Israel and Iran Trade More Deadly Strikes in Third Day of Escalating Conflict

Israel's initial attack late Thursday followed intelligence from its Mossad spy agency, which Israel says suggested Iran was close to developing a nuclear weapon. Israel — widely thought to possess its own nuclear weapons — considers Iran's nuclear program a direct threat to its national security.

In Brief
  • Israel and Iran exchanged another round of intense missile strikes into Sunday, fueling growing concerns that the fighting could escalate into a wider regional conflict.
  • The latest exchanges came just hours after planned U.S.
  • talks on Iran's nuclear program were called off.

Israel and Iran exchanged another round of intense missile strikes into Sunday, fueling growing concerns that the fighting could escalate into a wider regional conflict. The latest exchanges came just hours after planned U.S. talks on Iran’s nuclear program were called off.

Israeli missiles struck two energy facilities in southern Iran, according to Iranian state media. In response, Iran fired hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones into Israel, causing multiple casualties and significant damage to an oil refinery and a prominent science institute.

On social media, President Trump said the U.S. had “nothing to do with the attack on Iran, tonight,” but warned that if the U.S. was attacked by Iran in any way, that “the full strength of U.S. Armed forces will come down on [Iran] at levels never seen before.”

Hard night for Israelis

It marked the hardest night for Israelis since the start of the fighting, with at least ten casualties — including children — and hundreds injured, according to Israeli emergency services organization, Magen David Adom.

What does this mean for you?

Israel launched airstrikes into Iran, targeting energy facilities in the south and key nuclear sites, on Friday, June 13, 2025, in what it called a “preemptive” move to halt Iran’s nuclear progress.

In response, Iran retaliated by firing hundreds of missiles and drones toward Israel early Sunday, June 15, damaging an oil refinery, a major science institute, and causing civilian casualties.

Hundreds of Iranian missiles rained down across Israel beginning Saturday night, some of them evading the country’s sophisticated defense systems.

The deadliest strikes hit a residential building in Bat Yam, a suburb south of Tel Aviv, killing at least six people, including a 10-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl. Another 180 people were wounded and seven are still missing, according to local police.

In the north, sirens blared and people ran for shelter as missiles struck the country’s largest oil refinery, located near the port city of Haifa. Four women were killed in Tamra, an Arab town of around 35,000 people, according to the Associated Press. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, said it had targeted Israel’s fuel structure in response to Israel’s strikes on its oil facilities in the south.

In the central city of Rehovot, at least 42 people were injured, and several campus buildings at The Weizmann Institute of Science, a prominent research center, were also struck. The center said no one on campus was hurt, despite the extensive damage.

Sourcenpr.org

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