On Friday, 13th June 2025, Israel commenced extensive strikes against Iran, stating that its targets included nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories, and military commanders.
Israel declared that this operation marks the beginning of a sustained effort to thwart Tehran’s ambitions of developing an atomic weapon.
In retaliation, Iran launched approximately 100 drones towards Israeli territory, which the Israeli military is currently working to intercept, according to Brigadier General Effie Defrin, an Israeli military spokesman.
Iranian media and eyewitnesses reported explosions, including at the nation’s primary uranium enrichment facility in Natanz, while Israel declared a state of emergency in preparation for potential retaliatory missile and drone attacks.
Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards Corps announced that its top commander, Hossein Salami, had been killed, and state media indicated that the unit’s headquarters in Tehran had been struck.
“We are at a pivotal moment in Israel’s history,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated in a recorded video message.
“Just moments ago, Israel launched Operation Rising Lion, a targeted military initiative aimed at diminishing the Iranian threat to Israel’s very existence. This operation will persist for as long as necessary to eradicate this threat,” he added.
