes came as Israel’s operation against Tehran’s nuclear program and military industries continued for a third day.Strikes were also reported against Iranian military sites in Shiraz, in the south of the country, according to local media.“All individuals currently present or expected to be present in or around military weapons manufacturing facilities and their supporting institutions must immediately evacuate these areas and not return until further notice,” the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, Col. Avichay Adraee, said in a Persian message on X before the strikes.“Being near these facilities puts your life at risk,” he added, with the IDF Persian-language spokesman Master Sgt. (res.) Kamal Penhasi also issuing the same warning on the military’s Persian X account.Explosions continued to echo across Tehran and elsewhere in the country on Sunday, but there was no update to a death toll put out the day before by Iran’s UN ambassador, who said 78 people had been killed and more than 320 wounded since the beginning of Israel’s strikes on Friday.Footage posted online showed large plumes of smoke rising from the capital.The Israeli Air Force overnight bombed several Iranian ballistic missile launchers, along with air defense systems and radars, the military said, attaching footage of the strikes.According to the IDF, some of the launchers that were struck were used to fire missiles at Israel overnight, in barrages that killed at least 10 people.The IDF said it would continue to “hunt down” ballistic missile launchers in western Iran to prevent attacks on Israel.Air defenses and radars were also struck “as part of the IDF’s aerial superiority in Iranian airspace,” the military said.Additionally, some 80 targets in Tehran were hit overnight, according to the IDF.The targets in the Iranian capital included fuel depots, the Iranian defense ministry headquarters, the “headquarters of the SPND nuclear project,” and other targets related to Iran’s nuclear program.IAF fighter jets also hit gas infrastructure near Bandar Abbas. The military said the fuel and gas sites were used by Iran for military purposes and for its nuclear project.On Saturday, jets attacked two fuel depots in Tehran, while Iranian media reported a “massive explosion” following an Israeli drone strike on the South Pars gas field.The semi-official Tasnim news agency said production of 12 million cubic meters of gas was suspended following the South Pars attack, which resulted in a fire that the Iranian oil ministry said was later extinguished.Oil fields — crucial to Iran’s economy — were not targeted in the first round of strikes, but a senior Israeli security official warned on Friday that if Iran were to target Israeli population centers with ballistic missiles — which it then did — Israel would target regime leaders and state infrastructure such as oil refineries.In all, since early Friday, the IDF said it hit 720 separate assets in some 250 strikes in Iran.Iranian media said Sunday that Israel attacked a facility affiliated with Iran’s defense ministry in the central city of Isfahan.“One of the centers affiliated with the Ministry of Defense in Isfahan was attacked, and possible damages are under investigation,” ISNA news agency reported, quoting deputy provincial governor Akbar Salehi.Iranian media also reported strikes on the Shiraz Electronics factory in the city of Shiraz, a company that produces radar and electronic equipment for the Iranian military, according to a US-based watchdog. According to CNN, the facility was destroyed.Iran claimed Sunday it had arrested two individuals it accused of being members of the Mossad spy agency in Alborz province while they were preparing explosives and electronic devices, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday.Israel and Iran trade threats-After the IDF warned Iranians to evacuate military facilities in Iran, Defense Minister Israel Katz said Sunday the military “will strike the sites and continue to peel the skin off the Iranian snake in Tehran and everywhere, stripping it of nuclear capabilities and weapons systems.”“The Iranian dictator is turning Tehran into Beirut and its residents into hostages for the sake of his regime’s survival,” he added.Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said that the attacks on Israel will only end once Israel halts its military campaign against the Islamic Republic.“We are defending ourselves; our defense is entirely legitimate,” said Araghchi in a meeting with foreign diplomats, adding that “this defense is our response to aggression. If the aggression stops, naturally our responses will also stop.”He said that the Israeli strikes on the offshore South Pars gas field Iran shares with Qatar were “a blatant aggression and a very dangerous act.”“Dragging the conflict to the Persian Gulf is a strategic mistake, and it aims to drag the war beyond Iranian territory,” he said.Conflict to take ‘weeks, not days,’ officials say-The conflict with Iran will take “weeks, not days,” according to American and Israeli officials quoted by CNN.The officials said the operation has the White House’s implicit approval, with an Israeli official cited as saying the US president is on board with the weeks-long timeframe.A US official was quoted as saying, “The Trump administration firmly believes this can be solved by continuing negotiations with the US,” with the exact length of the conflict dependent on Iran’s actions.Years of hostility between Israel and Iran exploded into open conflict early Friday morning when Israel launched a major offensive against Iran and its nuclear program, hitting nuclear sites, missile bases and top military officials.Israel said it had no choice but to attack Iran, and that it had gathered intelligence showing that Tehran was approaching “the point of no return” in its pursuit of nuclear weapons.Military officials said that the IDF was preparing for heavy fire from Iran, but asserted that “at the end of the operation, there will be no nuclear threat” from the Islamic Republic.

In a race against time, amid grief and dust, Bat Yam searches for survivors of Iran strike-Rescue efforts continue Sunday as residents recall near escapes and the city begins reckoning with its wounds; Netanyahu, Herzog, and Ben Gvir visit the scene By Stav Levaton and ToI Staff Today, 5:04 pm

BAT YAM — Amid the shattered remains of a residential building in this central Israeli city, rescue teams worked tirelessly Sunday morning, racing against time to locate survivors after a devastating Iranian missile strike leveled part of the coastal city overnight.At least seven people were confirmed dead, and three others were still feared missing beneath the rubble.The late-night strike caused widespread damage to both residential and commercial buildings, destroying entire floors and injuring nearly 200 people.Those who had taken shelter in designated safe rooms and underground bunkers were unharmed, Home Front Command officials say, while all the casualties occurred outside of protected spaces.Leah Shalom, a resident of Bat Yam, was in her apartment’s reinforced room when an Iranian missile slammed directly into her building.“I was alone with my dog — my son is in Tel Aviv,” she recounted. “I heard several booms… When I received the all clear, I opened the door. Then suddenly, something crashed hard inside my home. I’m lucky that I didn’t leave” the room.Shalom said her apartment suffered extensive damage — shattered windows, a destroyed bathroom, and a broken air conditioning unit. Too shaken to assess the full extent, she said she has no idea when, or if, she’ll be able to return.Regional police commander Daniel Hadad told reporters Sunday that the death toll stood at six, with 180 people wounded and three still missing. Another body was pulled from the rubble in the afternoon.“Our main effort at the moment is to find the missing and to coordinate between reports of those who are missing,” Hadad said. He added that several buildings were damaged by the enormous blast and that “this could take days.”A hotline has been established at 105 for those with concerns about missing persons or dangerous situations.“There is great destruction here, lots of rubble and debris that has to be lifted to find the missing,” Hadad said, noting that local authorities were also working to assist hundreds of residents who have become homeless.On the ground, the atmosphere on Sunday morning was tense and surreal. Families of the missing sat in silence, watching emergency crews sift through the debris.Residents of neighboring buildings, many of whom are dealing with shattered windows and structural damage, have been barred from returning home. Entire roads have been sealed off.Amid the devastation, one local handed his phone to a military police officer blocking access to the site, asking him to snap a photo of the damage to his office building located beyond the caution tape.“I just want to see which campaign poster is still hanging,” he said with a grim smile — a dark joke that underscored not only the surreal aftermath of the attack, but also Israel’s ongoing internal political turmoil, which remains visible even in the wreckage.Several Israeli political figures visited the scene as rescue teams continued their efforts on Sunday afternoon, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog, and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.“Iran will pay a very heavy price for the murder of civilians — women, children — that it carried out deliberately. We will achieve our objectives, and we will strike them with overwhelming force,” said Netanyahu according to a readout from the Prime Minister’s Office.“Dozens of homes in this area were completely damaged by a single missile launched from Iran in a cruel and terrible missile attack that was launched across the entire country,” Herzog said at the scene.Meanwhile, Ben Gvir emphasized the importance of civilians entering bomb shelters because “it saves lives.”“We see it time and time again, even here in this building — pay attention to what remains of the building, only the protected area. Enter the protected areas,” he said.The IDF reiterated its warning to the public: “Follow Home Front Command instructions, they save lives.” Military officials have stressed that Israel’s air defense systems, while advanced, are not foolproof, and proper sheltering remains critical in protecting civilians.Rescue forces — including the IDF’s Home Front Command, the National Rescue Unit, and reserve teams from across the country — rushed to the scene overnight, along with units deployed to similar impact zones in Tamra in the north and Rehovot in Israel’s center. In Bat Yam, officials say rescue operations are expected to continue for at least another full day.Despite the devastation, signs of resilience are beginning to emerge. In Bat Yam, a handful of storefronts have cautiously reopened, while other business owners continue to assess shattered windows, structural damage, and the uncertainty of what comes next.Still, recovery remains a long way off. The search for those believed to be trapped under the rubble presses on, and the silent vigil of waiting families serves as a stark reminder of the profound human toll of Iran’s strike.

Iraq tells US and Iran it wants to stay out of the conflict-Iran threatens to target US, UK, French bases if they help stop strikes on Israel-US is involved in stopping Iranian missile and drone fire; the UK and France are not known to participate, but have signaled they could-By Agencies and ToI Staff Today, 12:48 pm

Iran has warned the United States, United Kingdom and France that their bases and ships in the region will be targeted if they help stop Tehran’s strikes on Israel, Iran’s state media reported.Iran has been firing massive barrages of missiles and drones at Israel since last Friday, when the latter launched a shock campaign of strikes on Iranian nuclear and military sites, citing an existential need to prevent the Islamic Republic from obtaining nuclear weapons.Most of the Iranian missiles and drones have been intercepted by Israel’s air defenses, though some have slipped through, killing at least 13 people and injuring hundreds as they hit urban areas.US officials have been quoted as saying that the military is already shooting down drones and missiles. Neither France nor Britain is known to have helped out in stopping the attacks, though Paris has said that it could do so, and London has not ruled out the possibility.The US, Britain and France, along with Washington’s regional allies, all cooperated last year in helping to stop two massive missile and drone barrages that Iran fired at Israel amid spillover from the war in the Gaza Strip.Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday that Tehran had evidence to show US forces supported the intense bombardment campaign Israel launched against Iran.“We have solid proof of the support of the American forces and American bases in the region for the attacks of the Zionist regime military forces,” Araghchi told foreign diplomats in a meeting broadcast on state TV.The US has denied that it directly took part in Israeli attacks. On Saturday, President Donald Trump said that if Iran attacks the United States in any way, it will face the might of the US military “at levels never seen before.”Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform that the US had nothing to do with an attack on Iran overnight and that “we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!”Earlier, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters that he had spoken with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as well as other world leaders, while calling for de-escalation, the UK’s Guardian newspaper reported.Asked about Iran’s threats to hit the assets of countries that are helping to defend Israel, he said, “We are moving assets to the region, including jets, and that is for contingency support in the region.”Pressed as to whether Britain will become involved in defensive operations, he said only, “These are obviously operational decisions and the situation is ongoing and developing, and therefore I’m not going to get into the precise details.”According to London’s The Times, the UK was not informed about Israel’s initial strikes on Iran in advance, amid deteriorating ties between the two countries.On Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron said that France could help defend Israel against an attack from Iran “if in a position to do so.”“If Israel were to be attacked in retaliation by Iran, France, if in a position to do so, would take part in protection and defense operations,” he said during a press conference.Meanwhile, Iraq has approached the Iranian and US governments in a bid to prevent being caught up in a regional escalation, officials said Saturday.The government in Baghdad is a close ally of Tehran, but also a strategic partner of Iran’s arch-foe the United States, which has some 2,500 troops in Iraq as part of an anti-jihadist coalition.The government in a statement late Saturday said that it “reiterates its firm and unequivocal rejection of any violation of Iraqi airspace or its use in military attacks carried out by the Zionist entity against the Islamic Republic of Iran.”It called on the United States to “uphold its responsibilities… to prevent aircraft belonging to the Zionist entity from once again breaching Iraqi airspace to carry out such attacks.”A senior Iraqi security official told AFP that Baghdad had also asked Tehran not to strike US targets in its territory.“The request was made. They promised us positive things,” the official said, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.An Iraqi government official, who also requested anonymity, said Baghdad had made an official request to Washington to help preserve the integrity of its airspace, citing the United States’ role as the leader of the international coalition against the Islamic State group.Baghdad on Friday lodged a complaint with the United Nations over Israel’s use of its airspace to attack Iran.

Israel says killed most of Iran Guards' air force leadership by AFP Staff Writers.

Jerusalem (AFP) June 13, 2025-The Israeli military said its air strikes on Iran on Friday had killed most of the senior leadership of the Revolutionary Guards' air force as they gathered at an underground command centre.Shortly after the Israeli defence ministry announced that "most of the Revolutionary Guard air force leadership was neutralised," the military clarified that several senior commanders had been "eliminated".It said that air force commander Amirali Hajizadeh, the drone force commander, and the aerial command chief were all killed by an Israeli air strike."The senior chain of command of the air force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) had assembled in an underground command centre to prepare for an attack on the State of Israel," the military said."As part of the combined opening strike, Israeli air force fighter jets struck the command centre where the commander of the IRGC's air force, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, was located along with other senior officials."It said that Hajizadeh had played a central role in Iran's "plan for Israel's destruction", which Israel has said its attack was intended to foil."In addition, the senior officials who were eliminated led the attack on Saudi Arabia's oil facilities in September 2019," the statement added.The Revolutionary Guards control Iran's arsenal of ballistic missiles and are involved in defending the country's airspace.

Five killed near Haifa as Iranian missile barrage targets northern Israel-Five others injured as deadly Saturday night salvo from Islamic Republic hits Tamra, an Arab city where residents have warned about lack of bomb shelters By Emanuel Fabian,ToI Staff and Agencies Today, 1:02 am-JUN 15,25

Iran on Saturday night launched a barrage of dozens of ballistic missiles at Israel, with one missile impacting in the Arab city of Tamra, east of Haifa, killing three people and injuring at least seven others, medics said.The barrage was Iran’s first since the early morning hours.The salvo sent most of the country into shelters, with Home Front Command pushing phone alerts shortly after 11 p.m., but sirens were then only activated in the north and the Haifa area, as air defenses were activated to intercept the incoming attack.One missile struck a two-story home in Tamra, killing five people and wounding five. One of the victims was reportedly a woman aged around 20.Residents of the Arab Israeli city have long warned that there is a dearth of bomb shelters in the area, and that almost no homes have a safe room attached.At around 11:45 p.m., Home Front Command gave the all-clear for people to leave shelters, though more barrages were expected overnight.A video circulating on social media on Saturday showed a Jewish family cheering as Iranian ballistic missiles fall in the Arab Israeli city of Tamra — sparking outrage from many officials.“On the village, on the village!” a man can be heard shouting in the clip. He and others then broke into singing the anti-Arab phrase “may your village burn,” clapping their hands as missiles rain down on the neighboring city.A number of politicians condemned the video and other similar social media posts.Labor MK Naama Lazimi wrote on X that there is “nothing human, Jewish or Israeli” about lauding a strike on an Arab town — “shameful and disgusting.”Deputy Tel Aviv Mayor Asaf Zamir said such celebrations “make me nauseated and I am ashamed of you.”Hadash-Ta’al party chief Ayman Odeh wrote that such expressions were “the voices of Netanyahu, Ben Gvir and Smotrich, the warmongers and everyone who supports them.” He added that “these racists should be investigated and arrested.”Iran had launched three major barrages of ballistic missiles at Israel Friday night and early Saturday morning. Some 80 people were reported hurt in the strikes, including three people who were critically injured and later succumbed to their wounds in the cities of Ramat Gan and Rishon Lezion. According to Magen David Adom, several more people were seriously hurt. The rest were lightly to moderately injured or suffered acute anxiety.The three fatalities in Ramat Gan and Rishon Lezion were named Saturday as Etti Cohen Engel, Yisrael Aloni and Yevgenia Blinder.Iranian media claimed hundreds of missiles were fired in the first barrage late Friday, while the Israel Defense Forces estimated that the actual number in all the attacks stood at some 200.The three waves of attacks Friday overnight each consisted of dozens of missiles, according to the IDF, which declined to provide a specific number.The IDF has called on the public not to publish the locations or footage of missile impacts. “The enemy monitors the footage to improve its attack capabilities,” the military said.The enmity between Israel and Iran escalated into an unprecedented open conflict in the early hours of Friday morning as Israel launched a major offensive against Iran and its nuclear program, hitting nuclear sites, missile bases and top military officials.Israel said it had no choice but to attack Iran, adding that it had gathered intelligence that Tehran was approaching “the point of no return” in its pursuit of a nuclear weapon.The Israeli operation was expected to last several days at least, according to military officials, who added that the IDF was preparing for heavy fire from Iran, but asserted that “at the end of the operation, there will be no nuclear threat” from the Islamic Republic.

Israel, Iran resume missile exchange, threaten more attacks-by Allen Cone.

Washington DC (UPI) Jun 14, 2025-Iran and Israel exchanged more airstrikes overnight Friday and continuing into late Saturday after Israel mainly attacked Iranian nuclear and military targets two days ago.Though some missiles struck civilian populations, residents in both nations said they support their government's airstrikes. The alternatives are worse, they say: Iran developing an atomic bomb against the Jewish state and Israel toppling the Islamic state's government.Late Saturday, Israel Defense Forces said its Air Force was attacking military targets in Tehran while intercepting missiles launched from Iran. Air raid sirens were activated in southern Israel, according to the IDF, and people were told to go into shelters.The military chief spokesperson Effie Defrin said there has "a series of attacks that has not stopped for nearly 40 hours and includes more than 150 targets. The focus of the attacks in the past 24 hours, Tehran," the BBC reported.On Saturday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that "Tehran will burn" if drone and missile attacks continue. In a video address Saturday night, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said "we will strike every site and every target of the Ayatollah's regime.""We hit the uranium enrichment facility which is vital for the production of bombs. We also hit the leading team of scientists who lead these projects. And this will definitely set them back, and it's possible that it will set them back for many years," said Netanyahu, who conveyed his security cabinet.On Saturday night, he made an appeal to Americans, saying: "Our enemy is your enemy. And by doing what we're doing, we're dealing with something that will threaten all of us sooner or later."This is what Israel is doing with the clear support of the President of the United States, Donald Trump, and the American people, and many others in the world."On Friday night, he directly addressed the Iranian people, calling on civilians to "stand up and let your voices be heard."Iran's Maj. Gen. Mohammad Pakpour said in a letter to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei."Soon, the gates of hell will be opened upon this child-killing regime. The crime that the terrorist Zionist regime committed today in its aggression against the national security and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic will certainly not go unanswered," Pakpour wrote.Situation in Iran-Israeli forces for the first time are operating freely in Tehran's airspace, after eliminating many of Iran's air defense systems, an Israel Defense Forces official said."Our Air Force pilots flew for about two and a half hours over Tehran, alongside UAVs that remain airborne 24/7, surveilling the area and concluding with attacks and intelligence gathering," Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said in a briefing Saturday. "We've established aerial freedom of action from western Iran to Tehran."More than 70 Israeli jet fighters struck 40 targets in the Tehran area overnight, including surface-to-air missile infrastructure, Israel Air Force Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar said.An Israeli drone struck a refinery in Iran's South Pars in the Persian Gulf on Saturday, semiofficial Iranian Fars News Agency reported. Gas production has been suspended there, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.Smoke was also seen Saturday in Iran's oil refinery in Abadan, off the coast of the Persian Gulf, the Jerusalem Post reported.At least 78 people died in the Israeli strikes, including senior military officials, Iran's UN envoy Amir Saeid Iravani said Friday. More than 320 people were injured, most of them civilians.Iran's Ministry of Health said a drone struck a children's hospital in Tehran. Hospitals have been caring for more than 800 people injured in the attacks with the most civilians, Fars reported.Israel said "over 20 commanders in the Iranian regime's security apparatus" have been killed since the start of the attacks.Iranian state media reported 60 people, including 20 children, were killed after an Israeli strike hit a residential building in Tehran's Shahrak-e Shahid Chamran residential compound, while Iranian television showed workers removing debris from the site of a 14-story building.Israel's military said nine scientists and experts involved in Iran's nuclear program died. Nuclear facilities in Fordow and Isfahan were not extensively damaged, the spokesperson of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran said. According to the spokesperson, there is no concern for contamination.The Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant is buried deep in the mountains near Qom in northern Iran and is one of the locations that Israel and its allies have feared Iran is developing a nuclear weapon.Iran's Taekwondo Federation said three of its members were killed in Israeli attacks on Tehran, which Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which lost several of its leaders during the first Israeli airstrikes, said it targeted Israeli military centers and air bases.In Tehran, residents were also fearful of more attacks."We're hearing that tonight Israel will be hitting more densely populated parts of Tehran in retaliation for the strike that hit Tel Aviv, which is really terrifying," a 24-year-old woman told CNN.There were also demonstrations in Tehran against Israel, and residents oppose Netanyahu's call to rise up against the regime, the network reported."Do I wish the regime wasn't in power? Absolutely. Do I want my city bombed by another dictator? Absolutely not," Neda, a 28-year-old, told CNN."The reality of what is happening in Iran as an Iranian who has actually lived in Iran, who has their family in Iran, Israel is in no way helping our people. I don't need fake news and propaganda speeches."Another 36-year-old man told CNN that "Israel is underestimating our love for our country, the idea that bombing us, our homes, killing our children would send us to the streets is shocking. We want to live peacefully whether we like the regime or not."Situation in Israel-It was the worst assault on Israel since Hamas attacked the nation on Oct. 7, killing approximately 1,200. The nation also is used to short-range rockets in northern Israel from Lebanon.Israel's missile defense system, known as the Iron Dome, appeared to have intercepted numerous ones.Iran's retaliatory strikes killed at least three people and injured dozens, according to Israeli authorities. Iran said it had downed Israeli drones that crossed its northwestern border near Salmas, the state-affiliated Nour News reported Saturday.Explosions could be heard in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, according to reports, as air raid sirens were activated and people took shelter.Damage was reported in Ramat Gan, a city of about 170,000 people neighboring Tel Aviv."I feel like the collateral damage," Rony Armon told ABC News, whose family took cover in a shelter on Friday night. "The walls were shaking. We never imagined that it was so close. I look horrified at what happens in Gaza, but now it's in my back door, which is totally different story."Ifat Benjamin told the BBC that she, her husband Zion and their six younger relatives are moving their possessions out of the home they've lived in for 29 years in Ramat Gan."We closed the door, and suddenly there was such a big boom," Benjamin said. "I thought all the house fell on us."Despite being attacked, residents in Israel support airstrikes on Iran."I support it completely," Sveta told The Guardian after her apartment in Ramat Gan was destroyed and her 4-year-old daughter slept outside. "This is nothing compared to what they will be able to do if they get their hand on the A-bomb [nuclear weapons]. We can't afford for the Iranians to get them."We tell [our daughters] that as long as we go to the shelter together, everything is OK. The damage in the house is just material things."Additionally, a missile struck in the vicinity of the Kirya, an area of Tel Aviv that's home to the military headquarters housing the Israel Defense Forces and the Ministry of Defense, according to video obtained by CNN.Nations on high alert-Airspace in Iran and Israel remains closed, meaning commercial flights can't take off and land there. No damage was reported to Tehran airport's runways and main buildings, although smoke was seen at the airport.On Saturday morning, Tehran's air defense system was active after Israel continued strikes on the Iranian capital, state media reported. Israel targeted provinces that included East Azerbaijan, Lorestan and Kermanshah, according to state-affiliated Fars news agency.Israelis are prepared to go into bomb shelters when strikes are imminent.Mike Huckabee, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, said he had to head to bomb shelters five times overnight."Been rough nite in Israel," Huckabee, who is in Israel right now, said in a post on X on Saturday morning after he had to seek cover in bomb shelters five times during the course of the night.Huckabee added that Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest, which occurs from sundown Friday though sundown Saturday, should be quiet, but "probably won't be."Most businesses closed one day earlier than the Sabbath in Israel as people stocked up on essentials in preparation for possible retaliatory attacks from Iran.Sheba Medical Facility in the Tel Aviv area treated dozens of patients injured in the Iranian strikes, where many suffered shrapnel wounds, is one of several hospitals that have been relocating patients underground for protection.Nuclear negotiations called off-The sixth round of talks between the United States and Iran in Oman on a nuclear deal scheduled for Sunday have been canceled."The United States has supported the Zionist regime's aggression, including the targeting of Iran's peaceful nuclear facilities," Esmaeil Baghaei said Saturday, according to Iranian state media Mehr News. "Participating in talks with a party that is the principal supporter and accomplice of the aggressor is fundamentally meaningless."On Friday, Trump posted on Truth Social: "Two months ago I gave Iran a 60 day ultimatum to 'make a deal.' They should have done it! Today is day 61. I told them what to do, but they just couldn't get there. Now they have, perhaps, a second chance!"Other nations react-The United States helped Israel intercept Iranian missiles, U.S. officials and a White House official confirmed to CBS News.During Israel's airstrikes on Iran, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. wasn't involved.Iran will target the regional bases of any country that tries to defend it, a senior Iranian official told CNN. The United States has bases in Qatar, where U.S. Central Command is based, as well as in Bahrain, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Iraq and Saudi Arabia."We are robustly postured to ensure that our people -- our bases, our interests -- are safe and we're continuing to monitor any, any forces we would need to do that, capabilities we would need to do that, we will, we will keep Americans safe," Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Saturday. "The U.S. is postured to defend our people in the region. We've got significant assets in the region.""I wouldn't say we were really surprised by any dynamic of the back and forth," Hegseth added. "That's been ongoing, but we're monitoring it closely."The British government has said its forces had not provided any military assistance to Israel as its prime minister, Keir Starmer, has emphasized the need for de-escalation.The prime minister spoke to Netanyahu on Friday afternoon during, according to an official readout, he emphasized that "Israel has a right to self-defense" but the conflict needed a diplomatic solution.Britain is sending more jets "for contingency support across the region," Starmer said, according to the BBC.The prime minister says military aircraft are being sent "for contingency support across the region".United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Saturday again called for an end to the fighting."Enough escalation. Time to stop," he wrote on X. "Peace and diplomacy must prevail."The White House said Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday morning discussed the situation in the Middle East."President Putin called this morning to very nicely wish me a Happy Birthday, but to more importantly, talk about Iran, a country he knows very well. We talked at length," the statement said.

Rubio warns Iran against targeting US over Israeli strikes-by AFP Staff Writers.

Washington (AFP) June 13, 2025-US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned Iran late Thursday not to respond to Israeli strikes by hitting American bases, saying Washington was not involved."We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region," Rubio said in a statement."Let me be clear: Iran should not target US interests or personnel."Israel announced strikes on Iran, where loud explosions were heard, hours after US President Donald Trump publicly said they should not do so.Trump had said that Israel would ruin chances for a peacefully negotiated solution, which he said was close.A sixth round of talks over Tehran's nuclear program had been scheduled between the United States and Iran on Sunday in Oman."Israel advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its self-defense," Rubio said, without offering support or criticism of the strikes by the close US ally."President Trump and the administration have taken all necessary steps to protect our forces and remain in close contact with our regional partners," he said.

Iran launches more missiles as Israel targets Tehran By Ahmad Parhizi and Sebastien Ricci with Alice Chancellor in Jerusalem.

Tehran (AFP) June 14, 2025-Iran launched a new wave of missiles at Israel on Saturday, wounding several people in residential buildings, while Israel said it was striking Tehran.The fresh attacks came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to hit "every target of the ayatollah regime", and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned further strikes would draw "a more severe and powerful response".As calls for de-escalation grew, a new round of nuclear talks between the United States and Iran scheduled for Sunday was cancelled, with Iran saying it could not negotiate while under attack from Israel.Israel's operation, which began early Friday, has targeted Iran's air defences and hit key nuclear and military sites, killing dozens of people including top army commanders and atomic scientists, according to Tehran.On Saturday night Israel said it was simultaneously working to intercept a new salvo of missiles fired from Iran, while also carrying out strikes on "military targets in Tehran".Iranian news agency Tasnim reported that an Israeli strike had targeted the country's defence ministry headquarters in Tehran and damaged one of its buildings. The ministry did not comment.Iran, meanwhile, announced a "new wave" of attacks targeting Israel.Israel's emergency services said an Iranian missile hit a home in the Haifa region, leaving 14 people injured, including one in critical condition.Israeli strikes meanwhile hit two fuel depots in Tehran, the Iranian oil ministry said Sunday.According to the oil ministry, the oil depots at Shahran northwest of Tehran and another reservoir south of the city were hit.An AFP journalist saw the depot at Shahran on fire.- 'Every site, every target' -Iran's UN ambassador said 78 people were killed and 320 wounded in Friday's first wave of Israeli strikes.Israel on Saturday said three people were killed and 76 wounded by Iran's drone and missile barrage the night before.Netanyahu has vowed to keep up Israel's campaign."We will hit every site, every target of the ayatollah regime," he said in a video statement, threatening greater action "in the coming days".He added that the Israeli campaign had dealt a "real blow" to Iran's nuclear programme and maintained it had the "clear support" of US President Donald Trump.Trump said he and Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed in a phone call on Saturday that the conflict between Iran and Israel "should end".Pezeshkian said meanwhile that "the continuation of the Zionist aggression will be met with a more severe and powerful response from the Iranian armed forces".According to a statement from his office, Pezeshkian also condemned Washington's "dishonesty" for supporting Israel while engaged in nuclear talks with Iran -- which mediator Oman said would no longer take place on Sunday.Western governments have repeatedly accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, which it denies.Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, said the Israeli attacks undermined negotiations and were pushing the region into a "dangerous cycle of violence".- Foreign concern -After decades of enmity and conflict by proxy, it is the first time the arch-enemies have traded fire with such intensity, triggering fears of a prolonged conflict that could engulf the Middle East.Highlighting the unease, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned against a "devastating war" with regional consequences, in a call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Ankara said.Israeli strikes have hit Iran's Natanz uranium enrichment plant and killed its highest-ranking military officer, Mohammad Bagheri, as well as the head of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hossein Salami.The Israeli military said its strikes had killed more than 20 Iranian commanders.Iranian media reported five Guards killed Saturday in Israeli strikes, while authorities in one northwestern province said 30 military personnel had been killed there since Friday.Iran's Red Crescent said an ambulance was hit Saturday in Urmia city, killing two.Iran called on its citizens to unite in the country's defence, while Netanyahu urged them to rise up against against the government.Iran's Mehr news agency said Tehran had warned Britain, France and the United States it could retaliate if they came to Israel's defence.- 'Everything was shaking' -AFP images from the city of Ramat Gan near Tel Aviv showed blown-out buildings, destroyed vehicles and streets strewn with debris after Iran's first wave of attacks.Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they had struck dozens of targets in Israel. One Iranian missile wounded seven Israeli soldiers, the military said.Firefighters had worked for hours to free people trapped in a Tel Aviv high-rise building on Friday.Chen Gabizon, a resident, said he ran to an underground shelter after receiving an alert."We just heard a very big explosion, everything was shaking, smoke, dust, everything was all over the place," he said.In Tehran, fire and heavy smoke billowed over Mehrabad airport on Saturday, an AFP journalist said.The Israeli army said it had struck an underground military facility Saturday in western Iran's Khorramabad that contained surface-to-surface and cruise missiles.Iranian media also reported a "massive explosion" following an Israeli drone strike on an oil refinery in the southern city of Kangan.The attacks prompted several countries to temporarily ground air traffic, with Jordan again shutting its airspace late Saturday after it had briefly reopened it.burs/ser/rlp

Iran says to target US bases if conflict breaks out.

Tehran (AFP) June 11, 2025 - Iran threatened Wednesday to target US military bases in the region if conflict breaks out, while President Donald Trump said he was "less confident" about reaching a nuclear deal.Tehran and Washington have held five rounds of talks since April to thrash out a new nuclear deal to replace the 2015 accord that Trump abandoned during his first term in 2018.Since returning to office in January, Trump has revived his "maximum pressure" campaign on Tehran, backing nuclear diplomacy but warning of military action if it fails."All its bases are within our reach, we have access to them, and without hesitation we will target all of them in the host countries," Iran's Defence Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh said in response to US threats of military action if the talks fail."God willing, things won't reach that point, and the talks will succeed," the minister said, adding that the US side "will suffer more losses" if it came to conflict.The United States has multiple bases in the Middle East, with the largest located in Qatar.Iran and the United States have recently been locked in a diplomatic standoff over Iran's uranium enrichment, with Tehran defending it as a "non-negotiable" right and Washington calling it as a "red line".Trump had previously expressed optimism about the talks, saying during a Gulf tour last month Washington was "getting close" to securing a deal.But in an interview published Wednesday, Trump said he was "less confident" the United States and Iran could reach a deal, in response to a question on whether he believed he could stop Tehran from enriching uranium.- 'A shame' -Iran currently enriches uranium to 60 percent, far above the 3.67-percent limit set in the 2015 deal and close though still short of the 90 percent needed for a nuclear warhead.Western countries, including the United States and its ally Israel, have long accused Iran of seeking to acquire atomic weapons, while Tehran insists its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes.Last week, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said enrichment is "key" to Iran's nuclear programme and that Washington "cannot have a say" on the issue.During the interview with the New York Post's podcast "Pod Force One", which was recorded on Monday, Trump said he was losing hope a deal could be reached."I don't know. I did think so, and I'm getting more and more -- less confident about it. They seem to be delaying and I think that's a shame. I am less confident now than I would have been a couple of months ago," he said."Something happened to them but I am much less confident of a deal being made... May be they don't wanna make a deal, what can I say? And may be they do. There is nothing final."Trump maintained that Washington would not allow Tehran to obtain nuclear weapons, saying "it would be nicer to do it without warfare, without people dying".On May 31, after the fifth round of talks, Iran said it had received "elements" of a US proposal for a nuclear deal, with Araghchi later saying the text contained "ambiguities".Iran has said it will present a counter-proposal to the latest draft from Washington, which it had criticised for failing to offer relief from sanctions -- a key demand for Tehran, which has been reeling under their weight for years.On Monday, the United Nations nuclear watchdog began a Board of Governors meeting in Vienna that will last until Friday to discuss Iran's atomic activities and other issues.The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) meeting followed a report issued by it criticising "less than satisfactory" cooperation from Tehran, particularly in explaining past cases of nuclear material found at undeclared sites.Iran has criticised the IAEA report as unbalanced, saying it relied on "forged documents" provided by its arch-foe Israel.

Israel strikes Iran: what we know.

Jerusalem (AFP) June 13, 2025 - Israel said Friday it had carried out strikes on Iranian nuclear and military sites, promising to continue military action "to remove this threat."The strikes hit several areas in Iran, with blasts reported in the capital Tehran, as well as at a key uranium enrichment site. Here is what we know:What was hit? Israel's military said its jets carried out strikes on "dozens of military targets, including nuclear targets in different areas of Iran."Blasts were reported in Tehran, where Iranian state television said fire and smoke were seen at a key site for Iran's Revolutionary Guards in the city's east.State television also reported "loud explosions" in Natanz, in Iran's central Isfahan province, where a key nuclear site is located.The "Natanz enrichment facility has been hit several times," state TV reported, showing footage of heavy smoke billowing from the site.Iranian state media said residential buildings in Tehran were damaged and several civilians killed.An Israeli security official said the strikes had "likely eliminated" Mohammad Bagheri, the chief of staff of the Islamic republic's armed forces, along with senior nuclear scientists.Iranian media meanwhile said Revolutionary Guards chief Hossein Salami had been killed.Why now? Israel sees the cleric-run state in Tehran as an existential threat and hit Iranian air defences last year.Its defence minister Israel Katz described the action as a "preemptive strike".The United States and other Western countries, along with Israel, have repeatedly accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, which it has always denied.Israel again called for global action after the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency accused Iran on Wednesday of non-compliance with its obligations.There had been indications a military strike was likely, with US media reporting an imminent Israeli attack that would not be coordinated with the Washington."I don't want to say imminent, but it looks like it's something that could very well happen," US President Donald Trump told reporters on Thursday when asked if an Israeli attack loomed.A sixth round of talks over Tehran's nuclear programme had been scheduled between the United States and Iran on Sunday in Oman.Who was involved? Israel relies on Washington for military and diplomatic support but carried out the strikes alone, top US diplomat Marco Rubio said."We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region," he said in a statement warning Tehran against targeting US interests.Rubio said Israel had "advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its self-defence," without offering support or criticism of the strikes.What has been the reaction? Air traffic has been halted at Tehran's main international airport, and neighbouring Iraq has closed its airspace entirely.Israel has warned Iran could retaliate at any moment, declaring a state of emergency and also shutting its airspace.In Washington, the White House said Trump would convene security chiefs after the strike, which was criticised by a senior Democrat."Israel's alarming decision to launch airstrikes on Iran is a reckless escalation that risks igniting regional violence," said Senator Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the US Senate Armed Services Committee.The strikes saw oil prices surge up to six percent.

Senior US Democrat condemns Israel's 'reckless escalation'.

Washington (AFP) June 13, 2025 - Democratic senators sharply criticized US ally Israel on Thursday for its strikes on Iran, as the White House distanced itself from the attack but Republican senators voiced gratitude to Israel."Israel's alarming decision to launch airstrikes on Iran is a reckless escalation that risks igniting regional violence," Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island said in a statement.His comment came after Israel carried out a "preemptive" strike against Tehran's nuclear and military sites, in defiance of a call from US President Donald Trump to refrain from attacking Iran.Reed, the top Democrat on the US Senate Armed Services Committee, warned that the "strikes threaten not only the lives of innocent civilians but the stability of the entire Middle East and the safety of American citizens and forces.""While tensions between Israel and Iran are real and complex, military aggression of this scale is never the answer," he insisted."I urge both nations to show immediate restraint, and I call on President Trump and our international partners to press for diplomatic de-escalation before this crisis spirals further out of control."Other Democrats also voiced alarm."This action ordered by Prime Minister Netanyahu appears to deliberately undermine ongoing American diplomatic negotiations about Iran's nuclear program," Senator Andy Kim of New Jersey said on X.Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut agreed."This is a disaster of Trump and Netanyahu's own making, and now the region risks spiraling toward a new, deadly conflict," he warned on X.He also took a political jab at the US president, insisting that Israel's decision to attack "is further evidence of how little respect world powers -- including our own allies -- have for President Trump."Republican senators responded as well, but with a very different tone.Tom Cotton of Arkasas insisted on X that "Iran is the world's worst state sponsor of terrorism, has the blood of thousands of Americans on its hands, and is rushing to build not only nuclear weapons, but also missiles that can strike the United States.""We back Israel to the hilt, all the way."Ted Cruz of Texas agreed."Israel is doing a favor to America right now by taking out Iran's nuclear capacity," he said.

Son of late shah urges Iranians to break with Islamic republic-by AFP Staff Writers.

Washington (AFP) June 13, 2025-The son of Iran's late shah appealed Friday to the country's security forces to abandon the cleric-run state, voicing hope for toppling the Islamic republic after Israel launched military strikes.Reza Pahlavi blamed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei for having "dragged Iran into a war" with Israel and described the government in Tehran as "weak and divided.""It could fall. As I have told my compatriots: Iran is yours and yours to reclaim. I am with you. Stay strong and we will win," he said in a statement."I have told the military, police, and security forces: break from the regime. Honor the oath of any honorable serviceman. Join the people.""To the international community: do not throw yet another lifeline to this dying, terrorist regime," he said.Pahlavi was crown prince in Iran's pro-Western monarchy, which collapsed in 1979 in a mass revolution that quickly brought to power the clerical establishment that declared an Islamic republic.Pahlavi, who lives in exile near Washington, says he is not necessarily looking for the restoration of the monarchy and wants to use his name to support the movement for secular democracy.Israel sees the Islamic republic as an existential threat but was allied with Iran under the late shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.Reza Pahlavi has also enjoyed warm relations with Israel, which he toured two years ago.Iranian diaspora pro-monarchists, waving the old imperial flag, have figured prominently in protests in support of Israel since the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas.Pahlavi has repeatedly described the Islamic republic as frail, including after mass protests broke out in 2022 after the death of Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested by morality police who enforce modest dress on women.

Netanyahu calls on Iranians to unite against 'evil and oppressive regime'

Jerusalem (AFP) June 13, 2025 - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Iranians Friday to unite against what he described as an "evil and oppressive regime", telling them Israel was engaged in "one of the greatest military operations in history"."The time has come for the Iranian people to unite around its flag and its historic legacy, by standing up for your freedom from the evil and oppressive regime," Netanyahu said in a video statement after Israel struck over 200 military and nuclear sites in the Islamic republic."We are in the midst of one of the greatest military operations in history, Operation Rising Lion," he added."As we achieve our objective, we are also clearing the path for you to achieve your freedom," he said, referring to Israeli strikes that hit targets across Iran, including nuclear sites, killing several top military commanders and nuclear scientists."The regime does not know what hit them, or what will hit them. It has never been weaker," Netanyahu said in his video published shortly after a salvo of Iranian missiles reached Israel."Our fight is against the murderous Islamic regime that oppresses and impoverishes you," he said, adding: "This is your opportunity to stand up and let your voices be heard."Netanyahu also promised that "more is on the way", having said earlier that Israel's attack on Iran would "continue for as many days as it takes".Iran called the attack "a declaration of war" and threatened to retaliate by opening "the gates of hell" on Israel.It first sent about 100 drones towards Israel, many of which were intercepted before reaching the country.The drones were followed by dozens of missiles, some of which caused physical damage in Israeli cities, and injured at least seven people, according to first responders.

'Avoid escalation': World reacts to Israel strike on Iran.

Paris (AFP) June 13, 2025 - World leaders urged restraint on Friday after Israel pounded Iran, striking 100 targets including nuclear and military sites, and killing senior figures.Here is a roundup of key reactions:- 'Cannot have nuclear bomb': United States -US President Donald Trump, told Fox News he was aware Israel was going to conduct strikes on Iran before they happened and said: "Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb and we are hoping to get back to the negotiating table. We will see."Fox News also reported that "Trump noted the US is ready to defend itself and Israel if Iran retaliates."- 'Maximum restraint': UN -UN chief Antonio Guterres asked "both sides to show maximum restraint, avoiding at all costs a descent into deeper conflict, a situation that the region can hardly afford," according to a spokesperson.Guterres was "particularly concerned" by Israel's strikes on nuclear installations amid the ongoing US-Iran negotiations.- 'Unacceptable' and 'unprovoked': Russia -"Russia is concerned and condemns the sharp escalation of tensions," spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state news agencies, calling the strikes "unacceptable" and "unprovoked", while the Russian embassy in Tel Aviv urged Russians in Israel to leave the country.- 'Deeply worried': China -"The Chinese side... is deeply worried about the severe consequences that such actions might bring," foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said, calling "on relevant parties to take actions that promote regional peace and stability and to avoid further escalation of tensions".- 'Diplomacy best path forward': EU -"The situation in the Middle East is dangerous. I urge all parties to exercise restraint and prevent further escalation. Diplomacy remains the best path forward, and I stand ready to support any diplomatic efforts toward de-escalation," said EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas.- Avoid 'further escalation': Germany -Germany, which for years expressed concerns about Iran's "advanced nuclear weapons programme", said it was "ready to use all diplomatic means at our disposal to influence the parties to the conflict. The goal must remain that Iran does not develop nuclear weapons".- 'Dangerous escalation': Hamas -"This aggression constitutes a dangerous escalation that threatens to destabilise the region," said the Iran-backed, Palestinian militant group, whose October 2023 attack on Israel sparked the Gaza war.- 'Threat to international peace': Iraq -Iraq strongly condemned the attacks, saying: "This act represents a blatant violation of the fundamental principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations, and constitutes a serious threat to international peace and security."- No 'battleground': Jordan -"Jordan has not and will not allow any violation of its airspace, reaffirming that the Kingdom will not be a battleground for any conflict," a government spokesperson told AFP after Jordan closed its airspace.- 'Dangerous approach': Oman -Nuclear talks mediator Oman said "calls on the international community to adopt a clear and firm position to put an end to this dangerous approach, which threatens to rule out diplomatic solutions and jeopardise the security and stability of the region".- 'Strong condemnation': Qatar -Gaza mediator Qatar expressed "its strong condemnation and denunciation of the Israeli attack," the Gulf state's foreign ministry said, adding that the "dangerous escalation threatens security and stability of the region and hinders efforts to de-escalate and reach diplomatic solutions".- 'Aggressive actions': Turkey -"Israel must put an immediate end to its aggressive actions that could lead to further conflicts," said Turkey's foreign ministry.- 'Reduce tensions urgently': UK -British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: "The reports of these strikes are concerning and we urge all parties to step back and reduce tensions urgently. Escalation serves no one in the region."- 'Legitimate right to defend itself': Yemen's Huthis -Tehran-backed Huthi rebels said they backed "Iran's full and legitimate right to... develop its nuclear programme" and that "we strongly condemn the brutal Israeli aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran and affirm its full and legitimate right to respond by all possible means".

Jordan says intercepted drones, missiles in its airspace-by AFP Staff Writers.

Amman (AFP) June 13, 2025-Jordan's military said it intercepted drones and missiles that had violated the kingdom's airspace on Friday, after Iran vowed there would be "no limits" in its response to Israeli attacks."Royal Air Force aircraft and air defence systems intercepted on Friday morning a number of missiles and drones that entered Jordanian airspace," a military statement said.Air raid sirens sounded in the Jordanian capital after Israel's attack on Iran, while the public security directorate urged people to stay at home."Adhere to the guidelines and stay in your homes," said an announcement on loudspeakers in Amman.Jordan had earlier said it would not allow its airspace to be violated and vowed not to become a "battleground" in any regional conflict.In October 2024, Jordan intercepted multiple drones and missiles fired by Iran at Israel."Jordan has not and will not allow any violation of its airspace, reaffirming that the Kingdom will not be a battleground for any conflict," government spokesperson Mohammad Momani told AFP.The government meanwhile condemned Israel's attack, with foreign ministry spokesperson Sufian Qudah warning of "the consequences of such escalatory actions".Jordan also called the attack "a blatant violation of the sovereignty of a United Nations member state and a clear breach of international law and the UN Charter"

Israel-Iran conflict: latest developments.

Jerusalem, June 15 (AFP)-Israel and Iran traded fire for a third straight day on Sunday, with rising casualties and expanding targets marking an escalation in the conflict between the longtime adversaries.Overnight Iranian strikes killed at least 10 people in Israel, adding to the growing toll in both countries since Friday when Israel launched a massive wave of attacks targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities but also hitting residential areas, sparking retaliation.The exchange of strikes is the first time the arch-enemies have traded fire with such intensity, triggering fears of a prolonged conflict that could engulf the Middle East, even as international leaders urge de-escalation.Here are the latest developments:- Deadly Iranian strikes -Iran unleashed deadly barrages of missiles at Israel overnight Saturday into Sunday, killing 10 people, including children, and bringing the overall death toll since Tehran launched retaliatory strikes to 13, with 380 others wounded.The first wave of Israeli strikes on Iran killed 78 people and wounded 320, according to Iran's ambassador to the United Nations, but Iranian authorities had not provided an updated toll as of Sunday afternoon.Iran also struck sites used by Israeli warplanes for refuelling, the Revolutionary Guards said Sunday.Israel said it had intercepted seven drones launched towards its territory, as it also faced attack from Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels, which on Sunday said they launched several missiles at Israel.- Israel expands targets -After targeting Iranian military and nuclear facilities, as well as killing top commanders and scientists, Israel expanded targets to oil infrastructure and government buildings.Israeli strikes hit two fuel depots in Tehran on Sunday, with AFP journalists seeing fire at a depot in Shahran, northwest of the Iranian capital.The Israeli military said Sunday its forces struck more than 80 targets in Tehran overnight.The day before, Israel's military said it was attacking dozens of missile launchers in Iran after announcing it had targeted air defences with a wave of strikes in the Tehran area.Iranian media on Sunday reported Israeli strikes had targeted the defence ministry headquarters in Tehran as well as a facility affiliated with the ministry in the central city of Isfahan.- Faltering nuclear diplomacy -The fierce exchanges of fire came amid talks between Tehran and Washington seeking to reach a deal on Iran's nuclear programme.Western governments have repeatedly accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, which it denies.The sixth round of negotiations set for Sunday in Oman have been called off, with Tehran saying it would not attend talks with Washington as long as Israel kept up its attacks.Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday hit out at Israel, saying its attacks are an "attempt to undermine diplomacy and derail negotiations".The top Iranian diplomat also accused Israel of having "crossed a new red line" by targeting Iran's nuclear sites.Tehran has criticised the UN nuclear watchdog, accusing it of inaction over the Israeli strikes and pledging to limit cooperation with the agency.- International unease -Countries have voiced growing alarm over the conflict spilling into the wider region, calling for de-escalation.Araghchi on Sunday slammed one of Israel's strikes on a major gas facility along the Gulf coast, saying any military activity in the key waters "could involve the entire region -- and possibly the whole world".He said Tehran had "solid proof" that US forces and bases in the region had supported Israel in its attacks.Washington -- a top Israel ally and Tehran rival -- has denied US involvement and called for an end to the exchanges of fire.But on Sunday morning, Trump issued a warning to Iran saying it would experience "the full strength" of the US military if it attacks the United States.burs-sw/ami

Israel army says struck underground missile facility in western Iran-by AFP Staff Writers.

Jerusalem (AFP) June 14, 2025-The Israeli military said it struck an underground facility Saturday in western Iran's Khorramabad that contained surface-to-surface and cruise missiles."This is an important site that was even featured in a propaganda video by the Iranian regime in the past," military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin told journalists.He was likely referring to footage aired by Iran's Revolutionary Guards earlier this year showing what it described as a new underground missile facility."It was struck and the senior officials associated with it have also been eliminated," Defrin said, adding that "dozens of other such sites have also been destroyed".The military said the site contained "storage tunnels for surface-to-surface missiles and cruise missiles as well as multiple launch shafts".Iranian media reported strikes on Lorestan province, where Khorramabad is located, on Saturday.Earlier on Saturday Israel said its air strikes on Iran, which began in the early hours of Friday, have so far killed more than 20 Iranian army and Revolutionary Guards commanders, including armed forces chief Mohammad Bagheri.The strikes have also killed nine nuclear scientists and experts, the military said.Iran said at least 78 people have been killed.

Trump says if Iran attacks, 'full strength' of US military will 'come down'

Washington, June 15 (AFP) Jun 15, 2025-Donald Trump warned Iran on Sunday that it would experience "the full strength" of the US military if it attacks the United States, reiterating that Washington "had nothing to do" with Israel's strikes on Tehran's nuclear and intelligence facilities.Israel's operation, which began early Friday, has targeted Iranian nuclear and military sites, killing dozens of people including top army commanders and atomic scientists, according to Tehran.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to hit "every target of the ayatollah regime", and Iran has retaliated with a deadly barrage of missiles.While Trump had said he was aware of the Israeli operation before it started, he reiterated Sunday morning on his Truth Social platform that the United States "had nothing to do with the attack on Iran, tonight.""If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before," he said in a post.He added that "we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!"On Friday, the US president urged Tehran to make a deal or face "even more brutal" attacks by Israel.During his first term, a landmark nuclear accord with Iran -- negotiated under former president Barack Obama -- was torpedoed in 2018 when Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States and reimposed sanctions.

Netanyahu says Israel will strike 'every target of the ayatollah regime' in Iran-by AFP Staff Writers.

Jerusalem (AFP) June 14, 2025-Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened on Saturday to strike "every target of the ayatollah regime" in Iran, adding that Israeli strikes had dealt a "real blow" to Tehran's nuclear programme."We will hit every site, every target of the ayatollah regime," Netanyahu said in a video statement on the second day of Israel's air campaign targeting Iranian military and nuclear sites."We have dealt a real blow to their nuclear programme" since Friday, he added."We have opened a path to Tehran. Very soon, you will see Israeli aircraft -- our air force, our pilots -- in the skies over Tehran," Netanyahu said, shortly after Israel's military reported it had struck 40 targets in the Iranian capital overnight, including missiles and advanced air defence systems.Israel on Friday launched an unprecedented attack on Iran, hitting more than 200 military and nuclear sites, military spokesman Effie Defrin said, killing top army commanders, nuclear scientists and other senior officials"What they have felt so far is nothing compared to what they will feel under the force of our arm in the coming days," Netanyahu said Saturday."We are acting with full force to eliminate this dual threat to the State of Israel," he added, referring to Iran's nuclear programme and its ballistic missile capabilities.Iran said 78 people had been killed and 320 wounded in the first Israeli wave of strikes.Iran in return launched barrages of drones and missiles at Israel, killing three people, injuring more than 70 others and causing damage in several cities.

Israel found Iran carried out key tests for nuke design ahead of strikes — report-Israel said to believe Tehran decided to build bomb after Oct. 7 massacre; intel officials told politicians Iran could be even further along in process than previously thought By ToI Staff and Emanuel Fabian-Today, 11:46 am-JUN 15,25

Ahead of its strikes on Iran, Israel discovered that the Islamic Republic’s scientists had conducted successful experiments in the design process of a nuclear weapon, bringing it weeks away from being able to produce a bomb if it chose to do so, according to a Hebrew media report Sunday.This “golden information” was presented by intelligence officials to the political leadership before the decision was made to carry out preemptive strikes Friday, along with the concern that Israel didn’t know everything and that Tehran could be at an even more advanced stage in building a nuclear bomb than the available information showed, Army Radio reported, citing unnamed security officials.According to the report, Iran gathered scientists and split them into several working groups to labor in secret on components of the process of weaponizing nuclear material into an actual explosive device, beginning around the end of 2023 or the start of 2024 — shortly after Hamas’s October 7 onslaught, which sparked the ongoing war in Gaza.This aspect of designing a nuclear device ran in parallel to Iran’s enrichment of uranium to levels that have no use for civilian purposes, but are required to build a nuclear bomb. According to an International Atomic Energy Agency report at the end of May, Iran’s stockpile of uranium, if enriched further, was enough to build nine nuclear weapons.The Israel Defense Forces managed to monitor the secret weapons process, which left Jerusalem with no doubt that Iran had decided to build a nuclear weapon after the massacre in southern Israel, Army Radio said.A senior Israeli military official said Saturday that “all the scientists eliminated in the opening strikes had, over the years, been involved in developing the nuclear detonation device.”The IDF named nine Iranian nuclear scientists it assassinated in the opening strikes, and detailed its efforts to kill them.They were named as: Fereydoon Abbasi, expert in nuclear engineering; Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi, expert in physics; Akbar Motalebi Zadeh, expert in chemical engineering; Saeed Barji, expert in materials engineering; Amir Hassan Fakhahi, expert in physics; Abd al-Hamid Minoushehr, expert in reactor physics; Mansour Asgari, expert in physics; Ahmad Reza Zolfaghari Daryani, expert in nuclear engineering; and Ali Bakhouei Katirimi, expert in mechanics.“All the scientists and experts who were eliminated were significant sources of knowledge in the Iranian nuclear project, and had decades of cumulative experience in the development of nuclear weapons,” the IDF said.It said that many of them were successors to Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the “father of the Iranian nuclear project,” who was allegedly assassinated by Israel in 2020.According to the military, the nine were killed in simultaneous strikes on Tehran early Friday, in the same wave of attacks that eliminated dozens of military commanders, including six top officials.“The elimination of the scientists was made possible following in-depth intelligence research that intensified over the past year, as part of a classified and compartmentalized IDF plan,” the military said.As part of the plan, the IDF said dozens of intelligence researchers “worked on a secret project aimed at tracking key nuclear scientists in Iran over the course of several years.”The enmity between Israel and Iran escalated into an unprecedented level of open conflict in the early hours of Friday morning when Israel launched a major offensive against Iran and its nuclear program, hitting nuclear sites, missile bases, and top military officials and nuclear scientists.Israel said it had no choice but to attack, noting that it had gathered intelligence that Tehran was approaching “the point of no return” in its pursuit of nuclear weapons.Iran responded with ballistic missile barrages overnight Friday and then again on Saturday, killing at least 13 people, injuring hundreds, and destroying residential buildings.Most of the missiles were intercepted by air defenses, including US systems.The Israeli operation was expected to last several days at least, according to military officials, who added that the IDF was preparing for heavy fire from Iran, but asserted that “at the end of the operation, there will be no nuclear threat” from the Islamic Republic.

Ships, trucks, and suitcases: How Israel reportedly got its attack drones into Iran-Deliveries were made via commercial deals with partners who were unaware that sophisticated weapons were being transported, sources tell Wall Street Journal-By ToI Staff Today, 11:22 am-JUN 15,25

Israel smuggled attack drones into Iran using a variety of means, including trucks, shipping containers, and even suitcases, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing sources familiar with the Mossad operation.When Israel launched its shock campaign in Iran early Friday morning, it also used explosive-carrying quadcopter drones, rockets, and other sophisticated equipment located inside Iran for precision attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists, military leaders, anti-aircraft batteries, and surface-to-surface missiles.It was previously reported that Israel spent years preparing for the operation against Iran’s nuclear and missile programs, including building a drone base inside Iran and smuggling precision weapons systems and commandos into the country.Unnamed sources revealed more details in the Journal report, saying Israel spent months smuggling bomb-laden quadcopter drone parts into Iran via suitcases, trucks, and shipping containers. In some cases, business transactions were made with partners who were unaware of the cargo being shipped. Mossad agents inside Iran then gathered the equipment and handed it out to teams who prepared the drones for use. Team leaders were trained outside Iran and then returned to pass on the skills to the teams on the ground.When the airstrikes began, the teams used the weapons to take out air defense systems while also hitting surface-to-surface missile launchers as they emerged from shelters and were being set up to fire in retaliation at Israel, the sources said.Dozens of such launchers were destroyed, one of the sources said.The Mossad later revealed rare footage showing its actions in Iran.The operations relied on “groundbreaking thinking, bold planning and surgical operation of advanced technologies, special forces and agents operating in the heart of Iran while evading the eyes of local intelligence,” a security official told The Times of Israel.Iran apparently still fears further attacks from within its borders. Its intelligence services put an advisory in newspapers Saturday, including the Tasnim outlet, which is linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, telling people to be on the lookout for pickup trucks and other trucks that could be used to launch drones.The Israeli operation — dubbed “Rising Lion” — has continued without pause, while Iran has responded with drones and deadly missile attacks. Israel has said it had no choice but to launch an attack on the nuclear program of the Islamic Republic, which vows to destroy the Jewish state.

Germany, France, Britain ready to hold talks with Iran-Trump: Iran will face American might ‘at levels never seen before’ if it attacks US-US president says he and Putin agree war ‘should end’; Iranian FM says ‘solid proof’ US supported Israel campaign; Russian leader says he backs proposals to ease tension By Agencies and ToI Staff Today, 10:08 am-JUN 15,25

US President Donald Trump warned Iran that it would experience “the full strength” of the American military if it attacks the US, reiterating that Washington was not connected to Israel’s strikes on Tehran’s nuclear and intelligence facilities.“The US had nothing to do with the attack on Iran, tonight. If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before,” he wrote on the Truth Social site overnight Saturday-Sunday.He added that “we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!”Trump has been steadfast in his support of Israel’s bombardment of Iran since it began on Friday, calling the attacks “excellent.” He also said that the US was fully aware that Israel would attack.While aiding in defending Israel from missile attacks, Washington has not taken part in the attacks on Iran itself. Experts say the US military’s bunker buster bombs would be needed to eliminate all of Iran’s nuclear facilities, some of which are located deep underground.Before the attacks occurred, Trump said he did not want Israel to strike Iran but acknowledged such action was on the table. Israeli officials have suggested some of those comments were a ruse.Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday that Tehran had evidence to show US forces supported the intense bombardment campaign Israel launched against the Islamic Republic.“We have solid proof of the support of the American forces and American bases in the region for the attacks of the Zionist regime military forces,” Araghchi told foreign diplomats in a meeting broadcast on state TV.Trump on Saturday said both he and Russian President Vladimir Putin felt the Israel-Iran war “should end,” after a phone call with the Russian leader.“President Putin called this morning to very nicely wish me a Happy Birthday, but to more importantly, talk about Iran, a country he knows very well,” Trump wrote.“We talked at length. Much less time was spent talking about Russia/Ukraine, but that will be for next week. He is doing the planned prisoner swaps — large numbers of prisoners are being exchanged, immediately, from both sides,” he said. “The call lasted approximately 1 hour. He feels, as do I, this war in Israel-Iran should end, to which I explained, his war should also end.”Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Putin condemned the Israeli military operation against Iran and expressed concern about the risks of escalation.Ushakov said Trump described events in the Middle East as “very alarming.” But the two leaders said they do not rule out a return to the negotiating track on Iran’s nuclear program, he said.Ushakov said US negotiators were ready to hold further talks with Iranian representatives, with Oman as mediator. A round scheduled for Sunday in Oman has been canceled due to the strikes.The Kremlin aide said Putin told Trump that Russia stood by proposals to ease tension and resolve issues concerning Iran’s nuclear program.“The Russian president recalled that prior to the current rise in tension, our side had proposed concrete steps intended to find mutually acceptable agreements during talks between US and Iranian representatives about the Iranian nuclear program,” Ushakov said.“Russia’s principled approach and interest in a resolution are unchanged and, as Vladimir Putin noted, we will continue to act based on this.”Germany, France, UK ready to hold nuclear talks with Iran-Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said his country, along with France and Britain, was ready to hold immediate talks with Iran over its nuclear program in a bid to de-escalate the situation.Wadephul, who is on a visit to the Middle East, said he was trying to contribute toward a de-escalation of the conflict between Israel and Iran, and noted Tehran had previously failed to take the opportunity to enter into 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 program. 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.”The enmity between Israel and Iran escalated into an unprecedented open conflict in the early hours of Friday morning when Israel launched a major offensive against Iran and its nuclear program, hitting nuclear sites, missile bases, and top military officials.Israel said it had no choice but to attack Iran, noting that it had gathered intelligence that Tehran was approaching “the point of no return” in its pursuit of a nuclear weapon.Iran responded with ballistic missile barrages overnight Friday and then again on Saturday, killing at least 13 people, injuring hundreds, and destroying residential buildings.Most of the missiles were intercepted by air defenses, including US systems.The Israeli operation was expected to last several days at least, according to military officials, who added that the IDF was preparing for heavy fire from Iran, but asserted that “at the end of the operation, there will be no nuclear threat” from the Islamic Republic.

A Turban, a Hat, or a Cap? Amir Taheri-last update on 19 Apr 2013

Possible candidates in Iran's upcoming presidential election. Top row (left to right): Ali Akbar Velayati, Muhammad-Baqer Qalibaf, Gholam Ali Hadad-Adel, Mohsen Rezai. Bottom row (left to right): Manouchehr Mottaki, Hassan Rouhani, Ali Larijani, Mohammad Reza Aref. (DSK/AFP/Getty Images) Possible candidates in Iran's upcoming presidential election. Top row (left to right): Ali Akbar Velayati, Muhammad-Baqer Qalibaf, Gholam Ali Hadad-Adel, Mohsen Rezai. Bottom row (left to right): Manouchehr Mottaki, Hassan Rouhani, Ali Larijani, Mohammad Reza Aref. (DSK/AFP/Getty Images)The turban, the hat or the cap? That is the million-dollar question for Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, as he prepares for the presidential election in June.The turban represents the clerical class, known as the muam'am, the cap the military, and the hat Iran’s professional classes, also known as the mukalla. Backing a presidential candidate from each of the three classes carries with it its own risks and rewards, and Khamenei will have to consider carefully to whom he will lend his support.In the 1990s, he was not powerful enough to have a decisive say in the election of Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani as president. Nor did Khamenei succeed in stopping Rafsanjani from propelling one of his acolytes, Muhammad Khatami, into power in 1997. In 2005, Khamenei is rumored to have backed a former national police chief (and current Mayor of Tehran), Muhammad-Baqer Qalibaf, for president. If true, the supreme leader's hopes were dashed when Qalibaf came fifth in the first round. In 2009, Khamenei was forced to back Ahmadinejad after the storm of protest over the defeat (allegedly by electoral fraud) of Mir Hussein Mousavi—Khamenei’s bête noire for more than two decades.What kind of headgear the future president wears—the turban of the cleric, the cap or beret of the military officer, or the hat of the professional—could be of crucial importance for the future of the regime, and with it the supreme leader himself. Of the six men who have served as president of the Islamic Republic of Iran so far, three have been men of the cloth and thus wearers of the turban.Turban complications-The turban represents the Shi'ite clergy that, ever since its creation in Iran almost four centuries ago, has had an ambivalent attitude towards the exercise of political power. Broadly speaking, turbans come in two contrasting colors. A white turban means that the man who wears it is not a descendant of the Prophet, and thus is of non-Arab origin. In contrast, the wearer of the black turban is marked as a descendant of the Prophet through one of the twelve imams of Twelver Shi'ism.The semiology of turbans is still more complicated. Students of theology are allowed to wear very thin turbans, denoting their position as novices. A hujjat al-Islam, or mid-ranking mullah, can wear a slightly fatter turban. The very fat turbans that require several yards of cloth are reserved for the grand ayatollahs. Rafsanjani’s white turban marked him as someone of non-Arab origin. Khatami and Khamenei both wear black turbans, as did Khomeini, denoting their Arab descent on the paternal side.The experience of the past three decades shows that many of the most senior clerics are not eager to enter the realm of politics. Once in power, however, a man with a thin turban could quickly thicken his headgear and grow a longer beard to bolster the religious aspect of his image. When first elected president, Ayatollah Khamenei was not a particularly senior cleric, but was promoted so that he could succeed Ayatollah Khomeini.So, will Khamenei try to regain the presidency for the ‘turban tribe,’ as the mullahs are known in Iran? Several mullahs have already indicated their intention to become candidates. Among them is Ali Fallahian, a former minister for intelligence and security and a long-time associate of Khamenei.Nevertheless, Khamenei might think twice before propelling a mullah into the presidency. Having too many turbans at the top would lend more credence to the claim that Iran is a theocracy with mullahs monopolizing power. A turbaned president could be dangerous for Khamenei for other reasons. If he is substantially younger than Khamenei, the mass of opportunists, careerists and technocrats who form the majority of people in and around any political structure might decide to rally around the new president as the man of the future and distance themselves from an ageing supreme leader as the man of the past.Ali Fallahian, however, presents a problem. He remains on Interpol’s wanted list for his alleged role in the bombing of a Jewish cultural center in Buenos Aries, Argentina, in 1994. The turban wearers who make the most credible presidential candidates are former presidents Rafsanjani and Khatami, as well as former interior minister Abdullah Nuri. Rafsanjani and Khatami are already so bitter about Khamenei’s mistreatment of them that, if elected president again, they would certainly not allow him to project absolute power.Rafsanjani, it seems, has taken his falling out with Ayatollah Khamenei to heart. Reports have emerged of a meeting with a number of regional governors in which several attendees tried to persuade him to run for the presidency once more. Rafsanjani reportedly responded that the breakdown of trust between Khamenei and himself made this a bad idea, despite what he sees as the debt Khamenei owes him for helping him reach his current position. As a result, he is said to have told his backers and that he will not stand for election.If Khamenei wishes to mix the turban with the nuclear program, he could advance another pawn: Hassan Rouhani, a sixty-three-year-old mullah who led the nuclear negotiations under Rafsanjani and Khatami. A mid-ranking cleric who studied chemistry in Britain, Rouhani lacks the stature of Rafsanjani, Khatami and Nuri, and thus would pose no threat to Khamenei. For a decade, Rouhani was secretary-general of the High Council of National Security, and thus close to the military and intelligence services. If the mullahs wish to keep a tight control on all aspects of Iran’s nuclear program, Rouhani could be their man. A political centrist for the most part, he impressed European governments with his negotiating skills during the tortuous negotiations over Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons program. Former British foreign secretary Jack Straw has described Rouhani as “a capable diplomat, and a man we could do business with.”The recent announcement of his candidacy created a brief buzz among observers of Iranian politics. While it is far from being clear if he has the active backing of Khamenei or not, most observers concede that the two men respect each other.The hat option-So, what about going for a hat this time? Here, too, Khamenei faces many problems. All three hat-wearing presidents have caused problems for the turbaned supreme leader. The first one was Abol-Hassan Banisadr, who took the title “sayyid” to denote his descent from the twelve imams, and who used his position as the son of an ayatollah to seek a limitation of the powers of the supreme leader.His relations with the then-supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, soured within months, leading to a breakdown in relations. Khomeini issued a nine-word fatwa sacking Banisadr as president, a move that highlighted the absolute supremacy of the supreme leader. The second hat-wearing president, Muhammad-Ali Rajai, was assassinated within weeks of his election and thus had no time to develop an attitude towards the supreme leader. However, his speeches and writings reveal him as a disciple of Ali Shariati, a sociologist and intellectual whose main slogan was “Shi'ism without mullahs!”The third hat-wearing president is the current one, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who has ended up re-casting himself in the unlikely role of a Persian nationalist while, at the same time, trying to accelerate the return of the Hidden Imam. Ahmadinejad has even gone as far as to claim that it is as part of an “Iranian School” that Islam has the most relevance to Persian civilization.The hat is the symbol of Iran’s Westernized elites, who started to secure a power base in the middle of the nineteenth century and ended up dominating the government from the first decade of the twentieth century until the revolution in 1979. Thus, it is possible to argue that a majority of Iran’s urban middle classes might prefer a hat-wearing president, especially now that the prestige of the idea of clerics holding political power is at its lowest in decades.But would a young and energetic hat-wearing president not mobilize the urban middle classes behind a program of reforms that could include constitutional changes? And could such changes not include the abolition of the post of the supreme leader, thus transforming Iran into an "ordinary" republic?To be sure, Khamenei could propel some hat-wearing non-entity into the presidency, thus transforming the future president into an appendage of the Office of the Supreme Leader. Several such characters have already thrown their hats into the ring. Among them is former foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki, who made a name for himself when Ahmadinejad sacked him in a most humiliating manner. Another hat-wearer is Ali Akbar Velayati, who acts as Khamenei’s foreign policy advisor. A third possibility is a former speaker of Iran’s parliament, Gholam Ali Haddad Adel, who has the added advantage of being related to Khamenei through marriage. All three might appear attractive to Khamenei because they lack charisma. At the same time, none of them has a support base of his own.Outside those three, Khamenei might wish to exploit the Amoli–Larijani network of mullahs, business tycoons and security agents by pushing Ali Ardeshir Larijani, the current parliamentary speaker, into the presidential chair. However, that too would be a high-risk strategy. The Amoli–Larijani network may be more interested in protecting its own business interests than the system of velayat-e faqih (guardianship of the jurist). If the family felt its own interests were endangered, it might show little hesitation in throwing the supreme leader to the wolves.According to the current buzz in Tehran circles, Khamenei is tilting toward the hat solution. Having a hat as president would represent no threat to his clerical status within the regime. At the same time, it would present a better image of the Islamic Republic abroad while throwing a sop to Iran’s sulking middle classes, who feel shut out of power. According to some reports, admittedly unverified ones, Khamenei would like the post to go to Velayati.Velayati, who served as foreign minister for almost sixteen years, is deeply loyal to the supreme leader. At the same time, he is unlikely to cast a shadow on Khamenei’s authority because he has no power base of his own. Recently, Khamenei appointed Velayati as secretary-general of the Islamic Awakening Movement, with the mandate to “export” Iran’s model of Islamic government to the so-called Arab Spring countries.Hat and turban together-During the 1978–1979 revolution, the people of the hat cooperated with the people of the turban to drive out the shah. The arrangement worked for a while, as the people of the turban allowed the people of the hat to fill major positions of power, including those of the president and prime minister of the Islamic Republic. The people of the turban stayed in the shadows or, at most, were assigned middling positions in government. Gradually, they realized that running a government is no big deal.Within a year, the people of the turban decided to reverse the arrangement and take all the big jobs. For years, clerics held various key positions, such as president of the republic, chief justice, minister of security and intelligence, minister of the interior, speaker of parliament, minister of justice, and minister of culture and guidance. At the same time the muam'am also headed other key institutions, such as the Council of the Guardians of the Revolution, the Expediency Council, the Assembly of Experts, the Supreme National Security Council, and many others.Turbaned heads are also present in every government department at the national and provincial levels. In the provinces, turbaned heads act as a counter-force to the hat-wearing governors appointed from Tehran. Last but not least, the position of the supreme leader is reserved for a turbaned head, although, theoretically at least, a hat-wearer could also fill it.Where the caps are-The cap is the symbol of the military. Traditionally, and unlike most “developing nations,” Iran’s military has never tried to seize power for themselves. Of the thirty-eight men who served as prime minister in the hundred years before the 1979 revolution, only four had been former military commanders. Even then, in every case they owed their appointment as prime minister to royal edicts, aside from the involvement of some members of the military in the overthrow of Mohammad Mossadegh. The military’s culture of political neutrality, however, may be changing. Iran’s regular army, a shadow of its past, retains a strictly apolitical posture. As long as it gets a decent budget and is not interfered with in a scandalous manner, the regular army is content with its role as the defender of the nation’s frontiers.It is also proud of the role it played in defeating the Iraqi invasion of 1980 and winning a kind of semi-victory in the eight-year-long war against Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. The generals who run the regular army make a point of adopting a low profile and studiously steering clear of political issues. Some observers believe that the regular military may be playing a long-term game, keeping itself as a kind of last resort to assume leadership at a moment of grave danger for the country. Whether this is the case or not, the fact is that at the moment the regular army remains out of the political game.The same is not true of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). In the past decade, the IRGC leadership has demonstrated its political ambitions in a more assertive manner. There is no doubt that IRGC commanders played a crucial role in putting Ahmadinejad into the presidential chair. They were handsomely rewarded. Ahmadinejad brought several figures linked to the IRGC into his Cabinet in a variety of ministerial posts, such as Sadegh Mahsouli, the former minister of labor, and Rastam Qasemi, the current oil minister. He also carried out a massive privatization program, selling state-owned concerns at nominal prices to companies controlled by IRGC leaders.Over the past two decades, three former IRGC senior officers—Ali Shamkhani, Muhammad Baqer Qalibaf and Mohsen Rezai—have tested the waters in three presidential elections. Neither had the charisma or the weight to make much of an impression. However, their candidacies helped normalize the presence of a cap-wearer in a presidential election.Both Qalibaf and Rezai are likely to throw their caps in the ring once again, although arguably neither has the charisma to mobilize a genuine power base. A dark horse in this field is General Yahya Rahim Safavi, a former IRGC commander and a senior military aide of Ayatollah Khamenei.From an institutional perspective, the senior ranks of the IRGC are not overly concerned that the president be a former general. He could even be a hat or turban wearer. From their perspective, the important thing is that the next president remains aware of the fact that, without support from IRGC, there could be no president, no supreme leader and no Islamic Republic.There is one other factor to consider. The IRGC commanders might not want to assume direct leadership at a time of economic meltdown and sociopolitical uncertainty. Why should they step in and assume responsibility for more than thirty years of mismanagement and poor governance by the turbans and their hat-wearing myrmidons? Reviving the debate-So, why is the turban, hat or cap debate being revived at this point in time? There are at least three reasons. The first is that the ruling mullahs hate being called “mullahs,” a term that reminds the rest of the world of the Afghan Taliban and its spiritual leader, Mullah Muhammad Omar. Iran’s ruling mullahs prefer to be seen as Third World revolutionaries, fighting imperialism and one day hopefully wiping Israel off the map, rather than forcing women into burqas or measuring the length of men’s beards. Many within the ruling establishment believe that it is wiser to let a hat-wearer act as president of the republic, thus helping change the image of the regime as one dominated by the mullahs.In any case, under Iran’s current constitution, the president of the republic holds little power of his own even though he is head of the executive branch of government. He can be dismissed by the supreme leader, who is the real head of state. The president of the Islamic Republic is a sort of prime minister who is directly elected by the people but can exercise no power without the permission of other mullah-dominated institutions. Thus, changing the regime’s image by electing a hat-wearer as president would in no way undermine the real hold that the revolutionary mullahs have on power. Having allowed hat-wearers to replace turban-wearers as speakers of Iran’s parliament did not lead to any reduction in the power of the ruling clerics.The second reason is that many Shi'ite clerics are seriously concerned about the negative impact of clerical rule on Iranians’ view of Shi'ism, and indeed of Islam itself. Their argument is that people may project any anger generated by political or economic failures onto religion. A hat-wearing or cap-wearing president could act as a kind of human shield, taking the flak for the government’s failure.The third, and perhaps the most important, reason is that a strong segment of the revolutionary establishment consists of hat-wearers and cap-wearers who are beginning to feel frustrated at the prospect of never getting any of the big jobs. These are people who joined the revolution in their teens, took the American diplomats hostage, manned the firing squads against the enemies of the revolution, helped suppress rebellious ethnic minorities, including the Kurds and Turkmen, and fought in the Iran–Iraq War. Many of them have improved their credentials by marrying into clerical families. And, yet, because they are not mullahs, they have until now had little hope of reaching the highest rungs of the ladder.A Divided establishment-The establishment is clearly divided as to whether to stay with the turban or try on a hat or a cap next June. The incumbent president, Ahmadinejad, is out of the race because he is not allowed to stand for a third consecutive term. However, some observers believe that Ahmadinejad is trying to position one of his allies as his successor in an Iranian version of the Putin–Medvedev scenario in Russia. The man in question is Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, who has cultivated his image as a Sufi and humanist who is at the same time in contact with the Hidden Imam.Deeply impressed by the late Venezuelan caudillo Hugo Chavez, Ahmadinejad and his faction are trying to develop their own brand of petro-populism. This is why, at the start of his presidency, Ahmadinejad invited the children of Che Guevara to a conference in Tehran.The Iranian media controlled by Khamenei’s office has been attacking Ahmadinejad and his “deviant faction” in increasingly bitter tones, indicating the supreme leader’s concern about a serious challenge to his authority.In all this, the elephant in the room is the Iranian people, who might seize the opportunity provided by the presidential election to vent their anger and frustration, as they did in 2009 with the Green Movement. The ruling establishment takes this threat very seriously. This is why it has mobilized its apparatus of control and repression to reduce the risks of another popular revolt. Hundreds of people have been arrested, including many journalists and human right activists. Every effort is made to block or reduce access to the Internet and prevent the use of emails and social media. With help from Russia, special units have been trained and equipped for crowd control. Prominent figures of the Green Movement remain under house arrest, and potential dissidents such as Nuri and Khatami have had their passports revoked and their movements inside Iran restricted. They have also changed parts of the electoral law, especially to prevent the Ahmadinejad faction from using the state machinery to arrange a victory for its own candidate.Nevertheless, a surprise is still possible. Massive fraud of the kind routinely practiced in the past three decades is far more difficult today. Therefore, even if the regime manages to arrange a victory for its favorite candidate through fraud, it would be less convincing than was Ahmadinejad’s so-called landslide win in 2009. Also, Iranians may decide to boycott the poll en masse. That would be another serious blow to the regime’s already-damaged legitimacy. On the other hand, inspired by people-power, Iranians might turn up to vote for the candidate they identify as the one least supported by Khamenei.Obviously, the best outcome for Khamenei would be a mass voter turnout that leads to the victory of his handpicked favorite in an election in which all candidates are pre-approved. However, even then, the problems of this peculiar system, which wishes to be a theocracy and a democracy at the same time, will remain. The Iranian system is like a double-headed eagle: it looks lofty but cannot fly in any direction without tearing itself asunder. The next president would face the same question that all his predecessors faced: am I here because the people chose me, or because the supreme leader appointed me?

Nuclear states spent $100 billion on weapons in 2024: ICAN-By Robin MILLARD.

Geneva (AFP) June 13, 2025-Nuclear-armed states spent more than $100 billion on their atomic arsenals last year, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons said Friday, lamenting the lack of democratic oversight of such spending.ICAN said Britain, China, France, India, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia and the United States together spent nearly $10 billion more than in 2023.The United States spent $56.8 billion in 2024, followed by China at $12.5 billion and Britain at $10.4 billion, ICAN said in its flagship annual report.Geneva-based ICAN won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for its key role in drafting the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which took effect in 2021.Some 69 countries have ratified it to date, four more have directly acceded to the treaty and another 25 have signed it, although none of the nuclear weapons states have come on board.- Hosting costs -This year's report looked at the costs incurred by the countries that host other states' nuclear weapons.It said such costs are largely unknown to citizens and legislators alike, thereby avoiding democratic scrutiny.Although not officially confirmed, the report said Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey were hosting US nuclear weapons, citing experts.Meanwhile Russia claims it has nuclear weapons stationed in Belarus, but some experts are unsure, it added.The report said there was "little public information" about the costs associated with hosting US nuclear weapons in NATO European countries, citing the cost of facility security, nuclear-capable aircraft and preparation to use such weapons."Each NATO nuclear-sharing arrangement is governed by secret agreements," the report said."It's an affront to democracy that citizens and lawmakers are not allowed to know that nuclear weapons from other countries are based on their soil or how much of their taxes is being spent on them," said the report's co-author Alicia Sanders-Zakre.- 'Vested interests' -Eight countries openly possess nuclear weapons: the United States, Russia, Britain, France, China, India, Pakistan and North Korea.Israel is widely assumed to have nuclear weapons, although it has never officially acknowledged this.ICAN said the level of nuclear weapons spending in 2024 by these nine nations could have paid the UN budget almost 28 times over."The problem of nuclear weapons is one that can be solved, and doing so means understanding the vested interests fiercely defending the option for nine countries to indiscriminately murder civilians," said ICAN's programme coordinator Susi Snyder.The private sector earned at least $42.5 billion from their nuclear weapons contracts in 2024 alone, the report said.There are at least $463 billion in ongoing nuclear weapons contracts, some of which do not expire for decades, and last year, at least $20 billion in new nuclear weapon contracts were awarded, it added."Many of the companies that benefited from this largesse invested heavily in lobbying governments, spending $128 million on those efforts in the United States and France, the two countries for which data is available," ICAN said.Standard nuclear doctrine -- developed during the Cold War between super powers the United States and the Soviet Union -- is based on the assumption that such weapons will never have to be used because their impact is so devastating, and because nuclear retaliation would probably bring similar destruction on the original attacker.

Russia to build Kazakhstan's first nuclear power plant.

Almaty, Kazakhstan, June 14 (AFP) Jun 14, 2025-Russian nuclear energy giant Rosatom will lead the construction of the first atomic power plant in Kazakhstan, the world's top uranium producer, the Central Asian country's authorities said on Saturday.Kazakhstan also announced that it wanted China to build a second plant, with Chinese leader Xi Jinping expected to visit the country next week for the Central Asia-China summit.The vast, resource-rich Central Asian country and ally of its bigger neighbour Russia, supplies 43 percent of the world's uranium but struggles to generate enough electricity for domestic consumption."Rosatom has been named as the leader of the international consortium for the construction of the first nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan," the former Soviet republic's nuclear power agency said in a statement.Later Saturday, the agency's head, Almasadam Satkaliev, said the country planned to sign a separate nuclear industry agreement with China."We want to see Chinese technology in Kazakhstan for the construction of another nuclear power plant," he said."The final decision will be made after reviewing all the necessary details" in upcoming talks with Chinese officials, he added.Satkaliev said China's National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) and Russia's Rosatom "objectively had the best bids" in the tender.Russia's Rosatom welcomed the decision.In a statement it promised "the construction of a nuclear power plant according to the most advanced and efficient project in the world, based on Russian technologies".- Balancing out -The first power plant, whose construction was approved in a referendum in late 2024, will be built near the half-abandoned village of Ulken on the lake Balkhash -- the second largest in Central Asia.Authorities have not disclosed any details regarding the location of the second plant.The nuclear agency said that the power plant will be state-owned and that "the risks of dependence on Russia's nuclear technologies are minimal, if not non-existent".Moscow, formerly a sole dominant player in the region, has used its historical influence to maintain its leading position in Central Asia, while Beijing has invested billions of dollars as part of its Belt and Road Initiative.The issue of nuclear power is sensitive in Kazakhstan, which still holds the grim memory of 450 Soviet nuclear tests conducted in the country between 1949 and 1989, which exposed 1.5 million people to radiation.

Two Iranian drones shot down in Iraq by international coalition: officials.

Baghdad, June 15 (AFP) Jun 15, 2025-Two drones launched from Iran towards Israel were shot down over Iraq by the US-led international coalition to defeat the Islamic State group, two Iraqi military officials told AFP on Sunday."The international coalition at Ain al-Asad (military base) shot down two Iranian drones that were en route to Israel," one official said, referring to an Iraqi airbase housing foreign troops in western Iraq.The drones were shot down overnight Saturday to Sunday, he added, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the matter.The other official said the drones were targeted because they entered the defensive perimeter of the anti-jihadist coalition, where troops are instructed to engage any potential threat.Israel on Friday launched unprecedented strikes on Iran, hitting military and nuclear sites as well as residential areas. In response, the Islamic republic has fired hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles at Israel.Several missiles and drones have fallen in Iraqi territory, mostly in the desert, without causing casualties.An "explosive drone" was shot down by the coalition at Ain al-Asad on Friday, according to an Iraqi official.The government in Baghdad is a close ally of Tehran, but also a strategic partner of Iran's arch-foe the United States, which has some 2,500 troops in Iraq as part of the anti-jihadist coalition.Baghdad and Washington have agreed on a timetable for the gradual withdrawal of the coalition's forces.By September, the troops are scheduled to leave bases in federal Iraq -- including Ain al-Asad -- and by the end of 2026, they are set to withdraw from the autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq.Influential Iraqi armed group Kataeb Hezbollah on Sunday warned the United States about direct involvement in Israel's attack on Iran."The Islamic republic needs no military support from anyone to repel the criminal Zionist entity -- it has the men and capabilities to put (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu in the dust," it said in a statement."We are closely monitoring the movements of the American enemy's army. If America intervenes in the war, we will act directly and without hesitation against its interests and bases throughout the region."

Chinese FM holds calls with Israeli, Iranian counterparts: ministry

Beijing, June 14 (AFP) Jun 14, 2025-China's top diplomat Wang Yi held phone calls with his Israeli and Iranian counterparts on Saturday, the foreign ministry said, in which he made clear to both Beijing's support for Tehran.The two Middle Eastern powers exchanged fire on Saturday, a day after Israel unleashed an unprecedented aerial bombing campaign that targeted Iranian nuclear and military facilities.International calls for restraint are multiplying as fears grow the region could be on the threshold of a broader conflict.China's foreign ministry released separate statements late on Saturday announcing Wang's phone calls with his counterparts.Wang first spoke to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, telling him Beijing "supports Iran in safeguarding its national sovereignty, defending its legitimate rights and interests, and ensuring the safety of its people".China enjoys close ties with Iran -- Beijing is its largest commercial partner and the main buyer of its oil, with Tehran still under crushing US sanctions.Wang told Araghchi that Israel's actions "seriously violate... the basic norms governing international relations", and noted the attacks on Tehran's nuclear facilities "have set a dangerous precedent with potentially catastrophic consequences".A second statement released shortly afterwards detailed Wang's talk with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.Wang told Saar that "China clearly opposes Israel's violation of international law by attacking Iran with force", calling its behaviour "unacceptable".Wang recounted his phone call with Araghchi to Saar, the statement said."Diplomatic means for the Iranian nuclear issue have not been exhausted and there is still hope for a peaceful solution. Force cannot bring lasting peace," Wang was quoted as saying.He told both men that China was willing to play "a constructive role" in de-escalating the conflict.

Gaza medics says 12 killed in fresh violence-Hamas-controlled authorities claim at least five people shot dead near aid centers operated by US- and Israeli-backed group By Agencies and ToI Staff Today, 5:18 pm-JUN 15,25

Israeli fire and airstrikes killed at least 12 Palestinians on Sunday across the enclave, Hamas-controlled health authorities said, adding that at least five of them were killed near two aid sites operated by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.Medics at Al-Awda Hospital in the central Gaza Strip said at least three people were killed and dozens wounded by Israeli fire as they tried to approach a GHF site near the Netzarim corridor. Two others were killed en route to another aid site in Rafah in the south.An airstrike killed seven other people in Beit Lahiya town north of the enclave, medics said.There was no immediate comment from the Israel Defense Forces.Hamas casualty figures cannot be verified and do not distinguish between fighters and noncombatants.The GHF kept its sites closed on Saturday on orders from the IDF, but said they would open at noon on Sunday.The GHF began distributing food packages in Gaza at the end of May, overseeing a new model of aid distribution that the United Nations says is neither impartial nor neutral. Its operations have been plagued by deadly shooting incidents in areas leading to its sites.The IDF is not present at the sites that are protected by civilian contractors, but does secure the approach routes. The IDF has admitted that in some cases, troops fired warning shots or fired at suspects who approached them while ignoring warnings to stay away from military positions.The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said on Saturday that at least 274 people have been killed and more than 2,000 wounded near aid distribution sites since the GHF began operations.In response to such claims, IDF Spokesman Effie Defrin said in early June that Hamas’s figures were “exaggerated,” adding that “Hamas disseminates false information, which is unfortunately taken by some international media without verification.”The United Nations rejects the new Israeli-backed distribution system as inadequate, dangerous, and a violation of humanitarian impartiality principles.Last week, the IDF said captured Hamas documents show the group has been “systematically exploiting” the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza throughout the ongoing war to fund its terror activities.

THE IMMIGRANT (SO CALLED PROTESTERS) RIOTING CULT WAS ALL OVER THE PLACE YESTERDAY.

In L.A., some of those most connected to anti-immigration raids are on the protest sidelines-Demonstrators turn out in force for 'No Kings' rally against Trump and his policies-Rhianna Schmunk · CBC News · Posted: Jun 14, 2025 11:09 PM EDT | 

A dark-haired man with a beard and a ponytail loads bottles of beer into a fridge.The march was inescapable along one of the oldest streets in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday. Tens of thousands of people chanted over each other, laid on air horns and sang along with live bands performing from flatbed trucks rolling down the middle of the road.As the crowd moved, people passed business after business that had been closed for the day in case the peaceful "No Kings" protest against the Trump administration got out of hand. Most storefronts were boarded up with plywood or barricaded behind steel gates.But between 3rd and 4th streets, one tiny restaurant had its glass door propped wide open, offering an escape from the 28 C heat. Inside, the owner went about his routine alone in silence behind the front counter.A man in a green T-shirt leans on a counter in a store."We're just here to support people. You know, let them use the restroom, cool down, take a break," said Eduardo Vasquez, 39, the third-generation owner of the Casa India. "That's the least we can do for the community out here that's marching and having their voice heard."Countless protesters were front and centre outside Los Angeles city hall or other federal buildings during the demonstration on Saturday, taunting stone-faced military troops and police officers stationed on the steps. But some of those with the deepest understanding of immigration raids hung back quietly from the tension and the cameras. Many had signs or shirts identifying themselves as first-, second- or third-generation immigrants showing solidarity for friends, neighbours and family members Victoria Santibanez, 30, whose mother immigrated to the U.S. from Chile, stood far from city hall at the back edge of Grand Park with her husband and a few close friends."It's just hard to see our community in so much pain right now," she said, growing emotional."To see our neighbours, our local businesses, our schools come under threat the way they have and to have it done in such a way that was so traumatic for the community.... Whatever your reason for being here in L.A., when you're part of the community, the community protects you."L.A.'s immigrant roots are central to the city's identity, shaping its economy and culture over decades. More than one-third of its residents were born outside the United States, according to the U.S. Census.Advocates and state officials have criticized the arbitrary nature of the recent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids, which have seen people picked up from homes and car washes to hardware stores and church sidewalks. Those who are undocumented stay away from demonstrations that have taken place over the last week because they are hiding from authorities, not seeking them out. "Everybody knows somebody because that's how tight we are, and you feel that," said Rev. Gabriel Lopez, 42, whose church community in nearby Whittier, a city in Los Angeles County, was hit by ICE raids this week."We're being cautious and careful, but we're being there for each other and protecting our community."Late Saturday, organizers of the nationwide "No Kings" demonstrations said millions had marched in hundreds of events across the country ahead of the military parade in Washington, D.C., that evening.Two people hold up signs at a protest.The Los Angeles event was peaceful and uneventful for a large part of the day, more street party in tone than angry protest. As an overnight curfew in a small section of the city grew closer, the situation grew tense: police officers with armoured vehicles, cruisers and horses pushed demonstrators out of the curfew zone with tear gas and flash bangs.Blocks away, inside Casa India, Vasquez's mother, Doris, spent the afternoon prepping the dough for pupusa — a savoury Salvadoran dish stuffed with beans, cheese and pork — the same way she does every day. Her mother, Vasquez's grandmother, was an undocumented immigrant when she opened the Mexican-Salvadoran fusion restaurant 35 years ago.It's become a community hub for fellow business owners from other neighourhoods, like Koreatown, Chinatown and Little Tokyo. Vasquez said the risk of deportation has "always been part" of life in L.A. County and California, but never to "the extreme level" he's seen in recent weeks.He was not surprised the city, in all its vibrance, has taken it personally.Thousands of protesters gather in front of a large white building on a sunny day."Everybody gets along. Everybody works. People from all walks of life ... Angelenos, if you don't mess with us, we don't mess with you." said Vasquez, who is Salvadoran and Italian American."We are the microcosm of what a city can be. If you accept immigration and culture from people from everywhere, it does work. That's why L.A.'s so prosperous."

Vancouver 'No King' rally reinforces support for American protests against Donald Trump-Hundreds of protesters rallied Saturday at the U.S. consulate in Vancouver and at Jack Poole Plaza By Sarah Grochowski Published Jun 14, 2025

Langley’s Carly Butler held a megaphone Saturday morning as hundreds of demonstrators gathered at downtown Vancouver’s Jack Poole Plaza, protesting what organizers call the authoritarian drift of U.S. President Donald Trump.The 37-year-old, born in California, was brought to Canada by her mother in 1998 and spent most of her youth living in Northern B.C. as an undocumented immigrant.“I lived in fear every day, I had no status and I kept that secret for years. I could not legally get a job,” Butler told the crowd, recounting how she was able to finally obtain Canadian citizenship 15 years ago.“Right now, I am speaking up for my undocumented friends in the States who are afraid to leave their houses right now.”Butler later said she was compelled to tell her story upon arriving at the protest. “I’d never spoken at a bullhorn before.”At the plaza, rows of demonstrators held up signs that read: “Peaceful but not passive,” “Orange Lies Matter,” “I’m not tariff-ied, I’m Fuhrious,” alongside others calling for “Humanity not tyranny.”The Vancouver demonstration, dubbed No Kings, was one of several held in Canada, in addition to thousands more across the U.S. as officials urged calm and mobilized National Guard troops before a military parade marking the U.S. army’s 250th anniversary, which coincides with Trump’s birthday.The protest follows unrest sparked by federal immigration enforcement raids and Trump’s order to deploy the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles, where protesters blocked a freeway and set cars ablaze.A few blocks away, a second protest had about 300 demonstrators line the sidewalks in front of the U.S. Consulate on Pender Street.Amid chants, one protester wrote the words “Immigrants built North America” in bold green chalk on the pavement.

Balloons, bubbles, tear gas: Protests against 'king' Trump turn chaotic Sun, 15 Jun 2025, 3:58pm 

At least one person was critically injured after a shooting at a demonstration in the western US city of Salt Lake City, police said, with local media reporting the shooting happened at a rally against US President Donald Trump.Salt Lake City police department posted on social media that a person is in custody after the shooting.Anti-Trump protests are taking place in at least 50 cities across the US.In Los Angeles, thousands of people peacefully celebrated their defiance of US President Donald Trump on Saturday (local time) with music, marching, bubbles and balloons.Then police unexpectedly moved in – and chaos and confusion broke out.The demonstration, part of the nationwide “No Kings” day of protests across the nation, was by far the largest in more than a week of protests ignited by anger against immigration raids the Trump administration has been carrying out across the country’s second-largest city.Like those before it, the protest had been largely peaceful. A march that began in the morning had finished, with demonstrators milling about on a sunny afternoon as the scene took on the air of a street festival.Then police unexpectedly began moving people away from the area, igniting confusion and anger among demonstrators caught off guard and unsure of where to go.Police on horseback pushed crowds back as law enforcement fired tear gas and flash-bang grenades hours ahead of an 8pm (local time) curfew.A police spokeswoman later told local TV channel KTLA that a “small group of agitators” had begun throwing rocks, bottles and fireworks at officers, prompting the decision to order the crowd to disperse.If people refused to leave, “we will make arrests”, adding: “We have been patient all day.”The clashes came after more than a week of demonstrations in Los Angeles against the immigration raids, which have rocked the city.The protests have mostly been calm and contained to a small segment of downtown.But at times they have spiralled into violence, which Trump pounced on to send in 4000 National Guard and 700 Marines – an exceedingly rare deployment of soldiers on US soil and against the will of local officials, who have repeatedly said the situation was under control.The troops did not immediately appear to be involved in the clashes, with Los Angeles police and the sheriff’s department taking the lead.‘No faux-king Trump’Protest organisers expected rallies in all 50 US states, calling them the largest since Trump returned to office in January, with the aim of “rejecting authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics and the militarisation of our democracy”.The day had begun with indigenous dancing at City Hall, as musicians played a light-hearted drumbeat on metal security barriers and street vendors filled the air with the smell of frying onions.Then, beneath a giant balloon depicting Trump as a baby wearing a diaper, the demonstrators marched through downtown Los Angeles.Parents brought their children, pet owners their dogs, and the lunchtime crowd at one popular market along the route enjoyed tacos and doughnuts as demonstrators passed by chanting while passing cars honked their support.“No faux-king Trump,” read one sign as marchers chanted “Impeach Trump!”Passing several armed National Guard in front of one federal building along the route, the protesters cried “Shame!”Many of the signs had a light touch – “America, you in danger girl” read one, while another riffed on the acronym for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) and a favorite drink in Los Angeles: “Ice belongs in my matcha, not the streets.”Others were more pointed.Many involved the words “Trump” and various expletives. Some showed images of the President as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.“Santa Monica Fascist”, read one sign with a photo of Trump’s top immigration adviser Stephen Miller, who is from the coastal city west of downtown Los Angeles.People waved flags – predominantly US flags, some upside down as a signal of distress; but also the flags of Mexico, El Salvador, South Korea, the Palestinians, California’s state flag and the Pride flag celebrating LGBTQ rights.“This isn’t a war zone,” protester Jennifer Franks, who was carrying her infant son, told AFP in front of City Hall earlier in the day.“There is no reason to have the military called in here ... I want my child to grow up in a nation where common sense pervades.”Wielding signs with messages like “No KKKings!”, “No crown for the clown” and “The Trump fascist regime must go now!”, the protests stood in stark contrast to the massive military parade in Washington later.That parade was meant to commemorate the founding of the US Army, but also falls on the President’s 79th birthday.In New York alone, tens of thousands of people, wearing raincoats and carrying colourful umbrellas, marched down Fifth Avenue in the downpour to the sound of drums, bells and crowd chants of “Hey, hey, oh, oh, Donald Trump has got to go!”Actors Susan Sarandon and Mark Ruffalo were seen getting drenched among the protesters.“It is essential for us to demonstrate that democracy is still strong in this country,” said Vikas Mehta, a 45-year-old doctor who was taking part in the demonstration with his wife and two children.“We also want to show our children that ... when democracy was threatened ... we chose to participate,” he told AFP.‘Outraged’Nearby, a man carried a photo montage showing Marilyn Monroe delivering her famous rendition of “Happy Birthday Mr President”. But instead of a kiss, she was making an obscene gesture.A few blocks away, Polly Shulman was preparing to join the march with her “Protect the Constitution” sign.“I’m here because I’m miserable and outraged about how this administration is destroying the ideals of the American Constitution and committing many illegal and immoral acts,” the 62-year-old museum employee told AFP.The most shocking thing, she said, was “the illegal deportations of law-abiding residents who did nothing wrong and who have the right to due process”.They are “being kidnapped and disappeared and sent to torture prisons in foreign countries”, she lamented.In March, the Trump administration expelled more than 250 Venezuelans to a mega-prison in El Salvador after accusing them of being members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang, which it has declared a terrorist organisation.At least four protesters were arrested at a separate, smaller protest against Trump’s immigration crackdown at New York’s Federal Plaza on Saturday (local time), police said.‘Mad as hell’“I think people are mad as hell,” Lindsay Ross, a 28-year-old musician, told AFP, urging the masses to show “the administration that we’re not going to take this”.Bill Kennedy, a retired psychologist from Pennsylvania, was in Washington protesting a few hours before Trump’s big parade there.“I’m tired of the current administration. I think they’re a bunch of fascists,” he said, describing the Trump parade as “ridiculous”.Suzanne Brown in Boston also lamented the money spent on the parade “for one man’s vanity”.Massive “No Kings” protests were also under way in Los Angeles, which in recent days has been rocked by demonstrations over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, as federal agents carried out brutal arrests of even law-abiding people without papers.On Saturday (local time), protesters gathered in front of federal buildings shouting “You are not welcome here” at some of the 4000 National Guard members and 700 US Marines that Trump dispatched to the city against the wishes of city and state authorities.With a giant orange Trump-in-a-diaper balloon towering above them, thousands filled the city streets, sporting slogans like “No faux-king way” and “Impeach Trump”.Members of Russian feminist protest and performance art group Pussy Riot held up a large red banner in front of LA city hall warning: “It’s beginning to look a lot like Russia.”Iris Rodriguez, 44, explained that her family arrived in the United States without papers.“I find it really, really personal ... If this was my mom, if this were the 80s, this would be happening to her,” she told AFP.“I was a little scared, but I refuse to be too scared to not come.”The country-wide demonstrations overwhelmingly took place peacefully and without incident.But in Culpeper, Virginia, police said a man had “intentionally” rammed his car into a group of protesters as they left the event.The man, identified as 21-year-old Joseph R. Checklick jnr, “intentionally accelerated his vehicle into the dispersing crowd, striking at least one person with his vehicle”, police said, adding that he had been arrested and no injuries had so far been reported.– Agence France-Presse.