Iran and Israel broaden attacks as conflict escalates

Israel
and
Iran
issued evacuation orders to residents of both countries as the conflict escalated on a fourth day, underlining the potential to trigger a broader war.
Iran on Monday threatened to leave the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) and separately told the
United Nations
Security Council that its strikes on Israel were self- defence.
In a letter to the Security Council, Iran's UN envoy Amir Saeid Iravani added that any co-operation with Israel would make countries 'complicit in the legal responsibility and consequences of this crisis'.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces issued an evacuation order to residents of a large part of Tehran, warning them of the imminent bombing of 'military infrastructure' in the area in a social-media post very similar to those regularly directed at Palestinians in
Gaza
over the past 20 months.
READ MORE
The post on X was from the account of the
Israel Defense Forces
' Arabic spokesperson, Col Avichay Adraee, and is a further sign of the evolving nature of the Israeli campaign against Iran, which began with attacks on air defences, nuclear sites and the military chain of command, but appears to have drifted towards a war of attrition focused on Iran's oil and gas industry and on the capital.
Meanwhile, Iranian state television reported on Monday evening that a new wave of missile attacks on Israel had begun. The attacks include drones and missiles, believed to be targeting the Israeli cities of Haifa and Tel Aviv.
More than 1,800 people in Iran have been injured since Israel launched its attack on June 13th, according to the country's health minister. A total of 24 people in Israel have been killed so far in the Iranian missile attacks, all of them civilians.
In another sign of the changing targets of the Israeli offensive, Iran's state TV announced on Monday evening that it was under attack, and had to cease live broadcasting.
The sound of an explosion could be heard in a live transmission, and the news presenter hurried off camera as dust and debris appeared in the studio.
Speaking to personnel at Tel Nof air force base, the Israeli prime minister,
Binyamin Netanyahu
, confirmed the evacuation orders on the Iranian capital.
'The Israeli air force controls the skies over Tehran. This changes the entire campaign,' he said.
'When we control the skies over Tehran, we strike regime targets, as opposed to the criminal Iranian regime which targets our civilians and comes to kill women and children. We tell the people of Tehran to evacuate, and we act.'
Netanyahu later said killing Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei, would 'end the conflict' in what would be another ominous escalation.
After the surprise Israeli attack on Friday morning, Iran has carried out retaliatory missile strikes on Israeli cities, focusing on the most populated areas between Tel Aviv and the port of Haifa.
Both sides have targeted each other's oil and gas facilities, increasing the threat of environmental disaster, and explosions were reported on Monday near oil refineries in southern Tehran.
Earlier on Monday, Iran threatened to leave the NPT as Israeli bombing raids entered a fourth day, underlining the conflict's potential to trigger a broader war and Tehran's race to construct a nuclear weapon.
The human cost of the war continued to escalate with both sides broadening their range of targets, as
G7
leaders convened in the Canadian Rockies with no clear plan to end the conflict. There were reports on Monday that
Donald Trump
was refusing to sign a joint statement calling for the conflict to be scaled down.
'They should talk, and they should talk immediately,' Trump said of Tehran during the summit. 'I'd say Iran is not winning this war.'
[
Israelis under attack from Iran shift to full-scale war mode
Opens in new window
]
The Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, announced on Monday that Iran's parliament, the Majlis, was preparing a Bill that would withdraw the country from the 1968 NPT agreement, which obliges it to forgo nuclear weapons and to undergo international inspections to verify compliance. Baghaei added that Tehran remained opposed to the development of weapons of mass destruction.
Israel is the only Middle East state with nuclear weapons and did not sign the NPT, but has never formally acknowledged its arsenal.
US forces have so far helped Israel intercept Iranian missiles, but have not taken part, at least overtly, in offensive bombing operations. – Guardian and Reuters

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Irish Times

4 hours ago

• Irish Times

AG says he cannot help on legal query over Shannon flights that may aid Israel's Gaza war

Attorney General Rossa Fanning has told the Social Democrats that he is not in a position to assist after the party appealed to him to check whether Irish policy on flight inspection at Shannon Airport is consistent with EU customs law. The party's foreign affairs spokeswoman Patricia Stephenson had previously called on the EU anti-fraud watchdog, OLAF, to launch an investigation into the inspection of flights into Shannon which she said may be facilitating Israel's bombardment of Gaza . She also wrote to the Attorney General, along with her party colleague Gary Gannon, asking whether Irish policy is consistent with the State's legal duties under both EU law and the Genocide Convention. In a response, Mr Fanning wrote that while he appreciated the party had written to him 'with the public-spirited concern of conscientious members of the Oireachtas', he was unable to assist as his constitutional role 'does not extend to providing analysis of legal matters to individual members of the Oireachtas'. READ MORE He said that furthermore, 'it would be neither appropriate, nor in accordance with my legal position, for me to act as a conduit in bringing such concerns to the attention of the Government'. [ Ireland seeks 'legal clarity' over Shannon stopover for US deportation flights Opens in new window ] 'As members of the Oireachtas, I trust you will have the opportunity to express to Government directly the concerns you raise in the correspondence to DG TAXUD [Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union] and OLAF.' The Social Democrats have said there is credible evidence that military contractors and private aircraft carrying dual-use goods are moving through Irish airspace and Irish territory en route to Israel. Ms Stephenson has previously said that under EU customs law, Ireland is required to carry out risk-based inspections. 'That means prioritising flights operated by arms brokers or those on known weapons trade routes. That's what the law says - and right now, Ireland isn't following it,' she said. [ New aircraft inspection system planned to prevent illegal transport of weapons through Ireland Opens in new window ] Speaking on Friday after receiving the AG's letter, Ms Stephenson said: 'Given the response of the Attorney-General, it's now important that the Taoiseach clarifies if the Irish State is indeed in breach of EU law in choosing not to inspect planes that are arriving in Shannon and then travelling out of the European Union directly from Ireland. 'Obviously our concern is one of moral failure, regarding Gaza and the weapons travelling through Ireland, but the State can't continue to operate outside of EU Customs and VAT requirements while maintaining this appalling indifference to what is happening in Shannon Airport.'

Irish Times

6 hours ago

• Irish Times

Irish embassy in Tehran closed due to ‘deteriorating situation'

The Irish embassy in Tehran, Iran has been temporarily closed with staff being relocated to Ireland amid a 'deteriorating situation'. Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris said he had become 'increasingly concerned' about environment in which the embassy was functioning and the ability of diplomatic staff to work safely. 'It is in light of the deteriorating situation, following consultation with my officials and in very close consultation and co-ordination with EU partners, I have now decided to temporarily relocate our personnel from Tehran,' he said. Mr Harris said the relocation of staff was 'not a decision that I have taken lightly.' READ MORE 'Arrangements have been made for the embassy to continue its operations from our Dublin headquarters. Staff at my department's headquarters have now assumed the embassy's consular functions, and they remain in contact with the small number of Irish citizens remaining in Iran,' he said. The arrangements will continue until it is possible and safe for personnel to return to Iran, he said, and thanked ambassador to Iran, Laoise Moore and her staff for operating under 'very, very challenging circumstances.' Mr Harris reiterated advice that Irish citizens should not to travel to Iran or Israel. 'Citizens who live there and who wish to leave might consider departing through one of the land borders that is open as long as it is safe to do so,' he said. Mr Harris said he will continue to monitor the situation in the region and will be engaging with EU counterparts. 'My hope is that a diplomatic solution can be found to resolve this very dangerous conflict without further escalation or further loss of life in Iran or Israel,' he added.

Irish Times

6 hours ago

• Irish Times

‘Indications' Israel breached human rights obligations during Gaza war, EU review finds

A review by European Union officials has said there are 'indications' that Israel 's actions during the war in Gaza breached commitments to uphold human rights. The finding raises the prospect of the EU taking action against Israel for the first time since the start of the conflict. The review, a portion of which has been seen by The Irish Times, finds Israel's actions during its 20-month bombardment and invasion of Gaza constituted a failure to respect human rights. Focus will now likely turn to potential consequences for Israel, which EU states have to date been unable to find common ground on. READ MORE [ Israeli fire kills at least 44 Palestinians in Gaza Opens in new window ] The review examined whether Israel's actions in the Palestinian enclave had broken guarantees made about upholding human rights as part of the EU's 'association agreement' with Israel. The agreement governs relations between the two sides and includes a free trade deal, access to research funding and enhanced political dialogue. A majority of EU states last month supported a review taking place to determine whether Israel's military campaign in Gaza had broken human rights commitments signed up to as part of the agreement. The review was carried out by officials from the EU diplomatic corps, which is led by foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas. It was shared with diplomats from EU states on Friday evening. It concluded: 'On the basis of the assessments made by the independent international institutions ... There are indications that Israel would be in breach of its human rights obligations under Article 2 of the EU-Israel association agreement'. The findings will be debated at a meeting of EU foreign affairs ministers in Brussels on Monday. Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris is expected to advocate for the EU to use what leverage it has, to put pressure on Israel to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza. It is expected ministers will ask Ms Kallas to come back to a further meeting next month, with a set of proposed actions the EU could take against Israel, such as possibly suspending parts of the EU-Israel association deal. A group of nine states, including Ireland, Spain, Belgium and Poland, have suggested the EU needs to do more to cut off trade with illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank and other occupied Palestinian territories. More than 55,000 Palestinians have been killed during Israel's military campaign in Gaza, which began after Hamas militants who control the enclave attacked southern Israel on October 7th, 2023. The governments of Ireland and Spain first called for a review of the EU-Israel deal in February of last year, but received little backing at the time. The worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza, exacerbated by Israel's recent blockade preventing food and aid getting into the territory for several weeks, saw growing support within the EU to exert political pressure on Israel to change course. It is understood the Israeli government has been lobbying EU states intensely behind the scenes through diplomatic and high-level political channels to push back on those efforts. Some of Israel's staunchest allies – Germany, Hungary and Czechia – had opposed the review taking place, as did the governments of Italy and Greece. 'We want to, through this process, up the pressure on Israel to change what they are doing,' a diplomat from one EU state said of the review. 'We want a broad agreement as possible on the outcome of the review.'