The conflict between Israel and Iran has escalated into its sixth day of airstrikes, with Iranian forces suffering heavy bombardments as the United States weighs potential military involvement.
Israeli forces launched strikes today on 40 sites across Iran, targeting centrifuge production facilities and weapons manufacturing sites, according to Al Jazeera reports.
Iran responded by launching missiles towards Israeli civilian centers, but experts have noted their counterattacks have lacked the expected ferocity. Iranian forces appear to be struggling to maintain combat cohesion since Israel launched its surprise operation against Iran’s nuclear program on June 13.
In a televised address Wednesday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a direct warning to the United States, saying Iran would not accept an “imposed war” or “peace” and that any U.S. strikes on Iranian territory would have “serious irreparable consequences.”
“War will be met with war, bombing with bombing, and strike with strike. Iran will not submit to any demands or dictates,” Khamenei said in comments carried by Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency.
Khamenei is currently hiding in a bunker, and President Donald Trump said on social media that the United States knows where he is. Trump has demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender” and claimed the U.S. now has “complete and total control of the skies over Iran.”
The U.S. has deployed additional military assets to the Middle East, according to reports, and is strongly considering joining the offensive against the radical Islamic dictatorship.
The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed Wednesday that Israeli strikes hit two centrifuge facilities at the TESA Karaj workshop and Tehran Research Center in the Iranian capital. These facilities are critical to Iran’s uranium enrichment capabilities.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not ruled out targeting Khamenei himself, telling ABC News on Monday: “It’s not going to escalate the conflict, it’s going to end the conflict.”
At least 224 people have been killed in Iran since Israel began its bombing campaign, according to Iranian state propaganda. In Israel, at least 24 people have died from Iranian retaliatory strikes on civilian centers, with hundreds more injured.
Public opinion in the United States remains divided on potential military intervention.
Oil prices have surged as the conflict threatens stability in one of the world’s most critical energy-producing regions. U.S. oil futures climbed 4.3% on Tuesday to settle at $74.84 per barrel, the highest closing price since January 22.