Latest news with #IsraelKatz
LBCI
37 minutes ago
- Health
- LBCI
Missile strike on Tel Aviv triggers Israeli threats against Iran's Supreme Leader — the details
Report by Amal Shehadeh, English adaptation by Mariella Succar A wave of Iranian missiles struck southern and central Israel early Thursday, including Tel Aviv, leaving at least 200 people injured and causing widespread damage to residential buildings and infrastructure. The attack triggered scenes of destruction and panic across the country, with many Israelis describing it as an unprecedented moment of fear and anxiety. The scale of the strike prompted Israeli leaders to escalate their threats against Tehran. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened to assassinate Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pointed to the targeting of Soroka Medical Center in the southern city of Be'er Sheva as justification for intensifying Israeli strikes on Iran. The threats came amid scenes of chaos across the country, after air raid sirens reportedly failed to activate in Tel Aviv and several other areas. According to military estimates, one of the missiles that exploded over central Israel was equipped with a cluster warhead, dispersing smaller explosive submunitions across several areas near Tel Aviv, including Jaffa, Or Yehuda, and Gush Dan. Israeli officials believe the use of such warheads serves two purposes: first, to relieve pressure on Iranian cities facing Israeli bombardment; and second, to increase psychological pressure on the Israeli public by targeting civilian areas and a major hospital—moves aimed at fueling demands within Israel to end the war. While reports initially suggested that a missile hit the hospital directly, several Israeli experts clarified that it landed nearby. Had it struck the hospital itself, they said, the number of casualties would have been far higher. Despite the attacks, the Israeli military remains committed to continuing its operations as it awaits a U.S. response. Defense officials are also pressing for an $8.5 billion boost in the military budget to restock weapons and sustain the war effort.
CNN
39 minutes ago
- Politics
- CNN
Analysis: What Israeli officials say publicly vs. privately on US involvement
Analysis: What Israeli officials say publicly vs. privately on US involvement Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reasserted President Donald Trump is 'a tremendous friend of Israel' after Iranian missiles struck Soroka Hospital. CNN's Clarissa Ward reports from Tel Aviv on what officials are saying publicly and privately. 01:32 - Source: CNN Iranian missile strikes major Israeli medical center CNN's International Diplomatic Editor, Nic Robertson, reports from Beer Sheva, Israel, where a hospital was struck during an Iranian attack. Iran said it was targeting an Israeli intelligence and command center 'near a hospital.' There have been no reported deaths from the strike. 01:04 - Source: CNN Israel's defense minister: Khamenei cannot 'continue to exist' Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz said Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei cannot be allowed to 'continue to exist,' after an Israeli hospital was struck by an Iranian missile on Thursday. 00:13 - Source: CNN CNN correspondent reports on the ground in Tehran Air defense systems had been activated over Tehran overnight, according to a Telegram post from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. CNN's Fred Pleitgen reports on the scene. 01:41 - Source: CNN CNN on the ground in Tehran CNN's Fred Pleitgen is in Iran's capital city of Tehran and is the first western journalist to enter the country since its conflict with Israel started. Hear his first impressions and what he's witnessed as he journeyed across Iran. 01:28 - Source: CNN Trump says decision on Iran will come down to the last second CNN's Kaitlan Collins asks President Trump if he has made a final decision on whether to intervene in the Israel-Iran conflict. 01:12 - Source: CNN This is how the US could get involved in the Israel-Iran conflict CNN's Nick Paton Walsh reports on how the US could get involved in the conflict between Israel and Iran while the countries continue trading strikes for a sixth day, with civilians in flashpoint areas facing waves of attacks. 02:14 - Source: CNN Trump open to assisting Israel in conflict with Iran CNN's Kaitlan Collins gives the latest reporting on the White House debating whether to intervene in the Israel-Iran conflict. 00:58 - Source: CNN Woman gives birth to triplets in underground Israeli hospital A woman gave birth to triplets Monday in Israel's Rambam hospital, one of several in the country that have moved some operations underground as Iranian strikes hit the city of Haifa this week, according to Reuters. 00:44 - Source: CNN What Iranian residents are texting to CNN as strikes hit As Israeli strikes zeroed in on Iran's capital city of Tehran, CNN's Clarissa Ward reports from Tel Aviv some of the messages she's received from residents in Iran offering a glimpse into the daily anxieties of living in a country faced with an ever-escalating conflict in the sky. 01:33 - Source: CNN Trump disputes intel chief Tulsi Gabbard on Iran President Donald Trump disputed his own director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, on how developed Iran's nuclear capabilities are and said Iran was on the verge of obtaining a nuclear weapon when Israel struck in recent days. 00:26 - Source: CNN Trump tells CNN reporter why he left G7 As President Donald Trump returns to the United States after leaving the G7 summit early, he took questions from journalists aboard Air Force One. Watch his answer to CNN's Chief White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins' question on why he left early. 00:44 - Source: CNN Trump slams Macron's comment on why he had to leave G7 summit early US President Donald Trump called out French President Emmanuel Macron over his counterpart's suggestion that he left the G7 summit to work on a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. "He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire," Trump wrote on Truth Social. 00:35 - Source: CNN Kaitlan Collins explains why Trump left G7 summit early President Donald Trump is heading back early to Washington from the G7 summit in Canada, as the conflict between Israel and Iran enters its fifth day. CNN's Kaitlan Collins reports on the escalating attacks between the two sides and Trump's warning to civilians in Tehran. 00:55 - Source: CNN Ex-Israeli Defense Minister's message to Trump Benny Gantz, Chairman of Israel's National Unity Party, and the former Minister of Defense speaks to CNN's Anderson Cooper following Israel's attack on Iran. 01:08 - Source: CNN Video shows Pakistani students returning home from Tehran Hundreds of Pakistani students who left their studies in Tehran amid daily strikes on the city by Israel, have crossed back into Pakistan, a local official told CNN. 00:28 - Source: CNN CNN team sees strike damage in Tel Aviv Residents in Tel Aviv, Israel, are reeling after another round of Iranian strikes on the city overnight. CNN's International Diplomatic Editor Nic Robertson visits a street in the center of the city where buildings were severely damaged and windows blown out by Iranian missiles. 01:28 - Source: CNN What we know about Iran's key nuclear site It's key to Iran's nuclear program: the Fordow plant - in a mountain lair where hundreds of centrifuges, hidden possibly 90 meters underground, enrich uranium to 60%. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh explains what we know about the key site in Israel's crosshairs. 01:00 - Source: CNN CNN asks Israeli official about plans to eliminate Iran's nuclear program Former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant tells CNN's Bianna Golodryga that it's up to the "free world" to eliminate Iran's nuclear program. 01:14 - Source: CNN Trump slams G7 for kicking out Russia President Donald Trump kicked off his visit to the G7 summit in Canada by criticizing nations for kicking out Russia eleven years ago. 00:36 - Source: CNN Shipping industry navigates Trump's trade war CNN's Kristie Lu Stout gets exclusive access on board a US-bound container ship in Hong Kong's port, the frontlines of China's 'export rush' chaos as the clock ticks down on a 90-day pause on US tariffs imposed on Chinese goods. 01:11 - Source: CNN Iranian state television says it was attacked by Israel The studio complex of Iran's state news channel IRINN was struck by Israel on Monday, according to the country's state news agency. A loud explosion was heard while an anchor was presenting live on air, according to a live feed. 00:19 - Source: CNN
7NEWS
40 minutes ago
- Politics
- 7NEWS
Trump gives deadline on US joining Israel's military campaign against Iran
Israel's defense minister threatened Iran's supreme leader on Thursday after Iranian missiles crashed into a major hospital in southern Israel and hit residential buildings near Tel Aviv, wounding at least 240 people. As rescuers wheeled patients out of the smoldering hospital, Israeli warplanes launched their latest attack on Iran's nuclear program. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz blamed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei for Thursday's barrage and said the military 'has been instructed and knows that in order to achieve all of its goals, this man absolutely should not continue to exist.' In Washington, the White House announced that US President Donald Trump will decide within two weeks whether to join Israel's campaign against Iran's military and nuclear program, signaling that Trump still sees a window for diplomacy to address Israeli and US concerns about Iran's nuclear program. 'Based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks,' Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary, told reporters, reading out Trump's statement. Trump has been weighing whether to attack Iran by striking its well-defended Fordo uranium enrichment facility, which is buried under a mountain and widely considered to be out of reach of all but America's 'bunker-buster' bombs. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he trusted that Trump would 'do what's best for America.' 'I can tell you that they're already helping a lot,' Netanyahu said from the rubble and shattered glass around the Soroka Medical Center in Israel's southern city of Beersheba. The open conflict between Israel and Iran erupted last Friday with a surprise wave of Israeli airstrikes targeting nuclear and military sites, top generals and nuclear scientists. At least 639 people, including 263 civilians, have been killed in Iran and more than 1,300 wounded, according to a Washington-based Iranian human rights group. Iran has retaliated by firing hundreds of missiles and drones, killing at least 24 people in Israel and wounding hundreds. More than 200 wounded, including dozens in the hospital strike At least 240 people were wounded by the latest Iranian attack on Israel, including 80 patients and medical workers wounded in the strike on the Soroka Medical Center. The vast majority were lightly wounded, as much of the hospital building had been evacuated in recent days. Israel's Home Front Command said that one of the Iranian ballistic missiles fired Thursday morning had been rigged with fragmenting cluster munitions. Rather than a conventional warhead, a cluster munition warhead carries dozens of submunitions that can explode on impact, showering small bomblets around a large area and posing major safety risks on the ground. The Israeli military did not say where that missile had been fired. Iranian officials insisted that they had not sought to strike the hospital and claimed the attack hit a facility belonging to the Israeli military's elite technological unit, called C4i. The website for the Gav-Yam Negev advanced technologies park, some three kilometers from the hospital, said C4i had a branch campus in the area. The Israeli army did not respond to a request for comment. An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, acknowledged that there was no specific intelligence that Iran had planned to target the hospital. Many hospitals in Israel, including Soroka, had activated emergency plans in the past week. They converted parking garages to wards and transferred vulnerable patients underground. Israel also has a fortified, subterranean blood bank that kicked into action after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack ignited the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. Doctors at Soroka said that the Iranian missile struck almost immediately after air raid sirens went off, causing a loud explosion that could be heard from a safe room. The strike inflicted the greatest damage on an old surgery building and affected key infrastructure, including gas, water and air-conditioning systems, the medical center said. The hospital, which provides services to around 1 million residents of Israel's south, had been caring for 700 patients at the time of the attack. After the strike, the hospital closed to all patients except for life-threatening cases. Iran has fired 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel since the conflict began, according to Israeli army estimates, though most have been shot down by Israel's multitiered air defenses. Iran rejects calls to surrender or end its nuclear program Iran has long maintained its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. But it is the only non-nuclear-weapon state to enrich uranium up to 60%, a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%. Israel is widely believed to be the only country with a nuclear weapons program in the Middle East, but has never acknowledged the existence of its arsenal. In the last few days the Israeli air campaign has targeted Iran's enrichment site at Natanz, centrifuge workshops around Tehran, a nuclear site in Isfahan and what the army assesses to be most of Iran's ballistic missile launchers. The destruction of those launchers has contributed to the steady decline in Iranian attacks since the start of the conflict. On Thursday, anti-aircraft artillery was clearly audible across Tehran and witnesses in the central city of Isfahan reported seeing anti-aircraft fire after nightfall. In announcing that he would take up to two more weeks to decide whether to strike Iran, President Trump opened up diplomatic options with the apparent hope Iran would make concessions after suffering major military losses. Already, a new diplomatic initiative seemed to be underway as Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi prepared to travel Friday to Geneva for meetings with the European Union's top diplomat, and with his counterparts from the United Kingdom, France and Germany. But at least publicly, Iran has struck a hard line. Iran's supreme leader on Wednesday rejected US calls for surrender and warned that any American military involvement by the Americans would cause 'irreparable damage to them.' Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf on Thursday criticized Trump for using military pressure to gain an advantage in nuclear negotiations. 'The delusional American president knows that he cannot impose peace on us by imposing war and threatening us,' he said. Iran agreed to redesign Arak to address nuclear concerns Israel's military said Thursday its fighter jets targeted the Arak heavy water reactor, some 250 kilometers southwest of Tehran, in order to prevent it from being used to produce plutonium. Iranian state TV said there was 'no radiation danger whatsoever' around the Arak site, which it said had been evacuated ahead of the strike. Heavy water helps cool nuclear reactors, but it produces plutonium as a byproduct that can potentially be used in nuclear weapons. That would provide Iran another path to the bomb beyond enriched uranium, should it choose to pursue the weapon. Iran had agreed under its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers to redesign the facility to alleviate proliferation concerns. That work was never completed. The reactor became a point of contention after Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal in 2018. Ali Akbar Salehi, a high-ranking nuclear official in Iran, said in 2019 that Tehran bought extra parts to replace a portion of the reactor that it had poured concrete into under the deal. Israel said strikes were carried out 'in order to prevent the reactor from being restored and used for nuclear weapons development.' The International Atomic Energy Agency has said that due to restrictions imposed by Iran on inspectors, the U.N. nuclear watchdog has lost 'continuity of knowledge' about Iran's heavy water production — meaning it could not absolutely verify Tehran's production and stockpile.
Middle East Eye
40 minutes ago
- Health
- Middle East Eye
Israel demands condemnation from World Health Organisation after hospital strike
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz warned that Iran's supreme leader "can no longer be allowed to exist" after a hospital in Israel was hit by an Iranian missile on Thursday. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran would "pay a heavy price" for the strike. Soroka Hospital in the southern city of Beersheba was left in flames by a bombardment that Iran said was intended to target a military and intelligence base. Daniel Meron, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, demanded a condemnation from the UN in a video on X filmed outside the World Health Organisation's headquarters. Israel has repeatedly bombed healthcare facilities in Gaza, which include 36 hospitals. WHO said that at least 94 percent of all hospitals in the Gaza Strip are damaged or destroyed.
Leader Live
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Leader Live
Israel threatens Iran's top leader after missiles damage hospital and wound 200
Meanwhile, Israel struck a heavy water reactor that is part of Iran's nuclear programme. At least 240 people were wounded by the Iranian missiles, four of them seriously, according to Israel's health ministry. The vast majority were lightly wounded, including more than 70 people from the Soroka Medical Centre in the southern city of Beersheba, where smoke rose as emergency teams evacuated patients. In the aftermath of the strikes, Israeli defence minister Israel Katz blamed Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and said the military 'has been instructed and knows that in order to achieve all of its goals, this man absolutely should not continue to exist'. From Washington, the White House announced that US President Donald Trump will decide whether to join Israel's campaign against Iran's military and nuclear programme within two weeks, saying that Mr Trump still sees a window for diplomacy to address Israeli and US demands on Iran's nuclear programme. 'Based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks,' Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary, told reporters, quoting Mr Trump. US officials said this week that Mr Trump had vetoed an Israeli plan to kill Mr Khamenei. Mr Trump later said there were no plans to kill him 'at least not for now'. Israel carried out strikes on Iran's Arak heavy water reactor, in its latest attack on the country's sprawling nuclear programme, on the seventh day of a conflict that began with a surprise wave of Israeli airstrikes targeting military sites, senior officers and nuclear scientists. A Washington-based Iranian human rights group said at least 639 people, including 263 civilians, have been killed in Iran and more than 1,300 wounded. In retaliation, Iran has fired some 400 missiles and hundreds of drones, killing at least 24 people in Israel and wounding hundreds. Meanwhile, an Israeli military official said that Iran used a missile with multiple warheads in an attack on Thursday, posing a new challenge to its defences. There was no immediate independent analysis that could be made of the claim, but Iran has hinted in the past that it was pursuing such weaponry. Instead of having to track one warhead, missiles with multiple warheads can pose a more difficult challenge for air defence systems, such as Israel's Iron Dome. Two doctors told The Associated Press that the missile struck almost immediately after air raid sirens went off, causing a loud explosion that could be heard from a safe room. The hospital said the main impact was on an old surgery building that had been evacuated in recent days. After the strike, the medical facility was closed to all patients except for life-threatening cases, it said. Soroka has more than 1,000 beds and provides services to around one million residents in the south of Israel. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the strike on the hospital and vowed a response, saying: 'We will exact the full price from the tyrants in Tehran.' Iran has fired hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel, although most have been shot down by Israel's multi-tiered air defences. An Israeli military official said on Thursday that airstrikes have destroyed around two-thirds of Iran's ballistic missile launchers. The official said Israel estimates Iran still has more than 100 operational launchers, but that its losses have contributed to the steady decline in attacks since the start of the conflict. Israel estimates that Iran had around 2,000 ballistic missiles at the start of the conflict, and says it has fired around 450 missiles and 1,000 drones towards Israel since hostilities began. Israel lifted some restrictions on daily life on Wednesday, suggesting the missile threat from Iran was easing. Haim Bublil, a local police commander, told reporters that several people were lightly wounded in the strike. Many hospitals in Israel activated emergency plans in the past week, converting underground parking to hospital floors and moving patients underground, especially those who are on ventilators or are difficult to move quickly. Israel also boasts a fortified, subterranean blood bank that kicked into action after Hamas's October 7 2023 attack ignited the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. Israel's military said its fighter jets targeted the Arak facility and its reactor core seal to halt it from being used to produce plutonium. 'The strike targeted the component intended for plutonium production, in order to prevent the reactor from being restored and used for nuclear weapons development,' the military said. Israel separately claimed to have struck another site around Natanz it described as being related to Iran's nuclear programme. Iranian state TV said there was 'no radiation danger whatsoever' from the attack on the Arak site. An Iranian state television reporter, speaking live in the nearby town of Khondab, said the facility had been evacuated and there was no damage to civilian areas around the reactor. Israel had warned earlier on Thursday morning that it would attack the facility and urged the public to flee the area. Iran has long maintained its programme is for peaceful purposes. But it also enriches uranium up to 60%, a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%. Iran is the only non-nuclear-weapon state to enrich at that level. Israel is the only nuclear-armed state in the Middle East but does not acknowledge having such weapons. The strikes came a day after Iran's supreme leader rejected US calls for surrender and warned that any military involvement by the Americans would cause 'irreparable damage to them'. Already, Israel's campaign has targeted Iran's enrichment site at Natanz, centrifuge workshops around Tehran and a nuclear site in Isfahan. Its strikes have also killed top generals and nuclear scientists. Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said he would travel to Geneva for meetings with his European counterparts on Friday, indicating that a new diplomatic initiative might be taking shape. Iran's official IRNA news agency said the meeting would include foreign ministers from the UK, France and Germany and the European Union's top diplomat. Mr Trump has said he wants something 'much bigger' than a ceasefire and has not ruled out the US joining Israel's campaign. Iran has warned of dire consequences if the US deepens its involvement, without elaborating.
