Israel-Iran conflict LIVE updates: Trump says US knows where ‘easy target' Khamenei is hiding; Chaos in Tehran as US president says ‘everyone should evacuate'; Israel ‘in control' of Iranian airspace
In brief: The latest on the situation in the Middle East
Thank you for joining our ongoing coverage of the rapidly developing conflict between Israel and Iran.
Here's a quick overview of the latest developments:
Iran and Israel have ramped up their missile attacks as the world waits to see what action US President Donald Trump will take after leaving the G7 summit early.
Trump signed a statement from G7 leaders calling for a de-escalation in hostilities. The statement condemned Iran as the 'principal source of regional instability and terror' and reiterated G7 support for Israel's right to defend itself.
Israel's military announced it had killed Ali Shadmani – the man Israel claimed was Iran's wartime chief of staff and the country's most senior military commander.
Meanwhile, in Gaza, more than 50 people were reportedly killed by Israeli tank shellfire after they tried to get aid from trucks in Khan Younis.
You can catch up with everything we know about the Israel and Iran conflict on our regularly updated 'what we know so far' page.
For latest from overnight, see here.
4.05am
Israel 'in control' of Iranian airspace
Israel says it now has control of Iranian airspace and intends to escalate its aerial campaign in the coming days.
The air advantage leaves few obstacles in the way of its expanding bombardment, though it will struggle to deal a knock-out blow to deeply buried nuclear sites without the US joining the attack, experts say.
Iran has so far fired nearly 400 ballistic missiles and hundreds of drones towards Israel, with about 35 missiles penetrating Israel's defensive shield, Israeli officials say.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards said it had hit Israel's Military Intelligence Directorate and spy agency Mossad's operational centre early, but there was no Israeli confirmation of such attacks.
4.05am
Iran under attack: Tehran evacuations amid ongoing air raids
Residents of Iran's capital were seen leaving the city and shops and the historic Grand Bazaar were closed yesterday – the fifth day of the intensifying aerial tit-for-tat started by Israel.
US President Donald Trump urged the immediate evacuation of Tehran in an ominous social media post, but Iranian authorities insisted everything was under control and no formal evacuation guidance has been issued.
Even so, witnesses in Tehran say sirens blare every few hours and people rush for shelter amid ongoing Israeli attacks. On the roads out of Tehran to the west, traffic stood bumper to bumper and long lines also could be seen at gas stations.
Trump left the G7 summit in Canada a day early in order, he said, to deal with the conflict between Israel and Iran.
'I'm not looking at a ceasefire,' he told reporters on Air Force One during the flight back to Washington. 'We're looking at better than a ceasefire.'
4.02am
Trump says Khamenei is an easy target but safe – for now
In eight short hours yesterday, US President Donald Trump went from suggesting a nuclear deal with Iran was 'achievable' to urging Tehran's 9.5 million residents to flee for their lives. He then abandoned the G7 summit to return to Washington for talks with his national security team.
As if that wasn't enough of an action-packed day, Trump then hit social media, telling his Truth Social audience that the US knew where Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was hiding.
'We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding,' Trump wrote. '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!'
He followed up the initial post with 'UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER' (complete with caps lock).
Reports earlier in the week suggested that Trump had vetoed an Israeli plan to assassinate Khamenei.
Earlier – and before Trump's posts – Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz predicted the Iranian leader could face the same fate as Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, who was toppled in a US-led invasion in 2003 and eventually hanged after a trial. 'I warn the Iranian dictator against continuing to commit war crimes and fire missiles at Israeli citizens,' Katz told top Israeli military officials.
4.01am
In brief: The latest on the situation in the Middle East
Thank you for joining our ongoing coverage of the rapidly developing conflict between Israel and Iran.
Here's a quick overview of the latest developments:
Iran and Israel have ramped up their missile attacks as the world waits to see what action US President Donald Trump will take after leaving the G7 summit early.
Trump signed a statement from G7 leaders calling for a de-escalation in hostilities. The statement condemned Iran as the 'principal source of regional instability and terror' and reiterated G7 support for Israel's right to defend itself.
Israel's military announced it had killed Ali Shadmani – the man Israel claimed was Iran's wartime chief of staff and the country's most senior military commander.
Meanwhile, in Gaza, more than 50 people were reportedly killed by Israeli tank shellfire after they tried to get aid from trucks in Khan Younis.
You can catch up with everything we know about the Israel and Iran conflict on our regularly updated 'what we know so far' page.
For latest from overnight, see here.
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Two Israeli soldiers arrested at Belgium festival over Gaza war complaint
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ABC News
2 hours ago
- ABC News
Trump vs Rupert Murdoch over an Epstein article
Sam Hawley: On the one side, there's a media tycoon. On the other, the President of the United States. It has all the makings of a fascinating courtroom drama. Donald Trump is suing Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal over an article alleging the US President sent a lewd birthday message to Jeffrey Epstein in 2003. Today, media expert Rod Tiffin on the complex relationship between Trump and Murdoch and how the legal proceedings are likely to play out. I'm Sam Hawley on Gadigal land in Sydney. This is ABC News Daily. Sam Hawley: Rod, we're going to have a look at the relationship between two of the most powerful men in the world, that is Donald Trump and Rupert Murdoch, which has dramatically re-entered the spotlight in the last few days. This revolves around a Wall Street Journal article, which is owned, of course, that newspaper by Rupert Murdoch. Just tell me what this article alleged when it appeared in the paper last Friday. Rod Tifffen: Well, it alleges that Donald Trump years ago sent a birthday greeting to Jeffrey Epstein with a sketch of a girl on it. News report: Donald Trump launching yet another lawsuit against the press, this time targeting media mogul Rupert Murdoch and his News Corp empire over an article in The Wall Street Journal. News report: He denies writing the letter, which the journal said included a sexually suggestive drawing and ended with the line, Happy birthday and may every day be another wonderful secret. News report: The president dismissed the letter as fake, saying 'These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don't draw pictures.' News report: The paper says it happened in 2003, which is before Epstein was convicted. It's all adding to the pressure Donald Trump is under over his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. Sam Hawley: Now, as soon as this was published, Donald Trump threatened to sue. He said in a post on his social media platform Truth Social he was looking forward to getting Rupert Murdoch to testify in his lawsuit against him. And in Donald Trump's words, the pile of garbage newspaper. So Donald Trump was furious. Rod Tifffen: Murdoch has three main media outlets in the States. He has Fox News, which is unfailingly loyal to Trump. He has the New York Post, which swings around a bit. And he has the Wall Street Journal, where the market incentives are very different. The Wall Street Journal has to keep its credibility with a high flying business audience. Otherwise, they'll go to the New York Times or Washington Post or somewhere. So the Wall Street Journal's coverage of Trump is typically more independent and more probing than, say, Fox News is. So I would imagine that Rupert didn't know this was going to appear before it appeared because he's sort of, you know, at 94 years old, he's more hands off these days and he doesn't actually have the role of chief executive anymore. But I think that the key thing is the Wall Street Journal has to keep up its credibility with its audience. Sam Hawley: But just to put that in context, once upon a time, of course, Rupert Murdoch had great control over what was in these newspapers. He certainly would have been told beforehand if an article like this was to appear. Rod Tifffen: Yes, that's true. Certainly, let's say during Trump's first term, if this appeared, Murdoch would have known in advance. But I'm not at all sure that he knew this in advance. Sam Hawley: All right. Well, he's now involved in an almighty fight with the US president who has indeed sued in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida. So he's going all out Donald Trump here. Rod Tifffen: Yes. I think the thing is, he's had a record of success since he was reelected, Donald Trump. He's got a settlement from ABC and, you know, CBS paid out a huge settlement for a case that had no substance at all. News report: Paramount has agreed to pay Donald Trump more than 24 million dollars after settling a lawsuit over a televised interview with Kamala Harris. In the lawsuit, Mr Trump alleged the media group deceptively edited an interview with the former Democratic presidential candidate on its 60 Minutes program on CBS. Rod Tifffen: And basically that was seen as its parent company, Paramount, wanting to do favours for Donald Trump. The Washington Post is owned by Jeff Bezos, is leaning over backwards to be nice to him. I think the difference, though, is like Bezos is very keen to get government contracts for his space program. And CBS and ABC have other business interests which depend a lot on the favour and patronage of the president. And this president is all about favour and patronage. But Murdoch doesn't have that. So I'd be certainly very surprised if Murdoch settled any time soon. It would be a huge step down in credibility. It would be a huge blow to his ego because he doesn't like giving in, surrendering on these sorts of things. And he doesn't have any ulterior motives and interests like the other major media corporations do. Sam Hawley: All right, well, Trump is suing News Corp. He's suing Mr. Murdoch. He's suing News Corp's founder, Robert Thompson. News Corp's chief executive. He's suing Dow Jones, the publisher, and he's suing the two journalists involved. So there's a lot of people involved in this lawsuit. That's for sure. Rod Tifffen: All over a birthday card. Yeah. Sam Hawley: Oh, yeah. It's a rather damaging birthday card if the allegations are, in fact, true. And we are not insinuating that they are. But Trump is also after huge damages, not less than $10 billion, he says he wants. Rod Tifffen: Yes, I mean, it's serious, but it's very funny at the same time. The one thing that would make News Corp, make Murdoch settle is if Murdoch was forced to testify in court, because I think he's not really up to doing that anymore. And I think that would be the one threat that would make Murdoch settle. Sam Hawley: Hmm. All right. Well, let's come to the history of this relationship in just a moment. As you mentioned, you don't think Rupert Murdoch will settle. The newspaper is absolutely sticking by its reporting. It's not removed the article. It's still up there for everybody to see. So it's backing in its own journalism at this point, isn't it? Rod Tifffen: It is. And one imagines they went through a pretty strenuous process before they published. I mean, this isn't a fly by night newspaper. It's one of the leading newspapers in America. And it wouldn't publish something like this without doing due diligence beforehand. Sam Hawley: All right, let's get into the history of this relationship, because it has been rather volatile, hasn't it? It's been interesting to watch Rupert Murdoch and his almost reluctance to back Donald Trump, but then sort of falling into line. Just tell me what it was like in the beginning, I guess, back in 2016 during Trump's first pitch for the White House. Rod Tifffen: Well, the beginnings go back even further than that. Rupert Murdoch took over the New York Post in 1976, and Trump was an absolute publicity whore. He was always wanting to get into the paper. And they have a page six column, which is all gossip about politicians and celebrities and so on. And he often featured in that and was often a source for it. And he more or less divorced his wife in the pages of the New York Post. And they were willing to play the game because Trump, they thought Trump was good copy. But Murdoch saw him as just a lightweight, a crooked property developer. So Murdoch was happy to give him publicity, but never had any high opinion of him, either morally or intellectually. Sam Hawley: Hmm. All right. But by 2016, he'd sort of come around, had he? He supported Trump. Rod Tifffen: Well, 2016, Fox News is locked into being on the Republican side of politics. And initially, Murdoch didn't think Trump would be a good candidate. But once Trump won the nomination for the Republicans, Fox News in particular, just and all of the Murdoch empire actually just fell in behind Trump. After the election, Fox News was a faithful outlet for Trump all through the next four years. But then we get to the 2020 election and Trump loses to Biden. And then we've got Trump refusing to accept the result. Got the terrible attack on the Capitol building on January the 6th, 2021. And Murdoch is absolutely appalled. He sees this as an attack on American democracy, American institutions. And he really can't stand the way Trump was behaving. At the same time, though, Fox News had created this audience that believed everything that Trump said. And after the election, Fox's ratings were falling. And in a panic meeting, Murdoch and others said, well, we've got to start going along more with Trump. And then they locked themselves into this false narrative that there was something fishy about the 2020 election. Now, Murdoch was reluctant to go along with this. And in fact, there's evidence of him saying he wants to make Trump history and all this sort of thing. But in the end, the commercial incentives are such that he he toes the line. So you get to 2024 and Fox News is locked in behind Trump. And then, of course, Trump wins. And now the power relationship is all around the other way. Here's Murdoch wanting to be part of the action again. And Trump saying, maybe, maybe not. Sam Hawley: All right, well, Rod, this relationship between Donald Trump and Rupert Murdoch is clearly volatile, but it really is at a new low right now. How ugly do you think this could get? Rod Tifffen: Well, Trump's not known for his subtlety. You know, we've already seen, you know, I'm going to sue his ass and all this sort of talk. I think that it could get very all depends a bit on how the Murdochs respond. And my guess is they will want to take the heat out of it a bit. But I think the Epstein stuff is, it's hard to know because, I mean, Trump has survived so many scandals it would have sunk any other politician. But it seems to me the Epstein stuff and the different excuses they've given for not releasing information and whatever, this seems to be dividing Trump's MAGA base, you know. And it could be that both sides think it's in their interest to keep, you know, for all this to go away. But Trump's drawn a lot more attention to the article than it would have got, you know, by all this. So if I was a spin doctor, I'd say this wasn't a very rational strategy. But maybe that's why I'm not a spin doctor. But, you know, I would think that it could get very ugly. And certainly I can't see the Wall Street Journal rolling over and saying, yes, we got it wrong. Sam Hawley: And who do you think will be the victor then, Murdoch or Trump? We know, don't we, that when things proceed to court, all sorts of information might come to light. Rod Tifffen: Yes. And I think Rupert Murdoch wouldn't want to be having to testify in court. But equally, Trump wouldn't want to have to testify in court where he's cross-examined on his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. That would be just a nightmare for him. They've got various things in America where president can't be sued during their term of office and that sort of thing. So it could all just be put off until after the next election. Who knows? Maybe it will just peter out. But it doesn't show any sign of that yet. Sam Hawley: Rod Tiffen is an emeritus professor in government and international relations at the University of Sydney. This episode was produced by Sydney Pead and Sam Dunn. Audio production by Cinnamon Nippard. Our supervising producer is David Coady. I'm Sam Hawley. Thanks for listening.
Perth Now
3 hours ago
- Perth Now
UK, Australia and other countries urge end to Gaza war
The United Kingdom and 24 other countries have called for an immediate end to the war in the Gaza Strip and criticised the Israeli government's aid delivery model after hundreds of Palestinians were killed near sites distributing food. France, Italy, Japan, Australia, Canada, Denmark, New Zealand and other countries said more than 800 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid and condemned what it called the "drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians". The majority of those killed were in the vicinity of Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) sites, which the United States and Israel backed to take over aid distribution in the Gaza Strip from a network led by the United Nations. "The Israeli government's aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and deprives Gazans of human dignity," the countries' foreign ministers said in a joint statement. The call for an end to the war and the way Israel delivers aid comes from several countries which are allied with Israel and its most important backer, the United States. The GHF uses private U.S. security and logistics companies to get supplies into the Gaza Strip, largely bypassing a UN-led system that Israel alleges has let Hamas-led militants loot aid shipments intended for civilians. Hamas denies the accusation. The UN has called the GHF's model unsafe and a breach of humanitarian impartiality standards, which the GHF denies. The statement comes as Israeli tanks pushed into southern and eastern districts of the Gazan city of Deir al-Balah for the first time on Monday, an area where Israeli sources said the military believes hostages may be held. The area is packed with Palestinians displaced during more than 21 months of war, hundreds of whom fled west or south after Israel issued an evacuation order, saying it sought to destroy infrastructure and capabilities of the militant group Hamas. Tank shelling in the area hit houses and mosques, killing at least three Palestinians and wounding several others, local medics said. To the south in Khan Younis, an Israeli air strike killed at least five people, including a husband and wife and their two children in a tent, medics said. In its daily update, Gaza's health ministry said at least 130 Palestinians had been killed and more than 1000 wounded by Israeli gunfire and military strikes across the territory in the past 24 hours, one of the highest such totals in recent weeks. There was no immediate Israeli comment on the Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis incidents. Israeli sources have said the reason the army had stayed out of the Deir al-Balah districts was because they suspected Hamas might be holding hostages there. At least 20 of the remaining 50 hostages in captivity in the Gaza Strip are believed to be still alive. Families of the hostages have expressed concern for their relatives and demanded an explanation from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defence Minister Israel Katz and the army chief of how they will protect them. "The people of Israel will not forgive anyone who knowingly endangered the hostages - both the living and the deceased. No one will be able to claim they didn't know what was at stake," the Hostage Families Forum Headquarters said in a statement. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1200 people and taking 251 hostages back to the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli tallies. The Israeli military campaign against Hamas has since killed more than 59,000 people, according to health officials, displaced almost the entire population of the enclave and caused a humanitarian crisis.
