Iranian officials say 22 arrested for alleged connections to Israel

The head of Qom province’s intelligence police has said the force has arrested 22 people “on charges of being connected to the Zionist regime’s spy services” since Israel’s assault on the country began on June 12, the Fars news agency reports.

The news agency, run by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said the charges also include “disturbing public opinion and supporting the criminal regime [Israel]”.

It did not provide details of the alleged offences or the accused individuals.

Iranian military official says nuclear material moved to prevent its destruction: Monitors

Iran is presenting the spectre of a “long and challenging hunt for hidden Iranian nuclear material” as part of its approach to negotiations to end Israel’s attacks and get back to diplomacy, monitors say.

US-based defence think tanks, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and the Critical Threats Project (CTP), said in their latest joint assessment of the conflict that a senior IRGC commander has stated that nuclear material was relocated to secure locations to prevent its destruction.

“Protecting Iranian nuclear material by hiding the material” would make “a US or Israeli effort to destroy the material more difficult,” the ISW/CTP said.

“This statement is presumably intended to suggest to a Western audience that destroying all of Iran’s nuclear material would require a long, challenging, and possibly futile hunt for hidden material and that therefore the West should negotiate with Iran,” it said.

Iran’s UN ambassador says Israeli attacks on nuclear sites an ‘assault on global non-proliferation’

At an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed for an end to the fighting and a return to negotiations.

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, told the council he is most concerned about the ramifications if Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant is attacked.

Iran’s ambassador to the UN, Amir Saeid Iravani, reminded the council that while Iran has opened its nuclear facilities up to inspection, Israel has not.

Israel’s ambassador later received a warning after levelling a personal attack against his Iranian counterpart.

China and Russia continued to condemn Israel’s attack on Iran, which they said led to the escalation.

Iran’s ambassador to the UN also told the council that Israel’s strikes on his country’s nuclear facilities are a complete assault on the global non-proliferation regime.

_{Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravan,i shows photos of children killed in Israel’s attacks on his country during a meeting of the United Nations Security Council, at UN headquarters in New York City, United States, on June 20}

Israel says it assassinated commander of Quds Palestinian Corps in Qom attack

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has said Saeed Izadi, the commander of the Palestinian Corps in Iran’s Quds Force, has been assassinated in an attack on an apartment in the Iranian city of Qom.

Earlier, we reported that an Israeli aircraft bombed an apartment in the city, 140km (87 miles) south of Tehran, killing a 16-year-old. It’s not immediately clear if both individuals were killed in the same attack.

Announcing Izadi’s death, Katz said he had “funded and armed Hamas ahead of the October 7 massacre”.

“[Izadi’s assassination is] a huge achievement for Israeli intelligence and air force, justice for the murdered and kidnapped. Israel’s long arm will reach all its enemies,” he said.

Back to blaming Iran for Oct 7... What we know for fact is that Netanyahu funded Hamas:

https://www.timesofisrael.com/for-years-netanyahu-propped-up-hamas-now-its-blown-up-in-our-faces/
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/10/world/middleeast/israel-qatar-money-prop-up-hamas.html

And now he's doing the same again with Jihadist factions in Gaza
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/06/netanyahu-defends-arming-palestinian-clans-accused-of-ties-with-jihadist-groups

He should be bombing himself.

Israel’s attack on Iran conducted under ‘similar pretexts’ as US invasion of Iraq

Iranian government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani says her country was attacked by Israel under false pretences, likening it to the US invasion of Iraq.

“Iran has repeatedly said that if the problem is the global issue of nuclear weapons … we have said again and again that we have no intention of pursuing them,” she told Al Jazeera. “Everyone knows that this path has been tried repeatedly over recent decades. Wasn’t Iraq invaded under similar pretexts? And after all these years, did they ever find chemical weapons?”

Moreover, Mohajerani framed Iran’s response to Israel’s aggression as one of “lawful defence”. “Over the past 200 years, Iran has not initiated any war. We have no interest in starting one and deliberately avoid it,” she said.

“What we are witnessing today is a legitimate act of self-defence, which is clearly recognised as Iran’s right under all international protocols.”

Iran vows ‘proportional response’ to any escalation in strikes

Despite continuing attacks on its soil, Iran’s government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani insists Tehran remains open to dialogue as its representatives arrive in Geneva for diplomatic discussions.

“We believe in listening to the other side. That’s why our diplomats are present in Geneva, to hear the other side out,” Mohajerani told Al Jazeera. However, she added that any diplomacy must begin with global recognition of Israel’s attack on Iran.

“What truly matters now is that the world must first acknowledge that a genuinely aggressive regime attacked Iran, targeting our military commanders, children, women, scientists, and ordinary citizens in the middle of the night.”

She warned Western powers, including the US, against further provocation and not to speak to the Iranian people in the “language of threats”.

“If they make a mistake, we will undoubtedly defend ourselves, and we will carry out whatever is rightfully ours,” Mohajerani asserted. “We hope the United States avoids making such a mistake, but should tensions rise, our responses will certainly escalate in proportion.”

Economic fallout hits both Iran and Israel as fighting continues

The people of both Iran and Israel are witnessing worsening economic conditions as the tit-for-tit missile strikes continue for a second week. “The situation in Iran was bad and now it’s getting worse,” Nader Habibi, a professor of Middle East politics at Brandeis University in Boston, told Al Jazeera.

“Those who could afford to have left Tehran, which means there is population pressure on neighbouring provinces. Low-income people who could not afford to leave are still there under economic pressure.”

Israel’s economy is similarly under stress because of the escalating fighting, Habibi added. “Economic activity has been interrupted in an unprecedented way because the conflict is very different from previous ones that Israel has experienced,” he said.

American tax payers are 'glad' to fund Israel... Actually nothing about an emergency bill for Israel like Biden did multiple times to support genocide

https://www.timesofisrael.com/biden-signs-95-billion-war-aid-measure-with-relief-for-ukraine-israel-and-taiwan/ $17 Billion war time assistance
https://www.commondreams.org/news/biden-weapons-to-israel  $8 Billion more in Arms

Silver lining of Trump is that he's not funding Israel 'extra' (regular $3.8 billion military assistance still ongoing). Not monetarily at least, diplomatic support is actually worse, green lighting a holodomor and regional war. Plus moving more US war time assets into the region and actively helping defend Israel from counter attacks.

But so far Israel has to figure out it's own extra expenditures. I wonder how long before Israel comes asking for another handout.

Of course it's only been 10 days since Israel attacked Iran.

US joining aggression would be very dangerous for everybody: Araghchi

We have some comments made by Abbas Araghchi on the sidelines of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation gathering in Istanbul.

Here’s what the Iranian foreign minister told reporters:

Anger rises among Iranians as Israel attacks residential areas

Last night we heard loud explosions related to interceptions by air defence systems here in the capital. We’ve got reports of Israeli attacks on Isfahan, with facilities being targeted in Qom.

Iran is trying to keep the doors of diplomacy open, but the Iranian side is saying it’s going to continue to strike as long as Israel continues to do so.

We have very different sentiments among the Iranian public, specifically Tehran residents whom we’ve talked to over the past few days. There’s anxiety as the Israeli threats over recent months have now translated into daily strikes.

Many in the Iranian capital have chosen to leave, but we have to keep in mind we’re talking about 10 million people living in Tehran city and 14 million in Tehran province. It’s putting pressure on surrounding areas.

There’s also increasing anger. People are saying Israel is not just targeting nuclear facilities and military complexes and they’ve got nothing to do with military issues. The reality on the ground is ordinary people are being attacked on a daily basis.

This has created a strong sense of solidarity with large demonstrations against the repeated strikes.

Senior UAE official warns prolonged war threatens Gulf region’s stability

Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has warned the conflict risks setting back the region. “The longer a war takes, the more dangerous it becomes,” he told reporters.

“I think any extended confrontation or war between Israel and Iran will only bring a very difficult aftermath.”

Gargash said de-escalation was “extremely important” and that there was “a path back to negotiations on these issues”.

“This war flies in the face of the regional order the Gulf countries want to build, which is focused on regional prosperity,” he added. “We feel that this is setting us back, not only us in the UAE, but I would say the region.”

Israel has ‘technological edge’ but Iran the upper hand in prolonged war

While “Israel has the technological edge in this war”, Iran has many other strengths as well, says Muhanad Seloom, an assistant professor at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies.

Israel has had almost full control of the skies over Iran since the conflict broke out, but Iran is 70 times the size of Israel, he explained.

“[The Iranians] can take a lot of beatings, but they do have their own types of weapons that can actually hurt Israel, and Israel does not have the capacity to go along with this war, so they need a decisive victory or they have to achieve their strategic goals as soon as possible,” Seloom told Al Jazeera.

“We are at the critical stage of this conflict … because both sides did not declare it as a full war yet [but] both sides are increasing the velocity of their weapons.”

“If [the war] gets prolonged, it’s not in the interest of Israel. Israel cannot go very long in this war because most of the Israelis are in the bunkers, their economy is affected.”

Iran, on the other hand, has been in “emergency mood” for at least 40 years following the Iran-Iraq war, having active militias in Lebanon and Syria, being under severe sanctions, and having a different economy to that of Israel, Seloom said.

“So what we are looking at are two countries unlike each other [who] are at each other’s throats.”

Erdogan blames Netanyahu government as key hurdle to peace

Speaking to the attendees, Turkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says the Israeli government led by Prime Minister Netanyahu is the biggest obstacle to regional peace.

“I call on countries with influence over Israel not to listen to its poison. A solution must be found via dialogue,” said Erdogan, referring to attacks on Iran, Gaza and other Middle East states.

Erdogan says Israeli attacks on Iran were intended to undermine nuclear negotiations between Washington and Tehran. “This incident also shows that Netanyahu [and his government] … do not want any issues or any matters to be solved diplomatically,” he said.

“Netanyahu’s Zionist ambitions have no other purpose than to drag our region and … the whole world into a big disaster.”

He also called on Muslim countries to increase their efforts to impose punitive measures against Israel on the basis of international law and United Nations resolutions.

Turkiye’s leader warns against ‘new Sykes-Picot order’

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned against a “new Sykes-Picot order” in the Middle East.

“We will not allow the establishment of a new Sykes-Picot order in our region with borders to be drawn in blood,” Erdogan said at a summit of Islamic countries in Istanbul.

The Sykes-Picot Agreement, drawn up in 1916 by Britain and France during World War I, was a secret pact aimed to divide the post-Ottoman Middle East territories into British and French spheres of influence.

Erdogan expressed confidence in the resilience of the Iranian people during the current conflict. “We have no doubt the Iranian people, with their solidarity in the face of difficulties and strong state experience, will hopefully overcome these days,” he said.

Iranian missile attack on Haifa wounds 3: Report

Three people injured in an Iranian missile strike on Haifa on Friday remain hospitalised at Rambam hospital, according to Israeli news outlet Haaretz. One person is in a serious condition, the hospital’s spokesperson was quoted as saying.

Several people who sustained minor injuries have been released from the hospital, the report said.

_{Emergency personnel stand near burned-out cars and damaged buildings in Beersheba, Israel}

Five killed in Israeli attack on Iran’s Khorramabad: Reports

At least five people were killed in Israeli attacks in the Iranian city of Khorramabad, local media outlets quoting the IRGC have reported. Iran’s Nour News Agency also reported that 15 officers and soldiers from the country’s air defence forces have been killed since the start of the conflict.

Israel’s attacks on Iran since June 13 have targeted nuclear and military facilities in various regions, assassinated prominent military leaders and nuclear scientists, and targeted civilian and government facilities, including the state television building.

Iran: Israel targeting hospitals and ambulances during attack

Iran’s Health Minister Mohammadreza Zafarghandi says Israel has attacked three hospitals during the conflict, killing two health workers and a child, and has targeted six ambulances, according to Fars news agency.

Residential building hit by drone in northern Israel, say rescuers

Israel’s first responders said a residential building in northern Israel has been hit by a drone after the army reported “activity” in the Beit She’an Valley. “A drone strike hit a two-story residential building in northern Israel,” the Magen David Adom said in a statement, reporting no casualties.

On Friday, an Iranian missile hit Israel’s northern city of Haifa, sending plumes of smoke billowing over the Mediterranean port and wounding at least 31 people.

Explosions heard in Iran’s Khuzestan: Reports

Local media outlets are reporting that explosions have been heard in the city of Ahvaz and at the port of Mahshahr, located in Khuzestan province, southwestern Iran. Fars news agency said air defence systems had been activated in the areas.

It comes shortly after the Israeli army said it was attacking “military infrastructure” in southwestern Iran.

Here are some things to know about Khuzestan:

• The province lies at the head of the Gulf and borders Iraq to the west.
• It is Iran’s primary oil-producing region, with exploration starting in 1908.
• Khuzestan is home to Iran’s Arab minority.
• Its capital city is Ahvaz, situated on the banks of the Karun River. Local media reported several “powerful explosions” there on Saturday afternoon.
• At the start of the eight-year Iran-Iraq War that ended in 1988, Iraq’s forces invaded and seized the province’s western half.
• Iranian forces retook full control in 1982.

Iran: Israel enjoys impunity despite committing grave rights abuses

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei says no country has violated international human rights more than the Israelis. “The main reason for this is that Israel has always felt complete immunity from punishment for its crimes,” IRNA news agency quoted Baghaei as saying.

“The entire international community, each of the member states of the United Nations, has a clear responsibility to stand against this injustice, because the prohibition of the use of force is a fundamental principle of the United Nations Charter, which is clearly stated in Article 24.”

Iran authorities preparing for nuclear leaks from Israeli strikes

Iran’s Deputy Health Minister Ali Jafarian says the department is preparing to treat any victims suffering from the effects of Israel’s continuing attacks on nuclear facilities.

“We have not yet received reports of Israel using unconventional weapons. We are prepared to deal with any nuclear leak in the event that nuclear reactors are targeted, and we hope we do not reach that stage,” said Jafarian.

He added three hospitals have been attacked so far, with Kermanshah Hospital being completely evacuated.

“All of these are civilian targets. International organisations, especially the World Health Organization and the International Red Cross, must pressure Israel to stop targeting civilians. However, we do not expect much from them as we have witnessed their inability to do anything in Gaza for a year and a half.”

Jafarian confirmed “430 civilians” have so far been killed and more than 3,500 wounded after eight days of “Israeli aggression”.

Israel hit nuclear site in Isfahan, IAEA confirms

We have been reporting on the Israeli military’s claims that its forces targeted the Isfahan nuclear facility.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi is now saying a centrifuge manufacturing workshop in the central Iranian city has been struck, making it the third nuclear-related facility targeted in Israeli attacks since June 13.

“We know this facility well. There was no nuclear material at this site and therefore the attack on it will have no radiological consequences,” Grossi said in a statement posted by the IAEA.

On Friday, Grossi said the nuclear watchdog does not have information showing Iran is actively trying to build nuclear weapons.

A centrifuge manufacturing workshop has been hit in Esfahan, the third such facility that has been targeted in Israel's attacks on Iran's nuclear-related sites over the past week, @rafaelmgrossi said today, citing info available to the IAEA. https://t.co/sYHYXshmwe pic.twitter.com/AdzVTfQ4RT

— IAEA - International Atomic Energy Agency ⚛️ (@iaeaorg) June 21, 2025

Erdogan announces opening of UNRWA office in Turkiye

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees will open an office in Turkiye’s capital, Ankara, Erdogan has said.

Speaking at the meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Istanbul, the Turkish president urged member states to provide the agency with more support following Israel’s decision to ban it.

“We must not allow UNRWA, which plays an irreplaceable role in terms of taking care of Palestinian refugees, to be paralysed by Israel,” Erdogan said. “We expect our organisation and each member state to provide financial and moral support to UNRWA to thwart Israel’s games.”

Erdogan also said the opening of the office would deepen Turkiye’s support for the agency. The country gave UNRWA $10m a year between 2023 and 2025. In 2024, it also transferred $2m and sent another $3m from its AFAD disaster management authority.

Israel’s ‘expansionist policies’ require regional intervention: Turkiye

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has praised Qatar and Egypt for their ongoing efforts to get a ceasefire for Gaza while denouncing Israel for its continued attacks on Palestine.

“Israel seeks to expel Palestinians from their lands, has turned the West Bank into a warzone, and seeks to undermine the two-state solution,” Fidan told foreign ministers gathered in Istanbul at the summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

“Israeli attacks and its expansionist policies require us to deal with them. These are not the problems of individual countries alone – they are Israel’s problem alone. We condemn Israeli attacks and they must be stopped immediately. The international community must immediately halt these policies that threaten global stability,” he added.

Gulf states warn of human, ecological threats from Israeli attacks

Gulf Cooperation Council ambassadors have expressed concerns to UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi about the safety of Iran’s nuclear facilities close to their countries. Qatar’s state news agency reported the ambassadors warned Grossi during a meeting in Vienna about the “dangerous repercussions” of Israel targeting nuclear sites.

“They warned of the serious consequences of targeting nuclear facilities, both human and environmental, as this poses a direct threat to radiological safety and the international nuclear safeguards system, as well as a clear violation of international law,” QNA said.

The warning comes after the Israeli military said on Thursday it struck the Russian-built Bushehr facility, but later said the comment was made by mistake. Bushehr is Iran’s only operating nuclear power plant, which sits on the Gulf coast.

The potential consequences of an attack on the plant – contaminating the air and water – have long been a concern in the Gulf states.

On Friday, Grossi said in a worst-case scenario, a strike on Bushehr – which contains “thousands of kilogrammes of nuclear material” – would require evacuation orders to be issued for areas within several hundred kilometres of the plant, including population centres in other Gulf countries.

Israeli forces target Hezbollah site in southern Lebanon: Army

“A naval vessel attacked overnight a military structure belonging to the ‘Radwan Force’ of the Hezbollah terrorist organization in the Naqoura area in southern Lebanon,” Israel’s military has said in a statement.

The site was used by Hezbollah “to promote terrorist plots against the citizens of the State of Israel”, it said. The strike comes after “an investigation into a Hezbollah member several weeks ago”.

The Lebanese armed group has so far not responded to Israel’s allegation. Israel and Hezbollah reached a ceasefire in November, but Israel has continued near-daily strikes on Lebanon, including in the capital, Beirut.

Israeli forces shoot young Palestinian man during West Bank raid

Israeli forces stormed the occupied West Bank town of Kafr Ein, northwest of Ramallah, and opened fire, wounding the 19-year-old Palestinian in the back, the Wafa news agency reports.

A Palestine Red Crescent Society crew transported the young man to Salfit Hospital on Friday night, where his injuries have been described as serious.

Gaza death toll rises

At least 202 bodies have been brought to Gaza’s hospitals over the past 48 hours, the Health Ministry says. Additionally, at least 1,037 people were injured in Israeli attacks over the same period.

The figures bring the number of people killed in the territory since the start of the war in October 2023 to 55,908 with at least 131,138 wounded. Israeli attacks have killed 5,599 Palestinians and injured 19,097 since Israel broke a ceasefire with Hamas in March.

Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 21 since dawn

Israeli strikes have been ongoing across the Gaza Strip. At least 21 Palestinians have been killed since dawn, sources at Gaza hospitals have told Al Jazeera. Among those killed, 11 were aid seekers, while three were killed in an attack on Zeitoun neighbourhood in southern Gaza City.

Internet disruptions in northern Gaza: Report

Wafa, citing the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority in the Gaza Strip, reports that there has been a disruption in internet and landline services affecting the governorates of Gaza, which include Gaza City, and North Gaza.

There is currently an ongoing outage in the southern and central areas of the Gaza Strip that has lasted for more than three days.

The Palestinian news agency stated that technical teams were attempting to restore services as quickly as possible; however, the repeated targeting of key infrastructure by Israeli forces is hindering repair operations.

There is a sense in Gaza that Israel is taking advantage of media focus on Iran-Israel conflict

For the past three hours, the entire Gaza Strip has been in a telecommunications blackout due to the ongoing deliberate attacks on the telecommunications division.

There is also a sense that the Israeli army is taking advantage of the diverted attention away from Gaza to carry out more deadly attacks on Palestinians. At food distribution centres, there has been a daily routine, a pattern of ongoing deliberate shooting and killing of aid seekers.

There’s also the drone attacks. A recent one in the city of Khan Younis killed three people from the same family.

We were at al-Shifa Hospital to pay a visit for our field cameraman, whose mother was critically injured from yesterday evening’s drone attacks. The hospital remains in a dire condition, with a minimal level of medical care available due to the acute shortage of medical supplies.

We are talking about a health complex that has been reduced to a single department, an emergency ward serving thousands of people.

Death toll in today’s Israeli attacks on Gaza rises