Monitoring Desk:
Tensions in the Middle East have reached a critical level after Israel launched a large-scale airstrike campaign targeting Iranian military and nuclear sites. According to international media reports, including those from BBC, CNN, and Al Jazeera, the Israeli operation led to the deaths of several high-ranking Iranian officials and scientists, prompting a major retaliatory drone assault from Iran.
Among those reportedly killed in the Israeli strikes are:
- Major General Hossein Salami, Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)
- Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Chief of Staff of Iran’s Armed Forces
- Fereydoon Abbasi, senior nuclear physicist and former head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization
- Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi, prominent nuclear scientist and academic leader
The operation targeted critical military infrastructure and nuclear facilities across Iran in what is being described as one of the most intense Israeli air offensives in recent years. The strikes triggered explosions in key locations, with images and video footage showing damage to military compounds.
In retaliation, Iran launched more than 100 drones toward Israel. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed to have intercepted the majority of these aerial threats, though air raid sirens were reported in multiple cities, including Tel Aviv and Haifa. The Iranian government referred to the drone offensive as a “measured and necessary response” to Israel’s “act of aggression.”
As a result of the escalating conflict, regional airspaces — including over Iran, Iraq, Jordan, and Israel — were temporarily closed. The U.S. has issued emergency warnings, evacuating diplomatic personnel and advising all staff in conflict-prone zones to remain sheltered.
Global leaders and international organizations are calling for restraint, warning that further escalation could destabilize the entire region. Diplomatic channels are reportedly active in an attempt to de-escalate the situation, but the risk of broader conflict remains high.
