Israel Strikes 'Heart' Of Iran's Ballistic Missile And Nuclear Enrichment Programs In Widespread Attack

By RFE/RL June 13, 2025

Israel conducted what it called "preemptive" strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities and military sites across the country on June 13, warning that the attacks will continue as it pursues its goal of preventing Tehran from building a nuclear weapon.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel launched what he said was a targeted military operation "to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel's very survival." He said the attack "will continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat," naming the operation Rising Lion.

"We struck at the heart of Iran's nuclear enrichment program. We targeted Iran's main enrichment facility at Natanz.... We also struck at the heart of Iran's ballistic missile program," he said in a video statement. Israel also hit Iranian nuclear scientists "working on the Iranian bomb," he added.

An Israeli official said Israel struck dozens of facilities across Iran in an attack that raised the potential for an all-out war between the two countries.

Among the sites hit were the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps' (IRGC's) command site in Tehran, according to Iranian state TV. The strike killed IRGC commander Major General Hossein Salami, according to Iranian news agency Tasnim.

The Natanz enrichment facility was hit "several times," state TV reported, showing images of heavy smoke billowing from the site.

Residential areas in Tehran and several other cities also were hit, according to the official IRNA news agency, which reported that the strikes killed a number of people, including women and children, in a residential complex in Tehran.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that Israel would suffer severe consequences for launching the attacks.

"With this crime, the Zionist regime has set itself for a bitter and painful fate and it will definitely receive it," Khamenei said in a statement.

US President Donald Trump, who had urged a diplomatic solution to the tensions just hours before Israel launched the strikes, will attend a National Security Council meeting on the morning of June 13, the White House said.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Israel took "unilateral action against Iran" and said the United States was not involved.

Israel advised Washington that it believed the strikes were necessary for its self-defense, Rubio said in a statement released by the White House.

The United States has taken steps to protects its forces and remained in contact with its partners in the region, said Rubio, warning Iran against targeting US interests or personnel.

Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz announced a "special situation" in Israel in anticipation of a possible retaliatory strike by Iran.

"Following the preemptive strike by the State of Israel against Iran, a missile and UAV (drone) attack against the State of Israel and its civilian population is expected in the immediate timeframe," Katz said in a statement.

Israel's El Al Airline said it was suspending all flights to and from Israel, and Iranian state media said Iran closed its airspace until further notice. Iraq also closed its airspace and suspended flights at all airports, state media reported.

Netanyahu raised the possibility of strikes against Iran in a phone conversation with Trump earlier this week, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Trump said he urged Netanyahu to hold off from taking action for the time being while the administration negotiated with Iran.

"As long as I think there is a (chance for an) agreement, I don't want them going in because I think it would blow it," Trump said.

Trump said on his Truth Social network later on June 12 that the United States still wanted to negotiate with Iran, though he also warned that an Israeli strike on Iran was likely.

"We remain committed to a Diplomatic Resolution to the Iran Nuclear Issue! My entire Administration has been directed to negotiate with Iran," Trump said.

Trump added however that Tehran "first must completely give up hopes of obtaining a Nuclear Weapon."

The United States and Iran have been holding negotiations on Iran's nuclear program to try to reach a diplomatic resolution. A sixth round of talks is scheduled to begin on June 15 in Oman. Iran has consistently claimed its nuclear efforts are solely for civilian and not military uses.

Iran has been working on a counteroffer after rejecting a US proposal for a deal that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei described as "100 percent" against national interests.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on June 11 that if the objective of any agreement is to guarantee Iran will not develop nuclear weapons, a deal is achievable.

However, he emphasized that Iran must retain the right to enrich uranium -- an element that Trump has firmly opposed including in any agreement -- for its civilian nuclear program.

Earlier on June 12 the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) Board of Governors passed a resolution formally declaring Iran noncompliant with its nonproliferation obligations for the first time since 2005.

The 35-member IAEA board voted 19-3 with 11 abstentions to adopt the resolution, which had been put forward by the United States and its trio of European allies -- Britain, France, Germany, also known as the E3.

In response, Iran's Foreign Ministry announced that a new enrichment site would be established in a safe zone and first-generation (IR-1) centrifuges in the Fordow site will be replaced with advanced sixth-generation (IR-6) machines.

"As we have previously stated, the Islamic Republic of Iran has no choice but to respond to this political resolution," the ministry said in a statement.

With reporting by AP and Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-israel-nuclear-air- strikes-trump/33441701.html

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Israel Strikes 'Heart' Of Iran's Ballistic Missile And Nuclear Enrichment Programs In Widespread Attack