Israel appeared to be expanding its air campaign on Tehran five days after its surprise attack on Iran’s military and nuclear programme, as US President Donald Trump posted a warning for residents of the city to evacuate.
“IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON,” Trump wrote on Monday night before returning to Washington early from a Group of Seven summit in Canada. “Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!” he added.
The Israeli military had earlier called for some 330,000 residents of a neighbourhood in the city centre to evacuate. Tehran is one of the largest cities in the Middle East, with around 10 million people, roughly equivalent to the entire population of Israel.
Israel says its sweeping assault on Iran’s top military leaders, nuclear scientists, uranium enrichment sites and ballistic missile programme is necessary to prevent its longtime adversary from getting closer to building an atomic weapon. The strikes have killed at least 224 people since Friday.
Iran has retaliated by launching more than 370 missiles and hundreds of drones at Israel. So far, 24 people have been killed in Israel and more than 500 wounded. The Israeli military said a new barrage of missiles was launched on Tuesday, and explosions could be heard in northern Israel.
Downtown Tehran appeared to be starting to empty out early Tuesday, with many shops closed. The city’s ancient Grand Bazaar was also closed, something that has only happened in the past during anti-government demonstrations or at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.
On roads out of Tehran to the west, traffic stood bumper to bumper. Many appeared to be heading to the Caspian Sea area. Long queues could also be seen at petrol stations in Tehran.
The Israeli military claimed to have killed someone it described as Iran’s top general in a strike on Tehran. Iran did not immediately comment on the reported killing of Gen Ali Shadmani, who had just been named as head of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, part of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.
Israeli military spokesperson Brig Gen Effie Defrin said his country’s forces had “achieved full aerial superiority over Tehran’s skies”. The military said it destroyed more than 120 surface-to-surface missile launchers in central Iran, a third of Iran’s total, including multiple launchers just before they launched ballistic missiles towards Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Israeli strikes have set Iran’s nuclear programme back a “very, very long time”, and told reporters he is in daily touch with Trump.
Iran maintains that its nuclear programme is peaceful. The US and others have assessed that Tehran has not had an organised effort to pursue a nuclear weapon since 2003, though the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency has repeatedly warned that the country has enough enriched uranium to make several nuclear bombs should it choose to do so.
Trump later denied reports that he had rushed back to Washington to work on a ceasefire, saying his early departure “has nothing to do with a Cease Fire. Much bigger than that,” without elaborating.
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, appeared to make a veiled plea for the US to step in and negotiate an end to hostilities. In a post on X, Araghchi wrote that if Trump is “genuine about diplomacy and interested in stopping this war, next steps are consequential”.
“It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu,” Iran’s top diplomat wrote. “That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy”.
(information from AP News)
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