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Israel and Iran traded missile fire for a fifth straight day Tuesday, as US President Donald Trump warned Tehran residents to “immediately evacuate” and left a G7 summit early.Despite growing calls for the longtime foes to end hostilities, neither Israel nor Iran showed any signs of cutting short the missile blitz kicked off Friday, when Israel launched an unprecedented series of aerial raids targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities.After a new wave of Israeli strikes on Iran’s capital — including a dramatic attack on a state TV building — both countries activated their missile defence systems overnight into Tuesday, with Israel’s army briefly urging residents to seek shelter from incoming Iranian missiles. The Chinese embassy in Tel Aviv warned its citizens to leave the country immediately, as the United States said it was deploying “additional capabilities” to the Middle East, according to Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth.The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz departed Southeast Asia on Monday after cancelling plans to dock in Vietnam, amid reports it was headed to the Middle East to boost the US presence there.But a White House spokesman stressed that US forces in the Middle East remained in a defensive posture, despite the flurry of activity. Trump has repeatedly declined to say if the United States would participate in Israeli military action, although he says it was not involved in the initial strikes.After calling on the two sides to make a deal, the US leader issued an extraordinary warning on his Truth Social platform. “Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!” Trump wrote without offering further details, before cutting short his attendance at the G7 in Canada to head back to the White House.- ‘One after the other’ – After decades of enmity and a prolonged shadow war, Israel launched a surprise aerial campaign against Iran last week, with the stated aim of preventing Tehran from acquiring atomic weapons — an ambition it denies.Iran has launched several waves of missiles in retaliation for Israel’s attacks, with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards boasting Monday evening that the attacks would continue “without interruption until dawn”.The sudden flare-up has sparked fears of a wider conflict, with Trump urging Iran back to the negotiating table after Israel’s attacks derailed ongoing nuclear talks.US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said a missile strike lightly damaged a building used by the American embassy in Tel Aviv, while the US State Department warned citizens on Monday not to travel to Israel due to security concerns.At least 24 people have been killed in Israel so far and hundreds wounded, according to the prime minister’s office.Israel’s strikes have killed at least 224 people, including top military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians, according to Iranian authorities.Netanyahu told a press conference Monday evening that Israel was eliminating Iran’s security leadership “one after the other”.”We are changing the face of the Middle East, and that can lead to radical changes inside Iran itself,” he said. – ‘Stop’ civilian strikes -International calls for calm have mounted.At the Group of Seven summit in the Canadian Rockies, leaders including Trump called Monday for “de-escalation” while stressing Israel had the right to defend itself.”We urge that the resolution of the Iranian crisis leads to a broader de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza”, G7 leaders said in a joint statement that also affirmed “Iran can never have a nuclear weapon”.China called on Israel and Iran to both “immediately take measures to cool down the tensions” and avoid plunging the region into deeper turmoil.The United States and Iran had engaged in several rounds of indirect talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme in recent weeks, but Iran said after the start of Israel’s campaign that it would not negotiate while under attack. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Monday that “absent a total cessation of military aggression against us, our responses will continue”. “It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu. That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy,” he wrote on X.A senior US official told AFP Trump had intervened to prevent Israel from carrying out an assassination of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.But Netanyahu did not rule out the possibility when asked about the reports during an interview with ABC News.”It’s not going to escalate the conflict, it’s going to end the conflict,” he said.

The White House insisted Monday evening that US forces remained in a “defensive” posture in the Middle East, despite a military buildup over the Israel-Iran war and a shock warning from President Donald Trump to evacuate Tehran.Trump’s brief warning on social media, without further details, raised speculation that the United States may be readying to join Israel in attacking Iran.Those suspicions rose further after it was announced that Trump would be leaving a G7 summit in Canada and returning to the White House a day early over the mounting Middle East conflict.But White House and Pentagon officials reiterated that US forces in the region remained in a “defensive” posture.White House spokesperson Alex Pfeiffer, replying to a post on social media that claimed the United States was attacking in Iran, said: “This is not true.””American forces are maintaining their defensive posture, and that has not changed,” he said.Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth similarly told Fox News in a televised interview that “we are postured defensively in the region, to be strong, in pursuit of a peace deal, and we certainly hope that’s what happens here.”Earlier in the day, Hegseth had announced that he had “directed the deployment of additional capabilities” over the weekend to the Middle East.”Protecting US forces is our top priority and these deployments are intended to enhance our defensive posture in the region,” he wrote on X.His post on social media came after the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz was tracked leaving Southeast Asia on Monday, and amid reports that dozens of US military aircraft were heading across the Atlantic.A US defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Hegseth had ordered the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group to the Middle East, saying it was “to sustain our defensive posture and safeguard American personnel.”The movement of one of the world’s largest warships came on day four of the escalating air war between Israel and Iran, with no end in sight despite international calls for de-escalation.

US President Donald Trump was on Monday leaving a Group of Seven summit early as he hinted of greater involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict and warned Tehran residents to evacuate.Before flying out of Canada in the middle of the G7 gathering, Trump took to social media to back Israel and issue an alert to the Iranian capital of nearly 10 million people.”Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.At a group photo with fellow G7 leaders in the scenic mountain resort of Kananaskis, he said: “I have to be back as soon as I can. I wish I could stay for tomorrow, but they understand, this is big stuff.”White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Trump would attend the leaders’ dinner before returning to the White House.The US president will miss a day of meetings that was expected to include discussions with the leaders of Ukraine and Mexico.He has repeatedly declined to say if the United States would participate in Israeli military action, although he says it was not involved in initial strikes.Trump told reporters before his decision was announced to leave early: “As soon as I leave here, we’re going to be doing something.”The president, who has praised Israel’s strikes despite his stated preference for diplomacy, said Iran would be “foolish” not to agree to a negotiated settlement.”It’s painful for both parties, but I’d say Iran is not winning this war, and they should talk, and they should talk immediately, before it’s too late,” Trump told reporters as he met Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.US forces in the Middle East remain in a defensive posture, a White House spokesman stressed. – Onus on Iran -Israel has struck major nuclear and military sites and killed leading commanders and nuclear scientists in Iran, which has responded with its own volley of drones and missiles on Israel.Canada and European leaders had hoped to draft a G7 statement on the crisis, but diplomats said that Trump had not committed the United States to joining it.Leaders of the club of industrialized democracies — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States — have mostly backed Israel, but concern has mounted as the violence intensifies.French President Emmanuel Macron, speaking to reporters at the summit on Monday, pleaded with Israel to spare civilians in Iran.Any G7 statement would be expected to put the onus on Iran and stop short of calling for an immediate ceasefire.”We’ll highlight the legitimate right of the state of Israel to defend itself and we will also discuss potential additional measures to reach a diplomatic solution,” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that G7 leaders share concern about Iran’s nuclear program but also: “I do think there’s a consensus for de-escalation.”Iran, since Trump pulled out of an earlier nuclear deal in 2018, has ramped up uranium enrichment but not yet at levels to create an atomic bomb. Israel is widely known to have nuclear weapons but does not acknowledge them publicly.- Tariff talks -The summit at a wooded lodge under snow-topped mountains comes after months of tumult on the global stage since Trump’s return.Seeking to shatter a decades-old US-led global economic order, Trump has vowed sweeping tariffs on friends and foes alike although he has postponed implementation until July 9.But Trump voiced optimism about a resolution with Canada and signed documents with Starmer to confirm an agreement with Britain.Trump has previously mocked host Canada, stating that the vast but less populated neighbor should become the 51st US state.But Trump has appeared to show more respect to Canada since Carney, a staid former central banker, took over from the more flamboyant Justin Trudeau in March.Trump had taken office seeking diplomacy both on Iran and Ukraine, which Russia invaded in 2022.He has since voiced frustration that Russian President Vladimir Putin has not accepted a US proposal for a ceasefire.Trump said Monday that Putin was “very insulted” by Russia’s 2014 expulsion from the G8 and that if Russia were still a member, “you wouldn’t have a war right now.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted on Monday that Israel’s campaign against Iran was “changing the face of the Middle East”, as the two countries traded heavy strikes for a fourth day. The remarks came hours after a dramatic attack on an Iranian state TV building, which forced a presenter to flee mid-broadcast and prompted a threat of retaliation against Israeli news channels.After decades of enmity and a prolonged shadow war, Israel launched a surprise aerial campaign against Iran last week, with the stated aim of preventing Tehran from acquiring atomic weapons — an ambition it denies.The sudden flare-up has sparked fears of a wider conflict, with US President Donald Trump urging Iran back to the negotiating table after Israel’s attacks derailed ongoing nuclear talks.While Trump has maintained that Washington has “nothing to do” with its ally’s campaign, he issued an extraordinary warning on Monday for all residents of Tehran to “immediately evacuate” — echoing a narrower warning by Israel’s army for people to flee the capital district where the TV station was later hit. Israel’s strikes have killed at least 224 people, including top military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians, according to Iranian authorities.Netanyahu told a press conference Monday evening that Israel was eliminating Iran’s security leadership “one after the other”.”We are changing the face of the Middle East, and that can lead to radical changes inside Iran itself,” he said. Iran has launched several waves of missiles in retaliation for Israel’s attacks, with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards boasting Monday evening that the attacks would continue “without interruption until dawn”.Inhabitants of Tel Aviv were briefly told to seek shelter early Tuesday, a day after Iranian strikes on multiple Israeli cities pushed the death toll above two dozen in Israel. – ‘Very scared’ -Earlier, the live feed of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) was interrupted when an Israeli strike hit its Tehran building on Monday.The presenter was in the midst of lambasting Israel when an explosion rocked the facility, causing the monitors behind her to cut out and sending debris raining from the ceiling. Prior to the strike, Defence Minister Israel Katz said that Iran’s “propaganda and incitement megaphone is about to disappear”.IRIB resumed its broadcast shortly after the strike, with a senior official at the service saying “the voice of the Islamic revolution… will not be silenced with a military operation”.Iran later “issued an evacuation warning for the N12 and N14 channels of Israel”, state TV reported, calling the order a “response to the hostile attack” on IRIB.Iranian missiles struck Tel Aviv, Bnei Brak, Petah Tikva and Haifa on Monday, leaving behind shattered homes, smouldering wreckage and stunned residents picking through debris.”I have four children, four boys. We’re very scared, but everyone is OK,” said Idan Bar, whose building in Petah Tikva was among those hit.US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said a nearby missile strike lightly damaged a building used by the American embassy in Tel Aviv, while the US State Department warned citizens on Monday not to travel to Israel due to security concerns.The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz was also leaving Southeast Asia on Monday after cancelling plans to dock in Vietnam, amid reports it was headed to the Middle East to boost the US presence there.- ‘Takes one phone call’ -International calls for calm have mounted.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters at the Group of Seven summit in the Canadian Rockies on Monday that he believed his fellow leaders were united in wanting de-escalation, adding the “risk of the conflict escalating is obvious”.French President Emmanuel Macron called for both sides to “end” strikes on civilians and warned that aiming to overthrow Tehran’s clerical state would be a “strategic error”.China called on Israel and Iran to both “immediately take measures to cool down the tensions” and avoid plunging the region into deeper turmoil.Trump had initially urged Iran to come back to the negotiating table, but then wrote on his Truth Social platform: “Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!” Shortly afterwards, the White House said Trump would return to Washington, cutting short his stay at the G7 summit and hinting at greater US involvement in the conflict.The United States and Iran had engaged in several rounds of indirect talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme in recent weeks, but Iran said after the start of Israel’s campaign that it would not negotiate while under attack. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Monday that “absent a total cessation of military aggression against us, our responses will continue”. “It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu. That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy,” he wrote on X.A senior US official told AFP Trump had intervened to prevent Israel from carrying out an assassination of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.But Netanyahu did not rule out the possibility when asked about the reports during an interview with ABC News.”It’s not going to escalate the conflict, it’s going to end the conflict,” he said.burs-smw/tym/lb

The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz was leaving Southeast Asia on Monday after canceling a Vietnam visit, as the Pentagon announced it was sending “additional capabilities” to the Middle East amid a ramp up of the Iran-Israel conflict.At 13:45 GMT, the carrier was traveling through the Malacca Strait toward the Indian Ocean, according to Marine Traffic, a ship-tracking site.A Vietnamese government official confirmed to AFP that a planned reception aboard the USS Nimitz on June 20, as part of the ship’s expected June 19-23 visit to Danang, had been cancelled.  The official shared a letter from the US embassy announcing that the Defense Department was cancelling the event due to “an emergent operational requirement.” The movement of one of the world’s largest warships came on day four of the escalating air war between Israel and Iran, with no end in sight despite international calls for de-escalation.Hours after the US embassy letter, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the United States was reinforcing its military presence in the Middle East to enhance its “defensive posture.””Over the weekend, I directed the deployment of additional capabilities to the United States Central Command Area of Responsibility,” Hegseth posted on X. “Protecting US forces is our top priority and these deployments are intended to enhance our defensive posture in the region.”Israel’s strikes have so far killed at least 224 people, including top military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians, according to Iranian authorities.In retaliation, Iran said it had struck Israel with a salvo of missiles and warned of “effective, targeted and more devastating operations” to come.US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Monday said that Iran’s missile barrage had lightly damaged a building used by the American embassy in Tel Aviv.With tensions high, US President Donald Trump issued an unspecified warning from the G7 summit in Canada where he is scheduled to remain until Tuesday.”As soon as I leave here, we’re going to be doing something. But I have to leave here,” Trump told reporters. Meanwhile open source intelligence analysts have taken to social media to post flight-tracking software grabs of about two dozen US Air Force air tankers taking off since Sunday and heading east over the Atlantic ocean.Defense news and analysis website TWZ reported that the US tankers could be heading toward the Middle East to provide aerial refueling support for Israel’s air operations over Iran, or they could be positioning to provide an air bridge from the United States to the region.

US President Donald Trump on Monday warned Iran to make a deal as Israel pounds the country, but he held back on working with fellow Group of Seven leaders to issue a joint call to encourage de-escalation.Host Canada had designed the summit in the Rockies resort of Kananaskis to paper over differences within the bloc of major industrial democracies, as Trump returns to the global stage in his norm-shattering second term.But two days before the summit, Israel launched a surprise, massive military attack on Iran, which had been in negotiations with the Trump administration over the cleric-run state’s contested nuclear program.Trump, who has praised Israel’s strikes despite his stated preference for diplomacy, said Iran would be “foolish” not to agree to a negotiated settlement.”It’s painful for both parties, but I’d say Iran is not winning this war, and they should talk, and they should talk immediately, before it’s too late,” Trump told reporters as he met Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.Israel has struck major nuclear and military sites and killed leading commanders and nuclear scientists in Iran, which has responded with its own volley of drones and missiles on Israel.Canada and European leaders have looked to draft a statement on the crisis, but diplomats said that Trump has not committed the United States to joining it.”It’ll be up to the American side to decide whether we’re going to have a G7 statement on the Middle East or not,” German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said.- Pressure on Iran -Any statement would be expected to put the onus on Iran and stop short of calling for an immediate ceasefire.”We’ll highlight the legitimate right of the state of Israel to defend itself and we will also discuss potential additional measures to reach a diplomatic solution,” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that G7 leaders share concern about Iran’s nuclear program but also: “I do think there’s a consensus for de-escalation.”Unusually, Japan — which has historic relations with Iran and limited domestic pressure related to the Middle East — has broken with its Western allies to condemn Israel’s attack, calling it “completely unacceptable and deeply regrettable.”Iran, since Trump pulled out of an earlier nuclear deal in 2018, has ramped up uranium enrichment but not yet at levels to create an atomic bomb. Israel is widely known to have nuclear weapons but does not acknowledge them publicly.- Easing tensions with Trump -The summit at a wooded lodge under snow-topped mountains comes after months of tumult on the global stage since Trump’s return.Trump, seeking to shatter a decades-old US-led global economic order, has vowed sweeping tariffs on friends and foes alike although he has postponed implementation until July 9.But Trump voiced optimism about a resolution with Canada and signed documents with Starmer to confirm an agreement with Britain, which he mistakenly called the European Union at one point.Trump opened a folder to display signed documents with Starmer, only for the paperwork to slide out across the ground.”Oops, sorry about that,” Trump said, as Starmer scrabbled to pick up the loose sheets. Trump has previously mocked host Canada, stating that the vast but less populated neighbor should become the 51st US state.But Trump has appeared to show more respect to Canada since Carney, a staid former central banker, took over from the more flamboyant Justin Trudeau in March.Trump was “very respectful” and spoke of “how much he likes Canada,” said the country’s ambassador to Washington, Kirsten Hillman.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to join the G7 talks on Tuesday and to speak to Trump, who had initially tried to force him into a deal with Russia, which invaded Ukraine in 2022.Trump has since voiced frustration that Russian President Vladimir Putin has not accepted a US proposal for a ceasefire. The US president has previously mused about readmitting Russia to the G8, from which it was expelled in 2014 after invading and annexing Ukraine’s region of Crimea, triggering a war which accelerated in 2022 with a full-scale Russian invasion.Trump said Monday that Putin was “very insulted” by the G8 expulsion and that if Russia were still a member, “you wouldn’t have a war right now.”

Stocks rose and oil prices retreated Monday as fears of a wider Middle East conflict eased even as Israel and Iran pounded each other with missiles for a fourth day.The dollar dipped against the euro and pound, while safe-haven gold declined slightly.”As things stand, investors seem less fearful than they were going into the weekend …

Oil prices drop, stocks climb as Iran-Israel war fears ease Read More »

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted on Monday that Israel’s campaign against Iran was “changing the face of the Middle East”, as the two countries traded heavy strikes for a fourth day. The remarks came hours after a dramatic Israeli attack on an Iranian state TV building that forced a presenter to flee mid-broadcast under a shower of dust and debris — prompting a threat of retaliation against Israeli news channels by Tehran.After decades of enmity and a prolonged shadow war, Israel on Friday launched a surprise aerial campaign against targets across Iran, saying they aimed to prevent its arch-foe from acquiring atomic weapons, an ambition Tehran denies.The sudden flare-up in hostilities has sparked fears of a wider conflict, with US President Donald Trump urging Iran back to the negotiating table after Israel’s attacks derailed ongoing nuclear talks.While Trump has maintained that Washington has “nothing to do” with its ally’s campaign, Iran’s foreign minister said Monday that the US leader could halt the attacks with “one phone call”.Israel’s strikes have so far killed at least 224 people, including top military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians, according to Iranian authorities.Netanyahu told a press conference Monday evening that Israel was eliminating Iran’s security leadership “one after the other”.”We are changing the face of the Middle East, and that can lead to radical changes inside Iran itself,” he said. Iran has launched several waves of missiles in retaliation for Israel’s attacks, with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warning of “more devastating operations” to come.In Tehran, the live feed of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) was interrupted when an Israeli strike hit its building on Monday.The presenter was in the midst of lambasting Israel when an explosion rocked the facility, causing the monitors behind her to cut out and sending debris raining from the ceiling, live footage showed. – Children screaming -Video released by the Iranian judiciary’s Mizan Online website later showed the building in flames.Israel had previously issued an evacuation warning for the part of town where IRIB is located, with Defence Minister Israel Katz saying before the strike that Iran’s “propaganda and incitement megaphone is about to disappear”.IRIB resumed its broadcast shortly after the strike, with a senior official at the service saying “the voice of the Islamic revolution… will not be silenced with a military operation”.Iran later “issued an evacuation warning for the N12 and N14 channels of Israel”, state TV reported, calling the order a “response to the hostile attack” on IRIB.In Israel, the military reported a fresh salvo of Iranian missiles on Monday evening targeting the north of the country, where residents were advised to take cover. Iranian attacks earlier on Monday hit Tel Aviv, Bnei Brak, Petah Tikva and Haifa — leaving behind shattered homes, smouldering wreckage and stunned residents picking through debris.”I have four children, four boys. We’re very scared, but everyone is OK,” said Idan Bar, whose building in Petah Tikva was among those hit.The death toll in Israel rose by 11 on Monday, the prime minister’s office said, bringing the total since Friday to 24. The figure included three people killed when a missile struck an oil refinery in Haifa on Sunday, according to an Israeli official.US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said a nearby missile strike lightly damaged a building used by the American embassy in Tel Aviv, while the US State Department warned citizens on Monday not to travel to Israel due to security concerns.The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz was also leaving Southeast Asia on Monday after cancelling plans to dock in Vietnam, amid reports it was headed to the Middle East to boost the US presence there.- ‘Make a deal’ -International calls for calm have mounted since the fighting began.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters at the Group of Seven summit in the Canadian Rockies on Monday that he believed his fellow leaders were united in wanting de-escalation, adding the “risk of the conflict escalating is obvious”.China called on both sides to “immediately take measures to cool down the tensions” and avoid plunging the region into deeper turmoil.Trump, also speaking from the G7 summit, urged Iran to come back to the negotiating table.  “They have to make a deal, and it’s painful for both parties, but I’d say Iran is not winning this war, and they should talk, and they should talk immediately before it’s too late,” he said.The United States and Iran had engaged in several rounds of indirect talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme in recent weeks, but Iran said after the start of Israel’s campaign that it would not negotiate while under attack. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Monday that “absent a total cessation of military aggression against us, our responses will continue”. “If President Trump is genuine about diplomacy and interested in stopping this war, next steps are consequential,” he said on X.”It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu. That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy.” A senior US official told AFP Trump had intervened to prevent Israel from carrying out an assassination of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.But Netanyahu did not rule out the possibility when asked about the reports during an interview with ABC News.”It’s not going to escalate the conflict, it’s going to end the conflict,” he said.burs-smw/ysm

Israel and Iran traded deadly fire for a fourth day on Monday in their most intense confrontation in history, fuelling fears of a drawn-out conflict that could engulf the Middle East.The longtime foes have fought a prolonged shadow war through proxies and covert operations, with Israel battling several Iran-backed groups in the region, including Hamas in the Gaza Strip since October 2023.Here are the latest developments:- Mounting casualties -In a major campaign launched early Friday, Israeli fighter jets and drones have struck nuclear and military sites in Iran, also hitting residential areas and fuel depots.Iran’s health ministry says at least 224 people have been killed and more than 1,200 wounded.Tehran has responded with barrages of missiles and drones that hit Israeli cities and towns, killing at least 24 people and wounding 592 others, according to the prime minister’s office.Israel has also killed many top military commanders and atomic scientists in Iran as part of an offensive that officials say seeks to end nuclear and missile threats from the Islamic republic.Israel’s military reported a new wave of incoming missiles targeting the country’s north on Monday evening.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, did not rule out killing Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.”It’s not going to escalate the conflict, it’s going to end the conflict,” he told ABC News when asked about reports that US President Donald Trump vetoed an Israeli plan to kill Khamenei.- Iran state TV hit -AFP journalists in Tehran heard massive blasts across the city after Israel issued an evacuation order for the northern District 3, home to state broadcaster IRIB, which was hit in an Israeli strike.IRIB later resumed its live broadcast after it was cut due to the attack.Defence Minister Israel Katz said his country’s forces had targeted “the propaganda and incitement broadcasting authority of the Iranian regime”.Iran foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei called the strike a “war crime”, and demanded the UN Security Council take action.Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iranian forces would “pummel” Israel until it stopped its attacks, and suggested Trump could halt the strikes with “one phone call”. “That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy,” he added. – Israel claims ‘air superiority’ -The Israeli military said that after a wave of strikes on Monday, its forces had destroyed one third of Iran’s surface-to-surface missile launchers.According to military spokesman Effie Defrin, “we have now achieved full air superiority over Tehran”.Reza Sayyad, spokesman for the Iranian armed forces, said their targets in Israel included “sensitive and important” security sites as well as “the residences of military commanders and scientists”.Among the sites hit in Israel on Sunday was a major oil refinery in the coastal city of Haifa, an Israeli official said after a military censorship gag order was lifted.Residential areas in both countries have also suffered deadly strikes.- Diplomacy -The conflict has rapidly escalated despite calls from world leaders to halt the attacks.China urged Iran and Israel to “immediately” take steps to reduce tensions and “prevent the region from falling into greater turmoil”.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his Iranian counterpart in a phone call on Monday that Ankara was ready to play a “facilitating role” to end the conflict.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he believed “there’s a consensus for de-escalation” among Group of Seven leaders, who are meeting in Canada.Trump told reporters at the G7 summit that “Iran is not winning this war, and they should talk… before it’s too late”.Nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington that were set to take place on Sunday had been called off.- Nuclear sites -Netanyahu has said the Israeli offensive aims to thwart the “existential” threats posed by Iran’s nuclear and missile programmes.The fierce bombing campaign came after warnings from the UN nuclear watchdog over Iran’s atomic activities.Rafael Grossi, head of the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said on Monday there was “no indication of a physical attack” on an underground section of Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment facility, and that radiation levels outside the plant were “at normal levels”.The IAEA previously said that a key, above-ground component of Iran’s Natanz nuclear site was destroyed.burs-ami/smw/ysm

US President Donald Trump on Monday warned Iran, which Israel is pounding, to re-enter negotiations “before it’s too late” as Group of Seven leaders considered a joint call for de-escalation.Host Canada had designed the summit in the Rockies resort of Kananaskis to paper over differences within the bloc of major industrial democracies, as Trump returns to the global stage in his norm-shattering second term.But two days before the summit, Israel launched a surprise, massive military attack on Iran, which had been in negotiations with the Trump administration over the cleric-run state’s contested nuclear program.Trump, who has praised Israel’s strikes despite his stated preference for diplomacy, said he believed a negotiated settlement remained “achievable.””It’s painful for both parties, but I’d say Iran is not winning this war, and they should talk, and they should talk immediately, before it’s too late,” Trump told reporters as he met Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.Israel has struck major nuclear and military sites and killed leading commanders and nuclear scientists in Iran, which has responded with its own volley of drones and missiles on Israel.Canada and European leaders have looked to draft a statement on the crisis, although it looks set to stop short of demanding a ceasefire.Leaders will discuss the statement Monday evening, a diplomat said.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that G7 leaders share concern about Iran’s nuclear program but there is “absolutely a focus on how we de-escalate this and that will be a central focus as we go into the talks.””I do think there’s a consensus for de-escalation,” Starmer told reporters.- Pressure on Iran -German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that a text being put forward by the Europeans would put the onus on Iran.”We’ll highlight again that Iran must never possess material that would allow it to produce nuclear weapons,” Merz said.”We’ll highlight the legitimate right of the state of Israel to defend itself and we will also discuss potential additional measures to reach a diplomatic solution,” he said.Unusually, Japan — which has historic relations with Iran and limited domestic pressure on the Middle East — has broken with its Western allies and is the only G7 nation that has criticized Israel.Israel’s strikes while diplomacy was ongoing were “completely unacceptable and deeply regrettable,” Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya said.Iran, since Trump pulled out of an earlier nuclear deal in 2018, has ramped up uranium enrichment but not at levels to create a number bomb. Israel is widely known to have nuclear weapons but does not acknowledge them publicly.- ‘I’m a tariff person’ -The summit at a wooded resort under still snow-topped mountains comes after months of tumult on the global stage since Trump’s return.Trump, seeking to shatter a decades-old US-led global economic order, has vowed sweeping tariffs on friends and foes alike although he has postponed implementation until July 9.Trump has also mocked host Canada, imposing economic pressure and repeatedly stating that the vast but less populated neighbor should become the 51st US state.Trump said he was optimistic about reaching a solution on trade as he met Carney, a staid former central banker who has appeared to win more respect from the US leader since succeeding the flashier Justin Trudeau in March.”I’m a tariff person,” Trump told Carney. “It’s simple, it’s easy, it’s precise, and it just goes very quickly.””I think Mark has a more complex idea, but also very good.”Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to join the G7 talks on Tuesday and to speak to Trump, who had initially tried to force him into a deal with Russia, which invaded Ukraine in 2022.Trump has since voiced frustration that Russian President Vladimir Putin has not accepted a US proposal for a ceasefire. The US president has previously mused about readmitting Russia to the G8, from which it was expelled in 2014 after invading and annexing Ukraine’s region of Crimea, triggering a war which accelerated in 2022 with a full-scale Russian invasion.Trump said Monday that Putin was “very insulted” by the G8 expulsion and that if Russia were still a member, “you wouldn’t have a war right now.”