Category World News

Israel and Iran are locked in an escalating exchange of missiles, targeting each other’s security and economic infrastructure while also striking population centres.

The current escalation began after Israel launched strikes on Friday morning involving 200 fighter jets that hit dozens of nuclear, military and infrastructure targets across Iran, including the country’s main nuclear facility in Natanz.

The strikes came amid ongoing negotiations between Iran and the United States, Israel’s key ally, over Tehran’s nuclear programme, which Iran says is solely for civilian purposes.

Israel’s first wave of attacks killed at least four senior commanders of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as well as several nuclear scientists. Israel claims these attacks are aimed at crippling Iran’s ability to build a nuclear bomb — and to militarily respond through the sword arm of its security forces, the IRGC.

But who exactly has Israel targeted, and what is the IRGC?

Who has been killed?

The attacks on Friday killed several senior military leaders, including:

• Hossein Salami, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)
• Mohammad Bagheri, chief of staff of Iran’s Armed Forces
• Gholamali Rashid, commander of Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters
• Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the IRGC Aerospace Forces

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has appointed Abdolrahim Mousavi to replace Bagheri as chief of staff of the armed forces, Ahmad Vahidi to take Salami’s position as boss of the IRGC, and Majid Mousavi to replace Hajizadeh as head of the IRGC air force.

Separately, state-run news outlet Nour News said Khamenei’s senior adviser Ali Shamkhani was “critically injured”. Shamkhani was leading Iran’s diplomatic efforts with the US.

Six prominent Iranian nuclear scientists were also killed.

What is the IRGC?

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is a branch of Iran’s military, established after the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Operating alongside the regular army, it answers directly to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and plays a central role in Iran’s defence, foreign operations, and regional influence.

With around 190,000 active personnel (and over 600,000 including reserves), the IRGC oversees Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programmes and supports proxy groups across the Middle East.

It was designated a foreign “terrorist” organisation by the US in 2019 – marking the first time the US had used the designation against a part of another government.

Beyond its military role, the IRGC is deeply embedded in Iran’s political and economic structures.

What locations did Israel attack?

Israeli strikes on Friday targeted the following confirmed locations:

• The capital, Tehran, and military sites in the surrounding area.
• The city of Natanz, where explosions were reported at the main uranium enrichment facility.
• The city of Tabriz, where explosions have been reported near a nuclear research centre and two military bases.
• The city of Isfahan, south of Tehran.
• The city of Arak, southwest of Tehran.
• The city of Kermanshah, west of Tehran, where an underground facility storing ballistic missiles was hit near the Iraqi border.

Iran says Israel’s initial strikes killed at least 80 people, and wounded more than 320 others. Since Saturday, at least 480 more have been injured. Those killed include 20 children.

Natanz nuclear facility damaged

One of Israel’s main targets was the Natanz nuclear facility – the largest uranium enrichment site in Iran, located in Isfahan province.

The above-ground section of a pilot fuel enrichment plant, where uranium was enriched up to 60 percent, was destroyed, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Key electricity infrastructure, such as the substation, main power building, emergency supply, and backup generators, was also destroyed. There was no direct hit on the underground cascade hall, but the power loss may have damaged centrifuges used for uranium enrichment.

Radiation levels outside the facility remain normal, though there is radiological and chemical contamination inside, which are manageable with proper protection.

“At present, the Iranian authorities are informing us of attacks on two other facilities, namely the Fordow fuel enrichment plant and at Isfahan,” the IAEA’s chief, Rafael Grossi, told the United Nations Security Council on Friday.

Israeli attacks on Iran’s oil and gas

On Saturday, Iran partially suspended gas production at its largest field, South Pars, following an Israeli strike that triggered a fire.

The fire, now extinguished, broke out in one of four units in phase 14 of the gasfield, halting 12 million cubic metres of gas production. Located in Bushehr province, South Pars is key to Iran’s output and is shared with Qatar, which calls it the North Field.

Iran has also confirmed an Israeli attack on the Fajr Jam gas plant about 65 km (40 miles) northwest of South Pars.

Iran fires missiles at Israel

In response to Israel’s strikes, Iran has launched drones and ballistic missiles at Israel, with some hitting targets on the ground.

The death toll from Iran’s attacks on Israel has risen to 10, with more than 200 wounded, according to Israeli authorities. Several people remain missing as a barrage of dozens of Iranian missiles lit up the skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv overnight.

Iran has developed a range of ballistic and cruise missiles over the past three decades. The graphic below shows some of Iran’s most prominent missiles and their ranges.

Israel has intercepted many of the Iranian missiles fired towards its territory, but not all of them, with some causing major damage and casualties across the country.

The Israeli air defence relies largely on what is known as the Iron Dome system, which is equipped with a radar that detects an incoming projectile, as well as its speed and direction.

Other systems intercept medium and long-range missiles. The David’s Sling intercepts missiles ranging between 40km (25 miles) and 300km (186 miles). The Arrow System intercepts missiles with a range of up to 2,400km (1,491 miles).

Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei said Israel “must expect severe punishment” for killing several top-level military commanders and scientists.

In a message on state TV, he said Israel “should not think that it is over because they attacked and it is finished”.

“No. They started this and initiated the war. We won’t allow them to escape unscathed from this great crime they have committed,” Khamenei said.

Israel has placed the occupied West Bank under lockdown, sealing the entrances of cities and villages with iron gates and concrete barriers, as its forces bomb Iran.

The Israeli siege continued for a third day on Sunday, as the military intensifies its operations in the Palestinian territory, where it has killed at least 943 Palestinians, more than 200 of them minors, according to the United Nations, since the war on Gaza started on October 7, 2023.

Palestinians in the West Bank say the Israeli actions are aimed at annexing their lands and expanding illegal settlements. An estimated three million Palestinians live under Israeli military occupation in the West Bank.

Since January this year, there have been ongoing Israeli operations in three refugee camps in Jenin and Tulkarem areas of the West Bank. At least 137 Palestinians, including 27 children, have been killed this year in the West Bank, according to the UN.

But in recent days, as Israel strikes Iran and the latter retaliates, the West Bank is under a lockdown.

Here’s what you need to know:

What is Israel doing?

The Israeli military is applying a lockdown.

In addition to closing up cities and villages, it is severely restricting the movement of Palestinians by setting up checkpoints, according to Al Jazeera correspondent Nida Ibrahim, limiting entry and exit to areas.

The military has increased its presence in the West Bank cities like el-Bireh and Ramallah, according to Wafa, the Palestinian news agency. Strict checkpoints are also impeding movement in Nablus, Hebron, Qalqilya, and the Jordan Valley, where the checkpoints have disrupted the work of farmers and the transport of their produce.

“The ongoing closures have paralysed daily life across the West Bank, severely limiting mobility, restricting access to essential services, and impacting economic activity,” Wafa reported.

Palestinians say attempts to approach the checkpoints have been met with live fire from Israeli soldiers in some places, while in others, stun grenades and tear gas were deployed.

There are numerous reports of injuries. In the Tulkarem refugee camp, for example, a 16-year-old was reportedly shot in the leg by Israeli forces. They have also conducted night raids in the West Bank, arresting at least 15 people, according to Wafa.

Ambulances are struggling to reach the wounded as their movement is also being impeded.

“Even when we are granted Israeli military permission to move, we are detained at checkpoints for three to four hours before being allowed through,” said Fayez Abdel Jabbar, an ambulance driver. “This [Saturday] morning, one woman stayed three hours at one checkpoint. The only way we can function now is by transferring patients from one ambulance to another at these checkpoints.”

Even before the recent Israeli action, pregnant Palestinian women reported that checkpoints could be a matter of “life and death”.

Meanwhile, in several areas across the West Bank, Israeli soldiers have also expelled dozens of families from their homes and turned them into military positions.

Why is the West Bank under siege?

Palestinians say it is being done to control them.

The Israeli government ramped up settlements and annexation of the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem in 2024, according to a report by the UN Human Rights Office in March this year.

An Israeli poster describes the lockdown as preemptive, saying movement will be restricted until further notice. It reads: “Terror only brings death and destruction.”

“Palestinians say they are the ones under attack,” Ibrahim reported.

Qassim Awwad of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s (PLO) settlement unit said, since October 7, 2023, Israel has increased the checkpoints and barriers in the West Bank from 600 to 900. “Now they are using this time [war with Iran] to increase the lockdown on Palestinians, turning them into isolated cantons separated from one another,” he said.

Meanwhile, Israel on Sunday killed at least 23 people in Gaza, including 11 waiting to get aid. Since October 7, 2023, Israel has killed 55,297 Palestinians and wounded 128,426 others, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health.

What about settler violence?

It goes on.

“Settlers continue attacking Palestinian homes and properties,” Al Jazeera’s Ibrahim reported. “Others exploit the siege to establish and expand new illegal settlement outposts.”

In the city of Sderot last Thursday, Israeli cabinet ministers and the government’s coalition partners held a conference where they pledged to annex the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli media reports.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi spoke in favour of annexation, while Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu reportedly called out for the same in Syria and Lebanon as well.

“Do we want Judea and Samaria [the West Bank]? Do we want Syria? Do we want Lebanon? Do we want Gaza?” Eliyahu reportedly shouted to a crowd that responded in the affirmative.

Are Iran’s retaliatory attacks affecting Palestinians?

The night skies of Palestine, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan have been illuminated by the exchange of missiles between Iran and Israel since Friday.

As Israel tries to shoot down the Iranian missiles, some of their remnants have landed in the West Bank, where, unlike Israel, the residents have no access to bomb shelters or protection. Dozens of Palestinians in the territory have been wounded by intercepted missiles.

“Palestinians say they are caught between the Iranian projectiles and Israeli missiles intercepting them,” Ibrahim said.

What is the PLO doing?

“The Palestinian government says it is working to ensure the entry of food and fuel,” Ibrahim added. “With Israel controlling almost every aspect of their lives, Palestinians fear their governments’ ability to assist them is severely limited.”

Most of the global attention in the last few days has been on the exchange of strikes between Israel and Iran.

But UNRWA, the UN agency focused on Palestinian refugees, said in a statement on Friday that the West Bank is “not a warzone”.

“It is governed by international standards and codes of conduct for law enforcement, which Israeli forces have an obligation to uphold. Law enforcement exists for the purpose of safeguarding human rights, not violating them. It should seek to protect the most vulnerable, not further victimise them. Above all, it should preserve human dignity and life,” Roland Friedrich, director of UNRWA affairs in the West Bank, posted on X.

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