Israel's Operation To Destroy Iran's Nuclear Program Enters New Phase
Since the start of Operation Rising Lion last night, Israel has struck more than 100 major targets in Iran, including nuclear facilities and missile sites, and killed senior military commanders and scientists in what Tehran said was a 'declaration of war.'
The IDF releases footage showing Israeli Air Force fighter jets heading out for the strikes in Iran this morning, as well as landing following the attacks. pic.twitter.com/1xbif5i8gK
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) June 13, 2025
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have provided additional information about one of the key nuclear targets that they went after overnight.
This is the uranium enrichment site in the Natanz area, a particularly tough target that is understood to be buried more than 130 feet below ground and which is protected by a steel and concrete shell. It was targeted by Israeli Air Force (IAF) fighters.
According to the IDF:
'This is the largest uranium enrichment site in Iran, which has operated for years to achieve nuclear weapons capability and houses the infrastructure required for enriching uranium to military-grade levels. As part of the strikes, the underground area of the site was damaged. This area contains a multi-story enrichment hall with centrifuges, electrical rooms, and additional supporting infrastructure. In addition, critical infrastructure enabling the site's continuous operation and the Iranian regime's ongoing efforts to obtain nuclear weapons were targeted. We will continue to operate to prevent the Iranian Regime from acquiring nuclear weapons.'
IAF fighter jets, guided by precise intelligence, struck the Iranian regime's uranium enrichment site in the Natanz area overnight. This is the largest uranium enrichment site in Iran, which has operated for years to achieve nuclear weapons capability and houses the… pic.twitter.com/JVLIZFHwLm
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 13, 2025
Timelapse of the past year at the underground facility near Natanz which may be the third enrichment facility the Iranians announced earlier today.Growing spoil piles suggest continued excavation and lots of work on the perimeter.Thanks to our friends @planet pic.twitter.com/8q1JYc9zlp
— Sam Lair (@sam_lair) June 12, 2025
It's going to be a two pot of coffee kind of day… One of the latest @umbraspace collects from last night's strikes on Iran. pic.twitter.com/b4xKG4CH3v
— Chris Biggers (@CSBiggers) June 13, 2025
A video released by the IDF shows the destruction of an Iranian surface-to-surface ballistic missile that was apparently disguised as a commercial truck:
חיל-האוויר השמיד טילים בליסטיים שכוונו למדינת ישראל.תיעוד מתקיפת טילי קרקע-קרקע באיראן: pic.twitter.com/sFSApTaWw2
— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) June 13, 2025
A video that shows the aftermath of Israeli strikes on Tabriz, reportedly targeting an Iranian ballistic missile facility. The extent of the secondary explosions could well indicate the presence of solid fuel associated with ballistic missile storage and/or production:
Footage of multiple major secondary fires and explosions in Tabriz, Iran, after a series of Israeli strikes this afternoon.Israeli aircraft reportedly struck an Iranian ballistic missile facility. pic.twitter.com/axQStacKzR
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) June 13, 2025
Also reportedly taken in Tabriz, the following video claims to show an Israeli Heron drone operating over the city:
An Israeli drone was reported hovering over the northwestern Iranian city of Tabriz.
: Submitted pic.twitter.com/SpE366xRrR
— Rudaw English (@RudawEnglish) June 13, 2025
More details are now coming to light about some of the individuals who were targeted.
The IDF says that they eliminated multiple senior officers within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force. Reportedly, IAF fighters struck an underground IRGC Air Force HQ overnight, killing the commander of the service, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, together with senior officers, among them drone chief Taher Pour and air defense head Daoud Shaykhian.
The commander of the IRGC Air Force, Brig. Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Iran overnight, the IDF announces.According to the military, the top brass of the IRGC Air Force was killed alongside him as they met in an underground command center to… pic.twitter.com/RqjTaULNjp
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) June 13, 2025
Previously, Iranian state media had confirmed the deaths of the head of the Revolutionary Guards, Gen. Hossein Salami, the Army Chief of Staff, Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, the commander of the Khatam al-Anbia Joint Forces Headquarters, Maj. Gen. Gholamali Rashid, and six nuclear scientists, including Fereydoun Abbasi, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization from 2011 to 2013.
KashirinThis is how Israel works. A missile strike was launched directly into a residential building. Even the windows were intact. The strike was aimed right at the bedroom of a member of the Iranian General Staff. That is, they literally hit the man in the forehead with a… pic.twitter.com/Mxcv5E8sGM
— Ukraine Front Line (@EuromaidanPR) June 13, 2025
Meanwhile, Israel appears to be making good on Prime Minister Benjamin's assertion that the process of 'rolling back the Iranian threat to Israel's very survival' will take 'many days.'
The IAF says that operations against Iran are continuing, including flexing to more defensive operations, to bring down drones launched by Iran against Israel in response to Operation Rising Lion.
The IAF has released footage showing F-16 fighters taking off to shoot down the drones, at least 100 of which have reportedly been launched at Israel. Although the IDF has said it has 'control over the situation,' not all of the drones have been shot down.
Iranian attack drones, including Shahed variants, have been launched towards Israel, starting Iran's retaliatory strikes. Seen here, an Iranian Shahed-136 flies low over eastern Iraq, heading westward. pic.twitter.com/qEADnoWWly
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) June 13, 2025
A tweet from the IAF shows a pair of F-16s about to launch to intercept Iranian drones:
חיל-האוויר ממשיך לפעול ליירוט כלי טיס בלתי-מאוישים ששוגרו מאיראן לעבר מדינת ישראל pic.twitter.com/559AVcs8Oe
— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) June 13, 2025
Footage from the ground in Iran indicates that Israel is continuing offensive operations, as well. The IDF campaign has included efforts to degrade and disable the Iranian air defense system, which will allow the IAF to operate more freely in and around Iranian airspace.
Israeli sources claim the IDF struck a site in the Hamadan province of Iran used as a command center for all of Iran's air defense systems, which may explain the minimal response from Iranian air defenses. pic.twitter.com/Hb390KaeG6
— OSINT Aggregator (@AggregateOsint) June 13, 2025
Israeli strikes continue on sites around the city of #Kermanshah.#Iran. pic.twitter.com/yIWLrsET36
— Thomas van Linge (@ThomasVLinge) June 13, 2025
At least one unverified video claims to show IAF aircraft operating with impunity 'in Iranian airspace,' including an F-16 taking on fuel from a 707 Re'em tanker, although the legitimacy of this claim cannot be confirmed.
This is beyond humiliation.IAF jets are refueling over Iranian skies.Incredible. pic.twitter.com/iAz6UDRun6
— daniel
(@LionsOfZion_ORG) June 13, 2025
The IDF has released pictures and videos showing strike aircraft armed with a mix of weapons, including Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) precision-guided bombs and Rampage missiles, which are an adaptation of a ground-launched precision-guided artillery rocket.
Notable that many of the F-15s and F-16s in #IAF footage – supposedly from last night – are carrying 2000lb GBU-31(V)1 JDAMs. Suggests Israel has established sufficient control of the air to operate directly over Tehran and Natanz without relying on standoff weapons like Rampage pic.twitter.com/Ug5cMrt4q0
— Justin Bronk (@Justin_Br0nk) June 13, 2025
RAMPAGE peeking out on the right https://t.co/ilmPov1dZa pic.twitter.com/n0tVl0pCQb
— Abd (@blocksixtynine) June 13, 2025
There are also signs that the Israeli strikes may be switching their focus to Iranian airpower, with reports from Iran of attacks on at least two Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) bases, Noje Air Base in Hamadan province and Tabriz Air Base in East Azerbaijan province. A video purported to show the aftermath of an airstrike on the latter shows a column of smoke rising above it.
Fars News Agency: Nojeh Air Base in Hamadan was bombed by Israel twice in the past hour pic.twitter.com/XrjBDeWKTJ
— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) June 13, 2025
Israeli aircraft struck the Iranian Air Force's Tabriz Airbase, with a massive plume of smoke seen rising over the area. The base is home to a mix of Iranian MiG-29s and F-5s from the 21st, 22nd, and 23rd tactical fighter squadrons. pic.twitter.com/CEEei6Wl46
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) June 13, 2025
Israeli forces hit Iran's Tabriz Airbase again this afternoon, with new pillars of smoke seen rising over the airfield.Tabriz Airbase, a key installation covering northwestern Iran, has been hammered by the Israeli Air Force today. pic.twitter.com/F0zCEh3gGc
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) June 13, 2025
Reflecting the intensity of the IAF air operations so far, there have been multiple sightings of discarded drop tanks, jettisoned by F-15s in the course of their missions, as seen in the tweets embedded below.
An external fuel tank, likely for an F-15I 'Ra'am' Strike Fighter with the Israeli Air Force, was discovered in the Daraa Governorate of Southwestern Syria. pic.twitter.com/Nv0vRDNytt
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 13, 2025
İsrail F-15'lerine ait 600 galonluk yakıt tankları Suriye'de. pic.twitter.com/1vIZPNZS0U
— Cem Doğut (@DogutCem) June 13, 2025
Foreign powers around the world are also reacting to the still-evolving situation. Today, U.S. President Donald Trump described the attack as 'excellent' and warned further strikes would be more brutal unless Tehran agreed to back down over its nuclear program. This contradicts Washington's previous official stance that Israel's action against Iran has been unilateral.
I just spoke to President Trump and asked him about the Israeli attack on Iran. Here's what he told me:"I think it's been excellent. We gave them a chance and they didn't take it. They got hit hard, very hard. They got hit about as hard as you're going to get hit. And there's…
— Jonathan Karl (@jonkarl) June 13, 2025
'There has already been great death and destruction, but there is still time to make this slaughter, with the next already planned attacks being even more brutal, come to an end,' Trump said in a social media post.
FROM PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP:'I gave Iran chance after chance to make a deal…' pic.twitter.com/lsCQHkyT2f
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 13, 2025
In another post, the U.S. president suggested Israel had attacked a day after a 60-day deadline he had given Iran to secure a deal had run out and indicated vaguely that Iran might have a 'second chance.'
This is a developing story, and we will continue to update it as more information becomes available.The following video claims to show the evacuated Ben Gurion International Airport, Israel's main international air transport hub, on the outskirts of the city of Lod. The airport was closed until further notice earlier today, due to concerns about possible retaliatory strikes from Iran. Publicly available flight data from today also indicates that airlines cleared out of the airspace over Iran, Iraq, and Jordan.
#Israel Ben Gurion int. airport evacuated from
pic.twitter.com/lDAy8LqJ7o
— C4H10FO2P
(@markito0171) June 13, 2025
While the following video cannot be verified, it's claimed to show a pair of IAF C-130J transport aircraft flying at very low level over southeast Syria, close to the border with Iraq. If that's the case, the airlifters could have been involved in transporting Israeli commandos out of Iran after the first strikes of Operation Rising Lion. Reports from Israel, citing an unnamed Israeli security source, suggest that the strikes included the use of drones and missiles launched by operatives from deep within Iran.
VIDEO: Syrian shepherd up at sunrise films two Israeli Air Force C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft flying at a very low altitude over Al-Hammad in southeast Syria, near the border with Iraq, apparently coming from the direction of Iran. pic.twitter.com/fV3CA685eg
— Avi Mayer אבי מאיר (@AviMayer) June 13, 2025
The Israeli Navy, as well as the IAF, has been active in intercepting drones inbound from Iran. The following footage, published by the IDF, is said to show the interception of a drone over the Red Sea by an Israeli Navy Sa'ar 6 class corvette. As you can read about here, the Sa'ar 6 is well equipped for such air defense missions, being armed with Barak-8 surface-to-air missiles plus a pair of Rafael C-Dome systems, which are armed with Tamir missiles.
Footage showing the interception earlier of a drone launched from Iran over the Red Sea, by a Sa'ar 6-Class Corvette with the Israeli Navy. pic.twitter.com/kpnFmCMQht
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 13, 2025
Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com
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