Erdogan says he's 'optimistic victory will be Iran's' in blistering speech as strikes continue
As the conflict between Israel and Iran enters its ninth consecutive day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said he's "optimistic that victory will be Iran's" in a blistering speech at a gathering of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) foreign ministers in Istanbul.
Erdogan accused Israel of sabotaging the nuclear talks between Iran and the US — which were ongoing when Israel first launched strikes last Friday, June 13 — adding that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not want to "resolve issues through diplomatic means."
He urged the diplomats at the OIC meeting to increase pressure on Israel on the basis of international law and UN resolutions.
Erdogan's harsh rhetoric comes days before he's due to join a meeting of leaders of the NATO Alliance this week, including US President Donald Trump, who has dismissed a European-led effort to steer parties to the negotiating table.
"Iran doesn't want to speak to Europe. They want to speak to us," Trump told reporters in New Jersey late on Friday. "Europe is not going to be able to help in this one."
Meanwhile, Israel said its strikes had targeted Iran's nuclear site in Isfahan, and that it had killed three senior commanders of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Israel's foreign minister Gideon Saar said in an interview published in Germany's Bild newspaper on Saturday that Israel has already delayed Iran's nuclear programme by "at least two or three years."
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Los Angeles Times
38 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Israel hits an Iranian nuclear research facility and says it's preparing for a long war
TEL AVIV — Israel's military said Saturday it struck an Iranian nuclear research facility overnight and killed three senior Iranian commanders in targeted attacks, while emphasizing it was preparing for the possibility of a lengthy war. Smoke rose from an area near a mountain in Isfahan, where Isfahan province's deputy governor for security affairs, Akbar Salehi, confirmed the Israeli strikes damaged the facility but said they caused no casualties. The target was two centrifuge production sites, according to an Israeli military official speaking on condition of anonymity under army guidelines to brief reporters. It was the second attack on Isfahan, which was hit in the first 24 hours of the war as part of Israel's goal to destroy Iran's nuclear program. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, confirmed the latest attack. Iran launched a new wave of drones and missiles at Israel but there were no immediate reports of significant damage. A Magen David Adom rescue service official said a drone hit a two-story building in northern Israel, with no casualties. The official called it a 'small barrage' that was largely intercepted by Israel's defenses. The official estimated that Israel's military has taken out more than half of Iran's launchers. 'We're making it harder for them to fire toward Israel,' he said. 'Having said all that, I want to say the Iranian regime obviously still has capabilities.' The Israeli military's chief spokesman, Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, later said that Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir told the army to be prepared for a 'prolonged campaign.' President Trump is weighing active U.S. military involvement in the war. On Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said, 'I think that it would be very, very dangerous for everyone.' He spoke on the sidelines of an Organization of Islamic Cooperation meeting in Turkey. Barring a commando raid or even a nuclear strike, Iran's underground Fordo uranium enrichment facility is considered out of reach to all but America's 'bunker-buster' bombs. Trump said he would put off his decision on direct military involvement for up to two weeks. The war erupted June 13, with Israeli airstrikes targeting Iran's nuclear and military sites, top generals and nuclear scientists. At least 722 people, including 285 civilians, have been killed in Iran and more than 2,500 wounded, according to a Washington-based Iranian human rights group. One Tehran resident, Nasrin, writhed in her hospital bed as she described how a blast threw her against a wall in her apartment. 'I've had five surgeries. I think I have nothing right here that is intact,' she said Saturday. Another resident, Shahram Nourmohammadi, said he had been making deliveries when 'something blew up right in front of me' at an intersection. Iran has retaliated by firing more than 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel, according to Israeli army estimates. Israel's multi-tiered air defenses have shot down most of them, but at least 24 people in Israel have been killed and hundreds wounded. Iran has long maintained its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, but it is the only nonnuclear-weapon state to enrich uranium up to 60% — a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%. Israel is widely believed to be the only Middle Eastern country with a nuclear weapons program, but has never acknowledged it. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel's military operation will continue 'for as long as it takes' to eliminate what he called the existential threat of Iran's nuclear program and ballistic missile arsenal. Talks in Geneva on Friday failed to produce a breakthrough. European officials expressed hope for future discussions. Iran's foreign minister said he was open to further dialogue while emphasizing that Tehran had no interest in negotiating with the U.S. while Israel continues to attack. 'Iran is ready to consider diplomacy once again, and once aggression is stopped and the aggressor is held accountable for the crimes committed,' he told reporters. No date was set for a new round of talks. For many Iranians, updates remained difficult. Internet-access advocacy group said Saturday that limited internet access had again 'collapsed.' A nationwide internet shutdown has been in place for several days. Israel's opening attack killed three of Iran's top military leaders: Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, who oversaw the armed forces; Gen. Hossein Salami, who led the paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps; and the head of the Revolutionary Guard's ballistic missile program, Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh. Israel's defense minister said Saturday the military has killed a Revolutionary Guard commander who financed and armed Hamas in preparation for the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that sparked the ongoing 20-month war in the Gaza Strip. Iranian officials did not immediately confirm Saeed Izadi's death, but the Qom governor's office said there had been an attack on a four-story apartment building and local media reported two people had been killed. Israel also said it killed the commander of the Quds Force's weapons transfer unit, who it said was responsible for providing weapons to Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. Behnam Shahriyari was killed while traveling in western Iran, the military said. Iranian leaders say IAEA chief Rafael Mariano Grossi's statements about the status of Iran's nuclear program have prompted Israel's attack. On Saturday, a senior advisor for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamanei, Ali Larijani, said in a social media post, without elaboration, that Iran would make Grossi 'pay' once the war is over. Grossi warned Friday at an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council against attacks on Iran's nuclear reactors, particularly its only commercial nuclear power plant in the southern city of Bushehr. 'In case of an attack on the Bushehr nuclear power plant, a direct hit would result in a very high release of radioactivity,' Grossi said, adding: 'This is the nuclear site in Iran where the consequences could be most serious.' Israel has not targeted Iran's nuclear reactors, instead focusing its strikes on the main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, centrifuge workshops near Tehran, laboratories in Isfahan and the country's Arak heavy water reactor southwest of the capital. Iran previously agreed to limit its uranium enrichment and allow international inspectors access to its nuclear sites under a 2015 deal in exchange for sanctions relief. But after Trump pulled the U.S. out of the deal during his first term, Iran began enriching uranium up to 60% and restricting access to its nuclear facilities. Iran has insisted on its right to enrich uranium — at lower levels — in recent talks over its nuclear program. But Trump, like Israel, has demanded Iran end its enrichment program altogether. Rising and Mednick write for the Associated Press and reported from Dubai and Tel Aviv, respectively. AP writers Mehmet Guzel in Istanbul, Josef Federman in Jerusalem and Farnoush Amiri and Jon Gambrell in Dubai contributed to this report.
Axios
41 minutes ago
- Axios
Scoop: Trump's backchannel to Iran failed after supreme leader went dark
President Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan quietly sought to arrange a meeting between senior U.S. and Iranian officials in Istanbul last week amid Israel's escalating war with Iran. But the effort collapsed when Iran's supreme leader — in hiding due to fears of assassination — couldn't be reached to approve it, according to three U.S. officials and a source with direct knowledge of the matter. Why it matters: New details of this backchannel effort reveal the extent to which Trump was pushing for a direct meeting with the Iranians — even offering to attend himself, if necessary — in hopes of striking a nuclear deal and avoiding U.S. military intervention. In the days since, Trump and senior White House officials became less confident that a diplomatic solution was possible — and more convinced the U.S. would have to join the war to eliminate the Iranian nuclear program, according to U.S. officials. Driving the news: Trump reiterated on Friday that he will make a decision on whether to join the war in the next "two weeks," saying he wanted "time to see whether or not people come to their senses." "I'm giving 'em a period of time. We're gonna see what that period of time is. And I would say two weeks would be the maximum," Trump told reporters. On Saturday evening, Trump is expected to convene his national security team in the White House Situation Room to discuss the war between Israel and Iran, which has entered its ninth day. Behind the scenes: Trump received a phone call from Erdoğan on Monday while meeting with G7 leaders in Canada. Erdoğan proposed hosting a meeting in Istanbul the next day between U.S. and Iranian officials to explore a diplomatic solution to the war, three U.S. officials and a source with direct knowledge told Axios. Trump agreed and told Erdoğan he was willing to send Vice President Vance and White House envoy Steve Witkoff — and even travel to Turkey himself to meet with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian — if that's what was necessary to get a deal, the sources said. A White House official said that in the hours before the call from Erdoğan, Trump received "signals" from the Iranians through other backchannels that they wanted to meet. While Trump's personal involvement was discussed, the official said, the more serious plan was to send Vance and Witkoff. Erdoğan and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan then relayed the proposal to Pezeshkian and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi, the sources said. Two U.S. officials said Pezeshkian and Araghchi tried contacting Iran's Supreme Leader Ayotallah Ali Khamenei to get his approval. But Khamenei, who has been in hiding for fear of being assassinated by Israel, couldn't be reached. After several hours, the Iranian side informed the Turks they couldn't get Khamenei's sign-off. Turkey then told the U.S. the meeting was off, a U.S. official said. Shortly afterward, Trump took to Truth Social and posted an extraordinary public message to Khamenei. "Iran should have signed the 'deal' I told them to sign. What a shame, and waste of human life. Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON. I said it over and over again! Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!" Trump wrote. A senior White House official said the breakdown in talks wasn't the sole reason for the post and stressed there was "no direct correlation." The official added that Trump's call for civilians to evacuate Tehran — a city of 10 million people, with 17 million in the wider metropolitan area — reflected his desire to protect Iranian lives. State of play: In recent days, the Iranians have said both publicly and privately that they will not negotiate directly with the U.S. unless Israel halts its attacks. Trump said Friday that it will be "very hard" to pause the war to allow for direct negotiations with the U.S., noting that Israel is "doing well" in its efforts to take out Iran's nuclear program. On Saturday, Erdoğan met with Iran's foreign minister Araghchi in Istanbul and urged him to hold direct talks with the Trump administration. Erdoğan told Araghchi that Turkey was ready to facilitate such talks as soon as possible, according to a statement from the Turkish president's office. What to watch: On Saturday morning, six B-2 stealth bombers departed from their base in Missouri and began heading west, according to flight tracking data. The B-2s are expected to play a key role in any potential U.S. strike on Iran, capable of carrying the 30,000-pound "bunker buster" bombs likely to be used to destroy the heavily fortified Fordow uranium enrichment facility. The Pentagon referred questions to the White House. Trump said on Friday that Israel has "very limited capacity" to damage Fordow. "They can break through a little section, but they can't go down very deep. They don't have that capacity. And, we'll have to see what happens. Maybe it won't be necessary," Trump said.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Turkish President Erdogan says Iran's response to Israeli strikes is 'legitimate'
Iran's response to Israeli strikes on its territory was "legitimate and legal," while condemning Israel's actions as "banditry," says Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
