War Archive 2024+ Iran VS Israel

[Saif]

US could get involved in Iran-Israel conflict, Trump tells ABC

US President Donald Trump told a news network on Sunday that the United States could become involved in the Iran-Israel conflict, and that he would be ‘open’ to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin being a mediator.

www.newagebd.net

US could get involved in Iran-Israel conflict, Trump tells ABC
Agence France-Presse . Washington 15 June, 2025, 21:21

US President Donald Trump speaks during the Army 250th Anniversary Parade from the Ellipse in Washington, DC on June 14, 2025. | AFP photo

US President Donald Trump told a news network on Sunday that the United States could become involved in the Iran-Israel conflict, and that he would be ‘open’ to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin being a mediator.

The Republican president, according to ABC News, also said talks over Iran’s nuclear program were continuing and that Tehran would ‘like to make a deal,’ perhaps more quickly now that the Islamic republic is trading massive strikes with Israel.

‘It’s possible we could get involved’ in the ongoing battle between the Middle East arch-foes, Trump said in an off-camera interview with ABC News senior political correspondent Rachel Scott that was not previously publicized.

He stressed that the United States is ‘not at this moment’ involved in the military action.

As for Putin being a potential mediator in the conflict, ‘he is ready. He called me about it. We had a long talk about it,’ Trump said.

Israel and Iran traded heavy aerial assaults for a third straight day Sunday, with casualties mounting following Israel’s large-scale attacks aimed at crippling Iran’s nuclear and military infrastructure, sparking retaliation.

Oman, which has acted as a mediator on the nuclear issue, has said a sixth round of talks between Iran and the United States planned for this weekend had been cancelled.

But Trump said the two sides were continuing discussions.

‘No, there’s no deadline’ on negotiations, he told ABC when asked whether there was a time limit for Tehran to come to the table.

‘But they are talking. They’d like to make a deal. They’re talking. They continue to talk,’ Trump said, according to Scott.

Trump suggested that something like the clash between Israel and Iran ‘had’ to happen to spur talks on a nuclear agreement.

It ‘may have forced a deal to go quicker, actually,’ Trump said.​

 

[Saif]

Macron hopes Iran-Israel conflict will ‘calm’ in ‘coming hours’

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday he hoped for a return to calm ‘in the coming hours’ in the Iran-Israel conflict and called for a resumption of nuclear talks with Iran.

www.newagebd.net

Macron hopes Iran-Israel conflict will ‘calm’ in ‘coming hours’
Agence France-Presse . Nuuk 15 June, 2025, 22:06

French President Emmanuel Macron arrives to hold a press conference at the Elysee Paslace in Paris on June 13, 2025, after Israel launched a wave of strikes across Iran. | AFP photo

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday he hoped for a return to calm ‘in the coming hours’ in the Iran-Israel conflict and called for a resumption of nuclear talks with Iran.

Israel bombed military sites and fuel depots in Iran on Sunday on the third day of a conflict between the two countries, with Tehran retaliating with missile strikes.

‘I hope that the coming hours will bring calm and a road forward for discussion, to avoid any escalation of nuclear capabilities, acquisition of nuclear capacities in Iran, and to prevent any unrest in the region,’

Macron said while on a visit to Greenland.

The French president reiterated his call for negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme, despite the ongoing conflict.

‘Yesterday (Saturday), I was able to speak with the president of Iran, and I called for a discussion among us as soon as possible.

This is also what I conveyed in my conversation with (US) President (Donald) Trump, who shares this vision,’ Macron said.

‘We will have the opportunity, in a few hours, to revisit this matter with G7 leaders’ who are meeting from Sunday to Tuesday in Canada, he added.

The United States and Iran held five rounds of talks since April to try to find a path to a new nuclear deal that would replace a 2015 accord Trump abandoned during his first term in office.

A sixth round of talks had been scheduled for Sunday, but the host country, Oman, said on Saturday it was cancelled.​

 

[Saif]

Iran battle escalates, civilians urged to evacuate target areas

Iran refuses ceasefire talks amid Israeli attacks, official says

www.thedailystar.net

Iran battle escalates, civilians urged to evacuate target areas

Rescue personnel work at an impact site following a missile attack from Iran, in Bat Yam, Israel, yesterday. Iran and Israel will have peace “soon”, US President Donald Trump said in a social media post. PHoto: REUTERS
​

• Concerns of wider conflict rise, including at G7 summit​
• Iran refuses ceasefire talks amid Israeli attacks, official says​
• Trump vetoes Israeli plan to target Iran's supreme leader​
• Oil prices jump as Israel targets Iran's oil and gas sector​

Israel and Iran launched fresh attacks on Sunday, killing and wounding civilians and raising concerns of a broader regional conflict, with both militaries urging civilians on the opposing side to take precautions against further strikes.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he hoped a meeting of the Group of Seven leaders in Canada on Sunday would reach an agreement to help resolve the conflict and keep it from escalating.

Iran has told mediators Qatar and Oman that it is not open to negotiating a ceasefire with the U.S. while it is under Israeli attack, an official briefed on the communications told Reuters on Sunday.

Israel's military, which launched the attacks on Friday with the stated aim of wiping out Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, warned Iranians living near weapons facilities to evacuate. Early on Monday, it said Israel's air force attacked surface-to-surface missile sites in central Iran.

"Iran will pay a heavy price for the murder of civilians, women and children," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said from a balcony overlooking blown-out apartments where six people were killed in Bat Yam, a town south of Tel Aviv.

Iran's armed forces told residents of Israel to leave the vicinity of "vital areas" for their safety.

OIL PRICES RISE

Images from Tehran showed the night sky lit up by a huge blaze at a fuel depot after Israel began strikes against Iran's oil and gas sector - raising the stakes for the global economy and the functioning of the Iranian state.

Brent crude futuresLCOc1 were up $2.14, or 2.9%, to $76.37 a barrel by 2225 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures CLc1 climbed $2.03, or 2.8%, to $75.01. They surged more than $4 earlier in the session.

An Iranian health ministry spokesperson, Hossein Kermanpour, said the toll since the start of Israeli strikes had risen to 224 dead and more than 1,200 injured, 90% of whom he said were civilians. Those killed included 60 on Saturday, half of them children, in a 14-storey apartment block flattened in the Iranian capital.

Explosions rattled Tel Aviv in the afternoon as Iran launched its first daylight missile raid since Israel attacked on Friday. At least 10 people, including children, have been killed so far, according to Israeli authorities.

Hours later, shortly after nightfall, Iran launched a second wave of missiles, which struck a residential street in Haifa, a mixed Jewish-Arab city in northern Israel. The national emergency service reported nine people were injured in the strike, along with two others following a missile impact in the south.

In Bat Yam on Sunday evening, shocked residents surveyed the damage of an overnight strike, while many across Israel braced for another sleepless night, unsure of what may come next.

"It's very dreadful. It's not fun. People are losing their lives and their homes," said Shem, 29, whose home was shaken overnight when a missile struck a nearby apartment tower.

TRUMP VETOES PLAN TO TARGET KHAMENEI, OFFICIALS SAY

In Washington, two US officials told Reuters that US President Donald Trump had vetoed an Israeli plan in recent days to kill Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

"Have the Iranians killed an American yet? No. Until they do we're not even talking about going after the political leadership," said one of the sources, a senior U.S. administration official.

When asked about the Reuters report, Netanyahu told Fox News on Sunday: "There's so many false reports of conversations that never happened, and I'm not going to get into that."

"We do what we need to do," he told Fox's "Special Report With Bret Baier."

Regime change in Iran could be a result of Israel's military attacks, Netanyahu said in the interview, adding that Israel would do what it takes to remove what he called the "existential threat" posed by Tehran.

Israel's military spokesperson has said the current goal of the campaign is not regime change, but the dismantling of Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs and removing its capabilities "to annihilate us".

Israel launched a surprise attack on Friday morning that wiped out the top echelon of Iran's military command and damaged its nuclear sites, and says the campaign will escalate in coming days.

The intelligence chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, Mohammad Kazemi, and his deputy were killed in Israeli attacks on Tehran on Sunday, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency said.

Iran has vowed to "open the gates of hell" in retaliation in what has emerged as the biggest-ever confrontation between old enemies.

TRUMP WARNS IRAN NOT TO ATTACK

Trump has lauded Israel's offensive while denying Iranian allegations that the US has taken part.

"If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before," he said in a message on the Truth Social platform. "However, we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict."

Trump had earlier said the US had no role in Israel's attack and warned Tehran not to widen its retaliation to include US targets. The US military has helped shoot down Iranian missiles that were headed toward Israel, two US officials said on Friday.

The US president has repeatedly said Iran could end the war by agreeing to tough restrictions on its nuclear programme, which Iran says is for peaceful purposes but Western countries say could be used to make an atomic bomb.

The latest round of nuclear negotiations between Iran and the US, due on Sunday, was scrapped after Tehran said it would not negotiate while under Israeli attack.

Talking to reporters as he left for the G7 summit in Canada, Trump said on Sunday he hopes Israel and Iran can broker a ceasefire but said sometimes countries have to fight it out first.​

 

[Saif]

A catastrophe called Israel

How long can Iran's arsenal of reportedly 2,000 ballistic missiles last?

www.thedailystar.net

A catastrophe called Israel

Rescue personnel work at a residential building following missile attack from Iran on Israel, at central Israel on June 15, 2025. PHOTO: REUTERS

Any military campaign must have clearly defined objectives, and Israel said its main aim of starting a war with Iran, through its ongoing massive air attacks with tacit backing from US and Western governments, was to stop Tehran's march towards the acquisition of nuclear weapons.

It may not have been so openly stated, but one important objective is regime change in Iran in order to try and usher in a regime more like Israel's other Middle Eastern/regional neighbours, who are happy to be friends with Tel Aviv. That is why they offer only perfunctory condemnation of Israel's ethnic-cleansing of Palestinians not just in Gaza, but also the West Bank.

A wider war also helps shift the focus from the worst ethnic cleansing of this century in Gaza by relentless bombing, other military means, and mass starvation. It is the food blockade which was beginning to create a little unease among at least Israel's European allies, who have so far offered unconditional material and diplomatic support to it on Gaza.

At least the European allies, I say, because the US administration solidly supports the apartheid state, which is executing the American president's Gaza Riviera Plan. It visualises beachside resorts after the forceful displacement of two million Palestinians to unspecified countries, presumably Muslim.

The Gaza genocide has really not been about Israeli hostages taken during the October 2023 atrocity. Ample evidence of this can be found in the conduct of presidential envoy Steve Witkoff, whose family members are crypto business partners with the Trump family. He has walked away twice, if not more times, from deals that could have secured the release or exchange of the remaining hostages in Hamas captivity. Meanwhile, hundreds of Palestinians remain in Israeli captivity who are no more than hostages.

Despite this unconditional support to Israel, President Donald Trump so far seems unprepared to commit US forces in any open confrontation. Over the coming days, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's efforts will be directed towards somehow sucking in the US to commit forces into the war with Iran.

After the Iranian missile retaliation against the Israeli air campaign, which killed several senior Iranian military commanders, leaders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and targeted nuclear sites, former Israeli Prime Minister and Military Chief Ehud Barak picked off some of these objectives one by one in an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour.

Ehud Barak was categorical in saying that Israel's air campaign may have "delayed" by a few weeks Iran's acquisition of a nuclear weapon but, he said, even if the US joined the air campaign, it would delay it by no more than a few months at best. "They have 400 kilogrammes of 60 percent enriched uranium and it can be enriched to 90 percent in a garage with the right equipment and they will have a crude bomb," he said.

Quoting the chief of the IAEA (the international nuclear watchdog), who said that many of Iran's key facilities are "hundreds of yards" underground in old mines, etc, Mr Barak maintained these were "out of our reach". "I have no illusions we'll do anything more than damage or hurt them."

The former IDF chief said the initial successes of the air campaign, which exceeded expectations, should be used to push through a nuclear deal with Iran, stop the war in Gaza, and go for peace in the wider region, including Saudi Arabia, which would take time and won't be easy but still needs to be done.

He said going further for Israel without US logistics support will be difficult, so it should say "we have done all we could do, now it is up to you." At a time when Israeli intelligence's targeting of the Iranian military's key leaders is being seen as a manifestation of internal divisions, Ehud Barak also addressed the issue of regime change.

Saying it did not appear possible without US ground troops on Iranian soil, he listed wars from Korea to Vietnam to Afghanistan that the US entered but was unable to win: "How did those wars go?" he asked, while doubting that President Trump, or any other US leader or the American public for that matter, would have the appetite to commit US boots to the ground.

It is true that in 2018, Trump unilaterally scuppered an Obama-led deal that stopped Iran's nuclear weapons march in exchange for sanctions relief. But the scrapping pushed Tehran back to restarting its enrichment levels closer to weapons grade. So, in a sense, this war hasn't been about Iran's nuclear arms quest but more about getting it to bow to Israeli-US will.

Therefore, it is important to see who is eventually likely to get the upper hand in this conflict. With the US and entire Western production, stores and supplies of modern weaponry at its disposal, it would be safe to assume Israel can outlast Iran in a war of attrition. For all practical purposes, Iran has no air force, and its air defence system appears inadequate.

How long can its arsenal of reportedly 2,000 ballistic missiles last? What happens beyond that? These are some of the questions that need to be answered. So far, Iran has taken massive hits and yet has been able to remain defiant and retaliate. Can it sustain this in the medium to long term, and will there be any third-party mediation to stop the war?

Or, if cornered further, will Iran lash out directly at US bases and assets in the region and even nations hosting them in order to expand the conflict as a means of stopping it? The impact of any such eventuality will not only be on millions of lives in the region but also on the global economy.

Abbas Nasir is a former editor of Dawn.

This article was originally published in the Dawn on June 15, 2025.​

 

[Saif]

Israel strike puts all eyes on Hormuz and $100 oil

Israel’s strikes on Iran on Friday have raised the prospect of global oil prices hitting $100 a barrel. If Tehran seeks to escalate the conflict by retaliating beyond Israeli borders, it could seek to choke off the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important gateway for oil shipping.

www.thedailystar.net

Israel strike puts all eyes on Hormuz and $100 oil

An aerial view shows a crude oil tanker at an oil terminal off Waidiao island in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province, China. One factor that could keep a lid on crude prices, however, is that these heightened Middle East tensions come at a time of ample global oil supply. Photo: REUTERS/FILE

Israel's strikes on Iran on Friday have raised the prospect of global oil prices hitting $100 a barrel. If Tehran seeks to escalate the conflict by retaliating beyond Israeli borders, it could seek to choke off the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important gateway for oil shipping.

Israel launched a wave of strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders, prompting Iran to launch drones against Israel. It is likely the two archenemies will continue to exchange blows in the coming days.

Oil prices soared by more than 8 percent to $75 a barrel on Friday on the news.

The United States has sought to distance itself from the Israeli strikes while President Donald Trump urged Iran to return to their bilateral nuclear talks.

While Tehran may strike Israel with additional drones or ballistic missiles, it could also opt to target the Middle East military facilities or strategic infrastructure of the United States and its allies such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. This could include oil and gas fields and ports.

Of course, the most sensitive point Tehran could target is the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane between Iran and Oman. About a fifth of the world's total oil consumption passes through the strait, or roughly 20 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil, condensate and fuel.

If that scenario played out, it would likely push oil prices sharply higher, very possibly into triple-digit territory, as Opec members Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq export most of their crude via the strait, mainly to Asia.

To be sure, an Iranian strike in the Gulf risks drawing a response from the United States and its regional allies, dramatically escalating the conflict and stretching Iran's military capabilities. But Iran has been heavily weakened over the past year, particularly following Israel's successful campaign against Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militants in Lebanon.

With its back to the wall, Tehran could see an attack now as a deterrent.

The US military and its regional allies will obviously seek to protect the Strait of Hormuz against an Iranian attack. But Iran could use small speed boats to block or seize tankers and other vessels going through the narrow shipping lane. Iran's Revolutionary Guards have seized several western tankers in that area in recent years, including a British-flagged oil tanker in July 2024.

However, any Iranian efforts to block the strait, or even delay transport through it, could spook energy markets and lead to disruptions in global oil and gas supply.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE have sought in the past to find ways to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, including by building more oil pipelines.

Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, sends some of its crude through the Red Sea pipeline that runs from the Abqaiq oilfield in the east into the Red Sea port city of Yanbu in the west.

The Saudi Aramco-operated pipeline has a capacity of 5 million bpd and was able to temporarily expand its capacity by another 2 million bpd in 2019.

It is used mostly to supply Aramco's west coast refineries. Saudi Arabia also exported 1.5 million bpd of oil from its west coast ports in 2024, including 839,000 bpd of crude, according to data from analytics firm Kpler.

The UAE, which produced 3.3 million bpd of crude oil in April, has a 1.5 million bpd pipeline linking its onshore oilfields to the Fujairah oil terminal that is east of the Strait of Hormuz.

But even the western route could be exposed to attacks from the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, who have severely disrupted shipping through the Suez Canal in recent years.

Diverting oil away from the Strait of Hormuz would be more difficult for Iraq and Kuwait, which only have coastlines on the Gulf.

One factor that could keep a lid on crude prices, however, is that these heightened Middle East tensions come at a time of ample global oil supply.

Rising production in the United States, Brazil, Canada, Argentina and other non-Opec countries has reduced the global market share of the Middle East in recent years. This could help mitigate if not fully offset any supply disruption.

Additionally, any serious disruption to oil supplies in the Middle East would also likely prompt the International Energy Agency to trigger the release of strategic reserves.

Investors have often shrugged off Middle East tensions in recent years, believing that the potential for a truly regional clash is limited. They may do so again, particularly if this strike pushes Iran back to the negotiating table with the US over Tehran's nuclear program.

But crude prices are apt to be volatile in the coming days as traders seek to get a handle on where this conflict is heading.​