A week of Israeli air and missile strikes against its major rival has wiped out the top echelon of Iran s military command, damaged its nuclear capabilities and killed hundreds of people, while Iranian retaliatory strikes have killed at least two dozen Israelis, Reuters reported.
The worst-ever conflict between the two regional powers has raised fears that it will draw in world powers and further destabilize the Middle East.
Speaking to reporters outside the White House on Wednesday, Trump declined to say if he had made any decision on whether to join Israel s air campaign. "I may do it. I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I m going to do," he said.
Trump in later remarks said Iranian officials wanted to come to Washington for a meeting. "We may do that" he said, adding "it s a little late" for such talks.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rebuked Trump s earlier call for Iran to surrender in a recorded speech played on television, his first appearance since Friday.
"Any U.S. military intervention will undoubtedly be accompanied by irreparable damage," he said. "The Iranian nation will not surrender."
Iran denies it is seeking nuclear weapons and says its program is for peaceful purposes only. The International Atomic Energy Agency said last week Tehran was in breach of its non-proliferation obligations for the first time in 20 years.
Also Read: Iran-Israel: G7 urges broader de-escalation of hostilities in Middle East
The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Britain plan to hold nuclear talks with their Iranian counterpart on Friday in Geneva to urge Iran to return to the negotiating table, a German diplomatic source told Reuters.
Israel, which is not a party to the international Non-Proliferation Treaty, is the only country in the Middle East believed to have nuclear weapons. Israel does not deny or confirm that.
DRONE ATTACKS
On Thursday morning, several Iranian missiles struck populated areas in Israel, including a hospital in the southern part of the country, according to an Israeli military official.
Trails of missiles and interception efforts were visible in the skies over Tel Aviv, with explosions heard as incoming projectiles were intercepted. Israeli media also reported direct hits in central Israel.
Emergency services said five people had been seriously injured in the attacks and dozens of others hurt in three separate locations. People were still trapped in a building in a south Tel Aviv neighbourhood, they added.
Iran s Revolutionary Guard said it was targeting Israeli military and intelligence headquarters near the hospital.
In Iran, the ISNA news agency reported that an area near the heavy water facility of the Khondab nuclear facility was targeted by Israel.
Earlier, air defences were activated in Tehran, intercepting drones on the outskirts of the capital, the semi-official SNN news agency reported. Iranian news agencies also reported it had arrested 18 "enemy agents" who were building drones for Israeli attacks in the northeastern city of Mashhad.
Some residents of Tehran, a city of 10 million people, jammed highways out of the city on Wednesday.
Arezou, a 31-year-old Tehran resident, told Reuters by phone that she had made it to the nearby resort town of Lavasan.
"My friend’s house in Tehran was attacked and her brother was injured. They are civilians," she said. "Why are we paying the price for the regime’s decision to pursue a nuclear programme?"
