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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran's ultimate person rejected U.S. calls for surrender successful the look of much Israeli strikes Wednesday and warned that immoderate subject engagement by the Americans would origin “irreparable harm to them." European diplomats prepared to clasp talks with Iran connected Friday.
The 2nd nationalist quality by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei since the Israeli strikes began six days agone came arsenic Israel lifted immoderate restrictions connected regular life, suggesting that the rocket menace from Iran was easing.
Khamenei spoke a time aft U.S. President Donald Trump demanded successful a societal media station that Iran surrender without conditions and warned Khamenei that the U.S. knows wherever helium is but has nary plans to termination him, “at slightest not for now.”
Trump initially distanced himself from Israel’s astonishment onslaught aimed astatine Iran's atomic program, but successful caller days helium has hinted astatine greater American involvement, saying helium wants thing “much bigger” than a ceasefire. The U.S. has besides sent much subject craft and warships to the region.
Senior European diplomats were acceptable to clasp atomic talks with Iran connected Friday successful Geneva, according to a European authoritative acquainted with the matter.
The official, who was not authorized to remark publically and requested anonymity to sermon matters freely, said the gathering would see high-ranking diplomats from Germany, France and the United Kingdom, arsenic good arsenic the European Union’s apical diplomat.
There are nary plans for American engagement successful the talks, though that could change, according to different U.S. authoritative who spoke connected information of anonymity to sermon backstage diplomatic communications.
Separately, the U.N. Security Council scheduled a 2nd exigency gathering connected the Israel-Iran struggle for Friday astatine the petition of Russia, China and Pakistan. Russian President Vladimir Putin offered to assistance mediate, suggesting Moscow could assistance negociate a colony allowing Tehran to prosecute a peaceful atomic programme portion assuaging Israeli information concerns.
“In my view, a solution could beryllium found,” Putin said Wednesday astatine a league with journalists.
In a video code to Israelis, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed appreciation for Trump’s enactment successful the conflict, calling him “a large person of Israel” and praising U.S. assistance defending Israel’s skies.
“We talk constantly, including past night,” helium said Wednesday. “We had a precise lukewarm conversation.”
‘The Iranian federation is not 1 to surrender’
Khamenei dismissed the “threatening and absurd statements” by Trump.
“Wise individuals who cognize Iran, its radical and its past ne'er talk to this federation with the connection of threats, due to the fact that the Iranian federation is not 1 to surrender,” helium said successful a low-resolution video.
“Americans should cognize that immoderate subject engagement by the U.S. volition undoubtedly effect successful irreparable harm to them.”
Iran released Khamenei’s connection earlier the video was aired, possibly arsenic a information measure. His determination is not known, and it was intolerable to discern from the choky shot, which showed lone beige curtains, an Iranian emblem and a representation of Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Khamenei's contiguous predecessor, who died successful 1989.
An Iranian diplomat had warned earlier Wednesday that U.S. involution would hazard “all-out war.”
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei did not elaborate, but thousands of American troops are based successful adjacent countries wrong scope of Iran's weapons. The U.S. has threatened a monolithic effect to immoderate attack.
Another Iranian authoritative said the state would support enriching uranium for peaceful purposes, seemingly ruling retired Trump's demands that Iran springiness up its disputed atomic program.
Meanwhile, Iranian authorities TV reported precocious Wednesday that it was nether a cyberattack by Israel.
Social media users reported that the regular broadcast connected authorities TV was concisely interrupted and replaced with an anti-government video urging radical to instrumentality to the streets. After the mean broadcast resumed, a connection connected the surface said, “If you spot an irrelevant connection connected the screen, it’s owed to a cyber onslaught by the Zionist regime.”
Strikes successful and astir Tehran
Israeli subject spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin told a quality league Wednesday that Israel launched 3 waves of aerial attacks successful the past 24 hours, deploying dozens of warplanes to onslaught implicit 60 targets successful Tehran and occidental Iran.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the subject struck the office of Iran’s interior information forces, without specifying the bureau oregon location. The onslaught marks a displacement toward targeting Iran’s home information apparatus, which has agelong cracked down connected dissent and suppressed protests.
Iran’s constabulary unit acknowledged the onslaught hours later, saying that Israel deed its cardinal bid buildings successful Tehran and wounded immoderate officers, without saying however many.
In addition, the U.N. atomic watchdog bureau said, Israel deed 2 centrifuge-production facilities successful and adjacent Tehran.
Israel's aerial run has struck respective atomic and subject sites, sidesplitting apical generals and atomic scientists. A Washington-based Iranian quality rights radical said astatine slightest 639 people, including 263 civilians, person been killed successful Iran and much than 1,300 wounded.
In retaliation, Iran has fired immoderate 400 missiles and hundreds of drones, sidesplitting astatine slightest 24 radical successful Israel and wounding hundreds. Some person deed flat buildings successful cardinal Israel, causing dense damage.
Israeli subject officials said their defenses intercepted 10 missiles overnight and respective much Wednesday evening arsenic Iran’s retaliatory barrages diminished. Air-raid sirens forced Israelis to tally for shelter. There were nary reports of injuries.
Iran has fired less missiles arsenic the struggle has worn on. It has not explained the decline, but Israel has targeted launchers and different infrastructure related to the missiles.
Some U.S. diplomats and their families astatine the U.S. Embassy successful Israel were evacuated Wednesday, according to 2 U.S. officials who spoke connected information of anonymity to picture delicate diplomatic movements. A fig of diplomats near connected a authorities level soon earlier U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee announced that the embassy was making evacuation plans for backstage American citizens, the officials said.
By Wednesday, Israel eased immoderate of the restrictions that it had imposed connected civilians erstwhile Iran launched its retaliatory attack, allowing gatherings of up to 30 radical and letting workplaces reopen arsenic agelong arsenic determination is simply a structure nearby.
Casualties equine successful Iran
The Washington-based radical Human Rights Activists said it had identified 263 of those killed successful Israeli strikes arsenic civilians and 154 arsenic information personnel.
The group, which besides provided elaborate casualty figures during 2022 protests implicit the decease of Mahsa Amini, crosschecks section reports against a web of sources it has developed successful Iran.
Iran has not published regular decease tolls during the struggle and has minimized casualties successful the past. Its past update, issued Monday, enactment the toll astatine 224 radical killed and 1,277 others wounded.
Internet service, which has faced repeated disruption successful Iran implicit the past six days, crashed connected Wednesday. The internet-monitoring radical NetBlocks reported a “near-total nationalist net blackout."
The Iranian Communications Ministry announced that the authorities was limiting net entree to forestall Israel's “misuse of the country’s connection web for subject purposes.”
Shops person been closed crossed Tehran, including successful its famed Grand Bazaar, arsenic radical hold successful state lines and battalion roads starring retired of the metropolis to flight the onslaught.
Witnesses reported that much than 10 almighty explosions shook cardinal Tehran astir 8 p.m., sending achromatic fume into the air.
At slightest 1 onslaught appeared to people Tehran’s eastbound vicinity of Hakimiyeh, wherever the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard has an academy.
Israel says it launched the strikes to forestall Iran from gathering a atomic weapon, aft talks betwixt the United States and Iran implicit a diplomatic solution made small disposable advancement implicit 2 months but were inactive ongoing. Trump has said Israel’s run came aft a 60-day model helium acceptable for the talks.
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Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Amir Vahdat, Nasser Karimi and Mehdi Fattahi successful Iran, Jamey Keaten successful Geneva, Aamer Madhani and Matthew Lee successful Washington, and Isabel DeBre successful Buenos Aires, Argentina, contributed to this report.
