Israel army says struck weapons research center in Tehran
Israel's military said Friday, June 20, it struck dozens of targets in Tehran overnight, including what it called a center for the "research and development of Iran's nuclear weapons project," in the eighth day of war between the two foes.
In a statement, the army said it had "completed a series of strikes in the heart of Tehran: dozens of targets were struck, including military missile production sites and the SPND (Organisation of Defensive Innovation and Research) headquarters for research and development of Iran's nuclear weapons project." According to the Israeli military the SPND headquarters "is used for research and development of advanced technologies and weapons supporting the Iranian regime's military capabilities."
The army said that during the night on Thursday more than 60 fighter jets struck dozens of military targets. "Among the targets were sites producing missile components and facilities manufacturing raw materials used in casting missile engines," it added. The military also said it intercepted overnight four UAVs launched from Iran.
In a separate statement, the army said it had hit "three ready-to-launch missile launchers aimed at Israeli territory." Israel's defense minister Israel Katz also warned Lebanese militant group Hezbollah against entering the Iran-Israel war, after the Islamic republic's ally said it would act "as we see fit."
"I suggest the Lebanese proxy be cautious and understand that Israel has lost patience with terrorists who threaten it," Katz said in a statement, adding that "if there is terrorism − there will be no Hezbollah."
Israel, claiming that Iran was on the verge of developing a nuclear weapon, launched air strikes against its arch-enemy a week ago, triggering deadly exchanges. European foreign ministers will hold talks Friday with their Iranian counterpart, hoping to reach a diplomatic solution to the war as US President Donald Trump mulls the prospect of US involvement.
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Euronews
19 minutes ago
- Euronews
UK police searching for pro-Palestinian activists over RAF jet damage
Police in the United Kingdom are searching for suspects and the military is reviewing its security procedures after pro-Palestinian activists broke into a Royal Air Force base in Oxfordshire and damaged two planes with red paint, officials said on Friday. The group Palestine Action said two members entered RAF Brize Norton, some 110 kilometres west of London, on Wednesday and used electric scooters to approach the Voyager jets, which are used for air-to-air refuelling. The duo sprayed red paint into the planes' turbine engines with repurposed fire extinguishers. They caused further damage with crowbars, according to the group, which released video footage appearing to show an individual approach a jet and spray paint into the engine. The activists left the base without being detained, Palestine Action said. The group said in a statement that "despite publicly condemning the Israeli government, Britain continues to send military cargo, fly spy planes over Gaza and refuel US/Israeli fighter jets." The Ministry of Defence confirmed the incident, saying: "We strongly condemn this vandalism of Royal Air Force assets." UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the vandalism "disgraceful" in a post on X. Thames Valley Police said in a statement that it had "received a report of people gaining access to RAF Brize Norton and causing criminal damage." Officers were working with staff at the base and military police to arrest the perpetrators, the force said. The government said two planes were being checked for damage and that the vandalism had not stopped any planned aircraft movements or operations. "A full security review is underway at Brize Norton," Starmer's office said. "We are reviewing security across the whole defence estate." Planes from RAF Brize Norton regularly fly to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, Britain's main air base for operations in the Middle East. The UK has sent more Typhoon fighter jets and Voyager tankers to Cyprus since the Israel-Iran conflict started a week ago for what Starmer called "contingency support." Iran has threatened to attack US, French and British bases in the region if those countries help Israel fend off Iranian strikes. Despite recent efforts to boost European defence production, the bloc remains 'highly vulnerable' and heavily reliant on the United States—particularly for major, high-end defence equipment—according to a new analysis by the Brussels-based economic think tank Bruegel. Trade statistics show that the value of weapons imported to Europe increased from approximately $3.4 billion for the period 2019–2021 to $8.5 billion for 2022–2024 across the 27 member states, with the US leading this increase despite concerns over its capabilities. 'Europe has the industrial production capacities to increase production of tanks and infantry fighting vehicles,' said Guntramm Wolff, Bruegel's senior fellow, during the launch of the report Fit for war by 2030? on Friday morning.* 'What is more concerning is the more modern weapons systems, where we have limited capabilities,' he added. Bruegel and Kiel Institute for the World Economy researchers have detected that the reliance on the US for certain defence and security domains is very high, including hypersonic missiles, next generation jets, AI integrated systems and intelligence services. 'There has been some increase in various systems—artillery in particular has grown substantially—but these increases are still relatively small compared to the overall demand,' Wolff said. For example, the report notes that Europe held 1,627 main battle tanks in 2023, while projections suggest 2,359 to 2,920 will be needed in the coming years, depending on the scenario. As for air defence systems such as the Patriot and SAMP/T, stock levels in 2024 stood at 35 units—far below the 89 required. 'Major investments in research and development will be essential,' the authors advise EU policymakers and national governments, especially given Europe's lagging defence R&D compared to global competitors. In 2023, Europe invested €13 billion in military R&D. By contrast, China invested €21 billion, while the US allocated a staggering $145 billion. In March, the European Commission unveiled its rearmament initiative—now called Defence Readiness 2030—with a target of mobilising up to €800 billion to address the bloc's most critical defence shortfalls. Meanwhile, NATO is expected to call on its 32 members to increase defence spending to 5% of GDP by 2032—or potentially by 2035—a target Spain has already criticised as 'unreasonable'. But simply increasing budgets won't solve the problem, the report warns. 'More military spending will not automatically and immediately translate into military capabilities, especially if the defence industrial base is already under strain,' the researchers argue. The real challenge, they stress, lies in converting funding into tangible capabilities through a coherent, forward-looking strategic and operational plan. With the European defence market still highly fragmented, greater integration would improve cost-effectiveness. But alongside procurement reform, military planning must also be strengthened. 'This is really about rebuilding the ability to understand war through the lens of peer conflict—and that is just as much of a challenge as disbursing the money,' said Dr. Alexandr Burilkov, assistant director for research at the GLOBSEC GeoTech Center. According to the researchers' estimates, even the proposed €800 billion may fall short—insufficient to cover the development of missile capabilities, procurement of tanks, artillery, and infantry fighting vehicles, modernisation of forces, and investment in air defence systems.


France 24
21 minutes ago
- France 24
Netanyahu's other battle: swinging Trump and US behind Iran war
In his daily calls and public statements, Israel's longest-serving prime minister has mixed praise and deference for the US leader, while also arguing that the strikes on Iran benefit Americans. "Do you want these people to have nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them to you?" he asked during an interview on Fox News last Sunday. "Today, it's Tel Aviv. Tomorrow, it's New York," he told ABC News a day later, arguing that Iran was working on longer-range missiles that would be able to reach US shores in the future. His media blitz came after intensive and not always harmonious exchanges between Netanyahu and Trump this year, with the Israeli leader welcomed twice to the White House since the Republican's return to power in January. The New York Times, citing unnamed US administration sources, reported Tuesday that Netanyahu had asked Trump for US-made bunker-busting bombs capable of reaching Iran's underground Iranian nuclear facilities in an April meeting -- but had been refused. Having been elected in opposition to US entanglements overseas and supposed "war-mongers" in the Democratic party, Trump was seen as reluctant to commit Washington to another unpopular war in the Middle East. Much of his right-wing Make America Great Again (MAGA) coalition is staunchly anti-interventionist, including Vice President JD Vance, his head of national intelligence director Tulsi Gabbard, and influential media figures such as Steve Bannon and Tucker Carlson. But speaking Wednesday, the former tycoon stated clearly that he was considering joining the Israeli campaign directly, raising the possibility of the bunker-busting GBU-57 bombs being deployed against Iran's main underground uranium stockpile facility in Fordo. "I may do it, I may not do it," Trump told reporters at the White House when asked if he had decided on US air strikes. His final decision will come "within the next two weeks", he said Thursday. Influence Yossi Mekelberg, a Middle East expert at the London-based Chatham House think-tank, said Netanyahu had been clever in his dealings with Trump, appealing to his "vanity" with charm as well "using his weaknesses". Once he had received an "amber light" in private from the US leader to launch the attacks last Friday, "he knew Trump's personality and knew that Trump might come on board if there was a chance of claiming glory in some way or claiming some sort of credit," he told AFP. Trump has openly praised the success of the Israeli military campaign which has combined targeted assassinations of key military personnel, destruction of Iran's air defences and repeated strikes on nuclear sites. Eliot A. Cohen, a veteran former US State Department advisor and international relations expert at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, cautioned against overstating Netanyahu's personal influence, however. "I suspect this is much less about Netanyahu's influence than Trump's own view of the Iranian nuclear programme, his memory of the assassination plot against him in 2024 by Iranian agents and the success of the initial Israeli operations," he told AFP. An Iranian man has been charged in connection with an alleged plot to kill Trump before his election last November. Cohen said Netanyahu's lobbying could succeed for several reasons. "They are not asking for anything other than the bombing of Fordo," he said, referring to the deeply buried underground uranium enrichment facility. "Nobody is talking about an invasion or anything like that." "Many if not most Americans understand that a nuclear Iran is particularly dangerous, and that the regime is deeply hostile to the US," he added. Public opinion A poll by the survey group YouGov for The Economist magazine conducted last weekend found half of Americans viewed Iran as an "enemy" and another quarter said it was "unfriendly." But it found that only 16 percent of Americans "think the US military should get involved in the conflict between Israel and Iran". It found that majorities of Democrats (65 percent), independents (61 percent) and Republicans (53 percent) opposed military intervention. Speaking on his War Room podcast Wednesday, former Trump strategist Bannon seethed that Netanyahu had "lectured" America and started a war he couldn't end on his own.
LeMonde
30 minutes ago
- LeMonde
Europe to offer Iran 'diplomatic solution' to conflict, Macron says
French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday, June 20, said France and other European powers would make an offer to Iran of a comprehensive diplomatic solution to end the escalating conflict with Israel. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot will later Friday meet Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi in Geneva "to make a complete diplomatic and technical offer for negotiations," Macron told reporters, adding that France and allies Germany and the UK were "putting a diplomatic solution on the table." "Iran must show that it is willing to join the platform for negotiations we are putting on the table," Macron said on the sidelines of the Paris Air Show in Le Bourget outside the French capital. "It is essential to prioritize a return to substantive negotiations [with Iran] which include nuclear − to move to zero enrichment [by Iran of uranium] ballistics, to limit Iranian capacities, and the financing of all the terrorist groups that destabilize the region," Macron said. He added that the offer to be made by Barrot and his German and UK counterparts to Araghchi later Friday would have four aspects. 'Existential risk' The first would foresee a resumption of work by the UN atomic agency, with "the capacity to go to all the sites," so that Iran moves to zero enrichment of uranium, Macron said. The second and third aspects would comprise oversight of Iran's ballistics activities and how it finances proxies in the region, he added. The fourth would be the liberation of "hostages" by Iran, said Macron, referring to the foreigners jailed by the Islamic republic who include two French citizens. Macron said that "no-one should neglect the risk that an Iran with nuclear weapons would present," adding that the Islamic republic presented an "existential risk" for Israel. But the French president also criticized the scope of the military action by Israel which has hit targets beyond nuclear and ballistics facilities. "I consider that strikes that hit civilian or energy facilities and hit civilian populations must absolutely stop. Nothing justifies this." Macron also warned Israel that military action alone would not be sufficient to degrade the Iranian nuclear program. "No one seriously thinks that this risk [posed by the Iranian atomic drive] can be responded to only through the operations that are currently underway," he said. "There are facilities that are extremely well protected, we do not know exactly where the uranium enriched to 60% is."