US, Israel strike 4,000 targets in sweeping Iran blitz — NYT
The United States and Israel have struck around 4,000 targets across Iran in one of the most intense bombing campaigns involving US forces in decades, The New York Times reported, outlining a broad effort to dismantle Tehran’s leadership, military infrastructure and nuclear program.
Early strikes hit Iran’s leadership compound in central Tehran, killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei along with several top officials, including IRGC commander-in-chief Mohammad Pakpour, Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh, Armed Forces Chief of Staff Abdolrahim Mousavi and senior security official Ali Shamkhani.
The campaign has heavily targeted Iran’s missile and air defense capabilities. The Israeli military says more than 300 missile launchers and around 150 air defense systems have been disabled. Underground missile bases near Kermanshah and other sites were hit, with satellite imagery showing craters and destroyed entrances to subterranean facilities.
The United States says it has severely degraded Iran’s navy, destroying about 30 vessels, including a submarine, and sinking an Iranian warship with a torpedo — the first such US action since World War II. A drone carrier ship was also struck. The naval operations aim to limit Iran’s ability to threaten shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of global oil supplies transit.
Security and intelligence institutions have also been targeted, including facilities linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Basij militia. Israel estimates that hundreds of Guards and Basij personnel have been killed.
Nuclear infrastructure has been struck as well. Satellite imagery cited by the Times shows damage to the Natanz enrichment site, including destroyed entrances to underground centrifuge halls. A previously undisclosed underground facility near Tehran was also hit, which Israel says was linked to nuclear weapons development.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Iran did not start the war and that it had been in negotiations when the conflict began.
“We are in the eleventh day of military aggression by the United States and the Zionist regime. We did not start this war,” he said at a news conference.
“Military aggression is ongoing and therefore in this situation there is little place to talk about anything other than defense and a crushing response to the enemy,” he added, saying all of Iran’s focus is currently on defending the country.
Iran denies drone attacks on Azerbaijan, Turkey and Cyprus
Baghaei also denied on Monday that Iranian armed forces launched drones or missiles toward Azerbaijan, Turkey or Cyprus, as regional tensions spill beyond its borders.
He said Iran’s defense actions “should in no way be interpreted as hostility toward any of the countries in the region,” adding that the armed forces’ general staff had “explicitly and officially announced that such launches were not carried out from inside Iran or by our military forces.”
His remarks follow accusations by Azerbaijan that four drones crossed into its Nakhchivan exclave, striking the airport terminal and exploding near a school, injuring civilians.
President Ilham Aliyev called the incident an “act of terror,” demanded an explanation and apology from Tehran, and ordered the withdrawal of Azerbaijani diplomatic staff from Iran.
Earlier, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied that Tehran launched drones toward Nakhchivan and told his Azerbaijani counterpart that Iran “denies any drone launch toward that republic,” according to state media.
He said Iran’s armed forces were investigating the reported explosions and accused Israel of seeking to disrupt relations between Muslim countries to harm Iran’s ties with its neighbors.
Turkey has said NATO air defenses intercepted an Iranian ballistic missile that entered Turkish airspace last week. Ankara protested to Tehran and has deployed F-16 fighter jets to Northern Cyprus as a precautionary security measure.
Cyprus has also reported a drone strike on a British base on the island, which it said was likely launched by Iran-backed Hezbollah rather than directly from Iran.