{"id":54455,"date":"2025-06-13T09:15:27","date_gmt":"2025-06-13T09:15:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/israel-strikes-iran-s-nuclear-and-missile-sites-kills-top-military-officials\/"},"modified":"2025-06-13T08:51:16","modified_gmt":"2025-06-13T08:51:16","slug":"israel-strikes-iran-s-nuclear-and-missile-sites-kills-top-military-officials","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/israel-strikes-iran-s-nuclear-and-missile-sites-kills-top-military-officials\/","title":{"rendered":"Israel strikes Iran\u2019s nuclear and missile sites, kills top military officials"},"content":{"rendered":"

The strikes, among the most extensive on Iranian soil since the 1980s war with Iraq, killed at least two of Tehran\u2019s most senior military figures and plunged the Middle East into a perilous new chapter of conflict.<\/p>\n

Multiple strategic sites across Iran were hit, including the country\u2019s primary uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, where plumes of black smoke were seen rising. The International Atomic Energy Agency later confirmed the site had been struck and said it was monitoring radiation levels.<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s state-run media confirmed the deaths of two key figures: Gen. Hossein Salami, the commander of the powerful Revolutionary Guard, and Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, the chief of staff of the armed forces. Several top scientists linked to Iran\u2019s nuclear programme were also reported killed, although their identities have not yet been disclosed.<\/p>\n

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed \u201csevere punishment,\u201d accusing Israel of a \u201cwicked crime\u201d and claiming that residential areas were also struck. <\/p>\n

In an initial retaliatory move, Iran launched more than 100 drones toward Israel, though Israeli military officials said most were intercepted.<\/p>\n

Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, spokesperson for the Israeli Defense Forces, described the strikes as a \u201cpreemptive measure\u201d involving around 200 aircraft targeting approximately 100 Iranian sites. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe struck the heart of their nuclear and missile development infrastructure,\u201d he said, adding that operations were ongoing.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the move, calling it a battle for Israel\u2019s survival. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a clear and present danger to our nation,\u201d he said in a televised address. \u201cWe will continue until this threat is permanently removed.\u201d <\/p>\n

He further stated that the strike was aimed at Iran\u2019s regime, not its people, expressing hope that it would mark the beginning of the end for what he called a \u201cbrutal dictatorship.\u201d<\/p>\n

The timing of the attack coincides with increasing international pressure on Iran. Just a day earlier, the IAEA Board of Governors issued a formal censure against Tehran for its refusal to cooperate with nuclear inspectors. Iran responded by announcing the establishment of a third enrichment site and the deployment of advanced centrifuges.<\/p>\n

The Trump administration, which had advised against a strike during ongoing nuclear negotiations, denied any involvement. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe were not part of these operations,\u201d U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur focus now is on safeguarding American personnel in the region.\u201d <\/p>\n

The U.S. had quietly withdrawn some diplomats from Baghdad earlier in the week and urged military families to consider leaving the region.<\/p>\n

As airspace across Iran, Israel, Iraq, and Jordan was shut down, oil markets reacted sharply. Brent crude prices surged nearly 8%, and Israel\u2019s main airport closed temporarily.<\/p>\n

Analysts warn that a full-blown regional war is now a real possibility, especially if Iran\u2019s promised retaliation causes civilian casualties inside Israel. <\/p>\n

\"The<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Israel launched a major airstrike early Friday, targeting Iran\u2019s nuclear and missile infrastructure in a dramatic escalation of their long-standing hostilities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":2000089053,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[75],"byline":[170],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-54455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-homenews","byline-igihe"],"bylines":[{"id":170,"name":"IGIHE","slug":"igihe","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":8}],"contributors":[{"id":170,"name":"IGIHE","slug":"igihe","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":8}],"featured_image":{"id":2000089053,"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/israel-attacks-iran-new.jpg","alt":"","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":0,"height":0,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/israel-attacks-iran-new.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/israel-attacks-iran-new.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/israel-attacks-iran-new.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/israel-attacks-iran-new.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/israel-attacks-iran-new.jpg","width":0,"height":0}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54455"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54455\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000089053"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54455"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=54455"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=54455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}