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North Wales Chronicle
21 minutes ago
- Politics
- North Wales Chronicle
Israel and Iran launch new strikes as new diplomatic effort takes shape
The US president 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. He said he will decide within two weeks whether the US military will be directly involved in the war given the 'substantial chance' for renewed negotiations over Tehran's nuclear programme. Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi appeared to be heading to Geneva for meetings with the European Union's top diplomat and counterparts from the UK, France and Germany. But in an interview aired on Friday he said that 'in the current situation, as the Zionist regime's attacks continue, we are not seeking negotiations with anyone'. 'I believe that as a result of this resistance (by Iran), we will gradually see countries distancing themselves from the aggression carried out by the regime, and calls for ending this war have already begun, and they will only grow stronger,' he said, adding that Tehran considers 'the Americans to be companions and collaborators of the Zionist regime'. Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he met US secretary of state Marco Rubio and envoy Steve Witkoff at the White House to discuss the potential for a deal to cool the conflict. Israel said it conducted air strikes into Friday morning in Iran with more than 60 aircraft hitting what it said were industrial sites to manufacture missiles. It also said it hit the headquarters of Iran's Organisation of Defensive Innovation and Research, known by its acronym in Farsi, SPND. The US has linked the agency to alleged Iranian research and testing tied to the possible development of nuclear explosive devices. Israeli air strikes reached into the city of Rasht on the Caspian Sea early on Friday, Iranian media reported. The Israeli military had warned the public to flee the area around Rasht's Industrial City, but with Iran's internet shut off to the outside world, it is unclear how many people could see the message. In Israel, paramedic service Magen David Adom said missiles struck a residential area in southern Israel, causing damage to buildings, including one six-storey building. Crews provided medical treatment to five people with minor injuries, it added. It comes a day after at least 80 patients and medical workers were wounded in a strike on the Soroka Medical Centre in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba. Israel's defence minister threatened Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after the Iranian missile crashed into the hospital. Israel's military 'has been instructed and knows that in order to achieve all of its goals, this man absolutely should not continue to exist', said defence minister Israel Katz. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he trusted that Mr Trump would 'do what's best for America'. Speaking from the rubble and shattered glass around the hospital, he added: 'I can tell you that they're already helping a lot.' The war between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13 with Israeli air strikes targeting nuclear and military sites, senior generals and nuclear scientists. At least 657 people, including 263 civilians, have been killed in Iran and more than 2,000 wounded, according to a Washington-based Iranian human rights group. Iran has retaliated by firing 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel, according to Israeli army estimates. Most have been shot down by Israel's air defences, but at least 24 people have been killed and hundreds wounded. Iran has long maintained its nuclear programme 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 Middle Eastern country with a nuclear weapons programme but has never acknowledged it. 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.
Hamilton Spectator
26 minutes ago
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Europeans see a window for diplomacy as they meet Iran's top diplomat
GENEVA (AP) — Iran's foreign minister plans to meet in Geneva on Friday with leading European counterparts, who hope to open a window for a diplomatic solution to the weekold war that has seen Israeli airstrikes target Iranian nuclear and military sites and Tehran firing back. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, however, said his country is not seeking negotiations with anyone as long as Israel continues its strikes on Iran. British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, who will meet Araghchi together with his French and German counterparts and the European Union's foreign policy chief, said that 'a window now exists within the next two weeks to achieve a diplomatic solution.' The talks will be the first face-to-face meeting between Western and Iranian officials since the start of the conflict. Lammy is traveling to Geneva after meeting in Washington with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and President Donald Trump's Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff. 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 . He said Wednesday that he'll decide within two weeks whether the U.S. military will get directly involved in the war given the 'substantial chance' for renewed negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program. 'Now is the time to put a stop to the grave scenes in the Middle East and prevent a regional escalation that would benefit no one,' Lammy said. Israel says it launched its airstrike campaign last week to stop Iran from getting closer to being able to build a nuclear weapon. Iran and the United States had been negotiating over the possibility of a new diplomatic deal over Tehran's program, though Trump has said Israel's campaign came after a 60-day window he set for the talks. Iran says no talks while Israeli attacks continue Iran's supreme leader rejected U.S. calls for surrender Wednesday and warned that any military involvement by the Americans would cause 'irreparable damage to them.' In an interview aired Friday by Iranian state television, Araghchi said that 'in the current situation, as the Zionist regime's attacks continue, we are not seeking negotiations with anyone.' 'I believe that as a result of this resistance (by Iran), we will gradually see countries distancing themselves from the aggression carried out by the regime, and calls for ending this war have already begun, and they will only grow stronger,' he said. Araghchi, who also is expected to address the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva on Friday afternoon, added that Iran considers 'the Americans to be companions and collaborators of the Zionist regime.' Iran has long insisted its nuclear program is peaceful, though it was the only non-nuclear-armed state to enrich uranium up to 60%, a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%. The three European countries played an important role in the negotiations over the original 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers. But they have repeatedly threatened to reinstate sanctions that were lifted under the deal if Iran does not improve its cooperation with the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. Europeans stand ready to negotiate Germany's foreign minister acknowledged that years of efforts to relieve concerns about the possibility of Iran developing a nuclear weapon haven't succeeded, but said it's worth talking now. 'If there is serious and transparent readiness by Iran to refrain from this, then there is a real chance of preventing a further escalation of this conflict, and for that every conversation makes sense,' Johann Wadephul said in a podcast released by broadcaster MDR on Friday. Wadephul said U.S. officials 'not only know that we are conducting these talks but are very much in agreement with us doing so — so I think Iran should now know that it should conduct these talks with a new seriousness and reliability.' Before traveling to Geneva on Friday, Wadephul said the Europeans would be prepared to hold further talks if Iran shows serious readiness to refrain from any enrichment that could result in nuclear weapons, among other things, but stressed that 'it's Iran's move now.' French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot spoke by phone with Rubio on Thursday evening. A French diplomatic official, who was not allowed to speak publicly on the issue, said Barrot detailed the purposes of the Geneva meeting and Rubio 'stressed that the U.S. was ready for direct contact with the Iranians at any time.' __ Associated Press writers Geir Moulson in Berlin, Sylvie Corbet in Paris and Jill Lawless in London contributed to this report. —- The Associated Press receives support for nuclear security coverage from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Outrider Foundation . The AP is solely responsible for all content. —- Additional AP coverage of the nuclear landscape: Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Rhyl Journal
33 minutes ago
- Politics
- Rhyl Journal
Israel and Iran launch new strikes as new diplomatic effort takes shape
2 This article is brought to you by our exclusive subscriber partnership with our sister title USA Today, and has been written by our American colleagues. It does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald. Israel and Iran have exchanged strikes a week into their war as Donald Trump considered US military involvement and new diplomatic efforts appeared to be under US president 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' said he will decide within two weeks whether the US military will be directly involved in the war given the 'substantial chance' for renewed negotiations over Tehran's nuclear foreign minister Abbas Araghchi appeared to be heading to Geneva for meetings with the European Union's top diplomat and counterparts from the UK, France and in an interview aired on Friday he said that 'in the current situation, as the Zionist regime's attacks continue, we are not seeking negotiations with anyone'.'I believe that as a result of this resistance (by Iran), we will gradually see countries distancing themselves from the aggression carried out by the regime, and calls for ending this war have already begun, and they will only grow stronger,' he said, adding that Tehran considers 'the Americans to be companions and collaborators of the Zionist regime'.Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he met US secretary of state Marco Rubio and envoy Steve Witkoff at the White House to discuss the potential for a deal to cool the said it conducted air strikes into Friday morning in Iran with more than 60 aircraft hitting what it said were industrial sites to manufacture also said it hit the headquarters of Iran's Organisation of Defensive Innovation and Research, known by its acronym in Farsi, SPND. The US has linked the agency to alleged Iranian research and testing tied to the possible development of nuclear explosive foreign minister Abbas Araghchi (Hassan Ammar/AP)Israeli air strikes reached into the city of Rasht on the Caspian Sea early on Friday, Iranian media Israeli military had warned the public to flee the area around Rasht's Industrial City, but with Iran's internet shut off to the outside world, it is unclear how many people could see the Israel, paramedic service Magen David Adom said missiles struck a residential area in southern Israel, causing damage to buildings, including one six-storey building. Crews provided medical treatment to five people with minor injuries, it comes a day after at least 80 patients and medical workers were wounded in a strike on the Soroka Medical Centre in the southern Israeli city of defence minister threatened Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after the Iranian missile crashed into the hospital. Israel's military 'has been instructed and knows that in order to achieve all of its goals, this man absolutely should not continue to exist', said defence minister Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he trusted that Mr Trump would 'do what's best for America'. Speaking from the rubble and shattered glass around the hospital, he added: 'I can tell you that they're already helping a lot.'Smokes rises from the Soroka hospital complex (Leo Correa/AP)The war between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13 with Israeli air strikes targeting nuclear and military sites, senior generals and nuclear scientists. At least 657 people, including 263 civilians, have been killed in Iran and more than 2,000 wounded, according to a Washington-based Iranian human rights has retaliated by firing 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel, according to Israeli army estimates. Most have been shot down by Israel's air defences, but at least 24 people have been killed and hundreds has long maintained its nuclear programme 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 Middle Eastern country with a nuclear weapons programme but has never acknowledged 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.
Newsweek
an hour ago
- Politics
- Newsweek
Iran Uses Trump's Own Words Against Him
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. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran sees the U.S. as already participating in Israel's attacks, and cited President Donald Trump's words. The U.S. has not yet joined in with Israel's strikes but is helping it to defend itself against Iran's retaliatory missile and drone attacks. Trump has given himself two weeks to decide if the U.S. should strike Iran, a window of time for Tehran to make a new nuclear deal. Araghchi told Iranian state media that "we consider the Americans to be aligned with and cooperating with the Zionist regime." "In these attacks that have been carried out against Iran, there are multiple signs indicating cooperation between U.S. forces present in the region and the Zionist regime," Araghchi said, originally in Farsi. "But more importantly than all of that are the tweets and interviews given by that country's president, where he explicitly uses the word 'we'—saying we did this, we carried out that action, this must happen, that must happen. "Well, that makes the case clear without needing further evidence. The presence and participation of the U.S. in this scene is evident." This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
Saba Yemen
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
Iranian Revolutionary Guard: We used combat drones for first time
Tehran - Saba: The Iranian Revolutionary Guard announced the use of combat drones for the first time in targeting the Zionist entity's headquarters. According to Mehr News Agency, the Revolutionary Guard said in a statement: "In yesterday's operation, we used combat drones to attack Israeli military infrastructure." Whatsapp Telegram Email Print more of (International)
