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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran would “pay a heavy price” after a hospital in southern Israel was hit during an Iranian missile attack on Thursday, while his defence minister said Iran’s supreme leader would be “held accountable”.”This morning, Iran’s terrorist dictators fired missiles at Soroka Hospital… and at civilians in the centre of the country. We will make the tyrants in Tehran pay a heavy price,” Netanyahu said in a post on X.The Soroka Hospital in the southern town of Beersheba was left in flames following an early morning barrage of “dozens” of Iranian ballistic missiles, with impacts also reported in two Israeli towns close to coastal hub Tel Aviv. Speaking at the scene of the hospital, director Shlomi Kodesh said that a surgical building which had been evacuated in the past few days was hit, adding that 40 people had sustained injuries.”Several wards were completely demolished and there is extensive damage across the entire hospital with damage to buildings, structures, windows, ceilings across the medical centre,” he told journalists.Iran said it was targeting an Israeli military and intelligence base, not the health facility.The latest escalation came on the seventh day of deadly exchanges between the two countries, with US President Donald Trump maintaining suspense about whether Washington will enter the war alongside Israel.Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has rejected Trump’s demand for an “unconditional surrender”, despite claims from the US leader that “Iran’s got a lot of trouble and they want to negotiate”.- ‘Never surrender’ -Trump has left his intentions on joining the conflict deliberately ambiguous, saying Wednesday: “I may do it, I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do.””The next week is going to be very big,” he added, without further details.Any US involvement would be expected to involve the bombing of a crucial underground Iranian nuclear facility in Fordow, for which special bunker-busting bombs have been developed.The White House said Trump would receive an intelligence briefing on Thursday, a US holiday. Top US diplomat Marco Rubio is set meet his British counterpart for talks expected to focus on the conflict.”I have ideas as to what to do, but I haven’t made a final (decision),” Trump said. “I like to make the final decision one second before it’s due, because things change. Especially with war.”The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump had told aides on Tuesday he had approved attack plans but was holding off to see if Iran would give up its nuclear programme.Trump told reporters that Iranian officials “want to come to the White House”, a claim denied by Tehran.The US president had favoured a diplomatic route to end Iran’s nuclear programme, seeking a deal to replace the 2015 agreement he tore up in his first term.But since Israel unleashed the campaign against Iran last week, Trump has stood behind the key US ally.- Nuclear sites -On Thursday morning, Israel said it had carried out dozens of fresh raids on Iranian targets overnight, including the partially built Arak nuclear reactor and a nuclear facility in Natanz that has been struck previously. The Israeli military said the Arak site on the outskirts of the village of Khondab in central Iran had been hit “to prevent the reactor from being restored and used for nuclear weapons development”.There was also a “near-total national internet blackout” in Iran on Wednesday, a London-based watchdog said, with Iran’s Fars news agency confirming heavier internet restrictions after initial curbs imposed last week.The military campaign has sparked calls for a return to diplomacy.Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that a deal to guarantee both Israel’s security and Iran’s desire for a civilian nuclear programme was possible.”I believe it would be good for all of us together to look for ways to stop the fighting and seek ways for the participants in the conflict to find an agreement,” he told foreign journalists at a televised event.He said Iran had not asked Russia for military help.- Daily barrages -An Israeli military official, who asked not to be named, said Wednesday that Iran had fired around 400 ballistic missiles and 1,000 drones since the conflict began on Friday. About 20 missiles had struck civilian areas in Israel, the official added.Iranian strikes have killed at least 24 people and injured hundreds since they began, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Monday.Iran said Sunday that Israeli strikes had killed at least 224 people, including military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians.Both countries have not issued an updated official toll since then.Israel says its surprise air campaign is aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.Iran had been enriching uranium to 60 percent — far above the 3.67-percent limit set by the 2015 nuclear death but still short of the 90-percent threshold needed for a nuclear warhead.Israel has maintained ambiguity on its own atomic activities, but the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute says it has 90 nuclear warheads.burs-sah-adp/jsa

Governments around the world are evacuating thousands of their nationals caught up in the rapidly spiralling Israel-Iran conflict, organising buses and planes and in some cases assisting people crossing borders on foot. Foreigners have rushed to leave both countries after Israel launched an unprecedented bombing campaign last Friday targeting Iran’s nuclear and military facilities, sparking retaliation from Tehran.With Israel’s air space closed and the two countries exchanging heavy missile fire, many people are being evacuated via neighbouring countries. – Europe -European countries have already repatriated hundreds of their citizens from Israel.The Czech Republic and Slovakia said Tuesday they had taken 181 people home on government planes.”It was not possible to send the army plane straight to Israel,” the Czech defence ministry said in a statement, citing the air space closure.”The evacuees were taken to an airport in a neighbouring country by buses. They crossed the border on foot.”The German government said flights were scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday via Jordan, while Poland said the first of its citizens were due to arrive back on Wednesday.Greece said it had repatriated 105 of its citizens plus a number of foreign nationals via Egypt, while a private plane with 148 people landed in the Bulgarian capital Sophia on Tuesday.  – United States -The US ambassador to Israel on Wednesday announced plans for evacuating Americans by air and sea.The embassy is “working on evacuation flights & cruise ship departures” for “American citizens wanting to leave Israel,” Ambassador Mike Huckabee posted on social media.- China -China has evacuated more than 1,600 citizens from Iran and several hundred more from Israel.The Chinese foreign ministry said Thursday its “embassies and consulates will continue to make every effort to assist in the safe transfer and evacuation of Chinese citizens”.- Australia -Australia has started evacuating around 1,500 citizens from Iran and more than 1,200 from Israel — but missile barrages have made it too risky for civilian aircraft to land in either country, its foreign minister said. “There’s no capacity for people to get civilian aircraft in, it is too risky, and the airspace is closed,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong told national broadcaster ABC. “We have taken the opportunity to get a small group of Australians out of Israel through a land border crossing. “We are seeking to try and do more of that over the next 24 hours.” – Pakistan -Pakistan has shut its border crossings with neighbouring Iran, except to Pakistanis wanting to return home. Around 1,000 Pakistanis have fled so far, including at least 200 students.The foreign ministry said the families of diplomats and some non-essential staff from Iran had been evacuated. – India -Around 110 students who fled Iran over the land border with Armenia have landed in New Delhi, a foreign ministry spokesperson said Thursday.There are around 10,000 Indian citizens in Iran. In Israel there are around 30,000 Indians, according to the country’s embassy in New Delhi.- Japan -Japan has ordered military planes to be on standby for around 1,000 Japanese nationals believed to live in Israel, and around 280 in Iran, according to government ministers.The Japanese embassies in Iran and Israel are preparing to use buses to evacuate citizens to neighbouring countries, a government spokesman said, as the war entered its seventh day.- Indonesia -Indonesia is preparing to evacuate around 380 of its citizens currently in Iran by land, Jakarta’s foreign minister said Thursday. “Flights are no longer possible, so the only way is land route. It will start tonight,” Foreign Minister Sugiono, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, said in a video.- Vietnam -Vietnam, which has more than 700 citizens in Israel and dozens in Iran, said it was working to ensure their safety.The foreign ministry said Thursday that 18 Vietnamese from Iran were evacuated, 16 of whom returned to Vietnam. It did not provide further information on evacuations from Israel.- Philippines -The Philippines is preparing to repatriate 28 Israel-based Filipino workers out of 178 who asked for help, the Department of Migrant Workers secretary Hans Cacdac said Thursday.At least 21 Philippine government officials have also crossed into Jordan by land from Israel since the conflict began, the foreign ministry said.

Nippon Steel completed its multi-billion-dollar acquisition of US Steel on Wednesday, granting rare veto-like power over strategic decisions to Washington with a “golden share”.The announcement concludes a saga that began in December 2023, when Nippon Steel agreed to acquire the linchpin of American steelmaking for $14.9 billion.An outright buyout sparked bipartisan political opposition, including from …

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Iran launched a fresh salvo of missiles at Israel on Thursday, with a hospital reported hit, as President Donald Trump warned he was weighing US military action in the conflict.AFP journalists heard violent, sustained explosions in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, and sirens sounded in several parts of the country to warn of incoming Iranian missiles.Shortly afterwards, the army said citizens could leave their shelters, while the foreign minister said the Soroka hospital in southern Israel’s Beersheba had suffered “extensive damage” in a strike.Israeli rescuers said at least 32 people were injured in Iran’s latest missile attack.The explosions in Jerusalem were the loudest heard by AFP journalists since the conflict began last week. The barrage came after fresh Israeli strikes on Tehran and elsewhere, and with growing speculation about whether Washington would enter the fray.Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei meanwhile rejected Trump’s demand for an “unconditional surrender”, despite claims from the US leader that “Iran’s got a lot of trouble and they want to negotiate”.Trump has left his intentions on joining the conflict deliberately ambiguous, saying Wednesday: “I may do it, I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do.””The next week is going to be very big,” he added, without further details.- ‘Never surrender’ -The White House said Trump would receive an intelligence briefing on Thursday, a US holiday. Top US diplomat Marco Rubio is set meet his British counterpart for talks expected to focus on the conflict.”I have ideas as to what to do, but I haven’t made a final (decision),” Trump said. “I like to make the final decision one second before it’s due, because things change. Especially with war.”The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump had told aides on Tuesday he had approved attack plans but was holding off to see if Iran would give up its nuclear programme.Trump told reporters that Iranian officials “want to come to the White House”, a claim denied by Tehran.The US president had favoured a diplomatic route to end Iran’s nuclear programme, seeking a deal to replace the 2015 agreement he tore up in his first term.But since Israel unleashed the campaign against Iran one week ago, Trump has stood behind the key US ally.The United States is the only country with the “bunker buster” bombs needed to destroy Iran’s Fordow nuclear plant, but US military action is deeply unpopular with parts of Trump’s base.Khamenei on Wednesday insisted Iran “will never surrender”, and called Trump’s ultimatum “unacceptable”.”America should know that any military intervention will undoubtedly result in irreparable damage,” Khamenei added.- Dozens killed -On Thursday morning, Israel said it was carrying out fresh strikes on Tehran and other parts of Iran, and warned civilians in two villages, Arak and Khondab, to leave ahead of new attacks.An Israeli military official, who asked not to be named, said Wednesday that Iran had fired around 400 ballistic missiles and 1,000 drones since the conflict began on Friday. About 20 missiles had struck civilian areas in Israel, the official added.Iranian strikes have killed at least 24 people and injured hundreds since they began, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Monday.Iran said Sunday that Israeli strikes had killed at least 224 people, including military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians.Both countries have not issued an updated official toll since then.Israel says its surprise air campaign is aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.Iran had been enriching uranium to 60 percent — far above the 3.67-percent limit set by the 2015 nuclear death but still short of the 90-percent threshold needed for a nuclear warhead.Israel has maintained ambiguity on its own atomic activities, but the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute says it has 90 nuclear warheads.- ‘Immediate de-escalation’ -Israel’s strikes have prompted mass evacuations and food and fuel shortages in Iran.”There are shortages of rice, bread, sugar and tea,” a 40-year-old Iranian driver told AFP at the Iraqi border crossing of Bashmakh, seeking anonymity for fear of reprisals.There was also a “near-total national internet blackout” in Iran on Wednesday, a London-based watchdog said, with Iran’s Fars news agency confirming heavier internet restrictions after initial curbs imposed last week.The military campaign has sparked calls for a return to diplomacy.Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that a deal to guarantee both Israel’s security and Iran’s desire for a civilian nuclear programme was possible.”I believe it would be good for all of us together to look for ways to stop the fighting and seek ways for the participants in the conflict to find an agreement,” he told foreign journalists at a televised event.He said Iran had not asked Russia for military help.Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said his country remains committed to diplomacy, noting Iran “has so far only retaliated against the Israeli regime and not those who are aiding and abetting it”.But there were lingering questions about how the conflict could evolve, with Trump telling reporters that a change in Iran’s government “could happen”, a day after he had boasted that Washington could assassinate Khamenei, but would not, “at least not for now”.burs-sah/lb/jsa