Israeli strikes damage Iran’s underground nuclear site, agency says, as Trump issues ominous warning

DUBAI United Arab Emirates AP The International Atomic Vigor Agency noted Tuesday it believes Israeli airstrikes on Iran s Natanz enrichment site have had direct impacts on the facility s underground centrifuge halls The strikes are part of an air campaign Israel launched against its longtime foe five days ago targeting Iran s military and nuclear operation This marks the first time the United Nations nuclear watchdog has assessed damage from the strikes in the underground parts of Natanz which is the main enrichment facility of Iran s nuclear initiative Based on continued analysis of high-resolution satellite imagery collected after Friday s attacks the IAEA has identified additional elements that indicate direct impacts on the underground enrichment halls at Natanz the agency revealed Already an above-ground enrichment hall had been destroyed as well as electrical equipment that powered the facility Israel continued to pound Iran Tuesday while U S President Donald Trump posted an ominous message warning Tehran residents to evacuate IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON Trump wrote Monday night before returning to Washington early from a Group of Seven summit in Canada Everyone should straightaway evacuate Tehran he added Trump later denied he had rushed back to work on a ceasefire telling reporters on Air Force One I m not looking at a ceasefire We re looking at better than a ceasefire Demanded why he had urged for the evacuation of Tehran he noted I just want people to be safe Earlier the Israeli military had called for selected residents of a neighborhood in downtown Tehran to evacuate Tehran is one of the largest cities in the Middle East with around million people roughly equivalent to the entire population of Israel People have been fleeing since hostilities began Israel says its sweeping assault on Iran s top military leaders nuclear scientists uranium enrichment sites and ballistic missile plan is necessary to prevent its adversary from getting any closer to building an atomic weapon The strikes have killed at least people in Iran Iran has retaliated by launching more than missiles and hundreds of drones at Israel So far people have been killed in Israel The Israeli military noted a new barrage of missiles was launched on Tuesday and explosions could be heard in northern Israel Shops closed lines for gas in Iran s capital Downtown Tehran appeared to be emptying out early Tuesday with a multitude of shops closed The ancient Grand Bazaar was also closed something that only happened in the past during anti-government demonstrations or at the height of the coronavirus pandemic On the roads out of Tehran to the west traffic stood bumper to bumper A large number of appeared to be heading to the Caspian Sea area Long lines also could be seen at gas stations in Tehran with printed placards and boards calling for a severe response to Israel visible across the city Leadership cancelled leave for doctors and nurses as the attacks continue but insisted everything was under control and did not offer any guidance for the populace on what to do The Israeli military meanwhile claimed to have killed someone it described as Iran s top general in a strike on Tehran Iran did not right away comment on the published killing of Gen Ali Shadmani who had just been named as the head of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters part of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Iran has named other generals to replace the top leaders of the Guard and the regular armed forces after they were killed in earlier strikes Trump leaves G early to focus on conflict Before leaving the summit in Canada Trump joined the other leaders in a joint declaration saying Iran can never have a nuclear weapon and calling for a de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East including a ceasefire in Gaza French President Emmanuel Macron stated reporters that discussions were underway on a ceasefire between Israel and Iran but Trump appeared to shoot that down in his comments on social media Macron mistakenly disclosed that I left the G Summit in Canada to go back to D C to work on a cease fire between Israel and Iran Trump wrote Wrong He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire Much bigger than that Meanwhile U S Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth headed to the White House Situation Room to meet with the president and his national safety gang Hegseth didn t provide details on what prompted the meeting but mentioned on Fox News late Monday that the movements were to ensure that our people are safe Trump stated he wasn t ready to give up on diplomatic talks and could send Vice President JD Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with the Iranians I may he disclosed It depends on what happens when I get back Israel says it has aerial superiority over Tehran Israeli military spokesperson Brig Gen Effie Defrin explained Monday his country s forces had achieved full aerial superiority over Tehran s skies The military disclosed it destroyed more than surface-to-surface missile launchers in central Iran a third of Iran s total including multiple launchers just before they launched ballistic missiles towards Israel It also destroyed two F- fighter planes that Iran used to target Israeli aircraft the military mentioned Israeli military executives also announced fighter jets had struck command centers in Tehran belonging to Iran s Quds Force an elite arm of its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard that conducts military and intelligence operations outside Iran Israel s military issued an evacuation warning for a part of central Tehran that houses state TV and police headquarters as well as three large hospitals including one owned by the Guard It has issued similar evacuation warnings for parts of the Gaza Strip and Lebanon ahead of strikes On Monday an Israeli strike hit the headquarters of Iran s state-run TV station sending a television anchor fleeing her studio during a live broadcast The Israeli military reported Tuesday it had hit the station because the broadcast channel was used to spread anti-Israel propaganda Israel says strikes have set back nuclear initiative Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned the Israeli strikes have set Iran s nuclear activity back a very very long time and reported reporters he is in daily touch with Trump Iran maintains its nuclear activity is peaceful and the U S and others have assessed Tehran has not had an organized effort to pursue a nuclear weapon since The head of the International Atomic Power Agency has repeatedly warned that the country has enough enriched uranium to make several nuclear bombs should it choose to do so So far Israel has targeted multiple Iranian nuclear effort sites but has not been able to destroy Iran s Fordo uranium enrichment facility The site is buried deep underground and to eliminate it Israel may need the -pound -kilogram GBU- Massive Ordnance Penetrator a U S bunker-busting bomb that uses its weight and sheer kinetic force to reach deeply buried targets Israel does not have the munition or the bomber needed to deliver it The penetrator is at this moment delivered by the B- stealth bomber No sign of conflict letting up Iran s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi appeared to make a veiled plea Monday for the U S to step in and negotiate an end to hostilities In a post on X Araghchi wrote that if Trump is genuine about diplomacy and interested in stopping this war next efforts are consequential It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu Iran s top diplomat wrote That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy The message to Washington was sent as the latest talks between the U S and Iran were canceled over the weekend after Israel s surprise bombardment On Sunday Araghchi noted Iran will stop its strikes if Israel does the same