World leaders have urged restraint after Israel pummeled Iran in an attempt to destroy its nuclear facilities [Wikipedia]. But with apparent US backing, Israel seems set on pushing forward and neutralising any Iranian threat.
"We know that the situation is very complicated but there is no other solution than a diplomatic one," the Italian foreign minister said following the strikes. The UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer meanwhile called for "restraint" on Friday morning after Israel struck Iran overnight killing top regime officials and key nuclear scientists. British Foreign Minister David Lammy also said that any further escalation was "a serious threat to peace & stability in the region and in no one's interest."
The strikes came just days after the US had pulled back diplomats and other personnel from the region, a signal that US officials were already aware of imminent military action.
The decision to pull out personnel from the region came amid increasing concerns that nuclear talks between the US and Iran had become deadlocked.
By early Thursday evening UK time there were suggestions that an Israeli strike on nuclear facilities in Iran was imminent, though most media outlets continued to focus on the deadly plane crash in India.
As early as the 11th June there were reports indicating a military strike was imminent. The US State Department said on Wednesday that it had decided to shrink the US "footprint" in Baghdad and the United Kingdom issued a warning about "increased tensions within the region." [NYT / NYT archived] The UK also raised concerns issuing a warning of new threats to Middle East commercial shipping [UKMTO].
All this came in the midst of inflammatory comments from Iran's defense minister, General Aziz Nasirzadeh, who warned on Wednesday that in the event of a conflict following failed nuclear talks, the United States would suffer heavy losses from Iranian attacks on US bases in the Middle East.
In what was clearly a long planned operation Netanyahu launched Operation Rising Lion in the early hours of Friday 12th of June.
While the US said they were not involved militarily, it was clear that a green light was given or at least tacit approval that Israel could go ahead with its mission.
While UK government ministers would neither confirm or deny that Britain were aware of Israeli plans, the US President Donald Trump was more forthcoming, telling Fox News on Friday morning that he was aware in advance of Israel's Operation Rising Lion.
"Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb and we are hoping to get back to the negotiating table. We will see. There are several people in leadership that will not be coming back," Trump added.
Israel's operation, which involved more than 200 fighter jets, struck multiple targets, including Iran's nuclear facilities and high-ranking military leaders.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the attack as the beginning of a multi-day offensive.
In retaliation, Iran launched a swarm of more than 100 drones toward Israel, according to an Israeli military spokesperson, though all were said to have been shot down.
The dramatic escalation raised fears that the Middle East could be on the brink of a devastating new regional conflict.
"The reports of these strikes are concerning and we urge all parties to step back and reduce tensions urgently," Starmer said Friday, urging parties to show "restraint, calm and a return to diplomacy."
That prospect seemed unlikely with Netanyahu committed in his resolve to continue his military operation until Iran's ability to develop a nuclear weapon was destroyed.
The damage inflicted was significant. Several top military officials were killed in the attacks as well as a number of scientists involved in Iran's nuclear program.
Of those confirmed dead were Golami Ali Rashid, commander of Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters, General Hossein Salami, the commander-in-chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Iran's highest-ranking military officer, and Ali Shamkhani, an Iranian naval officer and politician who served as the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran from 2013 to 2023. While they will soon be replaced, the shock to the Iranian administration will be profound.
So too will the taking out of a significant number of assets connected to Iran's nuclear ambitions as well as a number of key scientists including Fereydoun Abbasi, the former head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization and Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi, a physicist who also served as president of Islamic Azad University.
John Bolton, a long time hawk in American politics was clear that military action was the only language that Iran understood.
Speaking to CNN on Friday, Bolton pointed to the fact that the "war started on October 7th 2023" and "what Israel has done is simply open a new front in that war."
This action was "far from over," he continued but it was a "good start" given Israel's actions had stifled Iran's terror surrogates and severely curtailed the country's ballistic missile manufacturing facilities.
The attacks could also result in a major destabilising of the Iranian regime, Bolton asserted. As for a continuation of talks to persuade Iran to stop its nuclear program, Bolton was adamant concerning his position. "These talks are a waste of oxygen."
tvnewswatch, London, UK
"We know that the situation is very complicated but there is no other solution than a diplomatic one," the Italian foreign minister said following the strikes. The UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer meanwhile called for "restraint" on Friday morning after Israel struck Iran overnight killing top regime officials and key nuclear scientists. British Foreign Minister David Lammy also said that any further escalation was "a serious threat to peace & stability in the region and in no one's interest."
The strikes came just days after the US had pulled back diplomats and other personnel from the region, a signal that US officials were already aware of imminent military action.
The decision to pull out personnel from the region came amid increasing concerns that nuclear talks between the US and Iran had become deadlocked.
By early Thursday evening UK time there were suggestions that an Israeli strike on nuclear facilities in Iran was imminent, though most media outlets continued to focus on the deadly plane crash in India.
As early as the 11th June there were reports indicating a military strike was imminent. The US State Department said on Wednesday that it had decided to shrink the US "footprint" in Baghdad and the United Kingdom issued a warning about "increased tensions within the region." [NYT / NYT archived] The UK also raised concerns issuing a warning of new threats to Middle East commercial shipping [UKMTO].
All this came in the midst of inflammatory comments from Iran's defense minister, General Aziz Nasirzadeh, who warned on Wednesday that in the event of a conflict following failed nuclear talks, the United States would suffer heavy losses from Iranian attacks on US bases in the Middle East.
In what was clearly a long planned operation Netanyahu launched Operation Rising Lion in the early hours of Friday 12th of June.
While the US said they were not involved militarily, it was clear that a green light was given or at least tacit approval that Israel could go ahead with its mission.
While UK government ministers would neither confirm or deny that Britain were aware of Israeli plans, the US President Donald Trump was more forthcoming, telling Fox News on Friday morning that he was aware in advance of Israel's Operation Rising Lion.
"Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb and we are hoping to get back to the negotiating table. We will see. There are several people in leadership that will not be coming back," Trump added.
Israel's operation, which involved more than 200 fighter jets, struck multiple targets, including Iran's nuclear facilities and high-ranking military leaders.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the attack as the beginning of a multi-day offensive.
In retaliation, Iran launched a swarm of more than 100 drones toward Israel, according to an Israeli military spokesperson, though all were said to have been shot down.
The dramatic escalation raised fears that the Middle East could be on the brink of a devastating new regional conflict.
"The reports of these strikes are concerning and we urge all parties to step back and reduce tensions urgently," Starmer said Friday, urging parties to show "restraint, calm and a return to diplomacy."
That prospect seemed unlikely with Netanyahu committed in his resolve to continue his military operation until Iran's ability to develop a nuclear weapon was destroyed.
The damage inflicted was significant. Several top military officials were killed in the attacks as well as a number of scientists involved in Iran's nuclear program.
Of those confirmed dead were Golami Ali Rashid, commander of Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters, General Hossein Salami, the commander-in-chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Iran's highest-ranking military officer, and Ali Shamkhani, an Iranian naval officer and politician who served as the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran from 2013 to 2023. While they will soon be replaced, the shock to the Iranian administration will be profound.
So too will the taking out of a significant number of assets connected to Iran's nuclear ambitions as well as a number of key scientists including Fereydoun Abbasi, the former head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization and Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi, a physicist who also served as president of Islamic Azad University.
John Bolton, a long time hawk in American politics was clear that military action was the only language that Iran understood.
Speaking to CNN on Friday, Bolton pointed to the fact that the "war started on October 7th 2023" and "what Israel has done is simply open a new front in that war."
This action was "far from over," he continued but it was a "good start" given Israel's actions had stifled Iran's terror surrogates and severely curtailed the country's ballistic missile manufacturing facilities.
The attacks could also result in a major destabilising of the Iranian regime, Bolton asserted. As for a continuation of talks to persuade Iran to stop its nuclear program, Bolton was adamant concerning his position. "These talks are a waste of oxygen."
tvnewswatch, London, UK