What's next in the Israel-Iran war as US steps in? – DW – 06/22/2025
DW Middle East expert Shani Rozanes says Donald Trump's direct military intervention has cemented US-Israel ties — calling it unprecedented. But is military action really effective in stopping Iran's nuclear program? And is there still a chance to deescalate the conflict? Foreign policy expert William Alberque joins DW to assess recent developments in the Israel-Iran war.
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Int'l Business Times
17 minutes ago
- Int'l Business Times
US Bases In The Middle East
Iran on Sunday threatened military bases used by US forces to launch attacks on the country's nuclear sites, saying such facilities would be considered legitimate targets. The United States has thousands of troops deployed on bases across the Middle East. Below, AFP examines countries with major concentrations of US forces in the Middle East, which falls under the US military's Central Command (CENTCOM). The tiny Gulf kingdom hosts an installation known as Naval Support Activity Bahrain, where the US Navy's Fifth Fleet and US Naval Forces Central Command headquarters are based. Bahrain's deep-water port can accommodate the largest US military vessels, such as aircraft carriers, and the US Navy has used the base in the country since 1948, when the facility was operated by Britain's Royal Navy. Several US ships have their home port in Bahrain, including four anti-mine vessels and two logistical support ships. The US Coast Guard also has vessels in the country, including six fast response cutters. The United States has troops at various installations in Iraq, including Al-Asad and Arbil air bases. The Iraqi government is a close ally of Iran, but also a strategic partner of Tehran's arch-foe the United States. There are some 2,500 US troops in Iraq as part of the international coalition against the Islamic State jihadist group. Baghdad and Washington have agreed on a timetable for the gradual withdrawal of the coalition's forces from the country. US forces in Iraq and Syria were repeatedly targeted by pro-Iran militants following the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023, but responded with heavy strikes on Tehran-linked targets, and the attacks largely subsided. Kuwait has several US bases, including Camp Arifjan, the location of the forward headquarters for the US Army component of CENTCOM. The US Army also has stocks of prepositioned materiel in the country. Ali al-Salem Air Base hosts the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing, which the military describes as the "primary airlift hub and gateway for delivering combat power to joint and coalition forces" in the region. Additionally, the United States has drones including MQ-9 Reapers in Kuwait. Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar includes the forward components of CENTCOM, as well as of its air forces and special operation forces in the region. It also hosts rotating combat aircraft, as well as the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, which the military says includes "airlift, aerial refueling intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, and aeromedical evacuation assets." The United States has for years maintained troop presences at a series of installations in Syria as part of international efforts against the Islamic State group, which rose out of the country's civil war to overrun large parts of Syria and neighboring Iraq. The Pentagon announced in April that it would roughly halve the number of its forces in the country to less than 1,000 in the coming months as part of a "consolidation" of US troops in the country. Al Dhafra Air Base in the UAE hosts the US 380th Air Expeditionary Wing, a force that is composed of 10 squadrons of aircraft and also includes drones such as MQ-9 Reapers. Combat aircraft have rotated through Al Dhafra, which also hosts the Gulf Air Warfare Center for air and missile defense training.
Int'l Business Times
2 hours ago
- Int'l Business Times
Democrat 'Briefed on Intelligence' Says 'Iran Posed No Imminent Threat,' Was Not on Verge of Nuclear Weapon as Claimed by Netanyahu and Trump
Connecticut Rep. Chris Murphy denounced Trump's attack on Iran on Sunday. Fallout continues from the Trump administration's surprise bombing of three Iranian nuclear sites early Sunday, as a Democratic lawmaker refutes claims that Iran was close to developing a "deliverable nuclear weapon." Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy is the latest lawmaker to condemn President Trump's unilateral decision to strike Iran early Sunday. He also challenged claims by the Trump administration and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has made similar assertions for decades, that Iran was on the verge of developing a nuclear weapon. "I was briefed on the intelligence last week," Murphy wrote in an X post shared late Saturday evening. "Iran posed no imminent threat of attack to the United States. Iran was not close to building a deliverable nuclear weapon." "The negotiations Israel scuttled with their strikes held the potential for success," he added, referring to the sixth round of talks between Iran and the U.S., which was scheduled for June 15, just two days before Israel launched its unprovoked attack on Iran. I was briefed on the intelligence last week. Iran posed no imminent threat of attack to the United States. Iran was not close to building a deliverable nuclear weapon. The negotiations Israel scuttled with their strikes held the potential for success. — Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 22, 2025 In a follow-up X post, Murphy reiterated that Iran was at the negotiating table, "which makes this attack—with all its enormous risks—so reckless." "The context matter. We know—for certain—there is a diplomatic path to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. The Obama agreement was working. And as late as a week ago, Iran was back at the table again," Murphy wrote. The context matters. We know - for certain - there is a diplomatic path to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. The Obama agreement was working. And as late as a week ago, Iran was back at the table again. Which makes this attack - with all its enormous risks - so reckless. — Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 22, 2025 In addition to U.S. lawmakers, including Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Ortiz, speaking out against Trump's attack on Iran, leaders from around the world denounced the escalation in the Israel-Iran war, Al Jazeera reported. "I am gravely alarmed by the use of force by the United States against Iran today," United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. "This is a dangerous escalation in a region already on the edge – and a direct threat to international peace and security." Russia's foreign ministry strongly condemned the attack. In a statement released Sunday, the ministry stated the attack was an "irresponsible decision to subject the territory of a sovereign state to missile and bomb attacks, whatever the arguments it may be presented with, flagrantly violates international law, the Charter of the United Nations and the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council." UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer showed his support for Trumps' attack, writing in a statement that "Iran's nuclear programme is a grave threat to international security." "Iran can never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon and the US has taken action to alleviate that threat," Starmer said in a statement, echoing Trump and Netanyahu's unverified claim. Originally published on Latin Times Nuclear weapons Donald trump © Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
DW
3 hours ago
- DW
Iran says US must 'receive a response' to strikes – DW – 06/22/2025
Iran's president has said his country has to respond following US attacks on Iranian nuclear sites. The US called operation "Midnight Hammer" an "overwhelming success." Follow DW for Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned against "another cycle of destruction" during an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council following the US bombing of nuclear sites in Iran. "I have repeatedly condemned any military escalation in the Middle East," the UN chief said. "And yet, we now risk descending into a rathole of retaliation after retaliation." Guterres said the bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities marks a "perilous turn in a region already reeling." Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the United States must "receive a response" to its attacks on nuclear sites in Iran. "The Americans must receive a response to their aggression," Pezeshkian told French President Emmanuel Macron, according to the official IRNA news agency. In a post on X, Macron said that during the conversation with Pezeshkian, he "called for de-escalation and for Iran to exercise the utmost restraint in this dangerous context, to allow a return to diplomatic channels." Pezeshkian called on Iranians to unite in the face of the attacks from Israel and the US. He joined a march in Tehran where demonstrators chanted slogans against Israel and the US, the Fars news agency reported. Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said earlier Sunday that there would be "everlasting consequences" for the US attacks. The State Department has ordered all non-essential personnel and the families of staff at the US Embassy in Lebanon to leave as concerns mount about Iranian retaliation for US strikes in Iran. In a notice issued on Sunday, the State Department said it had taken the step "due to the volatile and unpredictable security situation in the region." The notice made no mention of any potential evacuation flights or other assistance for private US citizens wanting to leave Lebanon but said they should try to use existing commercial services to depart. The US has already organized several evacuations of American citizens from Israel and is advising American citizens in Iran on how to leave the country. Iran's Supreme National Security Council must make the final decision on whether to close the Strait of Hormuz following US bombing raids, Iran's Press TV said on Sunday. Parliament is reported to have backed the measure, with Iran having long used the threat of closing the Strait, through which around 20% of global oil and gas demand flows, to fend off pressure from the West. Tensions are at their highest following the overnight US strikes on its nuclear facilities. A decision to close the strait is not yet final. Esmail Kosari, a member of parliament's national security commission, was quoted on Iranian media as saying: "For now, [parliament has] come to the conclusion we should close the Strait of Hormuz, but the final decision in this regard is the responsibility of the Supreme National Security Council." Kosari, who is also a Revolutionary Guards Commander, had earlier told the Young Journalist Club that closing the strait was on the agenda and would be done "whenever necessary." Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi had dodged the question when he was pressed, replying: "A variety of options are available to Iran." The strait lies between Oman and Iran and links the Mideast Gulf north of it with the Gulf of Oman to the south and the Arabian Sea beyond. It is 21 miles (33 kilometers) wide at its narrowest point, with the shipping lane just two miles wide in either direction. Israel said that it deployed around 30 fighter jets to carry out massive attacks in Iran on Sunday. With the move, Israel has expanded its offensive launched more than a week ago, a military spokesman said in a statement. The statement said Israel had "struck dozens of military targets throughout Iran," including "the 'Imam Hussein' Strategic Missile Command Center in the Yazd area, where long-range Khorramshahr missiles were stored." The Israeli military also confirmed strikes on missile launchers in the Bushehr province, where a "massive explosion" was reported by Iranian media. It also confirmed strikes in Ahvaz in the southwest and central Isfahan, which is home to a uranium conversion facility targeted by more than two dozen missiles fired from a US submarine in the Middle East overnight. Israeli military spokesman Effie Defrin said there would be no interruption in the offensive against Iran after overnight US strikes. "We are continuing and are determined to achieve the objectives of the operation: eliminating the existential threat to the state of Israel, damaging Iran's nuclear programme and destroying its missile systems," Defrin said. The UN's nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi told CNN on Sunday that it was not yet possible to assess the damage done after US strikes hit Iran's Fordo enrichment site, which is buried in a mountain. Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also called on all sides to return to the "negotiating table as soon as possible." He added that "inspectors need to be able to return to Iran's nuclear sites." Inspectors have not been able to inspect Iran's nuclear facilities since the first strikes on them by Israel on June 13. Grossi added the UN nuclear body would hold an "emergency meeting" at the organization's headquarters in Vienna on Monday in response to the US strikes. Meanwhile, the IAEA wrote on the social media platform X that it had not detected any increase in radiation levels at key nuclear sites in Iran after the US strikes. "Following attacks on three nuclear sites in Iran... the IAEA can confirm that no increase in off-site radiation levels has been reported as of this time," the watchdog said on X. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the world was "safer" after the US strikes on Iran. He spoke about the strikes on US broadcaster Fox News' show "Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo." Rubio warned Iran against retaliating against the US, saying such an action would be "the worst mistake they've ever made." "I think the world today is safer and more stable than it was 24 hours ago," he said, warning Iran that it risked further reprisals if it insisted on maintaining a "secret" nuclear program. Iran has said its nuclear program serves exclusively civilian purposes. Rubio accused Iran of entering into "fake negotiations" ahead of the strikes in a bid to "play" US President Donald Trump. Officials from the US and Iran had been scheduled to meet on June 15, but that meeting was canceled after Israel launched attacks on Iran on June 13. US Vice President JD Vance said his country was only at war with Iran's nuclear program, adding that the program had been pushed back following US airstrikes ordered by President Donald Trump. "We're not at war with Iran. We're at war with Iran's nuclear program," Vance said in an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press with Kristen Welker." "I think that we have really pushed their program back by a very long time," Vance said. "I think that it's going to be many, many years before the Iranians are going to be able to develop a nuclear weapon." The US had been in diplomatic talks with Iran about Tehran's nuclear program, but Vance accused Iran of not negotiating in good faith, which he said served as a catalyst for US strikes. "We don't want a regime change," Vance added. "We do not want to protract this... We want to end the nuclear program, and then we want to talk to the Iranians about a long-term settlement here. "I actually think it provides an opportunity to reset this relationship, reset these negotiations and get us in a place where Iran can decide not to be a threat to its neighbors, not to a threat to the United States and if they're willing to do that, the United States is all ears," Vance said. Vance explained that Trump made the final decision to strike Iran right before the strikes took place and that Washington has received some "indirect" messages from Tehran since the strikes. He did not elaborate on the content of the messages. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that by bombing nuclear program sites in Iran, the US had "blown up diplomacy." (See entry below) To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video America's top military officer, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine, told reporters on Sunday that overnight US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities had included 14 massive ordnance penetrator or "bunker-buster" bombs, more than two dozen Tomahawk missiles and over 125 military aircraft. Caine called "Operation Midnight Hammer" the largest B-2 operational strike in US history, explaining that seven B-2 stealth bombers had flown 18 hours from the US mainland to Iran and refueled mid-air several times along the way to carry out the mission. Despite claims from President Trump and Secretary of Defense Hegseth that Iran's nuclear program was "obliterated", Caine said a battle damage assessment was still ongoing. He said US troops in the region were given no advanced warning and remain on high alert. The general said initial assessments indicated "extreme damage and destruction" at three Iranian nuclear sites. Caine said the US troops had used deceptive tactics and completed their mission of delivering some 75 precision-guided weapons to targets inside Iran undetected — maintaining the element of surprise throughout. Adding that "no other military in the world could have done this," Caine advised Iran to refrain from striking back against the US, saying that to do so would be "a poor choice." Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) issued a warning to US military bases in the Middle East after overnight US airstrikes on the country's nuclear sites. "By attacking the peaceful nuclear facilities, [US forces] have de facto put themselves in direct danger," the IRGC said, according to the Fars news agency. Iran, it said, would "use options beyond the understanding... of the agressor front, and the aggressors of this land must expect regrettable responses." The overnight US airstrikes ordered by US President Donald Trump targeted nuclear facilities in three locations in Iran, including the well-fortified uranium enrichment plant at Fordo. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The IRGC also said it would continue to target Israel, which has been hit by multiple waves of missile and drone attacks since Israel struck Iran on June 13. The United States has many bases around the Persian Gulf, including in Bahrain and Qatar. Some are located relatively close to Iran, which could make them targets of retaliation. Around 40,000 members of the US military are currently stationed in the region. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Sunday called military strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities "an incredible and overwhelming success" that had "obliterated Iran's nuclear ambitions." Hegseth said neither Iranian troops nor civilians had been targeted in the US operation. Just hours after the airstrikes on Iran, Hegseth echoed President Trump, claiming the US "seeks peace." He went on to say, "We will act swiftly and decisively when our people, our partners or our interests are threatened." Hegseth praised Trump for the operation, which he said had been months in the making: "The operation President Trump planned was bold and it was brilliant, showing the world that American deterrence is back. When this president speaks, the world should listen." Iranian media have reported "massive" blasts in the southern city of Bushehr, home to Iran's only nuclear reactor. Iranian authorities have not yet reported any problem at the plant, which is operated with Russian assistance. The cause of the blasts was not immediately clear. China's Foreign Ministry has criticized the US attacks on Iran, saying they "escalate tensions in the Middle East" and go against the UN Charter. Among other things, it said it condemned the targeting of nuclear facilities supervised by the International Atomic Energy Agency. "China calls on all parties to the conflict, especially Israel, to cease fire as soon as possible," the ministry said in a statement. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
