Israel strikes Iran, killing military and nuclear chiefs

What happened

Israel attacked Tehran and Iranian nuclear facilities and missile sites early Friday morning, killing the country's three top military leaders and at least two leading nuclear scientists. Israeli officials said the attack, involving 200 warplanes that hit more than 100 targets, was a "preemptive" strike on Iran's nuclear program. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Israel "took unilateral action" and the U.S. was "not involved in strikes against Iran."

Who said what

Iranian state media confirmed the deaths of Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, the chief of staff of Iran's armed forces; Gen. Hossein Salami, top commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps; and deputy armed forces commander Gen. Gholamali Rashid. Israel's strike dealt a "major blow to Iran's chain of command," The New York Times said, and escalated fears that the "long-simmering tensions between the heavily armed rivals could explode into a full-blown regional war."

A spokesperson for Iran's armed forces said both Israel and the U.S. "must pay a very heavy price" and would "receive a very forceful slap." But the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, did not mention the U.S. in a later statement, saying only that Israel "should anticipate a harsh punishment" for opening its "wicked and blood-stained hand to commit a crime against our beloved country."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

"Should Iran retaliate," The Washington Post said, "it was not immediately clear whether the U.S. would assist Israel's defense, including shooting down Iranian drones and missiles as it did twice last year." A U.S. official said that decision was "up to the president." Iran subsequently fired about 100 drones in retaliation, which Israel said it was starting to intercept.

What next?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video statement that "this operation will continue for as many days as it takes" to "roll back the Iranian threat to Israel's very survival." U.S. intelligence does not share Israel's view that Iran is close to building a nuclear weapon, and President Donald Trump said Thursday he had told Netanyahu "I don't want them going in" while his administration was negotiating a nuclear deal with Tehran. Iran said Friday morning it will not participate in U.S. talks scheduled for Sunday.