Israel struck Iran gas facility with US approval - Axios


A senior Israeli official said the Israeli Air Force struck Iran’s largest natural gas processing facility in the southwest of the country, in coordination with and with approval from the United States, Axios reporter Barak Ravid said on Wednesday.
The strike targeted a key energy site, the official said.
Earlier, Iranian state media said parts of the South Pars gas field and facilities in Asaluyeh were hit in what it described as a US-Israeli attack.







US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said countries that rely on the Strait of Hormuz should take responsibility for securing the waterway, in a post on Truth Social.
“I wonder what would happen if we ‘finished off’ what’s left of the Iranian Terror State,” Trump wrote, adding that countries that use the Strait of Hormuz could then be responsible for it.
He also referred to “non-responsive allies,” saying such a move would get them “in gear, and fast.”
Minutes later, Trump said Iran was “the NUMBER ONE STATE SPONSOR OF TERROR” and added: “We are rapidly putting them out of business!”
Germany would like to see political change in Iran but does not support achieving it through outside military action, Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on Wednesday.
“Given the brutality and ruthlessness of this regime, it is desirable that regime change occur,” Wadephul said at a press conference in Berlin with his French counterpart.
“I just believe that this has to develop from within the country,” he said, adding that there were “positive attempts” in that direction.
Wadephul said Germany was in contact with Iranian opposition groups as part of ongoing discussions.
The United Arab Emirates said on Wednesday its air defenses intercepted 13 ballistic missiles and 27 drones launched from Iran.
The defense ministry said the interceptions took place on March 18 as part of ongoing responses to Iranian attacks.
It said that since the start of the conflict, UAE air defenses have engaged 327 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles and 1,699 drones.
The ministry said the attacks have killed two members of the armed forces and six foreign nationals, while 158 people were injured with wounds ranging from minor to severe.
It added that the military remains ready to respond to any threats and will act to protect the country’s security and stability.
Iranians across many cities took to the streets late Tuesday to celebrate Chaharshanbe Suri, defying warnings and attempted crackdowns by security forces as the country remains under sustained military pressure.
Videos sent to Iran International showed crowds gathering in Tehran, Karaj, Shiraz, Mashhad and other cities, lighting fires, dancing and chanting slogans, including “Javid Shah,” in apparent response to calls by exiled prince Reza Pahlavi to mark the pre-Islamic festival despite restrictions.
In several locations, including Chitgar in western Tehran and parts of Karaj, security forces were seen attempting to disperse gatherings, with footage showing police vehicles approaching crowds.


But the celebrations persisted, with people singing patriotic songs such as “Ey Iran” and setting off fireworks in residential neighborhoods and public spaces.
Chaharshanbe Suri, traditionally held on the eve of last Wednesday of the Iranian calendar year, has long been viewed with suspicion by the Islamic Republic.
In recent years it has increasingly become a flashpoint for anti-government expression, particularly during periods of unrest.
This year’s celebrations unfolded against the backdrop of ongoing conflict and heightened security pressure, with reports of surveillance and efforts by authorities to deter gatherings.
Israeli support
“An unprecedented event took place last night, as Israeli drones targeted Basij and police patrols attempting to approach celebration sites,” an Israeli official told Iran International.
“For the first time, the people of Iran benefited from active support that paralyzed the repression apparatus and effectively provided an ‘air umbrella’ for the crowds,” the official said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had earlier signaled support, saying in a video message that Israeli forces were targeting what he described as “terrorist operatives” to enable Iranians to celebrate.
“Our aircraft are striking terrorist elements in city squares and intersections to allow the brave people of Iran to celebrate the fire festival,” he said. “Celebrate. Happy Nowruz. We are watching from above.”
Joe Kent, director of the US National Counterterrorism Center, became the first senior Trump official to resign over the Iran war, saying on Tuesday Iran posed no imminent threat to the US, a view experts say contradicts longstanding security warnings.
In stepping down, Kent wrote that “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation” – a claim that drew immediate pushback from senior officials and analysts, who said it contradicts both intelligence assessments and longstanding security warnings.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Donald Trump had evidence to support the decision to strike, calling Iran “the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson dismissed Kent’s assertion outright.
“I don't know where Joe Kent is getting this information, but he wasn't in those briefings,” Johnson said. “Had the president waited, we would have had mass casualties. That proposition at the end is clearly wrong.”
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard also pushed back publicly, saying that the administration rejects the view that Iran posed no threat.
Kent resigned on Tuesday, saying he “cannot in good conscience” support the Trump administration’s war in Iran, and arguing the conflict had been driven by pressure from Israel and its supporters in the United States rather than an immediate security necessity.
President Trump dismissed him shortly afterward, calling it a “good thing” he stepped down and describing him as “very weak on security.”
'Kent’s claim contradicts years of warnings'
Analysts echoed that assessment.
“The fact of the matter is that Donald Trump, in his State of the Union address, said that Iran is a threat and Iran is thinking about directly attacking the United States. That's not Trump's imagination,” said Shayan Samii, a former US government appointee and Iranian-American analyst.
He pointed to Iran’s missile program and nuclear activity as further evidence.
“They bragged about having 60% enriched fuel, enough for eleven bombs. They told me and Jared [Kushner], ‘We're not gonna give you diplomatically what you couldn't take militarily,’” White House envoy Steve Witkoff said on March 8 alongside Trump aboard Air Force One.
Samii said such positions reinforced concerns that Iran was using diplomacy to buy time.
“They were saying, yes, we do have this material… why should we give [it] to you voluntarily?” he said.
More broadly, US security agencies have long warned that Iran poses a multifaceted threat, including cyberattacks on critical infrastructure, potential operations on US soil, drone capabilities and proxy attacks across the Middle East.
The FBI has also warned law enforcement in California of possible retaliation linked to the war, including the risk of Iranian drone activity targeting the US West Coast, according to an alert reviewed by ABC News.
Kent’s claim has also drawn emotional backlash from those directly affected by Iranian-linked violence.
“My husband, Alan, was killed by Iranian proxies in Iraq. And now, after decades, the fight is finally leading back to the number one state sponsor of terrorism in the world,” a Gold Star widow wrote on X.
“You understood it when it was your loss. Now you’re minimizing it when it’s mine. You don’t get to redefine this war just because it’s not your grief anymore.”
Questions over access, motive and past ties
Against that backdrop, questions have also emerged about Kent’s access to intelligence and the motivations behind his position as well as his past political associations.
A senior administration official told Fox News Kent was “a known leaker” who had been cut out of presidential intelligence briefings months earlier and excluded from Iran-related planning – raising doubts about whether he had access to the information he was disputing.
“He has a history of white supremacism,” Jake Wallis Simons, host of the Brink podcast and a columnist with The Telegraph, told Iran International, adding that Kent’s background should be considered when evaluating his position.
Open-source reporting reviewed by Iran International shows Kent faced criticism during his political campaigns over engagement with white nationalist figures.
According to The Forward, he sought support from white nationalist Nick Fuentes and made comments describing American culture as “anti-white,” though Kent has said he disagrees with some of those views.
Stephen F. Hayes of The Dispatch reported that Kent’s former campaign manager acknowledged in texts that he had sent racist and antisemitic messages, and that a senior adviser attended a conference hosted by Fuentes.
Warren Kinsella, a former special assistant to Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, said opposition to the war in some cases reflects ideology rather than security realities.
“Kent is an example of that,” Kinsella said. “The war is defensible on any number of grounds… the fact that Iran is the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism. This was the right thing to do.”
He added that Kent’s past associations had long raised concerns.
“Kent had long had associations with white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups,” he said. “He was widely seen as a national security risk and only got through Senate scrutiny by the skin of his teeth.”
As head of the National Counterterrorism Center, Kent oversaw the agency responsible for analyzing terrorist threats – making his assertion that Iran posed no imminent danger particularly consequential.