Main events on June 16th
- Israel has bombed the Tehran offices of Iran’s state broadcaster, alleging they were being used by the Iranian armed forces.
- Iranian officials have rejected the claim, denouncing the attack as a “war crime”.
- Iran launched a wave of retaliatory drone and missile attacks, aimed at Haifa in northern Israel as well as Tel Aviv.
- Iran said 45 women and children have been killed in Israel’s latest attacks and another 75 women and children injured. Israeli attacks on other parts of the capital have also killed three Iranian Red Crescent Society workers who were carrying out rescue operations.
- US President Donald Trump, speaking on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada, said Iran should talk about de-escalating hostilities with Israel “before it’s too late”.
- Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu refused to rule out the possibility of targeting Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, saying: “It’s not going to escalate the conflict. It’s going to end the conflict.”
- The Israeli army claimed it has destroyed at least 120, or one-third, of Iran’s surface-to-surface missile launchers.
- Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has urged Iranians to unite after Israeli missiles caused extensive damage across the country, including the city of Kermanshah, where a hospital was hit.
Iran warns of its ‘biggest and most devastating’ attack amid wave of strikes
As Iran launches new drone and missile strikes against Israel, Al Jazeera’s Dorsa Jabbari said this “is the ninth wave of attacks that Iran has launched on Israel since Friday”.
A statement aired on Iran’s state TV warned that tonight’s attack would be the “biggest and most devastating” yet. The escalation marks a dramatic intensification in the ongoing confrontation between the two regional powers.
Iran said it is using a mix of drones and missiles, employing a tactic designed to overwhelm Israel’s air defence systems.
“We know it’s a mix of drones and missiles – launch drones first – engage air defence systems Israel has and then the missiles… they get to Israel much faster,” Jabbari explained. “Some hypersonic missiles that Iran has can get to Israel in a few minutes.”
Air defences in operation in Iran’s Natanz: Report
Air defences have been activated in Natanz in central Iran, the site of key nuclear installations, Iranian news website Asriran reports. Key areas of the Natanz site are situated deep underground, protecting them from all but the strongest bomb attacks.
