9 hours ago
Trump demands Iran’s ‘unconditional surrender’ and says US won’t kill supreme leader ‘for now’
Donald Trump has posted on social media that the United States knows the location of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He added that the US would not kill Khamenei but called for Iran’s “unconditional surrender”.
“We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there - We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social.
He followed up with a second post a few minutes later, writing: “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!”
In a post published about thirty minutes earlier, Trump said, “We now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran.”
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In the last 30 minutes the IDF has also said that for the 2nd time in less than an hour, “families across Israel are running for shelter as sirens sound due to a missile launch from Iran.”
Israel’s defense forces (IDF) has issued a warning, via a social media post on X, urging residents in Tehran to evacuate before planned military strikes.
Urgent warning to employees and all individuals located in Area 18 of Tehran, as indicated on the attached map. In the coming hours, the Israeli army will take action in this area, as it has done in recent days in the Tehran region, to strike the military infrastructure of the Iranian regime. Dear citizens, for your safety and well-being, we urgently request that you immediately evacuate the designated area in Tehran’s Area 18. Your presence in this area puts your life at risk.”
Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, has posted a message on X about the ongoing conflict with Israel, a message that comes after US president Trump said he had no intention of killing the Iranian leader “for now”.
Citing a verse from the Qur’an, Ali Khamenei wrote:
Help from Allah and an imminent conquest” (Holy Quran: 61:13).
The Islamic Republic will triumph over the Zionist regime by the will of God.”
Today So Far
As the world awaits Donald Trump’s decision on whether the United States will enter the Israel-Iran conflict by lending military support to Israel or push for negotiations between the two countries, here are the headlines we’ve been following today so far.
Donald Trump posted on social media that the United States knows the location of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He added that the US would not kill Khamenei “for now” but called for Iran’s “unconditional surrender”. In an apparent response to the president’s post, senator Bernie Sanders said the president “must not take illegal military action against Iran”. Yesterday, Democratic senator Tim Kaine introduced a war powers resolution that would prohibit US armed forces from taking direct action against Iran without explicit authorization from Congress or a declaration of war. Israeli defence minister Israel Katz said that Iran’s supreme leader could face the same fate as Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, who was toppled in a US-led invasion and was eventually hanged after a trial.
Following a Situation Room briefing with members of his national security team, Trump is evaluating whether to lend his support to Israel by targeting Iranian nuclear facilities. Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility is located beneath a mountain that will be difficult for Israeli forces to penetrate without the assistance of the United States, which is the only country that possesses bombs that can break through the underground bunker.
In a lengthy post on social media, JD Vance responded to concerns from longtime members of Donald Trump’s far-right Make America Great Again coalition about US involvement in foreign wars. Later, he met with Republican senators at a private lunch where North Dakota senator Kevin Cramer said the message was: Trump “remains committed to Iran not having a nuclear capability,” and “would rather negotiate than drop bombs”.
The State Department has established a task force to assist US citizens and permanent residents trying to leave the Middle East as hostilities continue between Israel and Iran. A task force operated by the Bureau of Consular Affairs is operating 24 hours a day, however the United States is not planning any evacuation flights.
World leaders, including Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and French president Emmanuel Macron, reacted to the unfolding conflict. In a phone call with the Emir of Qatar, Erdogan called Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu the “greatest threat to the region’s security”. Later, speaking on the sidelines of the G7, Macron cautioned that “the biggest error would be to use military strikes to change the regime because it would then be chaos”.
US intelligence assessments have found Iran was not actively pursuing a nuclear weapon and would have been up to three years away from being able to deliver one, CNN is reporting. The assessments, sourced to four people familiar with them, are in stark contrast to the narrative being pushed by Israel that Iran was fast approaching a point of no return in acquiring nuclear weapons.
Pennsylvania senator John Fetterman is a “hell yes” on the United States targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, NBC News reports.
The Democrat, who has grown increasingly close with Donald Trump since his election in 2022, told reporters “I’ve been saying, ‘Oh, hell yes,’ for I think it’s almost six weeks”. He added, “bombing and destroying their nuclear facilities, that’s about peace” and noted that he opposes the war powers resolution introduced by his Senate colleague Tim Kaine.
Following a lengthy social media post that appeared aimed at quelling the fears of conservative detractors of Donald Trump’s involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict, JD Vance met with Republican senators at a private lunch.
After the event, North Dakota senator Kevin Cramer told the Associated Press the message had been: Trump “remains committed to Iran not having a nuclear capability,” and “would rather negotiate than drop bombs”.
Senate majority leader John Thune added that Trump is acting within his authority “to do what he’s done so far” and that a war powers resolution like that proposed by Democratic senator Tim Kaine is premature.
Trump considering options including US strike on Iran, reports say
Following a Situation Room briefing with members of his national security team, Donald Trump is evaluating whether to lend his support to Israel by targeting Iranian nuclear facilities.
After the meeting, multiple current and former administration officials told NBC News that the president is considering various options, including a US strike.
“We are waiting for the decision of the president,” a senior Israeli official told CNN.
Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility is located beneath a mountain that will be difficult for Israeli forces to penetrate without the assistance of the United States, which is the only country that possesses bombs that can break through the underground bunker.
Two Israeli officials told CNN that Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu hopes Trump offers that support of his own accord, rather than pressuring him into it.
Iran has arrested a “terrorist team” tied to Israel carrying explosives in a town southwest of Tehran, Reuters reports, citing Iran’s state-run news agency.
The news comes just a few hours after Reuters also reported that Iran arrested a foreigner for filming “sensitive” areas near the Bushehr nuclear power plant, citing the Iranian news site Eghtesad Online, which claimed the foreigner was acting on behalf of Israel.
Fran Lawther
Air raid sirens were activated briefly across northern Israel on Tuesday, warning of an incoming barrage of Iranian missiles, the military said.
“A short while ago, sirens sounded in several areas across Israel following the identification of missiles launched from Iran toward the State of Israel,” the military said in the seventh such warning since midnight local time.
Israeli authorities issued a statement around 15 minutes later saying residents could leave their shelters, with no reports of strikes published by officials.
Iran says it is attacking air bases where Israeli attacks were launched
Fran Lawther
Iranian attacks are targeting Israeli air bases used to launch military strikes on Iran, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard has said in a statement.
The statement said the strikes would “continue in a successive, complex, multi-layered and gradual manner”.
In response to the Iranian government’s warning that its citizens halt use of “location-based applications” like WhatsApp and Telegram, Meta has issued a statement saying the tech conglomerate does not share data with Israel.
Iran’s state-run news agency IRIB said today that Israel uses such apps to “identify and target individuals", citing “recent targeted assassinations” that indicate that Israel “uses mobile phone tracking to target people in Iran”. The news agency added that “people should refrain from taking their mobile phone to sensitive places” and “avoid using insecure software”.
For its part, Meta said it is “concerned these false reports will be an excuse for our services to be blocked at a time when people need them the most” and that it does “not provide bulk information to any government”.
Houthis reiterate support to Iran against Israel
Joanna Walters
A member of Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement said on Al Jazeera Mubasher TV moments ago that the group will intervene to support Iran against Israel, similarly to the way it did in support of Palestinians in Gaza.
Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a member of the Houthi movement’s political bureau, also reiterated to Al Jazeera Mubasher TV, a 24-hour news and events channel based in Doha, that the group is coordinating with Tehran, Iran’s capital, during its ongoing military escalation with Israel, Reuters reports.
The Houthis, which have been launching attacks against Israel in support of Palestinians in Gaza, said on Sunday that they targeted Israel in coordination with Iran, the first time an Iran-aligned group has publicly announced joint cooperation on attacks with Tehran in this current conflict.
Oil prices are at their highest since January as markets respond to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran. US oil futures closed at $74.84 per barrel today, up 4.28% from yesterday.
The crisis had already triggered the largest single-day oil price surge in the last three years.
Here are my colleagues Jillian Ambrose and Lisa O’Carroll with more:
Macron says military action to change Iran regime could be 'chaos'
French president Emmanuel Macron called for a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, saying “military strikes” could be “chaos”, Reuters reports.
Speaking on the sidelines of the G7 gathering in Canada, Macron said “we don’t want Iran to get a nuclear weapon” but cautioned that “the biggest error would be to use military strikes to change the regime because it would then be chaos”.
Turkish president calls Netanyahu 'greatest threat' to regional security
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu the “greatest threat to the region’s security” during a phone call with the Emir of Qatar, according to a social media post from the Turkish Presidency.
Erdogan, who has been deeply critical of Netanyahu since the war in Gaza began, also told the Qatari leader that the Israel-Iran conflict “cannot overshadow the humanitarian crisis and genocide in Gaza”.
The Israeli Defence Force struck “deep” within in Iran and killed one of the nation’s lead security figures, according to an IDF spokesperson.
During a press conference this afternoon, spokesperson Effie Defrin said "Israel killed Iran’s wartime chief of general staff Ali Shadmani, who ascended to the position after Israel killed his predecessor last week.
Defrin added, “We have struck deep, hitting Iran’s nuclear, ballistic and command capabilities”.
The State Department has established a task force to assist US citizens and permanent residents trying to leave the Middle East as hostilities continue between Israel and Iran.
A task force operated by the Bureau of Consular Affairs is operating 24 hours a day, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said at a press briefing.
“We continue to monitor the complex and rapidly evolving situation on the ground as we continue to assess and address the needs of US citizens,” she said. The spokesperson declined to share how many Americans had contacted the task force to date, and added that the US was not planning any evacuation flights.
Earlier today, the US embassy in Jerusalem said it is not in a position to “evacuate or directly assist” Americans in departing Israel and that it will be closed on Tuesday.
