Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
LAST UPDATE | 20 Jun
ISRAEL HAS WARNED that it is in for a ”prolonged campaign” against Iran as both countries exchanged missile fire on the eighth consecutive day of their conflict.
Iran launched a new salvo of missile strikes against Israel this afternoon which injured 19 people in the port city of Haifa, a local hospital said.
Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar shared a similar message on social media, claiming that “the Iranian regime is targeting Muslim, Christian and Jewish civilians, as well as civilian sites” before calling the attacks “war crimes”.
An Iranian news anchor described “images in the sky over the occupied territories (Israel) of Iranian missiles arriving”, as the channel broadcast the footage with military music playing in the background.
A series of blasts was heard in Tehran this evening, an AFP journalist reported, as the war between Israel and Iran entered its second week.
The 8:45pm (5:15pm GMT) blasts came a few minutes after Iran’s Fars news agency reported that air defences had been activated in the heart of the capital.
Israel’s military chief Eyal Zamir said today that his country should be “ready for a prolonged campaign” against Iran.
“We have embarked on the most complex campaign in our history to remove a threat of such magnitude, against such an enemy. We must be ready for a prolonged campaign,” Zamir said in a video statement to Israelis, adding that “the campaign is not over. Although we have made significant achievements, difficult days still lie ahead.”
Thousands of Iranians joined mass protests against Israel in Tehran and other cities today after weekly prayers, chanting slogans in support of their leaders, according to state television.
“I will sacrifice my life for my leader,” read a protester’s banner, a reference to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
European powers today urged Iran to revive diplomatic efforts with the United States to find a solution in the standoff over its nuclear programme, but Tehran warned it could only consider diplomacy once Israel halted its bombardment of the Islamic republic.
British, French, German and EU top diplomats held talks in Geneva with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, giving diplomacy a chance one week after Israel started its bombardment.
“The good result today is that we leave the room with the impression that the Iranian side is ready to further discuss all the important questions,” said German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul in a statement alongside his European counterparts.
“It is of great importance that the United States takes part in these negotiations and the solution,” he added.
The statements read by all four top diplomats in their native languages after the talks expressed hope of further progress but did not make any mention of a breakthrough.
Araghchi, making his first trip outside Iran since the bombardment began, said Tehran was ready to “consider diplomacy” again only once Israel’s “aggression is stopped”.
“In this regard I made it crystal clear that Iran’s defence capabilities are not negotiable,” he said.
“We support the continuation of discussion… and express our readiness to meet again in the near future,” he said.
Iran is seeking to negotiate a settlement before US President Donald Trump decides “within two weeks” on whether to take military action against Tehran.
Yesterday, Trump delayed a decision on whether to join Israeli attacks on Iran as Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged for restraint in the Middle East.
But in an interview aired today, Araghchi said: “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”.
Meanwhile Israel’s ambassador to the UN said European foreign ministers must take a “firm stance” in talks with their Iranian counterpart on Tehran’s nuclear programme.
“We expect the European foreign ministers to take a firm stance vis-a-vis Iran and demand that there is a complete rollback of the nuclear programme, the dismantling of ballistic missile arsenal and programme, and putting an end to Iran’s regional terrorist activities and active support for its terrorist proxies,” Daniel Meron told journalists outside the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
It comes as missile strikes by Israel and Iran continued overnight, as the conflict enters its second week. Israel, claiming that Iran was on the verge of developing a nuclear weapon, launched air strikes against its arch-enemy a week ago.
Israel’s military said it struck a weapons research facility in Tehran overnight and an “inactive” nuclear reactor in Arak as strikes between the nations continues.
Iran’s nuclear energy boss condemned the “barbaric and unlawful” attack on the critical infrastructure, demanding that the UN watchdog intervene. Israel said that its military’s 60 fighter jets struck strategic military targets.
Britain’s foreign minister David Lammy met with his American counterpart Marco Rubio in Washington DC yesterday, welcoming the two-week pause on US involvement.
“A window now exists within the next two weeks to achieve a diplomatic solution,” he said in a statement.
A US-based NGO said today that Israel’s strikes against Iran have killed at least 657 people including civilians and members of the security forces, a toll based on sources and reports in Iran.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said that at least 263 civilians had been killed nationwide since Israel began its strikes on June 13.
Among these, it said it had verified the identities of more than 20 children who have been killed, mostly in Tehran.
It added that 164 members of the military had also been killed.
The overall death toll includes 230 people who HRANA was unable to determine whether they were civilians or members of the security forces.
More than 2,000 members of the security forces and civilians had been wounded as of early Friday, it added.
The group said strikes had taken place in 21 of Iran’s 31 provinces.
HRANA is part of the Human Rights Activists NGO, which was set up inside Iran in 2005 but later shifted to the United States in the face of repression from the Iranian authorities.
It publishes dozens of reports a day, outlining human rights violations inside Iran.
Includes reporting by Keith Kelly, Press Association & AFP News
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say