What’s the situation on Sunday, June 22?
Fighting
- Donald Trump, president of the United States, claimed that the military of his country had attacked three important Iranian nuclear sites.
- Trump claimed in a Facebook post that the heavily fortified Fordow nuclear facility was “gone.”
- Without providing any proof or details, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth told reporters at the Pentagon that the US strikes were an “incredible and overwhelming success.”
- Iran would face the “worst mistake they’ve ever made,” according to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who also threatened Iran with a similar threat.
- Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated at a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul, Turkiye, that the US had “crossed a very big red line” by attacking Iran’s three nuclear facilities.
- The nuclear weapons organization of Iran claimed that “foreigners of]Iran] attacked the nuclear sites in Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan in a barbaric act that violated international law, particularly the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.”
- Trump was praised for making a “dumb decision” to attack Iran by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
- Iranian rockets and falling shrapnel have hit ten locations, according to Israeli emergency services. Following the US strikes, Iran’s most recent retaliation came in.
- Israel’s military claimed that it targeted “military targets” in western Iran with additional attacks.
- According to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Iran’s most recent missile attacks targeted research facilities and Ben Gurion International Airport in Israel.
- As part of its retaliatory measures, the IRGC is currently using one of its most advanced missiles, the Kheibar Shekan. The missile, known as Khorramshahr-4, is thought to have Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal’s heaviest payload, according to a report from 2022.
Accidents and turbulence
- The US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities have not caused any fatalities, according to Pir Hossein Kolivand, the head of Iran’s Red Crescent Society.
- Iran had been anticipating the US attack on Fordow, according to a senior Iranian parliamentarian, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. The adviser claimed that the site has been evacuated for a while and that the attack has not caused any irreversible damage.
- Residents near the Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz sites are not exposed to contamination or danger, according to the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization.
- In response to the US attack on Iran, the Israel Airports Authority claims to have closed its airspace until further notice “due to recent developments.”
- Following the US strikes, airline carriers have remained afloat of significant Middle Eastern locations, according to Flightradar24.
- According to the Iranian judiciary’s Mizan Online, a man who was found guilty of spying for Israel was sentenced to death.
- After Iran launched 40 missiles shortly after the US attacks, at least 27 people have been hurt in Israel. Ramat Aviv in Tel Aviv was one of the targets, and apartment blocks’ facades were raked open by missiles.
- At least two people were hurt when Israel bombed Tabriz in front of the IRGC’s Martyr Madani camp, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.
- According to Iranian authorities, nine security personnel were killed when Israeli forces struck two military installations in the central Yazd province, according to Iran’s Fars News Agency.
- After Iran was bombarded, the Gulf states, which have several US military installations, are on high alert. This could lead to a growing war there.
- Bisher, Bahrain has instructed 70% of government employees to work from home.
US retaliation for attacks
- Sara Jacobs, a Democratic member of the US Congress, said in one of her initial reactions to the attack that “Trump’s strikes against Iran are not only unconstitutional, but they also carry the risk of starting a deadly, endless war.”
- Trump will bear full responsibility for “any adverse consequences,” according to House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who did not request congressional approval for the strikes.
- A Palestinian-American congresswoman, Rashida Tlaib, described Trump’s decision to launch strikes on Iran without the consent of lawmakers as a “blatant violation” of the US Constitution.
- Republican congressman Thomas Massie, who has been spearheading legislation to restrict Trump’s ability to attack Iran without the consent of Congress, claimed the strikes are in violation of the US Constitution, which gives lawmakers the authority to make war decisions.
- Chris Murphy, a US senator, joined the Democratic critics’ chorus. He claimed that “the intelligence was briefed last week.” Iran “posed no immediate threat of attack on the United States.”
Politics, diplomacy, and global reactions
- Following US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, the UN Security Council will convene in an urgent session on Sunday.
- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed “grave alarm” and warned that the Middle East conflict could quickly “get out of control.” He referred to the assault as a “dangerous escalation.”
- International law is not a choice, but it is a duty, according to the head of the Red Cross International Committee.
- China “strongly condemned” the US attack, noting that the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency guarded its nuclear facilities.
- The “absolute majority” of countries are opposed to “the actions of Israel and the United States,” according to Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council.
- Hezbollah, a member of the Palestinian organization Hamas, and Yemen’s Houthis, all allies of Iran, condemned what Hezbollah called the US’s “barbaric and treacherous” attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
- Saudi Arabia stated that it is “following closely with deep concern” the United States of America’s “targeting of Iranian nuclear facilities” and the developments in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
- Qatar, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates all expressed concern about the regional implications of the attacks.
- The risk of an escalate was raised by the Foreign Ministry of Turkiye as a result of the US strikes.
- The US military action, according to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, “alleves” the “threat” caused by Tehran’s nuclear program.
- Kaja Kallas, the head of the European Union’s foreign policy, wants a return to dialogue. She argued that Iran should not be able to develop nuclear weapons because it would threaten international security.
