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Yahoo
an hour ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Netanyahu says fall of Iran's leadership not a goal but could be a result
(Reuters) -Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that the change or fall of Iran's leadership was not a goal of Israel's attacks but could be a result. "The matter of changing the regime or the fall of this regime is first and foremost a matter for the Iranian people. There is no substitute for this. "And that's why I didn't present it as a goal. It could be a result, but it's not a stated or formal goal that we have," Netanyahu said in an interview with Israel's Kan public television. He said Israel had the power to remove all of Iran's nuclear facilities, whether U.S. President Donald Trump decides to join in or not. Netanyahu spoke before the White House said Trump would decide in the next two weeks whether to get involved. Military analysts believe Israel might need the help of U.S. military bunker-busting bombs to destroy the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant, the crown jewel of Iran's nuclear program buried beneath a mountain near the city of Qom. Asked whether Fordow could be addressed with or without the Americans, Netanyahu said: "We have the power to remove all our targets, all their nuclear facilities, but the president's decision whether he wants to join or not is again his decision. "He will do what is good for the United States and I will do what is good for the State of Israel and I must say that up to this moment everyone is doing their part," Netanyahu said. On Wednesday, Trump said the United States alone had the capability to destroy or dismantle Fordow. "But that doesn't mean I'm going to do it - at all," Trump said.
The National
2 hours ago
- Politics
- The National
Israel 'changing the face of the world' with war on Iran, Netanyahu says
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said his country's conflict with Iran was 'changing the face of the world' and that the military campaign was 'ahead of schedule'. 'I said that we're changing the face of the Middle East, and now I say we're changing the face of the world,' he told public broadcaster Kan in a rare interview. Seven days since Israel launched strikes on Iran, resulting in unprecedented escalation between the two foes, Mr Netanyahu said Israeli forces were 'ahead of schedule' in their offensive but did not provide a clear timeline for when the conflict would end. 'We are at war. I'm not going to reveal our timeline. I'm not going to tell them what we're preparing,' he said. He claimed that Israel had so far destroyed at least half of Iran's missile launchers, killed key figures and vowed to hit all nuclear sites − including the heavily fortified Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant. But, in an apparent reference to its key ally in Washington, Mr Netanyahu said 'all help is welcome'. His interview took place before the White House said US President Donald Trump would decide in the next two weeks whether to get involved. Military analysts believe Israel will need the military bunker-busting bombs that only the US possesses to destroy Fordow, the crown jewel of Iran's nuclear programme buried beneath a mountain near the city of Qom, south of Tehran. In a reference to Mr Trump, Mr Netanyahu said that 'he will do what is good for the United States and I will do what is good for the State of Israel, and I must say that up to this moment everyone is doing their part'. With regards to his objectives in the war, the Israeli leader said regime change was not the goal but that it could be a possible outcome, echoing previous similar remarks. 'The matter of changing the regime or the fall of this regime is first and foremost a matter for the Iranian people. There is no substitute for this. 'And that's why I didn't present it as a goal. It could be a result, but it's not a stated or formal goal that we have,' he said. Iran and Israel have been engaged in a shadow war for decades but had never directly attacked each other before the war in Gaza broke out in October, 2023. Western countries, the US and Israel have long been suspicious of Iran's nuclear programme. Tehran says it is for peaceful purposes and that it does not aim to develop a bomb. Negotiations were taking place between the US and Iran to potentially reach another nuclear deal before the latest air war broke out. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will meet his counterparts from Britain, Germany, France and the EU in Geneva on Friday, in the first glimmer of peace hopes in the past week.
Malay Mail
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Malay Mail
MOHE identifies seven Malaysian students in Iran, says watching situation closely
LANGKAWI, June 20 — The Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) will continue to closely monitor Malaysian students currently in Iran to ensure their safety and well-being. Its Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir said that MOHE had so far identified seven Malaysian students currently in Iran, although the exact number remains uncertain as some are there under self-sponsorship. 'We will continue to monitor the situation closely, and our team will work in coordination with the Foreign Ministry. Based on the information available during my visit to Iran a few weeks ago, we identified seven Malaysian students there,' he said. 'Even though they are not registered with MOHE, as Malaysians, it is our responsibility to be concerned for their well-being and ensure we know their whereabouts. We will continue to monitor the situation,' he said in a press conference after the Asean Higher Education Ministers' Roundtable Conference here today. Yesterday, MOHE urged all Malaysian students currently in Iran to leave the country immediately, following the escalating conflict in the region. Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapha Sakmud reportedly said that Malaysian students had been identified as studying in Qom and Isfahan. — Bernama
Reuters
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Netanyahu says fall of Iran's leadership not a goal but could be a result
June 19 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that the change or fall of Iran's leadership was not a goal of Israel's attacks but could be a result. "The matter of changing the regime or the fall of this regime is first and foremost a matter for the Iranian people. There is no substitute for this. "And that's why I didn't present it as a goal. It could be a result, but it's not a stated or formal goal that we have," Netanyahu said in an interview with Israel's Kan public television. He said Israel had the power to remove all of Iran's nuclear facilities, whether U.S. President Donald Trump decides to join in or not. Netanyahu spoke before the White House said Trump would decide in the next two weeks whether to get involved. Military analysts believe Israel might need the help of U.S. military bunker-busting bombs to destroy the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant, the crown jewel of Iran's nuclear program buried beneath a mountain near the city of Qom. Asked whether Fordow could be addressed with or without the Americans, Netanyahu said: "We have the power to remove all our targets, all their nuclear facilities, but the president's decision whether he wants to join or not is again his decision. "He will do what is good for the United States and I will do what is good for the State of Israel and I must say that up to this moment everyone is doing their part," Netanyahu said. On Wednesday, Trump said the United States alone had the capability to destroy or dismantle Fordow. "But that doesn't mean I'm going to do it - at all," Trump said.
Reuters
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Iran's divided opposition senses its moment but activists remain wary of protests
DUBAI, June 19 - Iran's fragmented opposition groups think their moment may be close at hand, but activists involved in previous bouts of protest say they are unwilling to unleash mass unrest, even against a system they hate, with their nation under attack. Exiled opponents of the Islamic Republic, themselves deeply divided, are urging street protests. In the borderlands, Kurdish and Baluchi separatist groups look poised to rise up, with Israeli strikes pummelling Iran's security apparatus. While the Islamic Republic looks weaker than at nearly any point since soon after the 1979 revolution, any direct challenge to its 46-year rule would likely require some form of popular uprising. Whether such an uprising is likely - or imminent - is a matter of debate. The late shah's son, U.S.-based Raze Pahlavi, said in media interviews this week he wants to lead a political transition, proclaiming it the best chance to topple the Islamic Republic in four decades and saying "this is our moment in history". Triggering regime change is certainly one war goal for Israel, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressing Iranians to say "we are also clearing the path for you to achieve your freedom". Within a ruling system long adept at quashing public displays of dissent, there are signs it is readying for protests. Mohammad Amin, a member of the Basij militia that is often deployed against protesters, said his unit in Qom had been put on alert to root out Israeli spies and protect the Islamic Republic. However, while the strikes have targeted a security hierarchy that crushed previous bouts of protest, they have also caused great fear and disruption for ordinary people - and anger at both Iranian authorities and Israel, the activists said. "How are people supposed to pour into the streets? In such horrifying circumstances, people are solely focused on saving themselves, their families, their compatriots, and even their pets," said Atena Daemi, a prominent activist who spent six years in prison before leaving Iran. Daemi's concerns were also voiced by Iran's most prominent activist, Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi, in a social media post. Responding to an Israeli demand for people to evacuate parts of Tehran, she posted: "Do not destroy my city." Two other activists Reuters spoke to in Iran, who were among the hundreds of thousands involved in mass protests two years ago after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, said they also had no plans to demonstrate yet. "After the strikes end we will raise our voices because this regime is responsible for the war," said one, a university student in Shiraz, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals. Another, who had lost her university place and been jailed for five months after the 2022 protests and who also requested anonymity, said she believed in regime change in Iran but that it was not time to take to the streets. She and her friends were not planning to stage or join rallies, she said, and dismissed calls from abroad for protests. "Israel and those so-called opposition leaders abroad only think about their own benefits," she said. Apart from Pahlavi's monarchists, the main opposition faction outside Iran is the People's Mujahideen Organisation, also known as the MEK or MKO. A revolutionary faction in the 1970s, it lost a power struggle after the shah was toppled. Many Iranians have not forgiven it for then siding with Iraq during the stalemated war of 1980-88 and rights groups have accused it of abuses at its camps and of cult-like behaviour, both of which it denies. The Mujahideen are the main force behind the National Council of Resistance of Iran, which like Pahlavi has cultivated close ties with some Western politicians. At a Paris forum this week, the council's leader Maryam Rajavi reiterated her opposition to any return of the monarchy, saying "neither the shah nor the mullahs". How far opposition groups outside Iran enjoy any support inside the country is uncertain. While there is fond nostalgia among some Iranians for the period before the revolution, it is an era that most are too young to remember. Within Iran, the successive rounds of national protests have also focused around differing issues. In 2009, demonstrators flooded the streets over what they saw as a stolen presidential election. In 2017, protests focused on falling living standards. And in 2022 women's rights were the trigger. Mir-Hossein Mousavi, the election candidate protesters said had been cheated in 2009, has been under house arrest for years and is now 83. His policy was to reform the Islamic Republic rather than replace it - the goal of many protesters in later movements. For opponents of the Islamic Republic inside Iran, those unanswered questions of whether or when to stage protests, what agenda to pursue, or which leader to follow are only likely to grow more pressing as Israel's airstrikes continue.
