Benjamin Netanyahu announced on X in the early hours of Friday, June 13th, that Israel had launched “Operation ‘Rising Lion’, a targeted military operation to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel’s very survival. This operation will continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat.”
U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio reacted to the announcement of the operation—which has in all likelihood been coordinated with Washington—by releasing the following statement:
“Tonight, Israel took unilateral action against Iran. We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region. Israel advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its self-defense. President Trump and the Administration have taken all necessary steps to protect our forces and remain in close contact with our regional partners. Let me be clear: Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel.”
An Israeli defence official said that the Iranian military General Staff, including the Iranian Chief of Staff and senior nuclear scientists were targeted in the Israeli strikes. “There is increasing likelihood that they were all eliminated”, the official stated.
The Israeli military says Iran has launched a counter-attack, which they are working to intercept, and a state of emergency was declared in Israel.
Iranian state media reported that Hossein Salami, chief of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards was killed, as well as nuclear scientists.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed that the Natanz nuclear facility in Iran had been hit and said it was working with Iranian authorities to assess radiation levels at the site.
