The United States and Israel have continued bombing various targets in Iran for the fourth consecutive day. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump has claimed that Iran’s air defense systems, air force, navy, and leadership have been “completely eliminated.”
The Israeli military said it carried out attacks on Iran’s presidential office in Tehran, a secret nuclear facility, and a commander of the Revolutionary Guards. The U.S. military also claimed it had destroyed command facilities, missile launch sites, and military airbases. Iranian officials have not responded to these claims, but explosions have been reported across the country. According to the Iranian Red Crescent, around 800 people have been killed since Saturday.
In response, Iran has been launching deadly missile and drone attacks on Israel and Gulf countries hosting U.S. military bases. On Tuesday night, an Iranian missile reportedly struck Al Udeid Air Base, the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East, located southwest of Doha, Qatar. Qatar’s Defense Ministry said there were no human casualties but did not clarify whether there was material damage.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a drone crashed in a parking area near the U.S. Consulate in Dubai on Tuesday evening, causing a fire. A few hours earlier, Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry reported that two drones hit the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh, causing minor fires.
The United States and Israel launched joint attacks on Iran on Saturday. During the first wave of strikes, they claimed that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and several senior officials were killed.
President Trump said the objective is to destroy Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities, navy, nuclear weapons development capacity, and support for regional allied groups. He also called on the Iranian people to “take back their government.”
Trump Announces New Strikes on Iran
Speaking at the White House on Tuesday, Trump said, “We have had a very powerful impact. Almost everything they had is now destroyed. Their missile numbers are decreasing.”
He repeated his claim that 49 Iranian leaders had been killed and said that “another strike was carried out today against the new leadership,” though he provided no further details.
When asked who should take over power in Iran after the conflict, Trump replied, “Most of the people we had in mind are no longer alive.”
Shortly after Trump’s press conference, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed that Daoud Alizadeh, acting commander of the Lebanon Corps under the Quds Force, was killed in an airstrike in Tehran. He was accused of encouraging the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah to attack Israel. Since Monday, Hezbollah has fired rockets and drones across the border, prompting Israel to conduct dozens of strikes in Lebanon.
Targeting Nuclear Facilities
The IDF also said it struck a site where scientists working for Iran’s Defense Ministry were allegedly developing capabilities for nuclear weapons. Iran has consistently maintained that its nuclear program is entirely peaceful and not intended to develop nuclear weapons.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed through satellite imagery that there was some damage to the entrance structure of the underground nuclear facility in Natanz. However, it reported no further significant damage to the main facility. Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization claimed there was no radioactive leakage at the site.
The IDF said it bombed Iran’s presidential office and the Supreme National Security Council building in Tehran early Tuesday. Satellite images show extensive damage to the presidential office, judicial complex, intelligence ministry, the state broadcaster IRIB building, and the Revolutionary Guards headquarters. The U.S. Central Command stated it destroyed Revolutionary Guards command-and-control structures, air defense systems, missile and drone launch sites, and military airbases.
Iranian media also reported bombing in the city of Qom, where the Assembly of Experts — the religious body responsible for selecting Khamenei’s successor — has its office. Verified videos show the building almost completely destroyed.
According to Iran’s military, 13 soldiers were killed in a missile attack on a military airbase in the southeastern province of Kerman.
A human rights organization, HRNA, reported that 742 civilians, including 176 children, have been killed in the ongoing fighting.
In Israel, 10 people have reportedly been killed by Iranian missile attacks. Six U.S. soldiers were killed in Kuwait, and deaths have also been reported near the coasts of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Oman.
Iran has also announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly 20 percent of the world’s oil and gas supply passes. A Revolutionary Guards brigadier general warned that “any ship passing through this route will be set on fire.”
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he would deploy the HMS Dragon air defense ship after an Iranian drone struck a runway at an airbase in Cyprus.
French President Emmanuel Macron also announced that the aircraft carrier group led by the Charles de Gaulle would be deployed to the eastern Mediterranean to enhance Cyprus’s security.
