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Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Missiles hit hospitals, homes and families: Inside Israel's terrifying Iranian bombardment
CENTRAL ISRAEL - At least six people were seriously wounded Thursday morning when an Iranian ballistic missile struck Be'er Sheva's Soroka Medical Center, part of a broader barrage that also scored direct hits on Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, and Holon. "We are hitting nuclear targets and missile targets precisely, and they are hitting the pediatric ward of the hospital. That says it all," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while surveying the damage at the hospital. The attacks on Israel have left many homeless and lucky to be alive. Ariel Levin-Waldman is one such person. He was at his in-laws' home in Rishon LeZion, where he and his family had been staying for several months during renovations to their own house—when an Iranian missile struck the residential neighborhood. The attack killed two people and injured dozens; a third victim died during an earlier wave of Iranian strikes. Iran Strikes Major Israeli Hospital After Claiming Israel Hit Its Arak Heavy Water Reactor "At around 5 a.m., I got the same missile alert everyone in the country gets," Levin-Waldman told Fox News Digital. "I grabbed my phone, ran downstairs with my wife and kids, and we made it to the shelter. My mother-in-law joined us." Then the missile hit the building. Read On The Fox News App "There was a flash of light, and everything went dark. We were choking, struggling to breathe," Levin-Waldman said. Realizing help might not arrive in time, he continued, "I couldn't wait to be rescued. We were suffocating, and I was afraid we'd be buried alive." Levin-Waldman tried to survey the damage inside the shelter, but the thick cloud of dust made it nearly impossible to see. All he could make out was that his arms and legs were still intact. The floor had become uneven, and the walls were damaged from the force of the blast. It was at that moment he realized the explosion had propelled a book cabinet across the shelter, hitting his mother-in-law in the head. "She was bleeding heavily, and I realized she had been calling out 'save us' in Hebrew, but her voice was faint," he recalled. "I managed to lift the cabinet off my mother-in-law, and when I did, I saw a potential escape route. I cleared the way so my wife, Tali, and our two-and-a-half-year-old, Renana, could get through. I had Ayala, my seven-week-old baby, on my shoulders as I made the opening. It was just enough to get them out." As they emerged, firefighters guided them to safety onto the street. In front of Levin-Waldman stood a wall of rubble where his car had once been, and his feet were cut by glass from the explosion. Everything You Need To Know About Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader Of Iran Unable to climb over the debris with his younger child on his shoulders, he handed her to a paramedic. Once he climbed over himself, he looked around—only to realize Ayala was no longer in sight. "Here I was, covered in dust and blood, almost naked, wandering the street screaming, 'Where is my child?" he recalled. Some people thought the worst. It took about 30 minutes to find her." Only 20 hours after Levin-Waldman survived the attack, another Iranian missile struck a building across from the hotel where he was staying in Rehovot. "The blast shattered the windows, and the entire building shook. We had a whole floor of people from our neighborhood traumatized, reliving the experience," he told Fox News Digital. "The hardest part is confronting how fragile we are and how close we came to disaster," he said. Since the conflict began on June 13, Iranian missile attacks have killed 24 Israelis and wounded over 800. The missiles do not discriminate—neither between men and women, children and the elderly, nor between Jew and Arab. That reality was tragically underscored over the weekend when four women were killed by a ballistic missile that scored a direct hit on their home in the predominantly Arab town of Tamra, just north of Haifa. These terror missiles also make no distinction between the political left and right. Israeli Opposition Leader Yair Lapid dodged a tragedy on Monday when his son's house in Tel Aviv suffered damage from the aftershock of a direct missile impact that left many residents of the central metropolis homeless. "My one-year-old granddaughter's bed was covered in glass from an explosion caused by an Iranian missile. It is horrific to think what would have happened if she had been in bed," Lapid told Fox News Digital. "This is the enemy we are facing—a regime dedicated to our destruction and aiming to kill as many innocent children as possible. We have to remove the nuclear threat and the missile threat—for the safety of Israel and the world," he added. Coalition lawmaker Hanoch Mildwisky, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's ruling Likud Party, lives across the street from a building in Petah Tikva–located 6.5 miles east of Tel Aviv–which sustained damage in an Iranian attack that killed four people. "There were dislodged windows and cracks in the walls," Mildwisky told Fox News Digital. "In the building that was hit, there were unfortunately casualties. It was a very large missile, carrying nearly a ton of explosives, so the blast was massive and caused significant damage even hundreds of meters away from the impact site." Tugboats, Cruise Ships And Flights: Israel Begins Emergency Evacuation Of Citizens Amid Iran War Mildwisky emphasized that Iran must not be allowed to possess atomic bombs or the capability to develop them—particularly given the regime's repeated declarations of intent to destroy the Jewish state. As long as the threat remains, he said, Israel will be forced to continue its military operations. Jamal Waraki, a Muslim volunteer with the ZAKA emergency service, had just completed a rescue mission—pulling an 80-year-old man from the rubble—when he returned home at 7:00 a.m. on Sunday to find his own house destroyed. "That night, there was a missile impact in Rehovot. We tended to the building that had sustained a direct hit. Once we finished, I went home and discovered that my place too had been struck," Jamal told Fox News Digital. Thankfully, no one was home at the time. Jamal's family had been staying with his mother-in-law in Eilat, where they still are. While awaiting the finalization of new housing arrangements, Jamal has been sleeping in his car. Lihi Griner is well known in Israel due to her appearance in the local spinoff of the Big Brother reality TV show. She was in her safe room with her husband and three children when the Iranian missile struck Petah Tikva, in the same neighborhood as lawmaker Mildwisky. Griner resides in a complex with four residential buildings, one of which was directly hit. "There was a huge boom," she told Fox News Digital. "The kids were shocked, they started to cry, and we kept telling ourselves that there was an impact, but we're alive. It was surreal. I couldn't believe it happened to me." After receiving the all-clear to leave the safe room, she opened the door and found everything was completely destroyed. "Our windows were blown out of the walls, the doors were broken in half, the walls were damaged with big cracks, and all the balconies in the front of the building were demolished," said Griner. Initially, residents were sent to a school across the street, where authorities offered hotel options at no cost. Soldiers later escorted Griner's family back to their apartment so they could retrieve their belongings. While the residence is now safe, they can't sleep there due to the lack of windows. "I live day by day. I'm just happy we're alive. It gives us time to figure out what comes next," Griner said. For Levin-Waldman, what came next was an unexpected phone call from the Rishon Lezion municipality on Wednesday. To his relief, another member of the family had been found alive and unharmed four days after the attack: their dog, article source: Missiles hit hospitals, homes and families: Inside Israel's terrifying Iranian bombardment
The National
9 hours ago
- Health
- The National
The National reports from Israeli hospital hit by Iranian missile
Israel was hit on Thursday by what appears to be the largest wave of attacks since the war with Iran broke out, with a hospital suffering extensive damage. An Iranian missile unleashed destruction on the sprawling Soroka hospital complex in the southern Israeli city of Be'er Sheva. The National saw shattered glass, water dripping from burst pipes, mangled cars, and fallen cladding at the site. Medics said some urgent care is still being delivered but cannot say when operations will be back to normal. The Israeli military said search and rescue forces were working in 'several locations across the country'.
Free Malaysia Today
13 hours ago
- Health
- Free Malaysia Today
Iran says ‘main target' of attack that hit Israel hospital was military site
Smoke rises from a building at the Soroka Hospital complex after it was hit by an Iranian missile in Be'er Sheva. (AP pic) TEHRAN : Iran said Thursday the main target of a missile attack that hit a hospital in southern Israel was an Israeli military and intelligence base, not the health facility. A hospital in southern Israel and two towns near Tel Aviv were struck after a barrage of Iranian missiles, with Israeli rescuers reporting at least 47 people injured in Iran's latest attacks. 'The main target of the attack was the Israeli Army Command and Intelligence Base (IDF C4I) and the Army Intelligence Camp in Gav-Yam Technology Park, located in the vicinity of the Soroka Hospital,' state news agency IRNA said. It said the hospital was 'exposed only to the blast wave', and that the 'direct and precise target' was the military facility.
Forbes
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Forbes
Trump Will Decide Whether To Strike Or Negotiate With Iran Soon (Live Updates)
President Donald Trump will decide whether to strike or negotiate with Iran within the next two weeks, according to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who said there is a 'substantial chance' of negotiations with Iran as the conflict between the country and Israel continues to intensify. Smokes raises from a building of the Soroka hospital complex in Be'er Sheva, Israel after it was hit ... More by a missile fired from Iran. June 19, 1:35 p.m. ETLeavitt provided a statement on behalf of Trump to reporters, saying there is a 'substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran' soon and the president will make his decision 'on whether or not to go within the next two weeks.' Leavitt also said Steve Witkoff, Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, is still in contact with Iranian officials. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Israeli news outlet Kan that Israel will strike 'all' of Iran's nuclear facilities but did not disclose a timeline of when the strikes will take place. June 19, 12:16 p.m. ETIran issued a warning to any 'third party' involvement in its conflict with Israel, seemingly referencing the U.S. without directly mentioning it and threatening an 'immediate response,' according to CNN. June 19, 6:45 a.m. ETTom Barrack, the U.S. Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy for Syria, warned the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah against joining the Israel-Iran conflict. Hezbollah has criticized Israel's strikes on Iran and on Thursday it warned that the assassination threats against Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei 'are foolish and reckless, and will have disastrous consequences.' Barrack, who is on an official visit to Beirut, addressed the militant group's threat, saying: 'I can say on behalf of President Trump, which he has been very clear in expressing as has Special Envoy Witkoff: that would be a very, very, very bad decision.' June 19, 4 a.m. ETIranian state media claimed the main target of the missile attack which damaged a hospital in southern Israel was the 'vast command and intelligence base' of the Israeli military's C4i tech and communications unit and 'the campus of their military intelligence, located in the Gav-Yam technology park.' The hospital which was struck appears to be located less than two miles away from the Gav-Yam technology park. 3:30 a.m. ETIsrael's Defense Minister Israel Katz said he and Netanyahu have ordered the country's military to 'intensify strikes against strategic targets' in Iran after the latest wave of missile attacks. Katz accused the Iranian Supreme Leader of committing the 'gravest of war crimes' and said 'The cowardly Iranian dictator sits in the depths of the fortified bunker and fires aimed shots at hospitals and residential buildings in Israel.' 3 a.m. ETThe Soroka Medical Center, a hospital in the southern Israeli city of Be'er Sheva was struck by an Iranian missile which caused 'extensive damage' but no serious injuries, according to authorities in Israel. The strike was the first time a hospital in Israel was struck by an Iranian missile since the conflict between the two countries began last week. Overall 65 people were injured across Israel in the latest barrage of missile strikes launched by Iran. June 18, 4:48 p.m. ETThe State Department is conducting the evacuations of nonessential diplomats, the Associated Press reported, noting diplomats were authorized to leave at the government's expense Wednesday (Forbes has reached out to the State Department for comment). June 18, 2:45 p.m. ETSome embassy personnel were evacuated from Israel via U.S. military aircraft, according to CNN, which reported earlier Wednesday a full evacuation of the embassy was not ordered and diplomats and family members were not required to leave. June 18, 10:39 a.m. ETThe Iranian Mission to the U.N. said 'no Iranian official has ever asked to grovel at the gates of the White House,' in a post on X responding to Trump's claim made minutes earlier that Iran had contacted his administration, writing 'the only thing more despicable than his lies is his cowardly threat to 'take out' Iran's Supreme Leader.' June 18, 10:15 said 'You don't seriously think I'm going to answer that question . . . I may do it, I may not do it, I mean nobody knows what I'm going to do,' when asked by a reporter at an unrelated White House event if the U.S. is moving closer to striking Iranian nuclear facilities. Trump said the Iranians have reached out to him and he told them 'it's very late to be talking . . . there's a big difference between now and a week ago,' referring to Iran's refusal to accept a deal with the U.S. to prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon sooner. In subsequent comments, Trump said 'we're not looking for a long-term war . . . I only want one thing: Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,' while also elaborating on what he meant when he called for 'unconditional surrender' a day earlier: 'That means I've had it . . . I give up, no more. Then we go blow up all the nuclear stuff that's all over the place there.' June 18, 7 to a statement delivered via Iranian state media, the Supreme Leader said his country 'stands firm against an imposed war, just as it will stand firm against an imposed peace,' adding that Iran will 'not surrender to anyone in the face of imposition,' warning any U.S. involvement in the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict will undoubtedly lead to 'serious irreparable harm.' The Iranian leader also addressed President Trump's comments on Tuesday calling for Iran's 'unconditional surrender,' saying those who know his country's history 'know that Iranians do not answer well to the language of threats.' June 18, 3 attacks from both sides continued early on Wednesday as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office claimed Iran has launched more than 400 missiles and hundreds of drones since Friday. June 17, 6:30 House officials told multiple outlets Trump spoke with Netanyahu on Tuesday after a meeting with national security advisors, though the details of the conversation have not been publicly reported. June 17, 6 U.S. officials cited by Axios said Trump was seriously considering entering the conflict by launching strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities. June 17, 12:19 warned on Truth Social earlier Tuesday: 'We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding,' referring to Khamenei, who is increasingly isolated after Israel assassinated several of his top generals, adding Khamenei is 'safe' and 'we are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now,' but said 'our patience is wearing thin.' Tensions between Iran and Israel first erupted on Friday, when the Israel military carried out unilateral strikes against key nuclear facilities and killed several top Iranian generals and nuclear scientists. Netanyahu claimed Israel's attack was an act of self defense as the Iranian nuclear program posed 'a danger to Israel's very survival.' On Monday, Trump exited the G7 summit earlier than scheduled and flew back from Canada to Washington as tensions between Iran and Israel escalated, with the White House press secretary saying he left early 'because of what's going on in the Middle East.' Shortly before leaving the summit, Trump issued an ominous warning to residents of Tehran, Iran's capital, on Truth Social: 'Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON…Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!' At the time, Trump did not specify why he called for an evacuation of the city of 10 million people, but when asked later, Trump said: 'I want people to be safe…That's always possible something could happen. I just want people to be safe.' The president spoke to reporters on board Air Force One on his return to Washington and said he wanted something better than a ceasefire 'An end. A real end, not a ceasefire, an end,' and signaled that a only complete 'give up' by Iran would be acceptable. In a earlier post Trump, said: 'We now have complete and total control of the skies over had good sky trackers and other defensive equipment, and plenty of it, but it doesn't compare to American made, conceived, and manufactured stuff. Nobody does it better than the good ol' USA.' In a third post Tuesday morning, Trump called for an 'UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!' Trump has also warned Iran against targeting U.S. personnel or assets, saying if that happens 'we'll come down so hard, it'd be gloves off...I think they know not to touch our troops.' On Monday, Trump told reporters onboard Air Force One on the way back to the U.S. from the summit in Canada he wanted to see an end to Iran's nuclear program and said he's 'not too much in the mood to negotiate now.' Trump attacked French President Emmanuel Macron on Truth Social, describing him as 'publicity seeking' after he said Trump was flying out of the G7 summit early to work out a cease fire between Israel and Iran and 'then kick-start broader discussions.' Trump said Macron 'has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire,' and claimed it was something 'Much bigger than that.' Trump departed the G7 Summit early and returned to Washington on Monday night to 'attend to many important matters,' White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said. Shortly before he left Canada, the president told reporters Iran 'want to make a deal, and as soon as I leave here, we're going to be doing something. But I have to leave here.' Fox News reported on Monday evening that Trump had asked his national security to be present in the Situation Room when he returns to the White House. A U.S. official told reporters earlier on Monday Trump would not sign a draft statement of G7 leaders, which included a call for de-escalating the Israel-Iran conflict. The president eventually agreed to sign it after some changes were made to the statement's 'initial draft language,' according to the New York Times. The final statement notes: 'We, the leaders of the G7, reiterate our commitment to peace and stability in the Middle East.' The statement affirms Israel's 'right to defend itself,' describes Iran as the 'principal source of regional instability and terror,' and notes 'Iran can never have a nuclear weapon.' It also calls for a resolution of the ongoing crisis and 'a broader de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a cease fire in Gaza.' In a post on X, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi signaled he was open to talks resuming talks with the U.S. if Israel's strikes on Iran were halted. 'If President Trump is genuine about diplomacy and interested in stopping this war, next steps are consequential. Israel must halt its aggression, and absent a total cessation of military aggression against us, our responses will continue. It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu. That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy,' he wrote. The post also attacked Netanyahu, calling him a 'war criminal.' Lawmakers Make Bipartisan Push To Restrict Trump From Going To War With Iran (Forbes) Iranian Missiles Cause 'Minor Damage' To US Embassy In Tel Aviv—Israel Targets Elite Quds Force HQ (Forbes) Israel Attacks Iranian State TV During Live Broadcast (Forbes)
The Guardian
21 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Netanyahu stuns Israelis by describing ‘personal cost' of postponing son's wedding
Benjamin Netanyahu has evoked the spirit of London under the Blitz, and pointed to his own family's sacrifice amid the blood, toil, tears and sweat of his nation: the second postponement of his son's wedding. The Israeli prime minister's remarks, solemnly delivered to the cameras against the backdrop of a missile-struck hospital building in the southern city of Be'er Sheva, set off a howl of derision that echoed around the Hebrew-language internet, at the height of a war that Netanyahu unleashed on Friday. The stunning comments also added grist to the arguments of his critics that the prime minister is increasingly cut off emotionally from the daily realities of Israel and the region, after more than 17 years in office. Seeking to underline his family's shared hardship with ordinary Israelis, Netanyahu adopted a Churchillian tone when pointing out that this was not the first time his son Avner's wedding had needed to be postponed, and that Avner's fiancee was also disappointed, not to mention the thwarted mother of the groom, Netanyahu's wife, Sara. 'It really reminds me of the British people during the Blitz. We are going through a Blitz,' Netanyahu said, referring to the wartime Nazi bombing of Britain in which 43,000 civilians died. 'There are people who were killed, families who grieved loved ones, I really appreciate that,' he went on. The Israeli authorities say that 24 Israeli civilians have so far been killed. Washington-based human rights activists have estimated the Iranian civilian death toll to be 263. 'Each of us bears a personal cost, and my family has not been exempt,' Netanyahu said at the Soroka hospital, which was struck on Thursday morning by an Iranian missile, causing light injuries. 'This is the second time that my son Avner has canceled a wedding due to missile threats. It is a personal cost for his fiancee as well, and I must say that my dear wife is a hero, and she bears a personal cost.' Avner Netanyahu's wedding was first scheduled in November and had to be postponed for security reasons. Then it was due to take place on Monday, despite threat of opposition protests. Reports that the prime minister was going to take a few days off for the event may have contributed to Iran's complacency on Friday morning when the leadership was taken unawares by Israel's aerial attack. The Israeli backlash to Netanyahu's nuptial comments was instant and furious. Anat Angrest, whose son Matan has been held hostage since the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, observed that the suffering 'didn't go unnoticed by my family either'. 'I have been in the hellish dungeons of Gaza for 622 days now,' Angrest said in a post on the social media platform X. Gilad Kariv, a Knesset member for the Democrats, called Netanyahu a 'borderless narcissist'. 'I know many families who were not forced to postpone a wedding, but who will now never celebrate the weddings that were once meant to take place,' Kariv said. He was contemptuous of Netanyahu's claim that his wife, Sara, notorious in Israeli for her expensive tastes, was a hero. 'The doctors who leave home for night shifts are the heroes,' Kariv said. 'The teachers who keep our children together on Zoom and phone calls are the heroes.' Amir Tibon, an Israeli journalist, argued that public figures whose children had been killed in combat would never draw attention to the fact. 'But there are no surprises with Netanyahu,' Tibon said. 'Even in moments when a personal example is most needed, he is first and foremost concerned with himself.'
