After striking back on Friday night, Iran launched a new wave of strikes toward Israel on Saturday morning, as the two countries continue to exchange deadly missiles. Iran followed through on its vow to retaliate after Israel carried out a “precise and integrated preemptive strike” against Iranian nuclear facilities, targeting military personnel and scientists. Now, as the attacks escalate, and with fatalities and injuries reported on both sides, Israel has issued a stark warning to Iran.
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Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz on Saturday morning threatened severe consequences if Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei doesn’t retreat. “If Khamenei continues to fire missiles at the Israeli home front, Tehran will burn,” Katz said, after a meeting with leaders of the Israeli military.
“The Iranian dictator is turning Iran’s citizens into hostages and creating a reality in which they, especially the residents of Tehran, will pay a heavy price for the criminal attacks on Israeli civilians.”
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The warning comes after Israel reported that at least three people had died and dozens have been injured after Iranian strikes rained down on Tel Aviv and nearby cities. Meanwhile, Iran’s U.N. Ambassador reported that over 70 people have been killed and over 300 wounded as a result of the Israeli strikes. The escalation of traded strikes has raised concerns for civilians on both sides.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the “esteemed people of Iran” directly in a filmed statement on Friday night.
“We are in the midst of one of the largest military operations in history. The Islamic regime that has oppressed you for almost 50 years threatens to destroy our country, Israel,” Netanyahu said. “The goal of Israel’s operation is to prevent the Islamic regime’s nuclear and ballistic missile threats.”
“While we achieve our goal, we also pave the way for you to achieve your freedom,” he continued. “In the past 24 hours, we have destroyed senior military commanders, prominent nuclear scientists, the Islamic regime’s most important enrichment facility, and a large part of its ballistic missile arsenal. Another operation is underway”
Netanyahu went on to say that the regime in Iran has “never been so weak” and urged Iranians to use the opportunity to “stand up” and make their voices heard.
Read More: Here Are the Top Iranian Generals and Scientists Targeted and Killed by Israeli Strikes
Israel’s initial strikes on Iran in the early hours of Friday morning, local time, came amid long-time concerns as to the progression of the country’s nuclear capabilities. The United States has been engaged in ongoing talks with Iran, in an effort to make a nuclear deal.
Another round of talks between the U.S. and Iran was set to take place in the Sultanate of Oman’s capital of Muscat on Sunday, but it remains to be seen if those will go ahead.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei on Saturday called nuclear talks with the U.S. “meaningless,” according to state television, amid the current situation with Israel.
Read More: Trump Issues Grave Warning to Iran After Israeli Strikes: ‘No More Death, No More Destruction’
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke out shortly after Israel launched its operative strikes against Iran, announcing that the U.S. were not participants in the military action. “Israel took unilateral action against Iran. We are not involved in strikes against Iran… Let me be clear: Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump on Friday issued a grave warning of his own to Iran, urging them to make a nuclear deal before the combat escalated further, which it since has.
Detailing how he has long sought to make an agreement with Iran, Trump said: “I told them, in the strongest of words, to ‘just do it,’ but no matter how hard they tried, no matter how close they got, they just couldn’t get it done… Certain Iranian hardliners spoke bravely, but they didn’t know what was about to happen. They are all DEAD now, and it will only get worse.”