Israel obliterates Iranian presidential compound as it continues ‘significant blitz’ | World | News
Israel struck at the heart of the besieged Iranian leadership by obliterating the presidential compound in Tehran, it said.
In a statement posted on Telegram the Israel Defence Forces said “numerous munitions” were dropped on the Presidential Office and the Supreme National Security Council.
In addition to the missile blitz a military training institution and “additional key regime infrastructure” were also struck.
The compound was used by Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who was assassinated in the opening salvo of Operation Epic Fury on Saturday in the US-Israeli strikes.
An IDF statement said the “most important and central” command centre in Iran had been hit, adding: “The leadership complex of the terror regime is one of the most secure assets in Iran and spans many streets in the heart of Tehran. Its attack deepens the damage to the functional continuity of the command and control systems in the regime.”
On the fourth day of the Middle East war plumes of smoke could be seen rising from Tehran. The death toll inside Iran now stands at 787.
The Israeli military is also carrying out “simultaneous strikes” in Beirut.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said regime targets in Tehran had been struck with “significant force” and the operation will “continue with full force for as long as necessary”.
The International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, confirmed an Iranian enrichment site was damaged in strikes.
Satellite images showed the underground Natanz facility had been damaged but “no radiological consequence” is expected after the incident.
Earlier Iranian drones hit the US embassy in Riyadh as Tehran continued to launch waves of retaliatory strikes at the Gulf and Israel, while Israeli soldiers began operating in southern Lebanon.
The drone attack caused a minor fire, prompting the diplomatic mission to tell Americans to distance themselves from the compound. The attack followed an earlier Iranian drone strike on the US embassy in Kuwait, as Iran continued to target US bases, facilities and personnel in Arab Gulf states.
What started as a war between Iran and the US and Israel has quickly spread into a regional conflict.
The US and Israeli air war against what US President Donald Trump described as a “sick and sinister regime” started with attacks against Tehran which eliminated Khamenei, 86, his daughter, son-in-law, grandson, and 49 top-ranking Iranian leaders and security officials including army chief of staff, General Abdol Rahim Mousavi, and defence minister General Aziz Nasirzadeh. Also killed were Major General Mohammad Pakpour, the Revolutionary Guard’s top commander, and Ali Shamkhani, Khamenei’s security adviser.
It was one of the most significant blows to Iran’s leadership since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
The blitz prompted Iranian retaliation against Israel and missile attacks at Arab nations with US bases across the region. The fighting has expanded to now include at least nine countries and various pro-Iran groups.
