Tel Aviv analyst shelters from 30 missile sirens in 48 hours, says Iran ‘won’t recover'

The past 48 hours in Tel Aviv have been unlike anything seen before, a leading security analyst has said, as sirens blared amid missile threats following Operation Epic Fury and U.S.-Israeli strikes in Iran.

"We are facing a biblical event — nothing less," Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgav Institute, told Fox News Digital, speaking from his shelter in the city.

Like many Israelis, Michael said he had spent hours in reinforced rooms during the ongoing barrage, adding that he was "very experienced in this."

"But this all requires time and determination, and I do hope that Trump will also have them both," he said, speaking shortly after the president released a video message stating that the military operation would continue "until all of our objectives are achieved."

IRANIAN 'DICTATOR' DEATH CELEBRATED ON AIR BY SKY NEWS AUSTRALIA PRESENTER, TELLING HIM TO 'ROT IN HELL'

"Trump is the only one who can make the change — and that change will impact the entire region and the international order for years to come," Michael added.

As of Sunday, Tel Aviv remained under a state of emergency following Iranian missile attacks that caused casualties and widespread damage.

According to The Associated Press, Iranian missile and drone strikes have killed approximately 11 Israeli civilians and wounded dozens more in retaliation for the U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran.

Shrapnel from missile impacts damaged at least 40 buildings in Tel Aviv, and authorities reported at least one death in the area from falling debris.

The Philippine Embassy in Israel confirmed the death of a Filipino national after a missile strike hit Tel Aviv on Saturday.

TOMAHAWKS, B-2 STEALTH BOMBERS AND ATTACK DRONES POUND OVER 1,000 IRANIAN TARGETS IN 24-HOUR BLITZ

"We enter our shelter once the siren is heard and stay there until the Home Front Command announces that we can leave," Michael said.

"Usually, it is about 20 to 30 minutes — unless there are further sirens during our stay. Since yesterday morning, it has happened around 30 times."

Israel's President Isaac Herzog also visited an impact site in Tel Aviv Sunday, delivering a message of resilience.

"The people of Israel and the people of Iran can live in peace. The region can live in peace. But what undermines peace time and again is terror instigated by this Iranian regime," Herzog said.

EXILED IRANIAN CROWN PRINCE SAYS US STRIKES MARK 'BEGINNING OF THE VERY END' FOR REGIME

Following the reported killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and roughly 40 senior Iranian officials, Iran formed a provisional leadership council.

Iran named Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, President Masoud Pezeshkian and Judiciary Chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i to lead roles.

"The Supreme Leader did not complete the necessary groundwork regarding his own succession," Michael added.

"Pezeshkian will face very troubling challenges due to their heavy losses, severe disruptions to control and command systems, and the massive bombing and attacks across Iran, including Tehran," he said.

"Even if this regime doesn’t collapse, it will never be able to reconstitute itself, recover or return to its previous position," Michael added.

from Latest World News on Fox News https://ift.tt/uvtiWaZ

US cleared to use British bases for limited strikes on Iranian missile capabilities

The U.S. has been cleared to use British bases for limited strikes on Iran’s missile capabilities after Prime Minister Keir Starmer signed off on the plan, and while U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey stated on Sunday Britain had "stepped up alongside the Americans."

"The only way to stop the threat is to destroy the missiles at source, in their storage depots or the launchers which are used to fire the missiles," Starmer confirmed in a recorded statement to the nation.

"The U.S. has requested permission to use British bases for that specific and limited defensive purpose," he said. "We have taken the decision to accept this request."

The decision came amid escalation across the Middle East in the wake of U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory missile and drone attacks, raising fears of a broader regional conflict.

HORMUZ ERUPTS: ATTACKS, GPS JAMMING, HOUTHI THREATS ROCK STRAIT AMID US-ISRAELI STRIKES

On Feb. 28, in the wake of Operation Epic Fury, Starmer confirmed British planes "are in the sky today" across the Middle East "as part of coordinated regional defensive operations to protect our people, our interests and our allies."

Healey went on to disclose Sunday that two Iranian missiles were fired in the direction of Cyprus, where Britain maintains key sovereign base areas.

The Royal Air Force confirmed that Typhoon jets operating from Qatar as part of the joint U.K.-Qatar Typhoon Squadron successfully intercepted an Iranian drone heading toward Qatar.

About 300 British personnel are stationed at a naval facility in Bahrain, where Iranian missiles and drones struck nearby areas.

"We’re taking down the drones that are menacing either our bases, our people or our allies," Healey told "Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips" on Sky. "We’ve stepped up alongside the Americans. We’ve stepped up our defensive forces in the Middle East. We’re flying those sorties."

ISRAEL'S LARGEST EVER MILITARY FLYOVER HAMMERS IRANIAN MILITARY TARGETS

Healey also made sure to stress that the U.K. had "no part" in the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and insisted all British actions were defensive. "All our actions are about defending U.K. interests and defending U.K. allies," he said.

When asked if the U.K. would join the U.S. in offensive action, Healey said, "I'm not going to speculate," according to Sky News.

Downing Street also confirmed Feb. 28 that Starmer and President Donald Trump had spoken by phone about the "situation in the Middle East," the BBC reported.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Downing Street for comment.

from Latest World News on Fox News https://ift.tt/fMHuacE

Tomahawks, B-2 stealth bombers and attack drones pound over 1,000 Iranian targets in 24-hour blitz

U.S. forces launched a sweeping military assault on Iranian targets on Saturday, unleashing overwhelming air, sea and missile power in a coordinated operation with Israel.

The mission — dubbed "Operation Epic Fury" — began at 1:15 a.m. and struck more than 1,000 sites across Iran within its first 24 hours, according to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM). Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and dozens of senior regime officials were eliminated in the strikes.

The barrage featured B-2 stealth bombers, F-22 and F-16 fighter jets, A-10 attack aircraft, EA-18G electronic warfare planes, and an array of airborne early warning and communications platforms, CENTCOM said.

SUSTAINED WAR WITH IRAN COULD DRAIN US MISSILE STOCKPILES, TEST ESCALATION CONTROL

Missile defense systems, including Patriot interceptors and THAAD anti-ballistic missile defenses, were deployed as part of the operation.

Other assets included RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft, MQ-9 Reaper drones, HIMARS rocket systems, nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, guided-missile destroyers, refueling tankers, and C-17 and C-130 transport aircraft, CENTCOM said.

The command also released images of Tomahawk cruise missiles, as well as F-18 and F-35 fighter jets roaring into combat, according to Reuters.

CENTCOM additionally confirmed it deployed one-way attack drones in combat for the first time.

DOZENS OF TOP IRANIAN REGIME OFFICIALS, SUPREME LEADER KILLED IN ISRAELI STRIKES

The Low-Cost Unmanned Combat Attack System — known as LUCAS — is modeled after Iran’s Shahed drones.

"CENTCOM's Task Force Scorpion Strike — for the first time in history — is using one-way attack drones in combat during Operation Epic Fury," CENTCOM wrote on X. "These low-cost drones, modeled after Iran's Shahed drones, are now delivering American-made retribution."

Developed by Arizona-based engineering firm SpektreWorks, the LUCAS drone can be launched from catapults, vehicles or mobile ground platforms, according to Business Insider. 

The drones cost roughly $35,000 each, Reuters reported.

KEY MILITARY SITES TARGETED INSIDE IRAN AS PART OF COORDINATED US-ISRAELI STRIKES

The strikes targeted command and control centers, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Joint Headquarters and Aerospace Forces Headquarters, integrated air defense systems, ballistic missile sites, Iranian Navy ships and submarines, anti-ship missile sites and military communications infrastructure, according to CENTCOM.

Iran retaliated by launching waves of missiles across the Middle East, targeting major U.S. bases in Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, Business Insider reported.

Three U.S. service members were killed and five others were "seriously wounded" as part of Operation Epic Fury, CENTCOM said Sunday morning. The joint military operation is expected to carry on for days.

CENTCOM did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

Reuters and Fox News Digital's Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.

from Latest World News on Fox News https://ift.tt/pUjxtEv

Hormuz erupts: Attacks, GPS jamming, Houthi threats rock Strait amid US-Israeli strikes

The Strait of Hormuz region became a flashpoint Sunday after U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran under Operation Epic Fury triggered electronic warfare activity and multiple "attacks" on vessels along one of the world’s most critical energy waterways, according to reports.

The sudden escalation followed a Feb. 28 warning from U.S. maritime authorities urging commercial vessels to avoid strategic waterways if possible, including the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea, citing heightened security risks.

"It is recommended that vessels keep clear of this area if possible," the advisory warned.

"The Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz and adjacent waters are the most dangerous place right now for commercial shipping," Jakob P. Larsen, head of maritime security at BIMCO, told Fox News Digital.

"Ships in the Persian Gulf are under threat from Iranian attacks," Larsen said.

HISTORIC US-ISRAEL STRIKES ON IRAN UNDERWAY AS TEHRAN FACES REGIME SURVIVAL TEST

"To protect themselves, most ships stay as far away from Iran as they can," he added before describing how ships are "trying to depart from the Persian Gulf to get away from the threat."

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) and regional authorities reported multiple maritime incidents listed as "attacks" Sunday.

One vessel west of Sharjah, UAE, was rocked by an explosion from an unknown projectile that detonated close alongside, and another tanker north of Muscat, Oman, was struck above the waterline, sparking a fire that was later brought under control, according to data.

A third vessel northwest of Mina Saqr, UAE, was also hit by a projectile that ignited a blaze aboard, the organization reported.

Compounding the physical threats is a surge in electronic warfare with maritime intelligence firm Windward reporting widespread GPS and Automatic Identification System (AIS) interference, impacting 1,000-plus ships.

IRAN FIRES MISSILES AT US BASES ACROSS MIDDLE EAST AFTER AMERICAN STRIKES ON NUCLEAR, IRGC SITES

Windward cited widespread navigation disruption near Iran’s Bandar Abbas port, with ships falsely appearing at airports, a nuclear power plant and inland locations.

Several new AIS jamming clusters were also identified across Emirati, Qatari, Omani and Iranian waters, Windward said.

Major shipping company Maersk announced it would reroute some services away from the region, citing crew and cargo safety.

Roughly 20% of global oil and gas exports pass through the Strait, and traffic has already thinned, with some tankers reversing course or switching off AIS signals.

Industry groups also warned of Houthi retaliation in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, while analysts cautioned that Iran could seize vessels tied to U.S. or Israeli interests.

"The Houthis have threatened to resume attacks on ships in the Red Sea, Bab el-Mandeb Strait and Gulf of Aden," Larsen explained.

KEANE WARNS IRAN STRIKE BECOMING ‘REGIONAL WAR,' SAYS THREE GULF STATES PREPARING FOR COMBAT

Ships with business connections to U.S. or Israeli interests are considered more likely targets, though others could be struck deliberately or in error, he said.

Tanker owners’ association Intertanko also warned members that "the expectation is that the Houthis may respond and recommence attacks on shipping," although immediate intelligence remained unclear.

"There are no signs of Iranian attempts to close the Strait with sea mines or naval mines, although this can change at short notice," Larsen added before confirming that GPS interference has "increased significantly following the initiation of hostilities."

from Latest World News on Fox News https://ift.tt/9zOHUlG

Iranians celebrate worldwide after supreme leader is killed in Israeli strikes

Iranians across the country could be seen and heard celebrating the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after coordinated Israeli strikes overnight.

In one video, Iranians near Karaj, Iran, outside the capital of Tehran, took to the streets, honked their horns and cheered.

In social media videos, Iranians in Tehran cheered from their apartments, playing loud music and setting off fireworks as the news spread.

TRUMP OVERSEES US STRIKES ON IRAN FROM MAR-A-LAGO, SPEAKS WITH NETANYAHU: WH

In Fuladshahr, people packed the streets, waving their arms in the air, whistling, honking and cheering over the news.

In Borazjan, Iran, celebrants chanted and, in Mamasani, they waved flags and danced.

People also celebrated in the Iranian cities of Shiraz and Abadan, "where the people are out on the streets till the wee hours of the night in celebration of an Iran that is on the brink of finding its freedom after almost five decades," according to Lisa Daftari, editor at The Foreign Desk.

IRAN FIRES MISSILES AT US BASES ACROSS MIDDLE EAST AFTER AMERICAN STRIKES ON NUCLEAR, IRGC SITES

Iranian people also cheered the news in other parts of the world, such as Madrid, London, Berlin, Armenia and the United States.

"Iranian people all over the world, from Los Angeles to Tehran, are on the streets celebrating [in] sheer jubilation over the dawn of a new and free Iran," Daftari told Fox News Digital.

"Iranians poured onto the streets cheering, clapping, waving the lion and sun flag, dancing openly and singing the old national anthem. It’s hard to imagine a people so starved for freedom, so desperate for justice, that they are cheering military strikes on their own soil as the price of liberation."

In Los Angeles, home to the largest Iranian community in the U.S., hundreds came out to wave Iranian and American flags on Saturday. 

Some people also held signs bearing expressions such as, "Make Iran Great Again."

"I love America. I love everything about this country," Iranian American journalist Masih Alinejad told Fox News Saturday.

"I grew up in a country where I was brainwashed to say, ‘Death to America,' the same country — how ironic — the same country that saved my life three times and is now helping my people in Iran. They’re celebrating. They’re celebrating out of joy.

"Thank you, President Trump, for taking decisive action. This is how true leadership looks like."

Los Angeles and other U.S. cities, like Boston; Washington, D.C.; and New York City held competing anti-war protests, as did cities in Europe.

from Latest World News on Fox News https://ift.tt/p7HUCZD

Iranian ‘top target’ hit in $10M precision strike; US kamikaze drones used to 'overwhelm'

Israel struck its key target in Tehran Saturday in what a defense expert has described as a multimillion-dollar precision-guided attack alongside a broader offensive involving U.S. waves of lower-cost kamikaze drones.

Cameron Chell, CEO of drone manufacturer Draganfly, told Fox News Digital the campaign would have likely paired advanced and costly assets against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s compound, while U.S. forces used cheaper drones to "overwhelm" on land, air and sea.

"Saturday saw an overwhelming daytime attack with incredible intelligence to target the leadership and a strike on the compound possibly costing tens of millions," Chell said.

WORLD LEADERS SPLIT OVER MILITARY ACTION AS US-ISRAEL STRIKE IRAN IN COORDINATED OPERATION

"That would likely have included expensive, precision-strike drones or manned aircraft in highly coordinated attacks to ensure success, not necessarily the lower-cost, one-way version of the suicide drones," he explained.

"The U.S. has this lower-cost alternative to hit everything at once, but then the very expensive, high-precision assets would likely have gone directly after leadership on Saturday," Chell added.

A senior U.S. official confirmed to Fox News that the compound strike was a "wildly bold daytime attack."

"It caught the senior leadership off guard on a Saturday morning during Ramadan and on Shabbat in the daytime," the official added. 

"We hit the senior leaders right out of the gate," the source told Fox national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin.

AYATOLLAH'S ARSENAL VS. AMERICAN FIREPOWER: IRAN'S TOP 4 THREATS AND HOW WE FIGHT BACK

Iran’s military, government and intelligence sites were targeted, an official briefed on the operation also told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

A handful of top Iranian leaders were killed, including the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

President Donald Trump also announced Saturday that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had been killed in the strike.

"If drones were involved in that top target attack, it would have been the very sophisticated MQ-type or Global Hawk-type drones," Chell said.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said other attacks across the country were being done "to remove threats."

As previously reported by Fox News Digital, those targets included Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) command and control centers, Iranian air defense capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and military airfields.

IRAN FIRES MISSILES AT US BASES ACROSS MIDDLE EAST AFTER AMERICAN STRIKES ON NUCLEAR, IRGC SITES

Chell described how those secondary targets would have been hit by the U.S. with the cheaper one-way "kamikaze" drones before adding that the strikes "seemed to be an excellent example of mass overwhelm at a new level."

Chell suggested Iran’s defenses were likely degraded well before the strike began because of the coordination.

"I think likely the defense systems, communication systems, were overwhelmingly compromised," he added. "And so I think they just overwhelmed them," he said.

"I’m sure there would have been days, if not even weeks, of work and preparation to take out those defense communication systems.

"They would have compromised those defense communications in some way through electronic warfare or cyberattack. 

"The battlefield now is so multidimensional," Chell emphasized.

"It’s about cyber warfare, misinformation and electronic warfare as well.

"This was seemingly so swift because it was incredibly well-planned and coordinated by the U.S. and Israel on a massive level that’s not been seen before."

from Latest World News on Fox News https://ift.tt/F8Ncdjs

Dozens of top Iranian regime officials, supreme leader killed in Israeli strikes

The Israeli military on Saturday said it had killed dozens of members of Iran’s leadership during sweeping, coordinated strikes in Iran, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had targeted a number of locations across Tehran "in which senior officials of the Iranian defense establishment had gathered."

More than 40 senior Iranian security and regime figures were eliminated in the strikes, a senior Israeli security official told Fox News.

It was one of the largest regime "decapitation operations" conducted in modern warfare history, the official added. Israeli intelligence managed to infiltrate the Iranian security echelon, making the strikes possible, the official explained.

IRAN FIRES MISSILES AT US BASES ACROSS MIDDLE EAST AFTER AMERICAN STRIKES ON NUCLEAR, IRGC SITES

Among those killed, according to the IDF, were Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Iranian Security Council who was also a personal advisor to the Iranian Supreme Leader.

Mohammad Pakpour, who was also killed, had been commander of the Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps since Operation ‘Rising Lion’ and was one of the leaders of the "destruction of Israel" plan, the IDF said.

Saleh Asadi, who headed up the Intelligence Directorate of the Khatam al-Anbiya emergency command, Mohammad Shirazi, head of the Military Bureau of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei since 1989, Iran’s Defense Minister, Aziz Nasirzadeh, Hossein Jabal Amelian, who chaired an organization that advanced projects related to nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, and Reza Mozaffari-Nia, who previously chaired the same organization, were also killed, according to the IDF.

IF KHAMENEI FALLS, WHO TAKES IRAN? STRIKES WILL EXPOSE POWER VACUUM — AND THE IRGC’S GRIP

President Donald Trump also confirmed Saturday that Khamenei was killed in the strikes. 

"Khamenei, one of the most evil people in History, is dead," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. "This is not only Justice for the people of Iran, but for all Great Americans, and those people from many Countries throughout the World, that have been killed or mutilated by Khamenei and his gang of bloodthirsty THUGS."

The leaders had all been meeting at a compound in Tehran on Saturday morning.

The strikes were moved up due to the "target of opportunity," multiple sources told Fox News, which is why the strikes happened in the daytime in Iran, keeping the element of surprise. "There was a deliberate decision to accelerate the timeline," one source said.

"This was a massive, wildly bold daytime attack," a senior US defense official told Fox News."It caught the senior leadership off guard, a Saturday morning during Ramadan and on Shabbat in the daytime."

"We hit the senior leaders right out of the gate," the source added.

from Latest World News on Fox News https://ift.tt/dfeMs0Y