Israel and Iran exchanged more deadly attacks on Monday morning (16), as the conflict between the two countries entered its fourth day, raising concerns that the region was heading toward a broader conflict in the Middle East.
The Israeli army stated that it had “precisely struck” command centers belonging to Iran’s Quds Force — an elite military and intelligence arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) — overnight, killing four officers, including the head of the IRGC’s Intelligence Organization.
If confirmed, the attack would mark the latest blow in a series of attacks on Iran’s military power since Israel launched its surprise attack last week, targeting the country’s nuclear capabilities. Israel considers the Iranian nuclear program a direct threat to its national security.
Israeli military spokesman, Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, said that the Air Force achieved “total air superiority” over the skies of Tehran on Monday. He added that the military destroyed one-third of Iran’s missile launchers.
Iran’s Health Ministry claims that more than 200 people have been killed since the start of the Israeli offensive, including women and children, and more than 1,000 have been injured.
At least 24 people were killed by Iran’s retaliatory attacks against Israel, and nearly 600 were injured.
The latest attacks hit Israel on Monday morning, when Iranian missiles and drones struck Tel Aviv and Haifa, killing at least eight people and injuring nearly 100 others, according to the Israeli prime minister’s office.
In Petah Tikvah, near Tel Aviv, four people died after an Iranian missile hit a residential building. Among the dead were two men and two women, all in their 70s. Israel’s emergency service, Magen David Adom, shared images of babies being rescued from the rubble.
A missile hit the American consulate in Tel Aviv, causing minor damage to its facade, said the US Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, in a post on X, adding that the consulate would remain closed on Monday. No American staff were injured in the attack. Despite constant international calls for de-escalation, neither side has shown signs of being prepared to start negotiations.
“The issue is not de-escalation,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Fox News host Brett Baier in an interview on Sunday night.
“The issue here is not a ceasefire, the issue here is to prevent the things that threaten our survival, and we are committed to preventing it, and I believe we can achieve that.”
On Monday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warned that new rounds of attacks against Israel would be “more devastating, severe, precise, and destructive than the previous ones”.
In a post on his Truth Social site on Sunday, President Trump renewed calls for Iran and Israel to reach an agreement, but later told reporters that “sometimes, they just need to fight”.
On Monday, the president confirmed to reporters that Iran had sent messages through intermediaries that it wants to calm the conflict with Israel.
“They would like to talk, but they should have done that before,” Trump told reporters after a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at the G7 summit in Canada. “They need to reach an agreement. And it’s painful for both sides, but I would say Iran is not winning this war, and they should talk, and they should talk immediately, before it’s too late.”
Source: www.npr.org by Rebecca Rosman