Will Israel kill Khamenei? Tel Aviv signals possibility of striking Iran’s Supreme Leader: 10 points
Tensions escalated between Iran and Israel after Tel Aviv initiated a bombing campaign targeting Tehran, claiming that the latter was close to developing nuclear weapons. It has also declared that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei could be targeted
Iran-Israel conflict: Tensions have sharply intensified between Iran and Israel over the past week following Israel's large-scale bombing campaign targeting Iran, based on claims that Tehran was close to developing a nuclear weapon. Iran rejected the accusations and retaliated with a series of drone and missile attacks.
Israel has also declared that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei could be targeted. Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, declared on Thursday that Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, “can no longer be allowed to exist” following an Iranian missile attack that struck an Israeli hospital.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that while Israel's military actions are not aimed at toppling Iran's leadership, such an outcome could be a consequence of the ongoing conflict, Reuters reported. “The matter of changing the regime or the fall of this regime is, first and foremost, a matter for the Iranian people. There is no substitute for this,” he added.
While there has been no such confirmation of plans to kill Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei, warnings and rhetoric pointing to such action have come from top Israeli leadership.
Here are the top ten updates on the Iran-Israel conflict:
1. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov warned that a U.S. attack on Iran would be a grave error, stating that direct American involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict would only heighten instability across the region, ANI reported.
2. Commenting on the possible US strike, Peskov said, “Moscow believes it is a wrong move. This is a step that is bound to lead to further escalation, a major escalation, and would only complicate the situation in the region,” RT reported.
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3. The White House has said that US President Donald Trump will decide within the next two weeks whether the United States will join Israel in its ongoing war with Iran.
4. Addressing a briefing on Thursday (local time), White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt read out a statement from President Trump, who acknowledged the potential for diplomatic negotiations despite the escalating conflict in the Middle East. “Based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks,” Leavitt quoted the President as saying.
5. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei "can no longer be allowed to exist," following recent reports that the U.S. had blocked Israeli plans to assassinate him, AFP reported.
6. Katz’s remarks came in response to a new wave of Iranian missile strikes, which left 40 people injured, according to Soroka Hospital in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba.
7. "Khamenei openly declares that he wants Israel destroyed -- he personally gives the order to fire on hospitals," Katz told journalists in the city of Holon near Tel Aviv. He added, “Such a man can no longer be allowed to exist.”
8. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi prepared to travel to Geneva on Friday for talks with the European Union’s top diplomat and officials from the UK, France, and Germany.
9. Early Friday, Israeli airstrikes reached the northern Iranian city of Rasht, located on the Caspian Sea, according to Iranian media reports. The Israeli military had issued warnings urging civilians to evacuate the area around Rasht’s Industrial City, southwest of the city center. Meanwhile, on Thursday, anti-aircraft fire was heard throughout Tehran, and residents in the central city of Isfahan reported seeing air defenses in action after nightfall, AP reported.
10. Iran’s supreme leader on Wednesday rejected US calls for surrender. Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf on Thursday criticised Trump for using military pressure to gain an advantage in nuclear negotiations, AP reported.
(With inputs from agencies)