Israel Katz’s remarks came after West Jerusalem accused Tehran of targeting a hospital

Rescue workers clear rubble after Iranian missile strikes on June 15, 2025, in Bat Yam, Israel. ©  Amir Levy / Getty Images

An Iranian missile has reportedly hit a medical center in the southern Israeli city of Be’er Sheva, among dozens of other attacks leading to multiple injuries across the Jewish state, as Tehran and Israel continue their week-long conflict. Following the attack, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei “can no longer be allowed to exist.”

Meanwhile, Israel has launched a new wave of strikes targeting Iran’s nuclear infrastructure and military installations, including the Arak heavy water nuclear reactor.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Operation Rising Lion – a series of missile attacks on Iran – has significantly damaged the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program. West Jerusalem claims it has struck key nuclear sites at Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow. The IAEA has confirmed damage to facilities in Natanz and Isfahan.

According to the Washington-based Human Rights Activists group, Israeli strikes have killed at least 639 Iranians, most of whom are civilians, since the hostilities began last Friday. Israeli officials have reported 24 deaths.

US President Donald Trump is still reportedly not ruling out direct military intervention in the conflict. According to CBS, he has approved a potential plan to attack Iran, but no final decision has been made.

Russia has condemned Israel’s initial airstrikes and called for deescalation. President Vladimir Putin spoke with Trump by phone over the weekend. According to Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov, the two discussed the possibility of reviving negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program.

19 June 2025

12:43 GMT

The Israeli military claims it has hit two-thirds of Iran’s missile silos, adding that “hundreds” of surface-to-surface missile launchers have been rendered inoperable. It cautions that Iran still has the capability to conduct strikes.

12:33 GMT

The Israeli military has carried out a strike in western Iran, targeting surface-to-surface missile infrastructure sites, trucks carrying military equipment, and Tehran’s service members, the IDF has said.

 

 

11:34 GMT

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has confirmed to IRNA that he will meet with his British, German, and French counterparts in Geneva to discuss the conflict with Israel.

11:23 GMT

Türkiye has ramped up security at the Iranian border, a Defense Ministry source has told Reuters, adding, however, that Ankara has not seen any uptick in migration so far.

The Reuters source adds that Türkiye is continuing to develop a layered air and missile defense system, while its planes are patrolling the borders to prevent any Israeli airspace violations.

11:22 GMT

Russia believes that any Israeli strikes on Iranian peaceful nuclear infrastructure are “categorically unacceptable,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said, warning of a potential disaster.

READ MORE: Israel uninterested in Russian mediation of conflict with Iran – Kremlin

She adds that attempts to justify Israel’s “unprovoked aggression” against Iran are “cynical.”

10:33 GMT

The IDF has released footage of what it claims is a strike on an inactive nuclear reactor in Arak.

 

 

10:28 GMT

The IDF has dismissed as “lies” Iranian claims that the strike that hit the Soroka hospital was an attack on an intelligence base and military hardware parked not far from the facility.

“We are not so despicable as to endanger civilians. Attacking hospitals is a crime. Fabricating a reason does not justify it,” Israeli officials said.

09:41 GMT

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei has rebuked IAEA chief Rafael Grossi for coming out too late with the statement that there is no evidence that Tehran is making an effort to produce nuclear weapons.

“You obscured this truth in your absolutely biased report that was instrumentalize[d] by E3/US to craft a resolution with baseless allegation of 'non-compliance…’ Do you know how many innocent Iranians have been killed/maimed as a result of this criminal war?” he said.

09:10 GMT

Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization has condemned the Israeli strike on the Arak heavy water complex. It said, however, that no casualties have been reported due to “preemptive safety measures” and there is “no threat or harm posed to residents in the vicinity of the mentioned site.”

09:04 GMT

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has denied targeting the Soroka Hospital in Israel, insisting instead that they had carried out a “precise and direct” strike against military assets.

The Israeli accusations are a “false narrative… [and a] part of a psychological campaign aimed at sanitizing Israel’s military image and concealing the extent of the blow to its intelligence infrastructure,” sources told the Tehran Times.

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