Israel-Iran strikes escalate: Air defence activated in Tehran, six other provinces

US President Donald Trump said he and Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed in a phone call on Saturday that the conflict between Iran and Israel "should end."

"He feels, as do I, this war in Israel-Iran should end, to which I explained, his war should also end," Trump said on Truth Social, referring to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian, have discussed the ongoing regional and international developments, according to the Qatar News Agency.

This came during a phone call on Saturday, where the Emir reiterated the State of Qatar's strong condemnation and deep denunciation of the Israeli attack that targeted the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran, considering it a blatant violation of Iran's sovereignty and security, and a clear breach of the rules and principles of international law.

He stressed the need to de-escalate all forms of tension and to reach diplomatic solutions that would achieve lasting and comprehensive peace in the region. 

Iranian media said air defences were activated Saturday over Tehran and six other provinces, on the second day of Israel's air campaign against the Islamic republic.

News agency Tasnim said air defences were responding to "hostile targets" over Tehran and in the provinces of Hormozgan in the country's south, Kermanshah and Lorestan in the west, Qom in the centre, East Azerbaijan in the northwest, and Khuzestan in the southwest. State TV reported air defence activity in the same areas.

Another news agency, Fars, shared images of what it said was the "destruction of two Israeli aircraft in Tehran".

Israeli military said it struck an underground facility Saturday in western Iran's Khorramabad that contained surface-to-surface and cruise missiles.

"This is an important site that was even featured in a propaganda video by the Iranian regime in the past," military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin told journalists, referring to footage aired by Iran's Revolutionary Guards earlier this year showing what it described as a new underground missile facility.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Saturday that Tehran would not attend nuclear talks with the United States so long as Israel kept up its attacks on the Islamic republic.

In a call with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, Pezeshkian said Iran favoured diplomacy, but will not "accept irrational demands under pressure or... sit at the negotiating table while the Zionist regime continues its attacks", according to a readout shared by the Iranian presidency.

Macron said in a statement of his own that he had asked Pezeshkian to "return swiftly to the negotiating table".

Iranian state television said air defences were activated Saturday to respond to a drone attack at the strategic port of Bandar Abbas on the second day of Israel's strikes on the country.

"The air defence of Bandar Abbas was activated to combat micro-drones," state TV reported without elaborating. Citing an air defence commander, it also said that "over the past hour, 10 hostile Israeli aircraft were shot down in different areas" of the country.

Britain is deploying assets to the Middle East amid tensions between Iran and Israel, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Saturday as he flew to Canada for G7 talks.

"We are moving assets to the region, including jets, and that is for contingency support," Starmer told reporters travelling with him on his plane.

The Iranian Red Crescent and local media reported on Saturday that an Israeli strike hit an ambulance in the country's northwest, killing two people.

Tasnim news agency reported an explosion at a barracks in the city of Urmia, adding "rescuers and ambulances heading towards the barracks came under direct attack from Israel", leaving two people dead. The Red Crescent confirmed the information in a brief statement of its own.

Iranian media reported a "massive explosion" on Saturday following an Israeli drone strike on the South Pars refinery in the southern port city of Kangan.

"An hour ago, an Israeli drone hit one of the South Pars Phase 14 refineries, causing a massive explosion and fire in the refinery," the Tasnim news agency said, while the Fars agency reported firefighters were working to extinguish a blaze that had erupted as a result of the attack.

Israel warned of more attacks on Iran on Saturday after Tehran fired waves of missiles and drones that killed three people and wounded dozens in Israel. Iran was retaliating for a series of blistering Israeli attacks on its nuclear and military facilities on Friday.

Israel said hundreds of airstrikes over the past two days also killed nine senior scientists and experts involved in Iran’s nuclear program, in addition to several top generals.

Israeli drone strikes a refinery in Iran's South Pars gas field, Iranian semiofficial news agencies say.

If confirmed, it would mark the first Israeli attack on Iran’s oil and natural gas industry. Israel did not immediately acknowledge the attack. Such sites do have air defense systems around them, which Israel has been targeting since Friday.

The Fars and Tasnim news agencies reported the strike, saying it happened in Phase 14 of the field.

A sixth round of nuclear talks between Tehran and Washington planned for this weekend has been cancelled, mediator Oman said, following waves of Israeli attacks on Iran.

"The Iran US-talks scheduled to be held in Muscat this Sunday will not now take place," Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said in a post on X, adding that "diplomacy and dialogue remain the only pathway to lasting peace".

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned against a "devastating war" between Israel and Iran that could trigger a refugee crisis, in a telephone conversation with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

"President Erdogan said during the conversation that our region cannot tolerate another crisis, and a devastating war could create waves of irregular migration towards all the countries in the region," the Turkish presidency said in a statement.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned on Saturday that there would be a "more severe and powerful response" if Israel continued to strike his country.

"The continuation of Zionist aggression will be met with a more severe and powerful response from the Iranian armed forces," Pezeshkian said in a phone call with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, according to the Iranian presidency.

The United States still wants to meet with Iran, an official said Saturday, after Tehran said a meeting would be meaningless while US ally Israel is bombing the Islamic republic.

"We still hope to have talks," a US official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Iranian news agency Tasnim said an Israeli strike killed three members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the country's northwest.

"In a brutal attack by the Zionist regime, three proud and courageous Guard members of Zanjan province... were martyred," Tasnim said, naming the slain men as Hamid Toomari, Akbar Azizi and Amir Khani.

Croatia's consul in Israel and his wife were lightly injured in Iran's missile strikes on Tel Aviv, Croatia's Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman said on Saturday.

"I am shaken by the news that our consul and his wife were injured in the attack on Tel Aviv. The building they live in was hit," he said on X, formerly Twitter.

"I spoke with them and, fortunately, their injuries are minor and they are not in any life-threatening condition."

Grlic Radman added that his ministry was in constant contact with the Croatian embassy in Israel and was taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety of its staff.

"We strongly condemn attacks on civilians and diplomatic facilities. We call for immediate de-escalation and restraint," Grlic Radman said.

UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan held separate phone calls with Emmanuel Macron, President of France, and Giorgia Meloni, Prime Minister of Italy. They discussed strategic relations and ways to enhance cooperation across multiple fields to support their shared interests.

During the calls, Sheikh Mohamed also exchanged views with the French President and Italian Prime Minister on developments in the Middle East following the Israeli military operations against Iran. They underscored the need for maximum restraint and for intensifying efforts to de-escalate tensions and resolve disputes through diplomatic means that preserve the region's security and stability.

Iranian media reported a police chief and another officer were killed in drone strike Saturday, about 300 kilometres (186 miles) west of Tehran, as Israel kept up its air campaign against the Islamic republic for a second day.

"This morning police chief Major Habibollah Akbarian, along with second lieutenant Amir Hossein Seifi, were martyred by a drone strike in Asadabad city in the western province of Hamedan," the ISNA press agency reported.

The Israeli military said on Saturday that its air strikes on Iran had killed more than 20 Iranian army and Revolutionary Guards commanders, including armed forces chief Mohammad Bagheri.

"Since the beginning of the operation (on Friday), over 20 commanders in the Iranian regime's security apparatus have been eliminated," the military said in a statement, naming several top commanders in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the armed forces.

The Israeli military said Saturday that its ongoing air campaign in Iran had now given it the required "aerial freedom" for actions from west Iran to Tehran, where 70 fighter jets carried out strikes overnight.

"We have created aerial freedom of action from west Iran all the way to Tehran... Tehran is no longer immune," military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin told journalists, adding that the air force "launched a massive strike involving more than 70 fighter jets, targeting objectives in Tehran" overnight.

Israel's military on Saturday said it was "currently" launching attacks on several sites across Iran as it kept up its campaign targeting the Islamic republic's military and nuclear sites.

"We are currently launching attacks on several sites in Iran," military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said in a televised press conference after Iran responded to Israeli strikes with waves of drones and missile barrages.

The Iranian foreign ministry on Saturday said it would be "meaningless" to join nuclear negotiations with the United States in Oman while Iran is under attack by Israel.

"It is obvious that in such circumstances and until the Zionist regime's aggression against the Iranian nation stops, it would be meaningless to participate in dialogue with a party that is the biggest supporter and accomplice of the aggressor," the ministry's spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said in a statement ahead of the talks that were planned for Sunday.

An Iranian missile strike wounded seven soldiers in central Israel overnight, a military spokesperson said Saturday, one of several barrages launched in response to Israel's attack on military and nuclear sites.

"Seven... soldiers were lightly injured last night, as a result of an Iranian missile hit to central Israel," the spokesperson said. Israel's commercial hub Tel Aviv is in central Israel and the city hosts the defence ministry and military headquarters.

The UAE has issued an urgent travel advisory urging nationals, residents, and visitors to check with airlines for flight updates amid ongoing Middle East tensions disrupting air travel.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) specifically advises Emiratis in Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, and Israel to stay vigilant, stay informed, and register with the ‘Twajudi’ consular service for assistance during emergencies.

Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he was "alarmed" by events overnight in the Israel-Iran conflict.

"Alarmed by further strikes in the Middle East overnight, with reports of fatalities and injuries in Israel. We must urgently de-escalate & prevent any further harm to civilians," Lammy said on X, formerly Twitter, adding that he had spoken to his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi "to urge calm".

The Israeli military said on Saturday its air strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities the previous day resulted in the deaths of nine leading Iranian nuclear scientists.

"During the Israeli air force strikes at the onset of Operation Rising Lion, nine senior scientists and experts, who advanced the Iranian regime's nuclear weapons programme, were eliminated," the military said in a statement, listing the names of those killed.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appointed a new head of the Revolutionary Guards air arm on Saturday to replace the one killed by an Israeli strike.

In a decree, Khamenei named Majid Mousavi to replace Amirali Hajizadeh as commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps aerospace force.

Israel's Ben Gurion international airport is closed until further notice, a spokeswoman said on Saturday, as Israel and Iran traded fire for a second day.

"There is no date or day set to reopen the airport," airport spokeswoman Lisa Diver told AFP.

Defence Minister Israel Katz on Saturday warned that "Tehran will burn" if Iran fired more missiles at Israel, as the arch foes traded fire for a second day.

"The Iranian dictator is turning the citizens of Iran into hostages and bringing about a reality in which they - especially the residents of Tehran - will pay a heavy price because of the criminal harm to Israeli civilians," Katz was quoted as saying in a statement.

"If (Ayatollah Ali) Khamenei continues to fire missiles toward the Israeli home front - Tehran will burn."

Iranian media reported new Israeli strikes on Saturday in cities in the west and northwest which house key defences and military bases.

The local news agencies said the strikes hit the northwestern city of Tabriz as well as parts of the western provinces of Lorestan, Hamedan and Kermanshah.

Israel's military said on Saturday that its fighter jets were set to resume striking targets in Tehran, after announcing it had hit air defences in the area of the Iranian capital overnight.

"The way to Iran has been paved," the military's chief of staff and air force chief were quoted as saying in an army statement.

The military "is proceeding according to its operational plans, and (Israeli air force) fighters jets are set to resume striking targets in Tehran," it added.

Iran's civil aviation authority has declared the country's airspace closed "until further notice," state media reported Saturday, as Israel and Iran continued to trade fire for a second day.

"No flights will be operated at any airports in the country in order to protect the safety of passengers... until further notice," the official IRNA news agency said.

Jordan's civil aviation authority said it reopened its airspace on Saturday, a day after suspending it as Israel and Iran traded fire.

"Jordan has reopened its airspace starting 7:30 am (0430 GMT)," the chairman of the Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission, Haitham Misto, said in a statement.

Iran has yet to decide whether to join a sixth round of nuclear talks with the United States on Sunday, state media reported, as Israel and Iran traded fire for a second day.

"It is still unclear what decision we will make for Sunday," foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said of the talks in Oman, quoted by the official IRNA news agency on Saturday.

Two senior Iranian generals have been killed in Israeli strikes, state television reported Saturday, as Israel kept up its assault on Iran's military and nuclear capabilities. General Gholamreza Mehrabi, deputy head of intelligence of the armed forces general staff, and General Mehdi Rabbani, deputy head of operations, "were martyred", the broadcaster said.

Israel's strikes on Iran have killed 78 people, including top military commanders, and wounded more than 320, the Islamic republic's ambassador to the United Nations said Friday.

"So far, 78 people, including senior military officials, have been martyred and over 320 other injured. The overwhelming majority of them (are) civilians, including women and children," Iran's ambassador to the UN Amir Iravani told the Security Council.

Iran launched retaliatory missile and drone strikes on Israel into Saturday morning, killing at least three people and wounding dozens, after a series of blistering Israeli attacks on the heart of Iran’s nuclear program and its armed forces.

Israel’s assault used warplanes — as well as drones smuggled into the country in advance, according to officials — to assault key facilities and kill top generals and scientists. Iran’s U.N. ambassador said 78 people were killed and more than 320 wounded in the attacks.

Iran retaliated by launching waves of drones and ballistic missiles at Israel, where explosions lit the night skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and shook the buildings below. The Israeli military urged civilians, already rattled by 20 months of war sparked by Hamas' Oct. 7 attack, to head to shelter for hours.