Israeli-Iranian conflict escalates: Khamenei announces "battle begins" Tehran hit by Israeli airstrikes

Israeli-Iranian conflict escalates: Khamenei announces "battle begins", Tehran hit by Israeli airstrikes

As the situation in the Middle East continues to be tense, the confrontation between Iran and Israel ushered in a new round of dramatic escalation this week. In the early morning of June 18, Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei publicly announced that "the battle has begun" and launched dozens of ballistic missiles at Israel. Israel quickly retaliated by launching air strikes on important military targets in Tehran, the capital of Iran.

Iran's "good faith commitment" retaliatory actions

According to reports, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards launched the first wave of about 15 missiles at Israel after 12:40 midnight, and then launched another wave of about 5 missiles at 1:20 am. The attack triggered alarms across Israel, especially in the central region and settlements in the West Bank. Iran called the attack the 11th wave of the "Integrity Commitment 3" operation, using the "Fatah-1" missile, and claimed that it had "completely controlled the airspace over the occupied territories."

Khamenei posted on the social platform X (formerly Twitter) in English, Hebrew and Persian, expressing strong hostility towards the "Zionist regime" and comparing it to the "Battle of Khaybar" to encourage continued fighting.

Israel retaliates quickly: airstrikes on Tehran and weapons factories

Shortly after the attack, the IDF launched an undisclosed airstrike operation, dispatching more than 50 fighter jets to strike about 20 military targets in Tehran. The targets of the airstrike included:

• Iran’s production sites for centrifuges used to enrich uranium;

• Factories manufacturing weapons raw materials and missile parts;

• universities with ties to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard;

• Khojir missile manufacturing facility and nuclear industrial targets in Karaj city.

The Israeli military said that these facilities are of key strategic significance to Iran's nuclear program and ballistic missile capabilities and must be "completely eliminated" to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

Missile interception and drone threats

Although Iran claimed to have used hypersonic missiles, Israel denied that Iran had such capabilities and pointed out that most missiles were successfully intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system. However, a parking lot in central Israel still caught fire due to interception debris, and 20 vehicles were damaged. Drone intrusion alarms also sounded over the Dead Sea and the Golan Heights, and the military said it successfully shot down six Iranian drones.

Casualties and humanitarian costs on both sides

According to the latest data, since the outbreak of the conflict, Israel has killed at least 224 Iranians and injured hundreds of others, while Iran's attacks have killed 24 people in Israel and injured more than 500. This six-day military confrontation is evolving into a full-scale conflict, posing a great threat to civilians in both countries.

International community’s reactions and concerns

Although the international community has not yet fully intervened, the foreign ministries of several Western countries have issued security warnings, calling on citizens in the Middle East to remain vigilant. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged both sides to immediately stop military operations and resume diplomatic negotiations to prevent the situation from getting out of control.

Conclusion

At present, the military actions between Iran and Israel are rapidly expanding to a strategic depth. This is not only a cycle of retaliation and counter-retaliation, but also likely to reshape the entire geopolitical landscape of the Middle East. The next few days will have a decisive impact on regional stability and global security.