June 13, 2025, 5:58 a.m. ET
A building burning after Israel’s attack on Friday.
Israel launched a stunning series of strikes on Friday morning against Iran’s nuclear program and killed three of the nation’s security chiefs, in a remarkable coup of intelligence and military force that immediately decapitated Tehran’s chain of command, prompted threats of severe retaliation and raised fears of a wider conflict.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel described the attacks as a last resort to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran, which Israel views as an existential threat. In addition to targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, Israel’s strikes killed top Iranian officials and nuclear scientists and hit Tehran’s long-range missile facilities and aerial defenses.
June 13, 2025, 7:05 a.m. ET2 minutes ago
The Israeli military continues to strike in Iran, a military spokesman, Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, said in a televised statement. He said the military also continues to thwart threats against Israel. “We must brace for a lengthy operation,” he said. “We will continue to act until the objectives of the operation have been achieved.”
June 13, 2025, 6:47 a.m. ET20 minutes ago
Israel has carried out a strike on a military airport in the northwest Iranian city of Tabriz, according to Tasnim, a semiofficial news agency affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards. The strike, Tasnim reported, occurred in the early afternoon. Israel did not immediately comment on the report.
June 13, 2025, 6:47 a.m. ET20 minutes ago
A video taken by a witness and verified by The New York Times shows large plumes of smoke billowing from the airport in Tabriz as strikes continued to hit the area, to the gasps of onlookers.
Verified by The New York Times
Where Israel attacked Iran
By Martín González Gómez and Julie Walton Shaver
June 13, 2025, 6:21 a.m. ET46 minutes ago
Israel’s Air Force is continuing to take action to intercept drones that Iran has launched at Israel, the Israeli military said in a statement. The statement did not say how many drones Israel had intercepted, if any.
June 13, 2025, 6:16 a.m. ET51 minutes ago
President Trump has weighed in on the Israeli strikes, which came as his administration seeks to broker a new nuclear deal with Iran. “I gave Iran chance after chance to make a deal,” Trump said in a Truth Social post, but “they just couldn’t get it done.” Trump said that “the next already planned attacks” could be “even more brutal,” and warned that Tehran “must make a deal, before there is nothing left.”
June 13, 2025, 6:05 a.m. ET1 hour ago
Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group in Lebanon, condemned the Israeli attack but made no mention of any military response. Long considered Iran’s most powerful regional proxy, Hezbollah has been battered by a yearlong conflict with Israel and much of its arsenal of rockets has been destroyed. Although analysts say Hezbollah retains enough firepower to escalate if Iran decides to activate its allies, it remains unclear whether the group will risk further confrontation with Israel.
People stocking up on food Friday morning in Jerusalem.Ronen Zvulun/Reuters
The streets of Jerusalem, normally bustling on a Friday morning with shoppers preparing for the Jewish Sabbath, were eerily quiet. There was none of the usual build up of traffic of Muslim worshipers heading for noon prayers at Al Aqsa Mosque either.
Many residents of this contested, holy city seemed dazed, after being woken up well before daybreak by siren-like alerts sent to their cellphones declaring a nationwide state of emergency as Israel launched its wide-ranging, surprise attack against Iran’s nuclear program.
Soon after, another alert instructed all citizens to stay close to protected areas and bomb shelters in anticipation of Iranian retaliation.
By breakfast time, the Israeli military said Iran had already begun its first wave of response, sending more than 100 drones in Israel’s direction.
All gatherings were banned. Schools remained closed. Israel felt strangely cut off from the world after its airspace was closed to civilian air traffic and all flights arriving at or departing from Ben-Gurion International Airport, near Tel Aviv, were canceled.
Many people were confused about how to proceed because officials had said on television that they should venture out only to pick up essential items. Some people had already headed out before dawn to stock up on food from 24-hour grocers and lined up at gas stations.
After 9 a.m., others were hurrying through the aisles of a Jerusalem supermarket, hoping to make it back home in the hour or so they thought they had before the drones might arrive from Iran.
Shoppers were stocking up on bottled water and there had been a run on eggs.
“I’m a little apprehensive, on the one hand,” said David Hazony, 56, an American Israeli writer who had just finished his shopping, adding that he has children who serve in the military reserves.
“On the other hand, there’s a strong sense of relief,” he said, referring to Israel’s offensive against Iran. “It’s something we knew needed to happen for decades, but I always had doubts that our leadership had the guts to do it,” he said.
Jawwad Abu Humous, 45, a manager at the supermarket and a Palestinian resident of East Jerusalem, said he had heard about the Israeli attack only when he got to work in the morning.
“We’ve heard ‘Iran, Iran’ for years,” he said. “In the end,” he added, “we want peace and quiet. War is hard for everyone.”
The military said it had begun intercepting the drones outside of Israeli territory. By 11 a.m., the instructions were relaxed. Citizens were no longer required to stay close to bomb shelters but were told they could go out, get some air — and stock up on food.
June 13, 2025, 5:35 a.m. ET2 hours ago
Iran is moving quickly to replace top military leaders killed in the Israeli strikes. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has appointed Maj. Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi as chief of staff of the armed forces, Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported. Mousavi replaces Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, who was killed in the Israeli attack.
June 13, 2025, 5:33 a.m. ET2 hours ago
Israel believes that it has killed Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, leader the airspace unit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, in a strike, along with other officials, according to three Israeli officials with knowledge of the operation.
June 13, 2025, 5:24 a.m. ET2 hours ago
The Israeli military said it struck the Iranian uranium enrichment facility at Natanz in Friday’s airstrikes. The attack hit a subterranean compound housing centrifuges and “infrastructure vital for the site’s continued operation and the advancement of Iran’s military nuclear project,” the military said.
June 13, 2025, 5:24 a.m. ET2 hours ago
Rafael Grossi, the head of the U.N. nuclear agency, said that so far there are ”no elevated radiation levels” detected around the Natanz nuclear site. He also said there were no indications of attacks so far at two other major Iranian nuclear sites, the deep-underground enrichment center at Fordow or the Isfahan nuclear fuel site, where much early processing of nuclear fuel takes place. Isfahan is also suspected of being a core location for secret nuclear weapons research, American officials say.
At present, the competent Iranian authorities have confirmed that the Natanz enrichment site has been impacted and that there are no elevated radiation levels. They have also reported that at present, the Isfahan and Fordow sites have not been impacted. This development is deeply concerning. I have repeatedly stated that nuclear facilities must never be attacked, regardless of the context or circumstances, as it could harm both people and the environment.
IAEA, via Reuters
June 13, 2025, 5:20 a.m. ET2 hours ago
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, has appointed Mohammad Pakpour as the chief of the powerful Revolutionary Guards, the Iranian state news agency IRNA reported. Pakpour replaces Gen. Hossein Salami, who was killed in the Israeli strikes.
Residents of Tehran weathered a night of terror and shock, reeling from explosions across the Iranian capital and from the news that senior military commanders and top-security nuclear and military bases had been attacked by Israeli fighter jets.
Long lines were forming at gas stations and grocery stores were filling up as Iranians prepared for uncertain times. As of Friday morning, the government had not given a complete tally of casualties and only said that a number of civilians had been killed, including children. Dozens were injured.
June 13, 2025, 3:34 a.m. ET4 hours ago
Lin Jian, a spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry, said on Friday that Beijing is “deeply concerned” about Israel’s strike on Iran and opposed the “violating” of “Iran’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity.” He called on all parties to avoid escalating tensions and said China would play “a constructive role in promoting the easing of the situation.”
June 13, 2025, 3:17 a.m. ET4 hours ago
Jordan’s military said it had intercepted a number of missiles and drones that entered the country’s airspace on Friday morning. It said it had assessed that the missiles and drones were likely to fall in Jordanian territory, including populated areas. The statement from the military did not specify where the drones and missiles came from.
June 13, 2025, 3:12 a.m. ET4 hours ago
The Israeli military has begun intercepting the retaliatory wave of drones fired by Iran outside of Israeli territory, said a military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to comply with protocol.
June 13, 2025, 2:49 a.m. ET4 hours ago
Leaders of Israel’s major opposition parties — including bitter critics of Prime Minister Netanyahu — struck notes of unity over the attack on Iran. “Israel executed a first-rate strategic operation tonight. In this historic hour, we stand united behind the defense establishment, and I want to send strength to the political leadership,” wrote Benny Gantz, a major Netanyahu rival.
June 13, 2025, 2:44 a.m. ET4 hours ago
The attack rippled through transportation links throughout the region. The airspace over Iran, Iraq, Jordan and Israel was largely clear of airplanes, with flights to and from the Persian Gulf heavily concentrated across northern Saudi Arabia, according to data visible on Flightradar24. Emirates Airlines announced on its website that it was cancelling all flights serving Iran, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon.
June 13, 2025, 2:11 a.m. ET5 hours ago
Iran’s Isfahan nuclear site and Fordow fuel enrichment plant have not been affected, Rafael Grossi, the International Atomic Energy Agency’s chief, said in a statement, citing updates from the Iranian authorities.
June 13, 2025, 2:02 a.m. ET5 hours ago
Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain said his government was engaging with its partners to de-escalate the situation. “We urge all parties to step back and reduce tensions urgently,” he said in a statement. “This is a dangerous moment,” Britain’s foreign secretary, David Lammy, said in a separate statement, urging restraint by both sides.
June 13, 2025, 1:38 a.m. ET5 hours ago
Iran announces on state television it will not participate in nuclear negotiations with the United States on Sunday and until further notice.
June 13, 2025, 1:28 a.m. ET6 hours ago
The commander in chief of Iran’s military, Mohammad Bagheri, was killed during the Israeli strikes on Friday morning, Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported. Bagheri was Iran’s second highest commander after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. His death was earlier reported by semi-official Iranian media.
Israeli strikes on Friday morning dealt a major blow to Iran’s chain of command by killing three of its top generals, according to Iranian state media and officials.
The Israeli military confirmed the deaths of the three Iranian commanders. Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, moved swiftly to replace the military leaders in an apparent bid to project stability and prevent a power vacuum. Iranian state media reported that Ayatollah Khamenei had appointed replacements for the army’s chief of staff and the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps — both of whom were killed in the wave of strikes. At least one other top general was killed, according to the Israeli military, a claim that Iran did not immediately comment on.
June 13, 2025, 1:03 a.m. ETJune 13, 2025
The Israeli military says 200 warplanes participated in the overnight attack in Iran, dropping hundreds of bombs across the country and striking over 100 targets. The attack on Tehran was the biggest since the Iran-Iraq war decades ago.
June 13, 2025, 1:03 a.m. ETJune 13, 2025
Israel also said that it had killed the top military leadership of Iran, confirming reports from Iran state media and officials. Among those killed were Mohammad Bagheri, the Iranian chief of staff and Hossein Salami, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.
June 13, 2025, 1:01 a.m. ETJune 13, 2025
It appears that Iran has launched its first wave of response. Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, the Israeli military’s chief spokesman, said Iran launched more than 100 drones toward Israel in the past few hours.
June 13, 2025, 12:59 a.m. ETJune 13, 2025
President Trump told Fox News anchor Bret Baier that he had prior knowledge of Israel’s plans to target top Iranian leaders. Baier said he spoke with Trump shortly after Israel struck Tehran.
“Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb. We’ll hopefully get back to the negotiating table,” Trump said, according to Baier. “There are several people in leadership in Iran who will not be coming back.”
June 13, 2025, 12:58 a.m. ETJune 13, 2025
Jordan’s Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission announced the temporary closure of the country’s airspace, citing potential risks from the ongoing escalation in the region.
When Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday evening that Israel had struck “Iran’s main enrichment facility in Natanz,” he was signaling the scope of his country’s ambitions in the largest strike it has ever aimed at Iran: It sought to destroy the beating heart of the Iranian nuclear program.
The Natanz facility is where Iran has produced the vast majority of its nuclear fuel — and, in the past three years, much of the near-bomb-grade fuel that has put the country on the threshold of building nuclear weapons.
Israel’s strikes on Iran on Friday delivered a seismic blow to Iran’s chain of command, with Iranian officials and media reports saying that at least three of the top generals — including both the overall military commander and the leader of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps — had been killed.
Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, who is the chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces, was the most senior leader among the dead, according to state media. There was no immediate confirmation from the Iranian armed forces. One of General Bagheri’s deputies was also killed.
Brent crude oil price
Israel’s military strikes against Iran shook global markets, as oil prices surged and stocks tumbled on worries that the attacks could set off a broader Mideast conflict that would disrupt the world’s energy supplies and stoke inflation.
Prices of Brent crude oil, the international benchmark, jumped on Friday, rising more than 8 percent to around $75 a barrel. It was oil’s largest daily gain this year.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday that the United States had no involvement in Israel’s unilateral strikes on Iran but had been told that Israel considered the attack necessary for its self-defense.
President Trump, who has been pushing for a deal with Iran on its nuclear program, was hosting the annual White House picnic on Thursday evening when reports of the strikes emerged from Tehran.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, told an anxious country in an early morning video statement that Israel had attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities to ward off an existential threat, vowing that the battle would continue for “as many days as it takes.”
Israeli forces attacked Iran’s “main enrichment facility in Natanz,” as well its ballistic missile capabilities and top Iranian nuclear scientists, Mr. Netanyahu said.