Iran’s Khamenei ‘can no longer be allowed to exist’: Israel defence minister
HOLON: Israel’s defence minister said Thursday that Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei “can no longer be allowed to exist” after an Israeli hospital was hit during an Iranian missile attack.
“Khamenei openly declares that he wants Israel destroyed — he personally gives the order to fire on hospitals. He considers the destruction of the state of Israel to be a goal,” Israel Katz told journalists in Holon near Tel Aviv. “Such a man can no longer be allowed to exist.”
Earlier today, the Austrian embassy in Tel Aviv was not affected after an Iranian missile struck the Israeli city’s Ramat Gan neighbourhood, according to a foreign ministry spokesperson.
Detailing the attacks by the Israeli military it was said on Thursday it had targeted the nuclear reactor in the area of Arak in Iran overnight and struck what it called a nuclear weapons development site in the area of Natanz.
Among its nuclear sites, Iran had a partially built heavy-water research reactor originally called Arak and now Khondab.
At Natanz, which has been previously struck during Israel’s six-day-old aerial war with Iran, Iran built a complex at the heart of its nuclear programme that included two enrichment plants.
Heavy-water reactors pose a nuclear proliferation risk because they can easily produce plutonium which, like enriched uranium, can be used to make the core of an atom bomb.
Yesterday Times of Israel reported that Iran fired an ultra-heavy, two-stage Sejjil missile at Israel.
Also read: US officials preparing for possible strike on Iran in coming days: Bloomberg
Exchanging Fire
Israel and Iran are engaged in open conflict, firing missiles at targets at the other since June 13, to deadly effect.
The exchange of fire started when Israel launched massive attacks on Iran, killing senior military commanders and several nuclear scientists, and targeting some of its arch-foe’s nuclear sites. Israel has killed three more Iranian nuclear scientists, state television reported Saturday, bringing to nine the overall number slain in Israel’s attack on the Islamic republic.
Iran earlier accused the US of being complicit in Israel’s attacks, but Washington denied the allegation and told Tehran at the United Nations Security Council that it would be “wise” to negotiate over its nuclear programme.
The sixth round of US-Iran nuclear talks was set to be held earlier in June in Muscat, but it was unclear whether it would go ahead after the Israeli strikes.
China’s President Xi Jinping said Tuesday he was “deeply worried” by Israel’s military action against Iran, Chinese state media reported.
“Israel launching military action against Iran has caused a sudden escalation in tension in the Middle East, China is deeply worried about this,” he said during a meeting with the Uzbek president in Kazakhstan, Xinhua reported.
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