Israel, Iran exchange fresh rounds of missile strikes as the UK gets dragged into the conflict

Iran and Israel exchanged fresh rounds of missile strikes as tensions between the two nations continue to escalate. On Saturday, Israeli citizens were instructed to take shelter in protected spaces after Iranian missiles were seen over Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, with multiple explosions rocking the Israeli city of Haifa.

“Millions of Israelis are running to shelter in northern Israel due to projectile fire from Iran,” the Israeli military said in a post on X. The Magen David Adom emergency service noted that one woman was killed in the latest attack and over a dozen were wounded when a two-story home in the north was hit. Within the hour, Israel’s military said people could leave shelters.

The fresh attack from the Iranian side came shortly after Israel claimed that it had gained control over the skies of the Iranian capital, warning that “Tehran will burn” if more missiles are fired at its territory. Iranian leadership hit back, vowing a “more severe and powerful response” and threatening to widen the war by striking ships and bases of Israeli allies.

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UK gets involved

Amidst the escalating tensions in West Asia, the UK moved jets and other military assets to the Middle East, Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Saturday. The move came after Starmer refused to rule out defending Israel from Iranian strikes despite a threat from Iran that any such action could compel the country to target British bases in the region.

While speaking to the reporters on the plane to the G7 Summit, Starmer reiterated his calls for de-escalation, saying he had held a series of calls with other world leaders in the hours after Israel’s attack on Iran, including the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump .

“I will always make the right decisions for the UK,” he said when asked about his reaction to Iran’s threats against the bases of any Western nations that came to Israel’s aid. “We are moving assets to the region, including jets, and that is for contingency support in the region.” Meanwhile, Trump issued a threat against Iran, warning that the country will be wiped off the map if strikes continue.

Israel targets Iran’s nuclear facilities, AGAIN

Early Saturday, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) announced that it had targeted Iran’s Defence Ministry headquarters in Tehran. It also alleged that it struck sites that were allegedly associated with Iran’s nuclear program around Tehran.

The IDF noted that the sites were “related to the Iranian regime’s nuclear weapons project.” In light of this, the latest US-Iran talks regarding the latter’s nuclear program will not take place Sunday, officials said amid continued fighting. Iran launched a second round of missiles against Israel. At the same time, Israel’s military kept up attacks on Iran following earlier strikes that targeted nuclear and military sites and killed key leaders in the country’s governing theocracy.

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“Tehran is burning,” Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on social media, and Iranian state television said explosions were heard in the city’s east and west. World leaders made urgent calls to de-escalate and avoid all-out war. The attack on nuclear sites set a “dangerous precedent,” China’s foreign minister said. The region is already on edge as Israel makes a new push to eliminate the Iranian-backed militant group Hamas in Gaza after 20 months of fighting.

With inputs from the Associated Press.