Iranians and Israelis woke to smoke and rubble on Sunday as the arch-rivals exchanged intense strikes for a third straight day, with Israel targeting Iranian cities and Iran firing missiles that struck deep inside Israel. Air raid sirens and explosions were heard across Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Tehran as civilians ran for shelter.
Israel’s bombardment, which began Friday with strikes on Iranian nuclear and military sites, has killed top generals and scientists. Talks on Iran’s nuclear program were called off, raising fears of a prolonged conflict that could engulf the region.
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.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Iran would pay "a very heavy price" for killing Israeli civilians, as the two foes kept up intense fighting.
"Iran will pay a very heavy price for the premeditated murder of civilians, women and children," Netanyahu said during a visit to the site of a missile strike on a residential building in the coastal city of Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday Tehran had evidence to show US forces supported the intense bombardment campaign Israel launched against the Islamis republic this week.
"We have solid proof of the support of the American forces and American bases in the region for the attacks of the Zionist regime military forces," Araghchi told foreign diplomats in a meeting broadcast on state TV.
Tehran's foreign minister added that the attacks on Israel will end once Israel halts its military campaign against the Islamic republic.
"We are defending ourselves; our defence is entirely legitimate," said Araghchi, adding that "this defence is our response to aggression. If the aggression stops, naturally our responses will also stop."
He further slammed the United Nations Security Council, accusing it of "indifference" over Israel's deadly attacks on the Islamic republic.
Araghchi said the Israeli attack "is being met with indifference at the Security Council", adding that Western governments have "condemned Iran instead of Israel despite it being the side that was violated."
US President Donald Trump warned Iran on Sunday that it would experience "the full strength" of the military if it attacks the United States, reiterating that Washington "had nothing to do" with Israel's strikes on Tehran's nuclear and intelligence facilities.
While Trump had said he was aware of the Israeli operation before it started, he reiterated Sunday morning on his Truth Social platform that the United States "had nothing to do with the attack on Iran, tonight."
"If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before," he said in a post.
He added that "we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!"
On Friday, the US president urged Tehran to make a deal or face "even more brutal" attacks by Israel.
Israel unleashed airstrikes across Iran for a third day on Sunday and threatened even greater force as some Iranian missiles evaded Israeli air defenses to strike buildings in the heart of the country.
Iran said Israel struck two oil refineries, raising the prospect of a broader assault on the Islamic Republic's heavily sanctioned energy industry that could affect global markets.
Israel's military said it had struck Iran's defence ministry headquarters, "nuclear weapons project" infrastructure sites and other targets, 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.
The Israeli military, in a social media post, warned Iranians to evacuate arms factories, signaling what could be a further widening of the campaign.
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.
In Israel, at least 10 people were killed in Iranian strikes overnight and into Sunday, according to Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service, bringing the country’s total death toll to 13. The country's main international airport and airspace remained closed for a third day.
Air raid sirens and explosions were heard in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv early Sunday, as Israel's military said millions of Israelis were "running for shelter" around the country.
In Israel, at least six people, including a 10-year-old and a 9-year-old, were killed when a missile hit an apartment building in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv. Daniel Hadad, a local police commander, said 180 people were wounded and seven are still missing.
Visuals of streets lined with damaged and destroyed buildings, bombed out cars and shards of glass were reported while responders used a drone at points to look for survivors.
Another four people, including a 13-year-old, were killed and 24 wounded when a missile struck a building in the Arab town of Tamra in northern Israel. A strike on the central city of Rehovot wounded 42.
Israel has sophisticated multi-tiered air defenses that are able to detect and intercept missiles fired at populated areas or key infrastructure, but officials acknowledge it is imperfect.
World leaders made urgent calls to deescalate. The attack on nuclear sites set a “dangerous precedent,” China's foreign minister said.
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.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brushed off such calls, saying Israel’s strikes so far are “nothing compared to what they will feel under the sway of our forces in the coming days.”
Israel, the sole though undeclared nuclear-armed state in the Middle East — said it launched the attack to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. The two countries have been regional adversaries for decades.
Iran has always said its nuclear program was peaceful, and the US and others have assessed it has not pursued a weapon since 2003. But it has enriched ever larger stockpiles of uranium to near weapons-grade levels in recent years and was believed to have been able to develop multiple weapons within months if it chose to do so. The UN’s atomic watchdog had censured Iran last week for not complying with its obligations.
The region is already on edge as Israel seeks to annihilate Hamas, an Iranian ally, in the Gaza Strip, where the war is still raging.
