However, the strike was criticized for not inflicting serious damage to either Iranian economics by striking oil reserves or to Iran's nuclear program
Israel's air strikes resulted in at least seven explosions in and around Tehran and targeted its three military bases in Tehran, Ilam, and Khuzestan
The Ministry noted that Iran has launched hundreds of missiles directly toward Israel during two attacks in April and October and funds and directs terrorist activity through its proxies
Israel launched massive strikes targeting Iranian military sites on pre-dawn Saturday, triggering fears that a fresh round of escalation could erupt in West Asia
The White House indicated that Israel's strikes on Iran should end direct exchange of fire between the two enemy countries, while warning Tehran of consequences should it respond. A senior White House official said the administration believed the Israeli operation should close out the direct military exchange between Israel and Iran, and said other allies were in agreement. United States President Joe Biden was updated throughout the day on Friday as the operation was developing and by his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, as the operation was carried out by the Israelis, the official said. The official, who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House, said the Israeli operation was extensive, it was targeted, it was precise. The official underscored that the US had no involvement in the strike.
The Israeli military launched strikes early Saturday on military targets in Iran, officials said. It wasn't immediately clear what the targets were. Iranian state media reported the sound of explosions around Iran's capital, Tehran, without immediately elaborating. An Israeli military statement said that Israel has the right and the duty to respond. The regime in Iran and its proxies in the region have been relentlessly attacking Israel since October 7 on seven fronts including direct attacks from Iranian soil, the statement read. It also did not elaborate on the targets. Iranian state television later identified some of the blasts as coming from air defense systems, without offering more details. Iran has launched two ballistic missile attacks on Israel in recent months. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP's earlier story follows below.
An Israeli airstrike killed three journalists as they slept at a guesthouse in southeast Lebanon at dawn on Friday, in one of the deadliest attacks on the media since hostilities broke out across the border a year ago. It was a rare airstrike on an area that had so far been spared airstrikes and has been used by the media as a base for covering the war. The 3 a.m. airstrike turned the site a series of chalets nestled among trees that had been rented by various media outlets covering the war into rubble, with cars marked PRESS overturned and covered in dust and debris and at least one satellite dish for live broadcasting totally destroyed. The Israeli army did not issue a warning prior to the strike, and later said it was looking into it. Mohammad Farhat, a reporter for Lebanon's Al Jadeed TV in the south, said everyone rushed out in their sleeping clothes. The first question we asked each other: Are you alive?' Those killed were camera operator Ghassan Najjar and broadcast ...
The audit, intended to assess the Defense Department's oversight of military aid to Israel, will unfold amid continuing international criticism of the Israeli military's conduct in the Gaza conflict
The port is typically bustling - with fishermen, tourists and even U.N. peacekeepers on a break from deployments. Israel's evacuation orders this week have for the first time encompassed swathes
Inside what was once one of Beirut's oldest and best-known cinemas, dozens of Lebanese, Palestinians and Syrians displaced by the Israel-Hezbollah war spend their time following the news on their phones, cooking, chatting and walking around to pass the time. Outside on Hamra Street, once a thriving economic hub, sidewalks are filled with displaced people, and hotels and apartments are crammed with those seeking shelter. Cafes and restaurants are overflowing. In some ways, the massive displacement of hundreds of thousands of people from south Lebanon, the eastern Bekaa Valley and Beirut's southern suburbs has provided a boost for this commercial district after years of decline as a result of Lebanon's economic crisis. But it is not the revival many had hoped for. The displacement revived Hamra Street in a wrong way, said the manager of a four-star hotel on the boulevard, who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the problems the influx has caused for the neighbourhood. For th
Leaders from BRICS countries on Wednesday called for an immediate, permanent ceasefire in Gaza Strip and the release of hostages from "both sides", while denouncing Israel for its military offensive that has led to mass killings of civilians in that territory. The escalating conflict in West Asia figured prominently in the Kazan Declaration, adopted by the leaders who participated in the 16th summit of the group in this Russian city. BRICS includes Iran which faces possible retaliation from Israel after it launched a barrage of ballistic missiles at the Jewish nation on October 1. Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa were the initial members of the group, which has now expanded to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The declaration specifically condemned the Israeli airstrike on Iran's consulate in Syria in April that killed officers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, among others. We reiterate our grave concern at the deterioration
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that Israel needs to pursue an enduring strategic success after its tactical victories against Hamas, urging it to seek a deal that would end the war in the Gaza Strip and bring back dozens of hostages. He spoke before travelling from Israel to Saudi Arabia on his 11th visit to the region since the outbreak of the war. Air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv shortly before his departure as Israel intercepted two projectiles fired from Lebanon, and a puff of smoke could be seen in the sky from Blinken's hotel. Israel has achieved most of the strategic objectives when it comes to Gaza," Blinken told reporters before boarding his plane. Now is the time to turn those successes into an enduring strategic success. There really are two things left to do: Get the hostages home and bring the war to an end with an understanding of what will follow, he said. No sign of a breakthrough after killing of Hamas leader The United States sees a new ...
'The focus needs to be on getting the hostages home, ending this war and having a clear plan for what follows,' he said
According to Israeli military, Safieddine was killed alongside Hussein Ali Hazima, the Commander of Hezbollah's Intelligence Headquarters during the strike on October 4
Destroyed in the attack were the base's headquarters, ammunition depots, underground infrastructure, fast vessels, and other assets
Hashem Safieddine, a close relative of Hassan Nasrallah, held important roles within Hezbollah's military and organisational structures and was influential in the group's financial affairs
Israeli airstrikes in and around Beirut caused significant damage to the country's largest public hospital and killed more than a dozen people, Lebanese health officials said, as Hezbollah launched a barrage of rockets into central Israel hours before US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in the region. Lebanon's Health Ministry said that 57 others were wounded in airstrikes late Monday that destroyed several buildings facing the Rafik Hariri University Hospital, located on the outskirts of southern Beirut. The Israeli military said it struck a Hezbollah target, without elaborating, and that it had not targeted the hospital itself. The State Department said Blinken would focus on ending the war in Gaza, securing the release of hostages held by Hamas and alleviating the suffering of Palestinian civilians. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged to annihilate Hamas and recover dozens of hostages held by the group. Hamas says it will only release the captives in .
Oil price outlook: Given the low level of oil inventories, there could be a sustained geopolitical premium in crude price until the conflict is resolved in the short-term
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel on Tuesday, the first stop on a Middle East tour in which he will seek to revive talks to end the Gaza war and defuse the spillover conflict
President Joe Biden's decision to send Hochstein this week is signaling the urgency of a lasting cease-fire in Lebanon