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Iran and Israel launched a new round of strikes early on Saturday, a day after Tehran ruled out nuclear talks while under threat and European powers continued efforts to revive diplomacy.
The Israeli military said it had carried out a wave of attacks on missile storage and launch sites across Iran, with Israel’s foreign minister claiming Iran’s suspected nuclear programme has now been set back years.
The Guardian reported Gideon Saar told the German newspaper Bild on Saturday: “According to the assessment we hear, we already delayed for at least two or three years the possibility for them to have a nuclear bomb.”
The Israeli military said on Saturday that it had killed two Iranian Revolutionary Guard commanders, while an official said two centrifuge production sites were struck in Isfahan overnight.
Iran’s Fars news agency reported that Israel had targeted the Isfahan nuclear facility, one of the country’s largest, but said there was no leakage of hazardous material.
Iranian media also reported an Israeli strike on a building in the city of Qom, where a 16-year-old was reportedly killed and two others injured.
The attacks comes as a magnitude 5.5 earthquake rattled parts of Iran on Friday, according to Iranian state-run media.
Meanwhile, US president Donald Trump slammed the US intelligence Community’s assessment of Iran’s nuclear weapons program and claimed Tehran could produce a working weapon within a “matter of weeks”.
Israel commenced its attack, dubbed Operation Rising Lion, six days ago, killing several of Tehran’s top military leaders in its first wave of airstrikes and going on to hit 1,100 targets.
Joe Sommerlad21 June 2025 09:00
UK foreign secretary David Lammy has called the situation in the Middle East “perilous and deadly serious”, urging Iran to open talks with the US.
Lammy travelled to Geneva on Friday to join French and German counterparts for talks with Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi, as part of ongoing diplomatic efforts to ease tensions.
The meeting followed US president Donald Trump’s announcement that he would delay a decision on joining Israeli strikes against Iran for up to two weeks.
“It is still clear to me, as President Trump indicated yesterday, that there is a window of within two weeks where we can see a diplomatic solution,” Lammy told reporters after the meeting.
“We have a window of time. This is perilous and deadly serious,” he said, urging Iran to “take that off ramp” and speak to the US.
Mr Araghchi dismissed the proposal, saying Iran would not negotiate while Israeli airstrikes continued, and reiterated that its nuclear programme was entirely peaceful.
Britain’s foreign secretary David Lammy makes a statement following their meeting with Iran’s foreign minister on Tehran’s nuclear programme (AFP via Getty Images)
Shahana Yasmin21 June 2025 08:45
Two centrifuge production sites were struck in Isfahan, Iran, overnight, an Israeli military official has said, according to Reuters.
Centrifuges are devices that enrich uranium. They can be used to make fuel for power plants as well as for nuclear weapons.
Tara Cobham21 June 2025 08:31
The Israeli military has said it has killed a senior commander in the Palestine corps of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ overseas arm.
Tara Cobham21 June 2025 08:21
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have said five of its members have been killed in Israeli attacks in Khorramabad on Saturday, according to Iranian media, Reuters reports.
Tara Cobham21 June 2025 08:13
Israel has claimed it has set back Iran’s suspected nuclear programme by “at least two or three years”.
The Israeli air force launched new airstrikes against missile storage as well as launch sites in central Iran, Israel said on Saturday, according to the Guardian, which cited Agence France-Presse reports.
Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar told the German newspaper Bild on Saturday: “According to the assessment we hear, we already delayed for at least two or three years the possibility for them to have a nuclear bomb.”
Tara Cobham21 June 2025 08:09
Iranian state-run media reported that a magnitude 5.5 earthquake rattled parts of Iran on Friday. The United States Geological Survey put the magnitude of the tremor at 5.1.
Authorities in Iran said the quake occurred at 9.19pm local time at a depth of 10 km (6 miles). Its epicenter was roughly 170 km (105 miles) to the east of Tehran, near Semnan province, which stretches from the slopes of the Alborz Mountains to the edge of the Iranian desert. The province is home to several important military and missile facilities.
There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties from the quake, which was considered moderate in strength.
Tara Cobham21 June 2025 07:57
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia has repeatedly notified Israel that Iran has no alleged intentions of obtaining nuclear weapons, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported on Saturday, citing an interview with SkyNews Arabia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia has repeatedly notified Israel that Iran has no alleged intentions of obtaining nuclear weapons, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported on Saturday, citing an interview with SkyNews Arabia (AP)
Tara Cobham21 June 2025 07:53
As the war between Israel and Iran hits the one-week mark, Iranians have spent nearly half of the conflict in a near-communication blackout, unable to connect not only with the outside world but also with their neighbors and loved ones across the country.
Civilians are left unaware of when and where Israel will strike next, despite Israeli forces issuing warnings through their Persian-language online channels. When the missiles land, disconnected phone and web services mean not knowing for hours or days if their family or friends are among the victims.
That’s left many scrambling on various social media apps to see what’s happening — again, only a glimpse of life able to reach the internet in a nation of over 80 million people.
Associated Press21 June 2025 07:40
The Israeli prime minister made the remarks in a solemn address to TV cameras while standing in front of the ruins of a hospital in the southern city of Beersheba, hours after it was hit by Iranian missiles. Officials said at least 40 people were injured in the attack on Thursday.
“There are people who were killed, families who grieved loved ones, I really appreciate that,” Netanyahu said, comparing the attacks on Israel to the blitz in Britain during World War II.
Tom Watling21 June 2025 07:30