Major explosion reported in Tehran as Trump calls for ‘unconditional surrender’
Speculation is mounting about whether the US will directly engage by lending military support to Israel, or push for negotiations between the two countries.
If you are just tuning in, here is a quick summary of what you need to know.
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Israel’s defence forces said they launched a fresh wave of strikes on Tehran in the early hours of Wednesday morning, warning residents in parts of the city to urgently evacuate. “Dear citizens, for your safety and well-being, we urgently request that you immediately evacuate the designated area in Tehran’s Area 18. Your presence in this area puts your life at risk,” the IDF posted on social media.
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Residents in Tehran are fleeing the capital, with witnesses citing strong explosions hitting buildings in western and eastern parts of Tehran on Tuesday evening, the Associated Press reported. On the roads out of Tehran to the west, traffic stood bumper to bumper, and long lines also could be seen at gas stations. However, the impact and extent of any damage from the latest round of Israeli strikes remains unclear.
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In Israel, the IDF said that families across the country had sought shelter due to missile launches from Iran. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps said Wednesday that hypersonic missiles were used during the latest attack on Israel. The extent to which they caused any damage also remains unclear.
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Responding to the ongoing conflict, Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei vowed on X that Iran would retaliate. “We must give a strong response to the terrorist Zionist regime. We will show the Zionists no mercy,” he said.
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Those messages were posted after Donald Trump wrote on social media that the United States knows the location of the Iranian Ayatollah Khamenei, adding that the US would not kill him “for now” but called for Iran’s “unconditional surrender”.
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In an apparent response to the president’s post, senator Bernie Sanders said the president “must not take illegal military action against Iran”. Yesterday, Democratic senator Tim Kaine also introduced a war powers resolution that would prohibit US armed forces from taking direct action against Iran without explicit authorisation from Congress or a declaration of war.
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Israeli defence minister Israel Katz said that Iran’s supreme leader could face the same fate as Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, who was toppled in a US-led invasion and was eventually hanged after a trial.
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Following a Situation Room briefing with members of his national security team, Trump is evaluating whether to lend his support to Israel by targeting Iranian nuclear facilities. Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility is located beneath a mountain that will be difficult for Israeli forces to penetrate without the assistance of the United States, which is the only country that possesses bombs that can break through the underground bunker.
Key events
A televised message by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will be aired shortly, Iran’s state media reported on Wednesday, Reuters reports.
Khamenei’s last appearance was on Friday shortly after Israel attacked Iran.
Thirty killed by Israeli fire in Gaza – local health authorites
Israeli gunfire and strikes killed at least 30 people across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, local health authorities said
The deaths included the latest in near-daily killings of Palestinians seeking aid in the three weeks since Israel partially lifted a total blockade on Gaza that it had imposed for almost three months, AFP reports.
Medics said separate airstrikes on homes in the Maghazi refugee camp and Zeitoun neighbourhood in central and northern Gaza killed at least 14 people, while five others were killed in an airstrike on a tent encampment in Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
Eleven others were killed in Israeli fire at crowds of displaced Palestinians awaiting aid trucks brought in by the United Nations along the Salahuddin road in central Gaza, medics said.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was looking into the reported deaths of people waiting for food. Regarding the other strikes, it said it was “operating to dismantle Hamas military capabilities” and “feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm.”
Israeli military strikes have hit two facilities in Iran that made parts for centrifuges, the machines that enrich uranium, the UN nuclear watchdog said on Wednesday, identifying them as the TESA Karaj workshop and the Tehran Research Center, Reuters reports.
The International Atomic Energy Agency posted on X:
At the Tehran site, one building was hit where advanced centrifuge rotors were manufactured and tested. At Karaj, two buildings were destroyed where different centrifuge components were manufactured.
The Israeli military said on Wednesday that one of its drones had been downed by a surface-to-air missile while operating over Iran, AFP reports.
An army statement said the drone “fell in Iran. No injuries were reported and there is no risk of an information breach.”
Donald Trump is reportedly considering entering the Israel-Iran conflict and joining Israel’s strikes on Iran.
Only the Americans have a bomb capable of destroying the Fordo nuclear facility, which is located deep underground, and could be one potential target for the US.
In the past three days, at least 30 US military tanker aircraft, which are used to refuel fighter jets and bombers, have been flown to Europe, the BBC reported. The US has also ordered a second carrier group, the USS Nimitz, to the Middle East, part of preparations experts say would be necessary for the strike.
On Tuesday, Trump’s appetite for diplomacy appeared to be waning.
“I’m not too much in the mood to negotiate with Iran,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One, returning early from the Group of 7 summit in Canada to the focus on the escalating Israel-Iran conflict
Trump added that his objective in Iran was “an end, a real end, not a ceasefire”.
He then posted on Truth Social, calling for Iran’s “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!” adding that the US knew the location of Iran’s supreme leader, but it would not kill him “for now”.
CNN reported that his new “more hawkish posture” represents a significant shift in Trump’s stance. It is also dividing his advisers.
However, the outlet added that sources said the US president “remains open to a diplomatic solution – if Iran makes significant concessions”.
Greece has repatriated 105 of its citizens and foreign nationals from Israel, the foreign ministry said Wednesday, as the Iran-Israel conflict raged.
“The people repatriated were transported to Athens from Sharm El-Sheikh, in Egypt, onboard C-130 and C-27 Greek air force planes,” it said in a statement, AFP reports.
Along with Greek citizens and their families, other people on the flight included citizens of Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, France, Germany, Georgia, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States, it said.
Iran will respond ‘without restraint’ to Israeli strikes, says ambassador to UN
Iran will respond to Israeli strikes “strongly” and “without restraint,” its ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva said on Wednesday, Reuters reports.
“We will not show any reluctance in defending our people, security and land. We will respond seriously and strongly, without restraint,” Ali Bahreini, the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations in Geneva, told reporters.
Almost 800 Chinese citizens have been evacuated from Iran since Israel launched military strikes against the country last week, Beijing said on Wednesday.
“Currently … 791 Chinese nationals have been relocated from Iran to safe areas,” foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said at a regular news conference.
“More than 1,000 other people are in the process of relocating and withdrawing,” Guo added.
And some Chinese nationals have also safely evacuated from Israel, he said.
“China expresses its thanks to the relevant countries for providing full support and assistance,” Guo said.
The Israeli military says it is beginning a wave of attacks in the Tehran area, Reuters reports.
More to follow …
Iran’s Khamenei vows ‘no mercy’ for Israel leaders
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed on Wednesday that his country would show “no mercy” towards Israel’s rulers, AFP reports.
“We must give a strong response to the terrorist Zionist regime. We will show the Zionists no mercy,” Khamenei posted on X.
On Tuesday, Donald Trump boasted that the United States could easily assassinate Khamenei.
Iran says hypersonic missiles fired at Israel as Trump demands ‘unconditional surrender’
Iran said early on Wednesday it had fired hypersonic missiles at Israel in the latest round of overnight strikes, hours after Donald Trump demanded the Islamic republic’s “unconditional surrender”.
The US president insists Washington has played no part in ally Israel’s bombing campaign, but also warned Iran his patience is wearing thin as the conflict enters a sixth day, AFP reports.
Here are some images coming to us over the wires.
