Israel-Iran Attack LIVE: Israel Hits Iran Weapon Production Sites, Foreign Ministry Office
Israel-Iran Attack LIVE: Iran has initiated a new series of ballistic missile strikes against Israel shortly after loud explosions were reported in its capital, Tehran. This escalation occurs as both nations engage in intense hostilities for the third consecutive day, while US President Donald Trump suggests that peace may be forthcoming “soon” and hints at the potential involvement of the United States in the conflict.
The Iranian Health Ministry announced early Monday that at least 224 individuals have lost their lives, with 90 percent being civilians, and 1,481 others have sustained injuries since Israel commenced its attacks on Iran.
According to Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei, Israel has killed 70 women and children in three separate attacks, with an additional 10 children still unaccounted for beneath the debris in Tehran. He criticized Israel’s claims that its strikes are precise and do not target residential areas, labeling the idea of “surgical strikes” as mere propaganda.
Since the onset of the conflict, at least 13 individuals have died and 380 have been injured in Israel.
In the most recent attack on Sunday evening, an Iranian missile illuminated the sky over the Israeli port city of Haifa shortly after Iran’s armed forces advised Israeli residents to evacuate the area for their safety.
Israel’s National Emergency Service reported that at least 15 people were injured in Haifa. The Reuters news agency indicated that projectiles had landed in Haifa, accompanied by explosions upon impact. Additionally, Israeli Army Radio reported that a building was struck in the eastern section of Tel Aviv.
The Iranian assault coincided with reports from Tehran residents earlier on Sunday, who described shuddering blasts in various locations throughout the city. Reports indicate that missiles hit areas in Niavaran and Tajrish, located in the northern part of the capital, as well as around Valiasr and Hafte Tir squares in the city center. The semi-official Tasnim news agency reported that the intelligence chief of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Mohammad Kazemi, along with his deputy, were killed in these attacks.
Other cities that were attacked by Israel included Shiraz and Isfahan, where a military base belonging to the Defence Ministry was struck. The Israeli army reported that it targeted an aerial refuelling aircraft at Mashhad Airport in eastern Iran, characterizing it as its longest-range assault since commencing operations against Iran last week.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh stated that Israel also executed a “deliberate and ruthless strike” on one of the buildings belonging to Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
On early Monday, the Israeli military announced that it had conducted a series of air strikes aimed at what it claims are missile sites located in central Iran.
Reporting from Tehran, Al Jazeera’s Tohid Asadi remarked, “Iran has not faced a conflict of this magnitude since the conclusion of the Iran-Iraq War in 1988. While there were similar Israeli strikes last year, they pale in comparison to the events that have unfolded since Friday.”
“The government announced earlier today that metro stations, schools, and mosques will be prepared to accommodate people. However, certain parts of these facilities, including mosques and schools, do not appear to be sufficiently safe to serve as shelters,” he added.
Earlier on Sunday in Israel, rescue teams were searching for survivors amidst the debris from the previous night’s wave of Iranian strikes. The town of Bat Yam was the most severely affected, with over 60 buildings sustaining damage. “Iran will incur a significant cost for the murder of civilians, including women and children,” stated Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from a balcony overlooking the damaged apartments in Bat Yam, a city located just south of Tel Aviv.
During the night, Iran targeted the port city of Haifa and the nearby Tamra, resulting in the deaths of at least four women.
Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh, reporting from Amman, Jordan, noted, “The destruction caused by Iranian attacks is undoubtedly extensive and unprecedented. This marks the first occasion that Israel has faced a state with a powerful military in the region, certainly the first since 1973.
