LIVE: Iran hits Israel with retaliatory strikes after nuclear site attacks

Three members of Iranian Revolutionary Guard killed

Three members of the elite Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps have been killed during ongoing Israeli attacks in Zanjan province, Iran’s Tasnim news agency reports.Zanjan is a mountainous region in the northwestern part of the country.Israel’s military said it’s striking dozens of missile launchers in Iran after announcing it targeted air defences with a wave of attacks on the Tehran area. The Israeli air force “continues striking dozens of surface-to-surface missile launchers in Iran”, it said in a statement.

Three Iranian nuclear scientists killed in Israeli attacks: Report

Three Iranian nuclear scientists have been killed in Israeli attacks, the semiofficial Tasnim news agency reports.The scientists were identified as Ali Bakaei Karimi, Mansour Asgari and Saeid Borji, it said.The Israeli military said its air strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities resulted in the deaths of nine leading Iranian nuclear scientists.“During the Israeli air force strikes at the onset of Operation Rising Lion, nine senior scientists and experts, who advanced the Iranian regime’s nuclear weapons programme, were eliminated,” a statement said, listing the names of those killed.“Their elimination represents a significant blow to the Iranian regime’s ability to acquire weapons of mass destruction.”The military said the strikes were carried out on the basis of “precise intelligence gathered by the intelligence directorate”.

Iranian missiles have targeted sites across Israel, killing at least three people and injuring dozens, in retaliation for ongoing Israeli attacks on Iran.Iran says Israel has killed at least 78 people, including women and children, and wounded more than 320 others, as the Israeli military continues to launch strikes on cities, military sites and nuclear facilities.Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Israel it “must expect severe punishment” following the “crime” of attacking Iran and killing several top-level military commanders and six nuclear scientists.Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the military operation will continue as long as necessary.The United States has tried to distance itself from Israel’s onslaught while warning Iran against attacking American bases in the region.

Iranian forces intercepted and downed Israeli drones that had entered the country’s airspace near the border region of Salmas, according to local media reports.The drones, the reports said, were attempting reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering operations before being targeted and destroyed by Iranian military units in the area.

Fire raging after Israeli strike in Iranian city of Zanjan

Israeli fighter jets have reportedly bombed an army base in the city of Zanjan, about 325km (200 miles) from Tehran in northern Iran, according to UK-based outlet Iran International. Footage published by the outlet shows thick smoke and a fire raging hours after the attack.

Iran says nuclear talks with US ‘meaningless’ after Israel attack

Speaking to the semi-official Tasnim news agency, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei accused the US of supporting Israel’s assault on Iran, saying the attack would not have happened without Washington’s permission.“The other side [the US] acted in a way that makes dialogue meaningless,” Baqaei said of talks the US has held with Tehran in recent months to curb its nuclear programme.“You cannot claim to negotiate and at the same time divide work by allowing the Zionist regime [Israel] to target Iran’s territory,” he added.

Iranian missiles have targeted sites across Israel, injuring at least 40 people, in retaliation for ongoing Israeli attacks on Iran.Iran says Israel has killed 78 people, including senior military officials, and wounded more than 320 people in Iran, as the Israeli military continues to launch strikes on cities, military sites and nuclear facilities.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Israel that it “must expect severe punishment” following the “crime” of attacking Iran and killing several top-level military commanders and six nuclear scientists.Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the military operation will continue as long as necessary.The United States has tried to distance itself from Israel’s onslaught while warning Iran against attacking American bases in the region.

US ambassador to Israel says had ‘rough’ night amid strikes

Mike Huckabee says he had to go to shelters five times overnight amid Iran’s missile barrage.“It’s now Shabbat here. Should be quiet. Probably won’t be. Entire nation under orders to stay near shelter,” the US ambassador to Israel posted on X.Huckabee, a staunch supporter of Israel who has said there’s “no such thing” as the West Bank, said earlier this week that he the prospect of Israel launching a strike against Iran without US approval or coordination was unlikely.“I just don’t in my mind see that that would be something that would likely happen because of the closeness of the relationship and the trust, and that’s the word I would emphasise – there is a trust between the US and Israel,” he told Israeli news outlet Ynet.“I often say: we have friends, we have allies, but we only have one partner, Israel, and when I say that, I don’t mean that we don’t have deep relationships with other countries,” Huckabee said.“But there isn’t really any country with which we have the level of sharing on intelligence, military hardware, strategy, common goals – in large measure because we share a common foundation of a civilization based on the Judeo-Christian worldview.”