Trump says 48 leaders killed in strikes on Iran and operation is ‘moving along rapidly’
Donald Trump told Fox News on Sunday that 48 leaders have been killed in US and Israeli strikes on Iran.
“It’s moving along. It’s moving along rapidly. This has been this way for 47 years,” he is quoted as saying in an interview with Fox News. “It’s moving along rapidly. Nobody can believe the success we’re having, 48 leaders are gone in one shot. And it’s moving along rapidly.”
Trump also told CNBC’s Joe Kernen that US military operations in Iran are “ahead of schedule.”
Key events
-
Just 27% of Americans approve of Iran strikes, poll finds
-
Trump spoke with leaders of Israel, Bahrain and UAE, White House says
-
UK says British fighter jet shot down Iranian drone aimed at Qatar
-
Trump: US destroyed Iran’s naval headquarters and nine ships
-
Trump: ‘They want to talk, and I have agreed’
-
Trump says 48 leaders killed in strikes on Iran and operation is ‘moving along rapidly’
-
Death toll from suspected US-Israeli bombing of Iranian school reportedly rises to almost 150
-
Iran’s former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reportedly killed in strikes
-
US claims it has sunk an Iranian ship
-
Three US service members killed ‘in action’ as part of Iran operation – Centcom
-
Selection of a supreme leader could happen ‘in a day or two’, Iranian foreign minister says
-
Deadly Iranian missile attack reported in Israel’s Beit Shemesh
-
Three dead, 58 injured in UAE since start of Iran strikes: defence ministry
-
What we know so far…
-
Analysis: ‘Trump’s unprovoked attack on Iran has no mandate – or legal basis’
-
Why is the strait of Hormuz so important and will Iran shut it in retaliation to US-Israeli attacks?
-
Khamenei’s killing marks a ‘defining moment in Iran’s history’, EU foreign policy chief says
-
All members of Iran’s temporary leadership council appointed – reports
-
Revenge is ‘legitimate right’, Iranian president says after killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
-
Emirates suspends ‘all operations to and from Dubai’ as travel chaos deepens
-
Putin says the ‘murder’ of Khamenei was a ‘cynical violation of all norms of human morality’
-
Iranian strikes landed within ‘a few hundred yards’ of British troops in Bahrain, UK defence secretary says
-
Gulf states report successfully intercepting Iranian missiles and drones
-
IDF says ‘broad wave of strikes’ launched ‘in the heart of Tehran’
-
‘Non stop sirens and alerts’ in Jerusalem as Iran retaliates for Israeli-US attacks
-
Eight people killed at a pro-Iran rally at US consulate in Pakistan
-
Summary
-
Iran’s top security adviser warns ‘secessionist groups’ against action
-
Iran announces new wave of missile and drone strikes
-
Several loud bangs heard over Dubai – reports
-
Sirens across central Israel and occupied West Bank
-
Loud explosions heard near Erbil airport
-
Iran confirms deaths of Guards chief and senior security official
-
Iran Guards vow ‘most ferocious offensive operation in history’ against US bases, Israel
-
Opening summary
In an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press, Democrat representative Ro Khanna said that Americans “are not safer today” following the strikes on Iran.
Khanna said: “They were picking the new leader before we killed the Ayatollah. The Ayatollah was 86. The question is, is the country going to descend into civil war, are billions of our dollars going to be spent there, and are American troops going to be at risk?”
He is seeking to hold a vote under the War Powers Resolution, which would require the White House to seek authorization from Congress for more military action in Iran. He said a vote would be “close” and that “it depends if we can keep several Democrats in line.”
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said strikes on Tehran “will only increase” in the coming days. He said he has “given instructions for the continuation of the campaign” against Iran during a meeting with his defense minister, chief of staff, and the head of the Mossad security service.
In a video statement shot on the roof of the Israeli military headquarters in Tel Aviv, Netanyahu added that Israeli “forces are now striking the heart of Tehran with increasing strength, and this will only increase even more in the coming days.”
William Christou
At least 22 people are dead following pro-Iran demonstrations in Pakistan in which hundreds of people marched on the US consulate in Karachi. Security forces in Iraq have also fired teargas at protesters who tried to storm the US embassy in Baghdad.
As anger boiled over after US-Israeli strikes killed Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a crowd of demonstrators in Karachi chanted against the offensive before entering the reception hall of the consulate building and lighting a small fire.
A video posted on social media showed a man yelling: “The death of the leader has been avenged.”
Ten people were reported dead after security forces opened fire, with more than 30 others injured, according to a local medical official.
Violence arising from protests elsewhere in Pakistan left 10 people dead in Gilgit-Baltistan and two dead in the capital, Islamabad.
Read more:
Just 27% of Americans approve of Iran strikes, poll finds
Only one in four Americans approves of the US strikes that killed Iran’s leader on Saturday, while about half — including one in four Republicans — believe Trump is too willing to use military force, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll that concluded on Sunday.
About 27% of respondents said they approved of the strikes, while 43% disapproved and 29% were not sure. About nine in 10 respondents said they had heard at least a little about the strikes, which began early on Saturday.
About 56% of Americans think Trump, who has also ordered strikes in Venezuela, Syria and Nigeria in recent months, is too willing to use military force to advance US interests. The vast majority of Democrats – 87% – held this view, as did 23% of Republicans and 60% of people who don’t identify with either political party.
The poll, which began on Saturday after the strikes got underway, gathered responses online from 1,282 US adults nationwide. It had a margin of error of three percentage points.
Trump spoke with leaders of Israel, Bahrain and UAE, White House says
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed in a statement on social media that Trump “has spoken with the leaders of Israel, Bahrain, and the UAE” today.
Republican senator Tom Cotton, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he expects the massive airstrike campaign against Iran will continue for “probably a few weeks.”
He told CBS’ Face the Nation that Trump “has no plan for any kind of large-scale ground force in Iran.”
Cotton would not say how the US and Israeli knew the location of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. “We have exquisite intelligence collection methods,” he said. “Israel and the United States once again proved that our nation has capabilities that no other nation on Earth has.”
UK says British fighter jet shot down Iranian drone aimed at Qatar
A UK fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone aimed at Qatar, according to the UK’s Ministry of Defense.
“Today, a Royal Air Force Typhoon operating from Qatar as part of the joint UK–Qatar Typhoon Squadron, successfully took out an Iranian drone heading towards Qatar,” the ministry’s official X account posted today.
“The Typhoon jet was conducting a defensive air patrol and used an air-to-air missile to shoot down the drone, ensuring the security of Qatar’s airspace and British interests in the region,” the statement said. “Our Armed Forces are playing a vital role to protect our people, our interests and our allies.”
The UK signed a defense agreement with Qatar last year, aimed at strengthening military cooperation and improving interoperability between their armed forces.
Larisa Brown, defense editor of London’s The Times, reported on X that this “is the first time the aircraft has carried out an operational interception in defense of Qatar.”
German chancellor Friedrich Merz called on US and European partners to start planning for the future of Iran and the region, saying the people of Iran deserved a better future after US and Israeli strikes killed its supreme leader.
Merz said his government agreed with US goals to end Tehran’s nuclear armament and finish a “destructive game” being played by Iran, but he warned of possible dangers ahead.
“This is not without risk. We do not know how far the region will be drawn into escalation by Iran’s harsh counterstrikes,” Merz told reporters.
Pointing to some reservations over the US and Israeli actions, Merz said now was not the time to lecture partners and allies, despite doubts. “We want to work with our partners in the US, Israel, the region, and Europe to develop an agenda for the day after,” said Merz.
His four aims were to ensure peace and stability in the region, to get Iran to end its nuclear and ballistic missile program, to contribute to a stable future for Iran and to help Iranians decide their own fate.
Merz also said Germany would not tolerate attacks on US or Israeli institutions in the country.
Kate Connolly
German tourists on a cruise in the Middle East have told the tabloid Bild how they have been watching the conflict unfold in dramatic scenes viewed from their holiday suites. Tourists on the cruiseliner ‘Mein Schiff 4’ photographed black clouds of smoke billowing over the harbour in Abu Dhabi and said they were shocked and scared to see their holiday paradise turn into a war zone.
Mein Schiff 4 is currently docked in Port Zayed in Abu Dhabi, where a large explosion took place midday on Sunday.
The defense minister has since said that the explosion was caused by an attack by two Iranian drones, which hit a storage facility near the marine base of Al Salam, which ignited two containers.
“We got an emergency message on our mobile phones at 4.30pm, telling us to immediately gather in the theatre of the ship.” Another passenger reported: “There was a large bang in the immediate vicinity.” The crew advised the passengers “to stay inside, avoid windows and to remain calm”, the second passenger said. They described the mood on board the ship as “extremely tense”. Balconies and decks of the Mein Schiff 4 were to remain closed.
“Many passengers, including lots of families with children, are slowly losing their nerves: panicking, crying, fearful of further explosions, and no one knows how and when we’re going to get out of here,” a passenger told the tabloid.
The holiday makers are on a seven-day cruise called ‘Magic of the Orient’ at a cost of Euro 899 per person in standard class, which was scheduled to stop in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Khasab, Muscat, Doha and Dubai.
A warehouse at a French naval base was hit in a drone attack that targeted the port of Abu Dhabi. Catherine Vautrin, the French armed forces minister, confirmed the strike in a social media post, writing “A hangar at our naval base, adjacent to that of the Emiratis, was struck in a drone attack that targeted the port of Abu Dhabi.”
She added: “The damage is purely material and limited. No injuries are to be regretted. The vigilance of our forces is at a maximum in the face of a situation that is evolving hour by hour.”
Nato is continuing to closely follow developments in Iran and the region around it, a spokesperson for the alliance’s military headquarters said in a statement on Sunday.
Nato’s supreme allied commander Europe, US general Alexus Grynkewich, “continues to speak actively and regularly with military leaders on both sides of the Atlantic, and with Nato’s secretary general,” colonel Martin O’Donnell, spokesperson for the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, said.
The top commander “has and will continue to adjust Nato’s very strong force posture to ensure the security of its 32 member nations and to defend the Alliance from potential threats, such as ballistic missiles or unmanned aerial vehicles, emanating from this or other regions,” he added.
Trump: US destroyed Iran’s naval headquarters and nine ships
Donald Trump said that the US has destroyed nine Iranian navy ships and largely destroyed Iran’s naval headquarters.
“I have just been informed that we have destroyed and sunk 9 Iranian Naval Ships, some of them relatively large and important,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “We are going after the rest — They will soon be floating at the bottom of the sea, also! In a different attack, we largely destroyed their Naval Headquarters.”
Iran targeted the USS Abraham Lincoln, but the “missiles launched didn’t even come close,” according to a social media post from US Central Command (Centcom).
“The Lincoln was not hit,” the post said. “The missiles launched didn’t even come close. The Lincoln continues to launch aircraft in support of Centcom’s relentless campaign to defend the American people by eliminating threats from the Iranian regime.”
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, the country’s most powerful military body, was quoted earlier in an Iranian news outlet as saying that four ballistic missiles had targeted the ship.
In reaction to the news of the three US service members who have been killed in action, US senator Mark Warner posted: “My deepest condolences to the families of the service members killed in action abroad. My heart is heavy thinking of their loss.”
Senator Roger Marshall posted: “Our hearts are heavy this morning as we learn of the loss of American service members overseas. We are praying for their loved ones, for the safety of those still in combat, and a swift end to this conflict.”
Three US service members have been killed in action as part of US military operations against Iran, the US Central Command said in a statement on Sunday. These are the first confirmed deaths since the US began launching strikes against Iran on Saturday.
Five additional personnel have been reported seriously wounded as part of Operation Epic Fury, the US military said. Authorities have not yet publicly identified the three soldiers who were killed.
While announcing the military action targeting Iran, Donald Trump cautioned that “the lives of American heroes may be lost, and we may have casualties. That often happens in war”.
On Sunday, Israel and the US carried out another round of heavy attacks across Iran, marking the second day of a military effort aimed at removing the country’s government. The campaign has pushed the Middle East into a broader regional confrontation with no clear end or predictable outcome.
Read more:
Trump: ‘They want to talk, and I have agreed’
Donald Trump said on Sunday that Iran’s new leadership wants to talk to him and that he has agreed, according to an interview with The Atlantic.
“They want to talk, and I have agreed to talk, so I will be talking to them. They should have done it sooner. They should have given what was very practical and easy to do sooner. They waited too long,” Trump said in an interview from his Florida residence, the magazine reported.
The president added that some of the Iranians involved in the previous negotiations were no longer alive. “Most of those people are gone,” he said. “Some of the people we were dealing with are gone, because that was a big—that was a big hit.”
Trump says 48 leaders killed in strikes on Iran and operation is ‘moving along rapidly’
Donald Trump told Fox News on Sunday that 48 leaders have been killed in US and Israeli strikes on Iran.
“It’s moving along. It’s moving along rapidly. This has been this way for 47 years,” he is quoted as saying in an interview with Fox News. “It’s moving along rapidly. Nobody can believe the success we’re having, 48 leaders are gone in one shot. And it’s moving along rapidly.”
Trump also told CNBC’s Joe Kernen that US military operations in Iran are “ahead of schedule.”
First Appeared on
Source link
Leave feedback about this