Politics Israel attacks missile facilities in Iran
Israel has responded to the deadly Iranian airstrikes with massive attacks on the Islamic Republic's missile facilities. According to the military, it destroyed more than 120 Iranian launching pads.
16.06.2025, 15:34
SDA
In total, a third of the ramps for surface-to-surface missiles in Iran were affected. Missile depots and missile production facilities were also hit.
Israel also claims to have gained control of the airspace over the Iranian capital - which would allow for undisturbed action. Army spokesman Effie Defrin said: "We can now say that we have achieved full air superiority in the skies over Tehran." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had described the Iranian missile program - after the nuclear program - as an existential threat to his country.
Nevertheless, the danger posed to Israel by Iran has not been averted. In new missile attacks on Israeli cities, Iran overcame the defense systems, including the Iron Dome. According to medics, 8 people were killed and 92 injured on Monday night. There were four strikes in the greater Tel Aviv area.
The EU states of Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, among others, announced their intention to bring their citizens out of Israel to safety.
Israel threatens civilians in Tehran
Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened the inhabitants of Tehran - i.e. civilians - with retaliation following the attacks. "The loud-mouthed dictator from Tehran has become a cowardly murderer who is deliberately shooting at the Israeli civilian population in order to deter the Israeli army from continuing the offensive that is collapsing its capabilities," Katz wrote on X. "The people of Tehran will pay the price - and soon."
A few hours later, Katz qualified his statements with another statement: "I want to make the obvious clear: There is no intention whatsoever to inflict physical harm on the people of Tehran - as the murderous dictator does in his dealings with the Israeli people."
According to the government, the total number of people killed in attacks in Israel since Friday is 24. Almost 600 people have been injured since then. According to official figures, at least 224 people have been killed in Iran since the start of the major Israeli offensive. Almost 1,300 people have been injured, a representative of the Iranian health ministry said on X.
Nuclear watchdog Grossi urges diplomatic solution
On Friday night, Israel launched massive attacks on targets in the Islamic Republic - including nuclear facilities, defense positions, targets in cities and oil and natural gas fields. Leading military personnel and nuclear scientists were also targeted and killed. According to Israel, the attacks are intended to prevent Iran from building a nuclear bomb. The leadership in Tehran, on the other hand, emphasizes that the nuclear programme only serves civilian purposes.
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, warned that the military escalation was delaying "the essential work on a diplomatic solution to ensure that Iran does not acquire nuclear weapons in the long term".
Israel hits command centers of important military unit
According to the Israeli air force, it also attacked the command centers of the Al-Quds Brigades of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards in Tehran. Terrorist attacks against the state of Israel were planned there with the help of the Iranian leadership's proxies in the Middle East. The Al-Quds Brigades are the foreign unit of Iran's elite armed forces, whose official task is to carry out covert operations abroad.
The ongoing attacks on Iran have caused people to flee Tehran. Eyewitnesses reported clogged highways in the metropolis with more than 15 million inhabitants. Queues formed at petrol stations, sometimes stretching for miles, and petrol was in short supply.
Banks, bazaars, pharmacies and supermarkets remained closed. Many security forces were on the move in central squares. The streets were sometimes eerily quiet.
Putin as a mediator? Conceivable for Trump
Meanwhile, US President Trump has shown himself open to the idea of Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin acting as a mediator in the war. "I would be open to it," Trump told the ABC television station. Putin had called him about it. According to the Kremlin, Russia's president, who ordered the invasion of Ukraine three and a half years ago, offered himself as a mediator in the conflict between Israel and Iran in a phone call with Trump on Saturday. Russia maintains close relations with Iran. Among other things, the country obtained masses of drones from there for its war of aggression against Ukraine.
Federal Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU) does not expect the USA to intervene in the war between Israel and Iran. In an interview with Deutschlandfunk radio, he pointed out that Washington had already ruled this out in the first statement by Foreign Minister Marco Rubio. "That is very clear in all statements, also in all actions. I have not the slightest indication that the US would have any interest in getting involved."
The US maintains a number of military bases with tens of thousands of soldiers in the region. According to unconfirmed media reports, the US is already supporting Israel in defending against Iranian missiles.
