Iran's regime is 'quite weak', hard to see Tehran having the last say as escalation window narrows: CFR

Council on Foreign Relations' Steven Cook warns against underestimating Israeli ingenuity, saying years of preparation may allow strikes on Iran's Fordow site even without U.S. bunker busters

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The Hill

27 minutes ago

• The Hill

US moving B-2 bombers as Trump weighs Iran response: Reports

Department of Defense (DOD) officials are moving B-2 bombers across the Pacific as President Trump weighs intervening in Israel's war on Iran. Reports from Reuters say the 30,000-pound 'bunker buster bombs' will be stored on the island of Guam while Trump considers the possibility of striking Iran. The DOD referred The Hill's request for comment to the White House, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Flight tracking data shows several aircraft leaving Travis Air Force Base with B-2s following the president's statement allotting a two-week deadline for a decision on U.S. intervention in Iran. The bombers were originally being held in Missouri and would likely be used to damage the Fordo nuclear fuel enrichment plant in Iran. Fordo is Iran's second nuclear enrichment facility after Natanz, which was hit by Israeli forces on Friday. The attacks damaged the facility and furthered the Israeli objective to obliterate Iran's efforts to develop nuclear weapons of war. Israel on Saturday said it struck an Iranian nuclear facility in Isfahan and killed two additional top commanders as the clash between the two Middle Eastern countries expands. Israeli Air Force fighter jets later in the day also moved to strike military infrastructure in southwestern Iran, according to an Israeli military statement. Ahead of Saturday's strikes, Iran fired 40 drones overnight on Friday that were intercepted by Israel, according to the IDF. 'We've been able to take out a large amount of their launchers, creating a bottleneck — we're making it harder for them to fire toward Israel,' an Israeli military official told AP on the condition of anonymity. 'Having said all that, I want to say the Iranian regime obviously still has capabilities.' Earlier this week, Israel Defense Forces said they'd killed multiple top commanders and nine engineers working on Iran's nuclear projects. Trump said the conflict would continue until an 'UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER' was supported by Iran. However, the Iranian Supreme Leader said they would continue to defend themselves amidst the rubble. 'I would like to tell our dear nation that if the enemy senses that you fear them, they won't let go of you. Continue the very behavior that you have had up to this day; continue this behavior with strength,' Ali Khamenei wrote in a post on X.

Boston Globe

an hour ago

• Boston Globe

Sheltering in a bunker, Iran's supreme leader names potential successors

Khamenei has taken an extraordinary series of steps to preserve the Islamic Republic ever since Israel launched a series of surprise attacks last Friday. Although only a week old, the Israeli strikes are the biggest military assault on Iran since its war with Iraq in the 1980s. Iran appears to have overcome its initial shock, reorganizing enough to launch daily counterstrikes of its own on Israel. Iran's top officials are also quietly making preparations for a wide range of outcomes as the war intensifies and as President Donald Trump considers whether to enter the fight. Advertisement Peering inside Iran's closely guarded leadership can be difficult, but its chain of command still seems to be functioning, despite being hit hard, and there are no obvious signs of dissent in the political ranks. Khamenei, 86, is aware that either Israel or the United States could try to assassinate him. Given the possibility, the ayatollah has made the unusual decision to instruct his nation's Assembly of Experts, the clerical body responsible for appointing the supreme leader, to choose his successor swiftly from the three names he has provided. Advertisement Normally, the process of appointing a new supreme leader could take months, with clerics picking and choosing from their own lists of names. But with the nation now at war, the ayatollah wants to ensure a quick, orderly transition and to preserve his legacy. 'The top priority is the preservation of the state,' said Vali Nasr, an Iran expert and professor of international affairs at Johns Hopkins University. This article originally appeared in

Newsweek

an hour ago

• Newsweek

Satellite Images Show Israeli Strike Damage to Iranian Nuclear Site

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Israeli military has released satellite images showing the destruction from its Friday night strikes on an Iranian nuclear facility in Isfahan. The strikes come as the conflict enters its ninth day. Newsweek has reached out to Iran's Foreign Ministry for comment via email on Saturday. Why It Matters This month, the conflict between Israel and Iran has escalated dramatically, with President Donald Trump calling for the evacuation of Tehran, Iran's capital city home to over 9.5 million people. Israel initially struck Tehran and several other cities in "Operation Rising Lion," a campaign it said was meant to preempt a planned Iranian attack and disrupt Iran's nuclear capabilities. Iran, which has said its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, has since retaliated, though Israeli defense systems—bolstered by U.S. military technology—have intercepted about 99 percent of incoming missile fire, according to Israeli officials on Saturday morning in an X, formerly Twitter, post. Iran hit a hospital in southern Israel on Thursday, and local reports noted that buildings in Tel Aviv were on fire from Iranian missiles on Friday. The U.S. is Israel's closest ally, providing billions of dollars in military aid annually. Following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Iran disintegrated, and the two countries have held strained, distrusting relations over the past four-decades. Iran's nuclear program has long been a focal point of U.S. and Israeli concern, with Iran insisting its efforts are solely for energy purposes. The second Trump administration had been involved in talks with Iran ahead of the conflict, although no formal diplomacy has come out of it. During his first presidency, Trump withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as the Iran Nuclear Deal. What To Know The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shared a video compilation on X on Saturday showing satellite imagery and footage of Isfahan Nuclear Technology Center, which it struck on Friday night. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in statement on Saturday that the center was "was previously under IAEA monitoring and verification as part of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), including with installed Agency cameras." IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said: "We know this facility well. There was no nuclear material at this site and therefore the attack on it will have no radiological consequences." "Overnight, we deepened the strike on the nuclear site in Isfahan and in western Iran. On the screen, you can see the site where reconversion of enriched uranium takes place. This is the stage following enrichment in the process of developing a nuclear weapon," IDF spokesperson Effie Defrin wrote on X. Israel had previously struck the center in the opening days of its attacks this month. Building upon the last strike, "last night, we struck it again in a wide-scale strike to reinforce our achievements," Defrin wrote in the post. Grossi, previously confirmed in a Friday statement, that four buildings were damaged in Israel's prior attack on the compound, "the central chemical laboratory, a uranium conversion plant, the Tehran reactor-fuel manufacturing plant, and the enriched uranium metal processing facility, which was under construction." "Overnight, we deepened the strike on the nuclear site in Isfahan and in western Iran. On the screen, you can see the site where reconversion of enriched uranium takes place. This is the stage following enrichment in the process of developing a nuclear weapon. We had already... — Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 21, 2025 The IDF's Saturday morning video shows several buildings in a compound scorched, smoking and strewn with significant, structural debris. Iranian state media reported that the attack damaged the site but did not lead to any contamination. Israel also struck sites in southwestern Iran on Friday night. Over the past nine days, Israel has struck numerous Iranian sites, both nuclear facilities, including Natanz, as well as residential areas, with at least 630 people have been killed in Iran, with more than 1,300 wounded according to the Associated Press. Meanwhile, Israel states that 24 people have been killed from Iranian strikes. Several diplomats met for talks in Geneva on Friday, but the efforts failed to produce a breakthrough. Some embassies in Iran, including Germany's, have begun closing amid the ongoing conflict. Black smoke billows from the headquarters of Iranian state television in Tehran following an Israeli attack on June 16. Black smoke billows from the headquarters of Iranian state television in Tehran following an Israeli attack on June 16. 2025 Kyodo News/Ap Images What People Are Saying Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said in June 20 statement: "Attacks on nuclear sites in the Islamic Republic of Iran have caused a sharp degradation in nuclear safety and security in Iran. Though they have not so far led to a radiological release affecting the public, there is a danger this could occur." Mike Huckabee, U.S. ambassador to Israel, said in a June 21 post on X: "The Department of State has begun assisted departure flights from Israel." Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said in a June 18 X post: "Iran solely acts in self-defense. Even in the face of the most outrageous aggression against our people, Iran has so far only retaliated against the Israeli regime and not those who are aiding and abetting it. Just like Netanyahu manufactured this war to destroy diplomacy, the world should be highly alarmed about increasing attempts by the failing Israeli regime to get others to bail it out and to expand the flames to the region and beyond." The post continued: "Iran has proven in action what it has always publicly committed itself to: we have never sought and will never seek nuclear weapons. If otherwise, what better pretext could we possibly need for developing those inhuman weapons than the current aggression by the region's only nuclear-armed regime?" What Happens Next? The conflict remains volatile, with Israel continuing its military campaign and Iran vowing not to back down. Trump has said he will wait up to two weeks before deciding whether to support U.S. involvement in the attacks. Meanwhile, reports indicate American bombers and naval fleets are mobilizing in preparation. In a Saturday notice, the State Department said, "U.S. citizens seeking to depart Israel or the West Bank should take the first available option, even if it is not your first choice of destination." The department has "begun assisted departure flights from Israel," it said, noting that U.S. citizens awaiting to government assistance to leaving Israel should complete a crisis intake form. Due to the closure of the Iranian airspace, U.S. citizens seeking to leave the country should "depart by land to Azerbaijan, Armenia, or Türkiye if they deem conditions are safe/if they can do so safely." "Because of the limitations on consular support in Iran, we do not anticipate offering direct U.S. government assisted departure from Iran. U.S. citizens seeking departure should take advantage of existing means to leave Iran," the notice said.