Tensions between Iran and Israel surged overnight, as military strikes escalated into heavily populated areas, resulting in significant civilian casualties and drawing urgent international calls for restraint.
On Sunday, an Israeli airstrike reportedly killed Mohammad Kazem, the intelligence chief of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, marking a serious escalation in hostilities. The situation deteriorated further with retaliatory missile barrages from Iran over the weekend, which killed 10 people in Israel, including children, bringing the Israeli death toll to 13 and at least 380 wounded.
Iran’s Health Ministry announced that 230 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since Friday, underscoring the scale of destruction and human loss.
The military flare-up comes at a fragile moment in US-Iranian diplomacy, with Tehran cancelling a sixth round of nuclear negotiations in Oman scheduled for Sunday. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused Israel of deliberately trying to sabotage diplomatic efforts, saying the attacks were an “attempt to undermine diplomacy and derail negotiations.”
The West continues to accuse Iran of advancing toward nuclear weapons capability—allegations Tehran denies. Despite the backdrop of talks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated on Sunday, “The issue here is not de-escalation, but stopping Iran from developing nuclear capability.”
Iran has rejected any talks on a ceasefire under fire, stating that negotiations will only resume once Israeli strikes stop.
U.S. President Donald Trump, commenting on the rising conflict, urged both countries to “make a deal,” but suggested they “might need to fight it out first.”
Meanwhile, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar clarified that regime change in Iran was not Israel’s goal. In an interview with CNN, he stated that Israel’s objective was to “eliminate Iran’s nuclear program and reduce its ballistic missile threat.” He also warned that Iran could be within six months of having the capability to build up to nine nuclear bombs, citing recent intelligence and media reports.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed that Israeli Air Force jets neutralized an Iranian surface-to-air missile unit south of Tehran just seconds before they could launch. In another operation, they targeted Quds Force command centers, which Israel alleges were used to coordinate attacks against it through regional proxies.
In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter), the IDF said: “We continue to pursue air superiority across Iranian territory.”
Israeli media, citing military intelligence, also reported that Iran is merely weeks away from assembling a functional nuclear bomb, having completed key stages in the design process.
The rapidly worsening situation is raising alarms worldwide. Diplomats and leaders are increasingly concerned that the conflict between Iran and Israel could spill further into the wider Middle East, destabilizing the region and drawing in additional actors.
While both sides continue to trade blame and intensify strikes, calls for de-escalation from global powers are growing louder—but have yet to yield results.
