What We Know So Far About Israel’s Strikes on Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed the strikes would continue ‘for as many days as it takes’ to remove the threat.

A firefighter calls out to his colleagues at the scene of an explosion in a residential compound in northern Tehran on June 13, 2025. Vahid Salemi/AP Photo

Israeli warplanes began carrying out airstrikes across Iran in the early morning hours on June 13 in what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cast as a critical measure to protect his nation.

“Moments ago, Israel launched Operation Rising Lion–a targeted military operation to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel’s very survival,” Netanyahu said in a televised address shortly after reports emerged of the initial barrage.

In his address, Netanyahu said that Iran had stockpiled enough highly enriched uranium to result in nine nuclear warheads, and that Iran could produce its first warhead in just a few months.

Netanyahu vowed the Israeli strike operations would continue “for as many days as it takes to remove this threat.”

The full extent of the damage cannot be independently verified at this time, but the Israeli military said it has relied on high-quality intelligence to precisely target aspects of Iran’s nuclear program.

In his video address, Netanyahu said the strikes targeted the leading Iranian nuclear enrichment facility at Natanz, and an individual he described as Iran’s leading scientist working on nuclear weapons.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has confirmed Natanz was among the sites targeted.

“We also struck at the heart of Iran’s ballistic missile program,” Netanyahu said in his televised address.

Iranian state TV also confirmed Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami, the head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed in an Israeli strike in Tehran, the Iranian capital.

Israel Braces for Retaliation

As Israeli warplanes launched their offensive operations on Iran, the Israeli military began advising its citizens to take shelter in anticipation of an Iranian retaliation.

“Civilians of Israel, I can’t promise absolute success—the Iranian regime will attempt to attack us in response. The expected toll will be different to what we are used to,” Israeli Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said.

Iran launched a barrage of missiles at Israel in October in retaliation for an Israeli airstrike that killed Iranian Gen. Abbas Nilforoushan and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Lebanon, and for an assassination operation that killed Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.

In a Friday morning press statement, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel “must expect a severe punishment.”

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting with air force and air defense staff in Tehran on Feb. 7, 2021. Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP

“The Zionist regime prepared a bitter and painful fate for itself with this crime and it will definitely receive it,” the Iranian leader added.

US Denies Involvement

“Tonight, Israel took unilateral action against Iran. We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said shortly after the attack began.

While Rubio denied U.S. involvement in the military operation, he said Israeli officials informed the U.S. government that they believed the attack was necessary for their national self-defense.

It’s not clear exactly how much the U.S. government knew about the Israeli operation before it began.

On June 11, the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad began reducing its staff. On June 12, just hours before Operation Rising Lion began, the embassy in Iraq further cautioned U.S. citizens against travel to the country, while the embassy in Israel ordered staff to leave the areas of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Be'er Sheva until further notice.

President Donald Trump faced questions about whether an Israeli attack was imminent during a bill-signing ceremony on June 12.

“I don’t want to say imminent, but it looks like it’s something that could very well happen,” the president replied.

Following the Israeli attack, Rubio said the Trump administration had taken further steps to protect U.S. forces in the region, and remains in contact with regional partners.

“Let me be clear: Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel,” Rubio added.

US Lawmakers’ Mixed Reactions

Operation Rising Lion has drawn a mixed response from U.S. lawmakers.

In an X post, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) cheered the operation, stating Iran is responsible for the deaths of thousands of Americans and was rushing to build nuclear weapons and missiles capable of striking the United States.

“We back Israel to the hilt, all the way,” Cotton said.

Parked cars amid debris from an apartment building after an Israeli strike in Tehran early June 13, 2025. Vahid Salemi/AP Photo

Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) expressed hope for the safety of Americans in the region and for the success of the Israeli attack on Iran.

“Tonight, I ask every American to join me in praying for the safety of U.S. personnel in the Middle East and the safety and success of Israel as it takes action against a leading state sponsor of terrorism and our shared enemy, Iran,” Scott wrote in an X post.

Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the Israeli operation further endangered the region.

“Israel’s alarming decision to launch airstrikes on Iran is a reckless escalation that risks igniting regional violence,” Reed told reporters. “These strikes threaten not only the lives of innocent civilians but the stability of the entire Middle East.”

Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) said the Israeli attack was a “pure sabotage” of Trump’s efforts to restrain Iran’s nuclear ambitions by diplomatic means.