Israeli defence minister warns Iran will pay a heavy price if it continues retaliatory missile strikes

"Tehran volition burn" if Iran continues firing missiles, Israel's defence curate warned Saturday arsenic the 2 countries traded blows a time aft Israel attacked atomic and subject sites successful Iran, sidesplitting a fig of apical generals.

Israel's subject said the strikes had besides killed 9 elder scientists and experts progressive successful Iran's atomic program.

Iran's UN ambassador said 78 radical died and much than 320 were wounded successful the attacks.

Iran retaliated by launching waves of drones and ballistic missiles astatine Israel, wherever explosions lit the nighttime skies implicit Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and shook buildings. The Israeli subject urged civilians, already rattled by 20 months of warfare successful Gaza sparked by Hamas's Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, to caput to structure for hours. Health officials said 3 radical were killed and dozens wounded.

Speaking aft an appraisal gathering with the army's main of staff, Defence Minister Israel Katz said Iran volition wage a dense terms for harming Israeli citizens.

"If [Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali] Khamenei continues to occurrence missiles astatine the Israeli location front, Tehran volition burn," Katz said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday his nonsubjective was to destruct immoderate Iranian menace to Israel, but helium besides urged Iranians to emergence up against their leaders. Israel would invited the government's overthrow adjacent if it is not actively
seeking it.

Strikes could derail atomic talks

Israel's strikes besides enactment further talks betwixt the United States and Iran implicit a atomic accord into doubt. The U.S. and Iran were scheduled to conscionable successful Oman on Sunday.

Iran's apical diplomat said Saturday that talks with the United States were "unjustifiable" aft Israeli strikes connected his country, apt signalling nary negotiations this play with Washington.

However, helium stopped abbreviated of saying the talks were cancelled.

The comments by Abbas Araghchi, Iran's curate of overseas affairs, came erstwhile helium spoke by telephone with Kaja Kallas, the European Union's apical diplomat.

The Israeli airstrikes were the "result of the nonstop enactment by Washington," Araghchi said successful a connection carried by the state-run IRNA quality agency. The U.S. has said it isn't portion of the strikes.

Iranian missiles onslaught Israel

Khamenei said successful a recorded connection Friday: "We volition not let them to flight safely from this large transgression they committed."

Iran launched waves of missiles astatine Israel precocious Friday and aboriginal Saturday, and Iranians awoke to authorities tv airing repeated clips of strikes connected Israel, arsenic good arsenic videos of radical cheering and handing retired sweets.

The Iranian attacks killed astatine slightest 3 radical and wounded astir 70, mostly successful and astir Tel Aviv, according to 2 section hospitals. One rocket severely damaged astatine slightest 4 homes successful the adjacent metropolis of Rishon Lezion, according to archetypal responders.

The Israeli subject said 7 soldiers were lightly wounded erstwhile a rocket deed cardinal Israel, without specifying wherever the interaction occurred. It was the archetypal study of Israeli subject casualties since the archetypal Israeli strikes.

WATCH | Could the U.S. get progressive successful the Iran-Israel conflict?:

U.S. ground-based aerial defence systems successful the portion were helping to sprout down Iranian missiles, said a U.S. authoritative who spoke connected information of anonymity to sermon the measures.

In Ramat Gan, eastbound of Tel Aviv, an Associated Press writer saw burned-out cars and astatine slightest 3 damaged houses, including 1 wherever the beforehand was astir wholly torn away.

Residents of a cardinal Israeli metropolis that was deed Friday nighttime told the AP the detonation was truthful almighty it shook their structure doorway open. "We thought, that's it, the location is gone, and successful information fractional of the location was gone, it fell apart," said Moshe
Shani.

Israeli constabulary said debris from the interception of drones and missiles fell successful dozens of locations successful bluish Israel, causing harm and fires but nary injuries.

Israel's main planetary airdrome said Saturday it volition stay closed until further notice.

Indications of a caller Israeli attack

Iranian authorities tv reported online that aerial defences were firing successful the cities of Khorramabad, Kermanshah and Tabriz, signalling the commencement of what could beryllium a caller Israeli attack. Footage from Tabriz showed achromatic fume rising from the city.

An Israeli subject authoritative said Saturday the subject was poised to transportation retired much strikes successful Iran, saying, "This is not over." He spoke connected information of anonymity successful enactment with authoritative procedures.

Overnight, the dependable of explosions and Iranian aerial defence systems firing astatine targets echoed crossed cardinal Tehran. Iran's semi-official Tasnim quality bureau reported a occurrence astatine Tehran's Mehrabad International Airport.

The Israeli subject said it carried retired overnight strikes connected dozens of targets, including aerial defences, "in the country of Tehran."

Israel's ongoing airstrikes and Iran's retaliation raised concerns astir all-out warfare betwixt the countries and propelled the region, already connected edge, into adjacent greater upheaval. Israel's 20-month warfare with Gaza shows nary signs of ending. At slightest 27 radical were killed by Israeli occurrence successful Gaza overnight, according to section hospitals.

Countries successful the portion condemned Israel's attack, portion leaders astir the world called for contiguous deescalation from some sides.

'More than a fewer weeks' to fix nuclear facilities

Among the cardinal sites Israel attacked was Iran's main atomic enrichment installation successful Natanz, wherever achromatic fume could beryllium seen rising into the air.

Israel said it besides struck a atomic probe installation successful Isfahan and it destroyed dozens of radar installations and surface-to-air rocket launchers successful occidental Iran. Iran confirmed the onslaught astatine Isfahan.

The Israeli subject authoritative said that according to the army's archetypal assessment, "it volition instrumentality overmuch much than a fewer weeks" for Iran to repair the harm to the Natanz and Isfahan atomic sites. The authoritative said the service had "concrete quality that accumulation successful Isfahan was for subject purposes."

Israel denied it had struck the atomic enrichment installation successful Fordo, astir 100 kilometres southeast of Tehran, aft an Iranian quality outlet adjacent to the authorities reported the dependable of explosions adjacent the site.

UN atomic main Rafael Grossi told the Security Council that the above-ground conception of the Natanz installation was destroyed.

The main centrifuge installation underground did not look to person been hit, but the nonaccomplishment of powerfulness could person damaged the infrastructure there, helium said.

Netanyahu said the onslaught had been months successful the making and was planned for April earlier being postponed.

Among those killed were 3 of Iran's apical subject leaders:

• One who oversaw the full equipped forces, Gen. Mohammad Bagheri.
• One who led the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, Gen. Hossein Salami.
• The caput of the Guard's ballistic rocket program, Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh.

Two of Bagheri's deputies were besides killed, Iran confirmed Saturday: Gen. Gholamreza Mehrabi, the lawman of quality for the equipped forces' wide staff, and Gen. Mehdi Rabbani, the lawman of operations.

On Saturday, Khamenei named a caller person for the Revolutionary Guard's aerospace division. Gen. Majid Mousavi volition regenerate Hajizadeh, who was killed successful Friday's airstrike. The Revolutionary Guard's aerospace part oversees Iran's arsenal of ballistic missiles.

Trump urged Iran connected Friday to scope a woody with the U.S. connected its atomic program, informing connected his Truth Social level that Israel's attacks "will lone get worse."

"Iran indispensable marque a deal, earlier determination is thing left," helium wrote.