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Tens of thousands rally in Dutch protest for Gaza

Tens of thousands of people dressed in red marched through the streets of The Hague Sunday to demand more action from the Dutch government against what they termed a “genocide” in Gaza.Rights groups such as Amnesty International and Oxfam organised the demonstration through the city to the International Court of Justice, creating a so-called “red line”.With many waving Palestinian flags and some chanting “Stop the Genocide”, the demonstrators turned a central park in the city into a sea of red on a sunny afternoon.One of the organising groups, Oxfam Novib, estimated 150,000 people particpated in the march. Dutch police generally do not give estimates of demonstration turnouts.Protesters brandished banners reading “Don’t look away, do something”, “Stop Dutch complicity”, and “Be silent when kids sleep, not when they die”.Organisers urged the Dutch government — which collapsed on June 3 after a far-right party pulled out of a fragile coalition — to do more to rein in Israel for its military offensive on the Palestinian territory.”More than 150,000 people here dressed in red — and a clear majority of the Dutch population — just want concrete sanctions to stop the genocide in Gaza,” said Michiel Servaes, director of Oxfam Novib.”We demand action now from our government,” added Servaes.Dodo Van Der Sluis, a 67-year-old pensioner, told AFP: “It has to stop. Enough is enough. I can’t take it anymore.””I’m here because I think it’s maybe the only thing you can do now as a Dutch citizen, but it’s something you have to do,” she added.A previous protest in The Hague on May 18 drew more than 100,000 people, according to organisers, who described it as the country’s largest demonstration in 20 years.Police also did not give an estimate for that gathering.- ‘Suffering in Gaza’ -Prime Minister Dick Schoof wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “To all those people in The Hague I say: we see you and we hear you.””In the end, our goal is the same: to end the suffering in Gaza as soon as possible.”The Gaza war was sparked by the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Palestinian militant group Hamas.That assault resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official figures.The militants also took 251 hostages, of whom 54 are still thought to be held in Gaza, including 32 the Israeli military has said are dead.The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 55,207 people, the majority of them civilians.The United Nations considers the figures reliable.The International Court of Justice is currently weighing a case brought by South Africa against Israel, arguing its actions in Gaza breach the 1948 UN Genocide Convention.Israel strongly rejects the accusations.

Israel’s strikes on Iran were years in the making: analysts

Israel’s unprecedented strikes on Iran, which have killed top military leaders and nuclear scientists, required years of meticulous intelligence gathering and infiltration, experts say.Israel said it hit hundreds of targets on Friday alone, and has since continued its attacks, striking a defence facility and fuel depots on Sunday.The fiercest-ever exchange of fire between the arch foes came in the midst of ongoing talks between Tehran and Washington seeking to reach a deal on Iran’s nuclear programme.”Israel has been following the nuclear programme for 15 years,” Israeli analyst Michael Horowitz told AFP.”The strikes we see are the result of years of intelligence gathering and infiltration of the Islamic republic.”Israel has previously carried out more limited attacks against Iranian military sites, including in October last year.”It seems that this week’s operation had been in preparation for months, with an acceleration after the operation last year significantly weakened Iranian air defences,” Horowitz said.The United States and other Western countries, along with Israel, accuse Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon.Tehran denies that, but has gradually broken away from its commitments under a 2015 nuclear deal it struck with world powers, which the United States withdrew from during President Donald Trump’s first term.The landmark accord had provided Iran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its atomic programme.- ‘Impressive’ precision -Israel is long believed to have carried out sabotage operations inside Iran through its Mossad espionage agency, but the attacks that started on Friday are by far the broadest in scope.The campaign has shown Israel to be capable of precisely locating and taking out high-ranking Iranian officials and nuclear scientists.A European security source said the strikes showed “an impressive degree of precision and mastery”.Israel says it has killed 20 military and security targets, including the armed forces’ chief of staff and the head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, as well as nine nuclear scientists.Danny Citrinowicz, of the Tel Aviv-based Institute for National Security Studies, said the ability to take out high-ranking officials showed “intelligence, but also operational superiority of Israel over Iran”.”It’s highly connected to the ability to collect information, intelligence in Iran for years, excellent intelligence that actually allows you to detect where they’re living, the seniors, also the nuclear scientists,” he told AFP.The latest targeted strikes come after Israel killed Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, in a Tehran guesthouse in July last year.Haniyeh had been in town for the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and was reportedly killed by an explosive device that Israeli operatives had placed in the guesthouse weeks before.Analysts at the time saw the attack as a major intelligence failure by Iran.But “still Iran didn’t learn and didn’t have the ability to lock the holes in their system”, said Citrinowicz.- Smuggled drones -News site Axios reported that Mossad agents inside Iran helped prepare Friday’s strikes, pre-positioning weapon systems near air defence targets, including by hiding them inside vehicles, and launching them when the attack started.An Israeli intelligence official told Axios that Mossad had “established an attack drone base inside Iran with drones that were smuggled in long before the operation”.A former Israeli intelligence official told The Atlantic that “Iranians opposed to the regime make for a ready recruiting pool”, and that “Iranians working for Israel were involved in efforts to build a drone base inside the country”.Alain Chouet, the former number three in the French intelligence, said he was convinced Israel had “half a dozen cells capable of acting at any moment” inside Iran.Iran regularly executes people it accuses of spying for Israel.It is unclear what role, if any, Israel’s key military and diplomatic ally the United States had in the latest strikes.Before the attack early on Friday, Trump publicly urged Israel to allow time for diplomacy, as a sixth round of US-Iranian nuclear talks were set to be held in Oman at the weekend.The US president on Sunday said Washington “had nothing to do” with ally Israel’s campaign.But Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday said Tehran had “solid proof of the support of the American forces and American bases in the region” for the attacks.And Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday his country was acting with “the clear support of the president of the United States”.

Israel keeps up Iran strikes after deadly missile barrage

Israel pressed its bombardment campaign on Iran on Sunday, striking a defence facility and fuel depots as the two arch foes kept up their most intense confrontation in history.It came after Iranian missile fire targeting Israel killed at least 10 people overnight, according to authorities, pushing the death toll up to 13 since Iran began its retaliatory strikes Friday.In Tehran, a heavy cloud of smoke hung above the city after Israeli aircraft hit two fuel depots. For days, Iranians have formed long queues at petrol stations, fearing shortages.Iranian media later said Israel attacked a facility affiliated with the defence ministry in the central city of Isfahan, reporting “possible damage”.The Israeli military said its air force had targeted “more than 80” positions in Iran’s capital overnight. Following the strikes, US President Donald Trump said Washington “had nothing to do” with ally Israel’s intense bombardment campaign that was launched early Friday, hitting key military and nuclear sites as well as residential areas.But Trump also threatened to launch “the full strength and might” of the US military if Iran attacks American interests, saying on his Truth Social platform that “we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!”Iran’s top diplomat Abbas Araghchi nonetheless said that Tehran had “solid proof” that US forces had supported Israel in its attacks.Israeli police said six people were killed and at least 180 injured at the site of an overnight missile strike in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv on Israel’s Mediterranean coast.First responders wearing helmets and headlamps picked through the bombed-out building as dawn broke, with police saying at least seven people were missing.”There was an explosion and I thought the whole house had collapsed,” said Bat Yam resident Shahar Ben Zion.”It was a miracle we survived.”In northern Israel, rescuers and medics said a strike late Saturday destroyed a three-storey building in the town of Tamra, killing four women.Israeli authorities have reported a total toll of 13 dead and 380 injured in the country since Friday.Iran’s UN ambassador said 78 people were killed and 320 wounded in Friday’s first wave of Israeli strikes.Iranian authorities have not provided an updated toll as of Sunday, but Tehran said Israel has killed several top military commanders and nuclear scientists.- ‘Red line’ – After decades of enmity and conflict by proxy, it is the first time the arch-enemies have traded fire with such intensity, triggering fears of a prolonged conflict that could engulf the entire Middle East.In Iran’s capital early Sunday, AFP journalists heard a series of blasts.The head of Tehran’s traffic police Ahmad Karami told IRNA news agency “heavy traffic was reported at the capital’s exit points”.Israel said its forces had struck the defence ministry headquarters in Tehran, where Iranian news agency Tasnim reported damage.The Israeli military also said it had struck nuclear sites, including the secretive Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research (SPND), fuel tankers and other targets.The Iranian oil ministry said Israel targeted two fuel depots in the Tehran area.An AFP journalist saw a depot at Shahran, northwest of the capital, on fire.Iranian media later said that police had arrested two suspects over alleged links to Israel’s Mossad spy agency.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to hit “every target of the ayatollah regime”, while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned of “a more severe and powerful response”.On Sunday, the Israeli military warned Iranians to evacuate areas near weapons facilities nationwide.”The Zionist regime crossed a new red line in international law” by “attacking nuclear facilities”, Araghchi told foreign diplomats, according to state TV.”If the aggression stops, naturally our responses will also stop,” he added.- ‘More fiercely’ – Araghchi also condemned on Sunday Israel’s attack a day earlier on a major gas facility operating at South Pars, the world’s largest known gas reserve located off of Iran’s southern Bushehr province.The attacks persisted despite global calls for de-escalation, with Iran scrapping scheduled nuclear talks with the US, saying it was “meaningless” to negotiate while under fire from Israel.Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Sunday they had struck sites used by Israeli warplanes for refuelling, in retaliation for the earlier Israeli strikes.The Guards in a statement vowed to respond “more fiercely and more broadly” if Israel keeps up its deadly campaign.Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels also said they had launched several missiles at Israel in attacks that were “coordinated with the operations carried out by the Iranian military”.The Israeli military said it had intercepted seven drones launched at the country within an hour on Sunday.burs/ds/jsa

‘Nothing left’: Israelis grapple with damage from Iran strike

A shocked Julia Zilbergoltz said she had never experienced anything like the Iranian missile strike that hit her home in central Israel early Sunday. “I’m stressed and in shock. I’ve been through hard times in my life, but I’ve never been in a situation like this,” Zilbergoltz told AFP, as she gathered her belongings and left her apartment building in Bat Yam, near the coastal city of Tel Aviv.”I was at home, I was sleeping and I didn’t hear the siren” warning of an incoming missile attack, she said.She was awoken instead by the loud booms that followed.According to Israeli officials, six people including two children were killed in the strike that destroyed Zilbergoltz’s home.Yivgenya Dudka, whose home was also hit by the missile on the city of Bat Yam, said: “Everything was destroyed. There’s nothing left. No house. That’s it.”In Israel’s north, four people were killed earlier when a strike hit the town of Tamra, taking to 13 the death toll in the country since the start of the attacks began on Friday.Israeli television channels broadcast footage of devastation from four sites where missiles struck in the early hours of Sunday.Tel Aviv and the nearby city of Rishon Lezion were also hit by missiles from Iran, after Israeli fighter jets carried out strikes that hit military and nuclear sites as well as residential areas in the Islamic republic.- ‘Miracle we survived’ -According to data shared by the prime minister’s office, missiles hit some 22 locations across Israel.”I feel very bad. I’m very worried and stressed. I’m in agony for all the dead we have and all the injured people,” said Riky Cohen, a writer from Tel Aviv.”I’m aware that Iran is very dangerous to Israel and the government wishes to destroy Israel,” she told AFP, saying she supported Israel’s military actions.But Cohen said she was also “very worried” that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government might “continue the war even though it’s not necessary”.In Bat Yam, Mayor Tzvika Brot said in a Facebook post that the missile had caused “great destruction and damage to dozens of buildings”.In addition to the deaths, Brot said that more than 100 people were injured and others remained trapped under the rubble.”Teams from the Home Front Command have been working here for several hours now, and will remain here until they find them,” he said.Shahar Ben Zion, who was trying to clean up the damage to his home in Bat Yam, said it was “a miracle we survived”.”I didn’t want to go down (to the shelter). My mother convinced me… there was an explosion and I thought the whole house had collapsed,” he said.”Thank God, it was a miracle we survived.”

Iran missiles kill 10 in Israel in night of mutual attacks

Iranian missile fire on Israel killed at least 10 people overnight, authorities said Sunday, as the foes exchanged new waves of attacks in their most intense confrontation in history.In Iran, a heavy cloud of smoke billowed over the capital after Israeli aircraft struck two fuel depots. For days, Iranians have formed long queues at gas stations fearing shortages.US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Washington “had nothing to do” with ally Israel’s intense bombardment campaign that was launched early Friday, targeting key military and nuclear sites in Iran.But Trump threatened to launch “the full strength and might” if Iran attacks US interests, saying on his Truth Social platform that “we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!”Israeli police said six people were killed and at least 180 injured at the site of an overnight missile strike in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv on Israel’s Mediterranean coast.First responders wearing helmets and headlamps combed through the bombed-out building as dawn broke, with police saying at least seven people were missing, feared buried under the rubble.”There was an explosion and I thought the whole house had collapsed,” said Bat Yam resident Shahar Ben Zion.”It was a miracle we survived.”In the north of Israel, rescuers and medics said a strike late Saturday destroyed a three-storey building in the town of Tamra, killing four women and taking the overall death toll in the country since Friday to 13.Iran’s UN ambassador said 78 people were killed and 320 wounded in Friday’s first wave of Israeli strikes. Iranian authorities have not provided an updated toll as of early Sunday, but Tehran says Israel has killed top army commanders and nuclear scientists.- ‘Red line’ – After decades of enmity and conflict by proxy, it is the first time the arch-enemies have traded fire with such intensity, triggering fears of a prolonged conflict that could engulf the entire Middle East.In Iran’s capital early Sunday, AFP journalists heard a series of blasts.Israel said its forces had struck the defence ministry headquarters in Tehran, where Iranian news agency Tasnim reported damage. The ministry did not comment.The Israeli military also said it had struck nuclear sites including the secretive Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research (SPND), fuel tankers and other targets.The Iranian oil ministry said Israel struck two fuel depots in the Tehran area.An AFP journalist saw a depot at Shahran, northwest of the capital, on fire.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to hit “every target of the ayatollah regime”, while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned further strikes would draw “a more severe and powerful response”.Israeli strikes have hit Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment plant and killed its highest-ranking military officer, Mohammad Bagheri, as well as the head of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hossein Salami.On Sunday, the Israeli military warned Iranians to evacuate areas near weapons facilities nationwide.”The Zionist regime crossed a new red line in international law” by “attacking nuclear facilities”, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told foreign diplomats, according to state TV.He also said Tehran had “solid proof” US forces supported the Israeli attacks.”We are defending ourselves; our defence is entirely legitimate… If the aggression stops, naturally our responses will also stop.”- UK ‘support’ – The attacks persisted despite global calls for de-escalation, with Iran scrapping its latest nuclear talks with the United States, saying it could not negotiate while under fire from Israel.Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Sunday they had struck sites used by Israeli warplanes for refuelling, in retaliation for the earlier Israeli strikes.The Guards in a statement vowed to respond “more fiercely and more broadly” if Israel keeps up its deadly campaign.Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels said they had launched several missiles at Israel in attacks that were “coordinated with the operations carried out by the Iranian military”.The Israeli military said it had intercepted seven drones launched at the country within an hour on Sunday.Highlighting the global unease, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned against a “devastating war” with regional consequences, in a call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Ankara said.UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Saturday that his country was deploying fighter jets and other “assets” to the Middle East “for contingency support”, while he also urged de-escalation.burs-ami/ser

Iran launches missile barrage as Israel strikes Tehran

Iranians and Israelis woke to smoke and rubble on Sunday after the arch-rivals expanded their attacks overnight, with Israel striking Tehran’s defence ministry, and Iran unleashing a deadly barrage of missiles.Air raid sirens and explosions were heard by AFP journalists in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv early Sunday, as Israel’s military said millions of Israelis were “running for shelter” around the country.Israel’s emergency services said at least eight people, including children, were killed in the overnight strikes, and around 200 were wounded.In Iran’s capital, AFP journalists heard a series of blasts at around 2:30 am.The third day of tit-for-tat attacks comes despite global calls for de-escalation, with Iran scrapping its latest nuclear talks with the United States, saying it could not negotiate while under fire from Israel.After decades of enmity and conflict by proxy, it is the first time the arch-enemies have traded fire with such intensity, triggering fears of a prolonged conflict that could engulf the Middle East.Israel’s operation, which began early Friday, has targeted Iranian nuclear and military sites, killing dozens of people including top army commanders and atomic scientists, according to Tehran.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to hit “every target of the ayatollah regime”, while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned further strikes would draw “a more severe and powerful response”.In Bat Yam, outside of Tel Aviv, Israeli first responders wearing helmets and headlamps combed through the rubble of a building as dawn broke.Two women, aged 69 and 80, a girl and a 10-year-old boy were killed, while about 100 others were wounded, according to a spokesperson for Magen David Adom (MDA).In Shfela region, west of Jerusalem, another 37 people were wounded, the MDA spokesperson added.In the north of Israel, in the Western Galilee, rescuers said a strike late Saturday destroyed a three-storey building, killing three women.A woman in her 20s also died after an Iranian missile hit a home in the Haifa region, leaving about a dozen people wounded, MDA said.An MDA spokesman told Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 that around 200 people were wounded in the overnight missile strikes fired by Iran.Iran’s UN ambassador said 78 people were killed and 320 wounded in Friday’s first wave of Israeli strikes. Iranian authorities have not provided an updated toll as of early Sunday.- ‘Nuclear project’ sites struck -Israel’s military said it had struck Iran’s defence ministry headquarters, “nuclear weapons project” infrastructure sites and other targets, including fuel tankers, just before 2:40 am on Sunday (2340 GMT Saturday).The targeted sites, including the “headquarters of the SPND (Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research) nuclear project”, advanced Iran’s efforts to obtain a nuclear weapon, according to Israel.Iranian news agency Tasnim earlier reported that an Israeli strike had targeted the defence ministry headquarters in Tehran and damaged one of its buildings. The ministry did not comment.Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Sunday that the country had struck sites used by Israeli warplanes for refuelling, in retaliation for the strikes carried out by Israel.”The Iranian armed forces’ offensive operations will continue more fiercely and more broadly if the depravity and attacks (against Iran) continue,” the Guards said in a statement.Overnight, Israel stuck two fuel depots in Tehran, the Iranian oil ministry said Sunday.According to the ministry, the oil depots at Shahran northwest of Tehran and another reservoir south of the city were hit. An AFP journalist saw a depot at Shahran on fire.- Foreign concern -Netanyahu maintained Israel’s operation had the “clear support” of US President Donald Trump.Trump said he and Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed in a phone call on Saturday that the conflict between Iran and Israel “should end”.According to a statement from his office, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian condemned Washington’s “dishonesty” for supporting Israel while engaged in nuclear talks with Iran — which mediator Oman said would no longer take place on Sunday.Western governments have repeatedly accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, which it denies.Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, said the Israeli attacks undermined negotiations and were pushing the region into a “dangerous cycle of violence”.Israeli strikes have hit Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment plant and killed its highest-ranking military officer, Mohammad Bagheri, as well as the head of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hossein Salami.The Israeli military said its strikes had killed more than 20 Iranian commanders.Iranian media reported five Guards killed Saturday in Israeli strikes, while authorities in one northwestern province said 30 military personnel had been killed there since Friday.Iran’s Red Crescent said an ambulance was hit Saturday in Urmia city, killing two.Iran called on its citizens to unite in the country’s defence, while Netanyahu urged them to rise up against the government.Highlighting the global unease, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned against a “devastating war” with regional consequences, in a call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Ankara said.UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Saturday that his country was deploying fighter jets and other “assets” to the Middle East “for contingency support”, while he also urged de-escalation.burs/ser/sco/lb

Iran launches more missiles as Israel targets Tehran

Iran launched a new wave of missiles at Israel on Saturday, wounding several people in residential buildings, while Israel said it was striking Tehran.The fresh attacks came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to hit “every target of the ayatollah regime”, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned further strikes would draw “a more severe and powerful response”.As calls for de-escalation grew, a new round of nuclear talks between the United States and Iran scheduled for Sunday was cancelled, with Iran saying it could not negotiate while under attack from Israel.Israel’s operation, which began early Friday, has targeted Iran’s air defences and hit key nuclear and military sites, killing dozens of people including top army commanders and atomic scientists, according to Tehran.On Saturday night Israel said it was simultaneously working to intercept a new salvo of missiles fired from Iran, while also carrying out strikes on “military targets in Tehran”.Iranian news agency Tasnim reported that an Israeli strike had targeted the country’s defence ministry headquarters in Tehran and damaged one of its buildings. The ministry did not comment.Iran, meanwhile, announced a “new wave” of attacks targeting Israel.Israel’s emergency services said an Iranian missile hit a home in the Haifa region, leaving 14 people injured, including one in critical condition.Israeli strikes meanwhile hit two fuel depots in Tehran, the Iranian oil ministry said Sunday.According to the oil ministry, the oil depots at Shahran northwest of Tehran and another reservoir south of the city were hit. An AFP journalist saw the depot at Shahran on fire.- ‘Every site, every target’ -Iran’s UN ambassador said 78 people were killed and 320 wounded in Friday’s first wave of Israeli strikes.Israel on Saturday said three people were killed and 76 wounded by Iran’s drone and missile barrage the night before.Netanyahu has vowed to keep up Israel’s campaign.”We will hit every site, every target of the ayatollah regime,” he said in a video statement, threatening greater action “in the coming days”.He added that the Israeli campaign had dealt a “real blow” to Iran’s nuclear programme and maintained it had the “clear support” of US President Donald Trump.Trump said he and Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed in a phone call on Saturday that the conflict between Iran and Israel “should end”.Pezeshkian said meanwhile that “the continuation of the Zionist aggression will be met with a more severe and powerful response from the Iranian armed forces”.According to a statement from his office, Pezeshkian also condemned Washington’s “dishonesty” for supporting Israel while engaged in nuclear talks with Iran — which mediator Oman said would no longer take place on Sunday.Western governments have repeatedly accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, which it denies.Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, said the Israeli attacks undermined negotiations and were pushing the region into a “dangerous cycle of violence”.- Foreign concern -After decades of enmity and conflict by proxy, it is the first time the arch-enemies have traded fire with such intensity, triggering fears of a prolonged conflict that could engulf the Middle East.Highlighting the unease, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned against a “devastating war” with regional consequences, in a call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Ankara said.Israeli strikes have hit Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment plant and killed its highest-ranking military officer, Mohammad Bagheri, as well as the head of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hossein Salami.The Israeli military said its strikes had killed more than 20 Iranian commanders.Iranian media reported five Guards killed Saturday in Israeli strikes, while authorities in one northwestern province said 30 military personnel had been killed there since Friday.Iran’s Red Crescent said an ambulance was hit Saturday in Urmia city, killing two.Iran called on its citizens to unite in the country’s defence, while Netanyahu urged them to rise up against against the government.Iran’s Mehr news agency said Tehran had warned Britain, France and the United States it could retaliate if they came to Israel’s defence.- ‘Everything was shaking’ -AFP images from the city of Ramat Gan near Tel Aviv showed blown-out buildings, destroyed vehicles and streets strewn with debris after Iran’s first wave of attacks.Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had struck dozens of targets in Israel. One Iranian missile wounded seven Israeli soldiers, the military said.Firefighters had worked for hours to free people trapped in a Tel Aviv high-rise building on Friday.Chen Gabizon, a resident, said he ran to an underground shelter after receiving an alert.”We just heard a very big explosion, everything was shaking, smoke, dust, everything was all over the place,” he said.In Tehran, fire and heavy smoke billowed over Mehrabad airport on Saturday, an AFP journalist said.The Israeli army said it had struck an underground military facility Saturday in western Iran’s Khorramabad that contained surface-to-surface and cruise missiles.Iranian media also reported a “massive explosion” following an Israeli drone strike on an oil refinery in the southern city of Kangan.The attacks prompted several countries to temporarily ground air traffic, with Jordan again shutting its airspace late Saturday after it had briefly reopened it.burs/ser/rlp