Sunday, June 22, 2025

06/22 Links: Why Israel Had to Act; Operation Midnight Hammer: The strike that shattered Iran's nuclear ambitions; IDF recovers bodies of three hostages from Gaza

From Ian:

John Podhoretz: Trump Changes History With Iran Strike
It’s a dangerous moment; the Iranian regime has terrorist assets we might not know about and work to hurt us and the Israelis still more. On the other hand, Iran is a thousand times weaker today than it was just 11 days ago, and so many of its strategic assets and strategic thinkers have been destroyed in that time it’s not clear what capability the regime still might possess. So vigilance is called for, and we shouldn’t celebrate just yet, but neither should we panic.

It turns out that in the case of the Middle East what Trump said about himself is true. He said he doesn’t start wars. Trump said he ends wars. And what happened last night was Trump ending this evil war of Iran’s, either right now or after more pain causes the mullahs to cry uncle. For Israel didn’t start this war either. It was launched, by Iran and its catamites, on October 7.

As I write, it’s only a few hours since the U.S. strike. Its impact is potentially so enormous, and so world-historic, we needn’t rush into interpreting its larger meaning. But consider the words he spoke in concluding his short speech to the nation: “I want to just thank everybody. And, in particular, God. I want to just say, we love you, God, and we love our great military. Protect them. God bless the Middle East. God bless Israel and God bless America.”

Trump has said since the assassination attempt in Butler, Pa., that he believes God spared him for a reason.

And now, so do I.

This was—is—the reason.
WSJ Editorial: The U.S. Bombs Three Nuclear Sites to Spare the World from an Intolerable Risk
President Trump's decision to strike Iran's three most significant nuclear sites on Saturday helped rid the world of a grave nuclear threat and was a large step toward restoring U.S. deterrence. Trump gave Iran every chance to resolve this peacefully. The regime flouted his 60-day deadline to make a deal.

Then Israel attacked, destroying much of the nuclear program and achieving air supremacy, and still the president gave Iran another chance to come to terms. But the regime wouldn't abandon domestic uranium enrichment. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei wanted a bomb more than peace.

Iran and its Iraqi proxies have threatened U.S. regional bases with missile fire, but if the regime values self-preservation, it will give up its nuclear ambitions and stand down. Much of the press has fixated on the idea that Trump has now joined or even started a conflict. But Iran has been waging regional and terrorist war for decades. It's as likely that he has helped end the conflict.

U.S. presidents have been known to kick the can down the road. To his credit, Trump didn't, hitting the Fordow enrichment site as well as Natanz and Isfahan. The president wanted to leave no doubt about Iran's nuclear program and take it all down. He had to act to stop the threat in front of him to protect America.

The Israelis, who proved their strategic value as an ally, would like to complete the mission by destroying what remains of Iran's missile infrastructure. They deserve a green light, especially as those missiles are threatening U.S. bases. Critics had counseled that the world had to bow to Iranian intimidation. The best we could hope for was a flimsy deal that bribed Iran with billions and left open its path to a bomb. They were wrong.
Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Amos Yadlin: Why Israel Had to Act
44 years ago I sat in the cockpit on the Israeli air force mission that destroyed Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor. In 2007, when I was serving as Israel's chief of defense intelligence, we destroyed a nuclear reactor in Syria built with North Korea's help.

Today the challenge of Iran's advanced, deeply fortified, multisite nuclear program is far more complex. Yet, a successful Israeli campaign holds the potential not only to neutralize a grave threat but also to reshape the strategic landscape of the Middle East and make the region profoundly safer.

Israel and the U.S. have a rare strategic opening. What has for years been a reactive approach can now be transformed into a proactive vision that curbs Iran's malign ambitions and efforts, stabilizes Gaza, and lays the foundation for a new order built on security, integration and peaceful relations.

The operation in Iran offers decision makers a foundation to leverage military action into a broader diplomatic initiative that aims for a strong, enforceable agreement rolling back Iran's nuclear program. It must also prevent Tehran from enriching uranium for military use, block its path to a nuclear weapon, and impose meaningful constraints on its missile arsenal, which poses a threat to the entire region. Together with crippling Iran's proxy network, these steps would significantly decrease the threat to most of America's regional partners.
John Spencer: Operation Midnight Hammer: The strike that shattered Iran's nuclear ambitions
This was not about starting a war. It is about ending one by pushing the Islamic regime closer to realizing it must give up their nuclear program, which remains the single clear objective of the war, to end decades of failed diplomatic and economic measures to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon. The United States had to assist Israel with capabilities like the GBU-57 to destroy Iranian infrastructure and push toward the only real solution: Iran giving up their nuclear program. Now it is up to Iran’s leadership, but President Trump has ensured that Iran will not be able to achieve a nuclear weapon during his tenure.

We now await full battle damage assessments of the three sites struck, especially Fordow, which lies buried deep beneath a mountain. But without a doubt, the United States did what no other country could in damaging Iran’s nuclear program deep underground. This action joins Israel’s historic operations that include the elimination of over 14 high-ranking nuclear scientists and many parts of Iran’s nuclear weapon pursuit, from missile assembly to uranium and plutonium enrichment sites. The combined effect is a massive strategic blow to Iran’s long-running efforts to build a nuclear bomb.

The first ever use of the 30,000-pound GBU-57 weapon has been used in war. This was the largest B-2 stealth bomber operational strike in history and the second longest B-2 bomber flight ever flown, only second to those following 9/11.

The United States is not at war with Iran. The United States has not declared war on Iran. The United States did use military force to assist Israel in achieving a limited goal to dismantle Iran’s nuclear program. A few voices have criticized President Trump for not getting congressional authorization before attacking Iran, but they are overlooking the historical record that since World War II, 99% of the time US presidents have used military force it was without explicit prior approval from Congress.

Last night was not just a military achievement. It was a strategic message written in steel, silence, and sky. The era of delay and denial is over. The world has changed. Iran’s path to the bomb has been shattered, and the consequences of rebuilding it will now come at a cost they can no longer afford.


Richard Kemp: Iran has no cards left to play: Trump has broken the regime
There was never a diplomatic path to ending Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Incentives, rewards and concessions were repeatedly tried and repeatedly failed as the duplicitous Islamic Republic continued its march towards nuclearisation, wavering only occasionally in the face of credible military threats. It breached its obligations both under Obama’s fundamentally flawed 2015 nuclear deal and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. No agreement has or could be worth the paper it’s printed on.

Before the US attack it was reported that Trump had requested Britain to take part, and that the Attorney General had spuriously warned that any offensive action would be unlawful. Since the attack, the Government has been hedging, with the Trade Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, cautiously saying that Britain supported action to prevent nuclear proliferation.

But I lost count of the number of times he repeated that Britain played no role in this strike. Every minister that has tweeted said the same thing. That is an expression of fear and may represent a feeble effort to try to persuade the ayatollahs against attacking British interests in the region.

But it also seems clear that Starmer’s actual policy on containing the Iranian nuclear threat is influenced more by the domestic anti-Israel lobby, including the mobs on the streets of London on Saturday screeching their support for Ayatollah Khamenei.

Given both the US stance and the overwhelming backing in the Middle East for Israel’s and Trump’s attacks against Iran, Britain’s timorousness will see us taken even less seriously on the world stage.

This decisive blow does not mean the war ends here, but there is little doubt Trump’s action will have shortened its intensive phase. It will also have greatly encouraged Iranian oppositionists, potentially hastening the regime’s fall.

It was never likely that Iran’s allies Russia and China would intervene militarily, but Trump has now shown himself to be a military strongman and that can only increase US deterrence against their aggression elsewhere.

We don’t know how much chaos and death might now ensue. But we do know that Iran has absolutely no meaningful cards left to play. Whatever retaliatory actions the ayatollahs take can have no strategic impact. President Trump and prime minister Netanyahu’s leadership against Iran have made the world a safer place.
Amit Segal: Iran’s Great Sin Meets Its Historic Punishment
This morning, it seems fitting to quote two former Israeli prime ministers: it truly is a new Middle East, and undeniably the dawn of a new day—a Middle East free from the threat of a nuclear fundamentalist regime.

This development is a direct consequence of Iran losing all its regional investments. The billions Tehran poured into Hezbollah and Hamas are now irretrievably lost. The devastating price paid by nearly 900 fallen Israeli soldiers has not been in vain—it cleared the stage for President Trump to deliver a conclusive final blow.

Iran invested half a trillion dollars in its nuclear project, which turned to dust overnight. It is no longer a nuclear threshold state, though Israeli authorities remain concerned about a potential last-ditch Iranian attempt to assemble and smuggle a dirty bomb into Israel rather than mounting it on a missile.

The Iranians underestimated Trump’s resolve in nuclear negotiations and suffered an Israeli strike as a consequence. They continued to refuse negotiations, thinking they had two weeks of leverage, only to become the first in history to suffer “the mother of all bombs.” Will they finally understand the seriousness of their predicament and end the war before the third strike comes?

Israeli assessments suggest they won’t. According to sources in Jerusalem, the regime in Tehran has embarked on an irreversible suicidal trajectory. Israel also acknowledges the possibility that a battered Hezbollah might cave to pressure from its Iranian sponsors and enter the conflict—despite the risk that the Lebanese terror group will be annihilated. Israel’s plans continue unchanged—minus the independent strike at Fordow—and are expected to conclude within approximately a week.

It has been 625 days since October 7, the true beginning of the Israel-Iran war, not merely Israel-Hamas.

A war that began with Israelis taking shelter, fighting hundreds of terrorists barehanded, now effectively concludes with the strongest world power in history demolishing Iranian nuclear sites, leaving those responsible for the war helpless.

A truly modern-day example of crime and punishment.
DEATH FROM AMERICA: Trump Decimates Iran's Nuclear Sites With Big, Beautiful Bombs
American forces dropped six bunker busters by air on Fordow and fired 30 Tomahawk cruise missiles at Esfahan and Natanz, Trump said, adding that all three sites were completely destroyed.

Prior to Trump’s tweet announcing the strikes, explosions were detected around Fordow, raising questions about whether Israel decided to strike the facility or the United States had entered the fray. America’s attack surprised the media, as well as regional experts, who expected Trump to let the issue simmer for longer after the president said Thursday he would make a decision on a strike within two weeks.

One day after that remark, however, Iran rejected the Trump administration’s diplomatic overtures, saying it would not speak to the Americans until Israel’s military siege ended and would not agree to stop enriching uranium. With no prospect for negotiations, it appears Trump decided the time was right to eradicate the remaining vestiges of Iran’s nuclear program.

Israel continued its aerial assault on Iran all through the weekend, also hitting the Esfahan nuclear plant for a second time, setting portions of it on fire. Israel struck the Natanz facility late last week, aiming to cripple its two nuclear enrichment plants.

Fordow was the last remaining nuclear stronghold and remained out of Israel’s reach until American assistance arrived on Saturday.

The heavily guarded site stretches up to 300 feet deep in some places, requiring the American military to deploy Massive Ordnance Penetrators, 30,000 pound precision-guided bombs designed specifically to obliterate deeply buried targets.

The U.S.-led air campaign could set Tehran’s nuclear program back a decade or even more, experts told the Washington Free Beacon last week. Any effort to bring Fordow and other facilities back online would pose a monumental challenge for Tehran, particularly since Israel assassinated a cadre of high-level Iranian nuclear scientists who shared decades of expertise.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his nation that Trump altered the course of history by wiping out Tehran’s nuclear sites.

"Trump's leadership has created a pivot of history that can help lead the Middle East and beyond to a future of prosperity and peace," Netanyahu said in an address."History will show Trump acted to deny the most dangerous regime the world's most dangerous weapons."

Trump told the nation late Saturday that America’s "objective was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world’s number one state sponsor of terror."

"Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success," he said, flanked by Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. "Iran’s key nuclear facilities have been completely and totally obliterated. Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace."
Arsen Ostrovsky: Why Trump and Netanyahu’s strikes on Iran are legal
First, with respect to Israel’s action, which initiated this campaign last week, it needs to underscored that this was not an act of aggression. It was a lawful and necessary measure against a genocidal regime that has vowed to destroy the world’s only Jewish state — and stood on the cusp of acquiring the means to do so, had Israel not acted.

To understand why, we must begin with a fundamental truth: Israel was already engaged in an ongoing armed conflict with the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called the Jewish state a “cancerous tumour” that “must be eradicated”.

Israel was already engaged in an ongoing armed conflict with the Islamic Republic of Iran.

For decades, Iran has been the greatest source of destabilisation and instability in the Middle East, while carrying out repeated acts of aggression against Israel through its vast network of terror proxies – from Hezbollah in Lebanon, to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza, to the Houthis in Yemen.

The October 7th massacre – the worst slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust – was carried out by Hamas with Iranian money, weapons, and training.

And in April and October 2024, Iran escalated further, launching direct missile and drone attacks on Israel from its own territory. These were not isolated provocations but ongoing acts of armed conflict.

The reality is that, despite the best efforts of the US administration, diplomacy had failed.

In the lead-up to Israel’s strike, intelligence showed Iran enriching uranium to near-weapons grade, with capacity to build at least nine warheads. Ayatollah Khamenei himself had directed a covert group of scientists to assemble the components for a nuclear bomb and construct fortified underground facilities to conceal the work.

Then the International Atomic Energy Agency, for the first time in two decades, formally declared Iran in breach of its nuclear non-proliferation obligations.

Iran was now on the precipice of nuclear no return.

Faced with an existential and imminent threat, the Jewish state had no choice but to act before it was too late, as no doubt Australia would have, were it faced with the same threat.
Seth Frantzman: Gulf states seeking stability, hope US strikes on Iran will not spark wider conflict
On Sunday, the UAE expressed its deep concern over the ongoing tension in the region and the targeting of Iranian nuclear facilities. Its Ministry of Foreign Affairs called for “an immediate end to the escalation to avoid serious repercussions and a slide into new levels of instability in the region,” UAE-based Al-Ain media reported.

It stressed “the need to prioritize diplomacy and dialogue to resolve disputes, within comprehensive approaches that achieve stability, prosperity, and justice.”

The UAE hopes that the international community can help with a solution to the tensions that would protect the region from the “scourge of conflict.” It urged the UN Security Council to assume its responsibilities by working diligently to resolve the chronic issues in the region, which are at stake and pose a growing threat to regional and international security and stability, the report said. The UN secretary-general expressed similar concern, it said.

Saudi Arabia said it had “great concern” following US attacks on the Iranian nuclear sites, Saudi Arabia-based Arab News reported. The Saudi Foreign Ministry “affirmed its condemnation and denunciation of violating the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran, expressing the need to exert all efforts to exercise restraint, de-escalate, and avoid escalation.”

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said it warned that “the current dangerous escalation in the region may lead to catastrophic consequences at both the regional and international levels. It calls on all parties to exercise wisdom, restraint, and to avoid further escalation.”

Oman denounced the escalation and expressed concern.

Clearly, most of these states have issued similar statements.

Gulf states know they would be the first to face repercussions from growing crisis
The messaging is clear: These states know that they will be among the first to face repercussions if the crisis grows. They hope mediation efforts will be successful. They could come via Turkey, Russia, Qatar, Oman, or some other channel.

Many countries have an interest in helping Iran climb down from the crisis. Most of them have already dealt with the more than 600 days of crisis that the October 7 massacre caused. They want regional stability and peace.


U.S. did ‘extremely severe damage’ to Iranian nuclear sites, but extent of destruction unknown
Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said on Sunday morning that the U.S. operation in Iran overnight had hit all of its planned targets and that initial assessments showed that the strikes had inflicted extensive damage on Iran’s nuclear facilities. But Caine said that a full assessment of whether the Iranian nuclear program had been fully destroyed would take more time.

Speaking alongside Caine at a Pentagon press briefing, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth emphasized that the strike was limited and strictly targeted at Iran’s nuclear program and was not designed to prompt regime change. He added that the U.S. continues to seek peace with Iran.

“Final battle damage will take some time, but initial battle damage assessments indicate that all three sites sustained extremely severe damage and destruction,” Caine said. Pressed on whether Iran retains any nuclear capability, Caine said that a full assessment “is still pending, and it would be way too early for me to comment on what may be there.”

Hegseth added that the U.S. believes it “achieved the destruction of capabilities” at the Fordow nuclear facility, which he described as the “primary target.”

The operation, dubbed Midnight Hammer, involved seven B2 stealth bombers which dropped a total of 14 bunker-buster bombs on Fordow and Natanz, accompanied by more than two dozen cruise missiles fired at Esfahan. Officials described Fordow as the primary U.S. target.

More than 100 other aircraft were involved in support capacities, and Caine said that Iran did not fire a single shot at U.S. forces or even deploy its fighter jets during the operation.

Plans for the strike were kept to a limited number of officials, and the U.S. conducted a deception effort to disguise its preparations. Caine said that Israeli operations over the past week had helped pave the way for the U.S. strike but Israel was not directly involved in the overnight operation.
‘Overwhelming success’: Pentagon reveals details of Iran operation
US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth spoke from The Pentagon in Washington DC to disclose details of the American strike on Iran.

Mr Hegseth revealed the strike was to “destroy or severely degrade” Iran’s nuclear program.

“It was an incredible and overwhelming success,” Mr Hegseth said.


How the US B-2 bombers made their 37-hour journey to strike Fordow — equipped with a toilet, microwave and snack cooler
The B-2 stealth bombers used to attack the Fordow nuclear enrichment plant are equipped with toilets, microwaves and usually a cooler for snacks to make life more comfortable for the pilots who were stuck in the cockpit for the 37-hour trip from Missouri to Iran and back.

The fleet of advanced American bombers — originally designed to drop nuclear bombs on the Soviet Union — took off from the Whiteman Air Force Base outside Kansas City on Friday for an 18-hour ride across the world, refueling several times in mid-air, officials said.

For such long trips to be bearable, the high-tech bombers have their cockpits outfitted with mini refrigerators and a microwave oven to keep their crew fed and alert.

And just like any plane equipped for long-haul flights, the B-2 Spirit has a toilet, too.

There’s also enough room for one pilot to lay down and rest while the other flies the batwing jet.

The B-2 first entered service in 1997, and each one costs more than $2 billion; the US Air Force has a fleet of 19 — after losing one in a crash in 2008.

With a wingspan of 172 feet and a crew of just two pilots — the B-2 relies on automation to help complete long-haul flights.

The seven B-2 bombers deployed for operation “Midnight Hammer” flew in near complete radio silence, with their two-man crews taking turns to sleep during the tense night, The Telegraph reported.

The 37 hours spent to attack Fordow marked the longest B-2 bomber mission since the initial American assault on Afghanistan following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Pilots for these types of aircraft are trained to endure long, grueling flights, with past crews bringing cots aboard or even full camping pads, according to The Atlantic.


Fresh satellite images show damage at Fordo nuclear site after US strikes
Additional satellite images show damage on the mountainside at Iran’s underground Fordo nuclear site after US airstrikes targeted the facility.

The images by Maxar show at least six holes on the mountain, where the massive 30,000-pound GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator bombs, dropped from B-2 stealth bombers, impacted.



The “bunker buster” bomb is believed to be able to penetrate about 200 feet (61 meters) below the surface before exploding.

Iran has yet to offer a damage assessment of the site.


Netanyahu gives thanks at Western Wall following US attack on Iran
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday prayed at the Western Wall, Judaism’s second-holiest site, in Jerusalem’s Old City, giving thanks for the United States joining the war against Iran.

Netanyahu visited the site alongside Shmuel Rabinovitch, the rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Places, Mordechai “Suli” Eliav, director of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation, and his wife Sara, the Prime Minister’s Office said.

The premier and his wife offered a prayer for the safety of Israeli security forces, as well as the remaining 50 hostages held captive by Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip for more than 600 days.

The prime minister also recited a special prayer for U.S. President Donald Trump, known in Hebrew as Hanoten teshuah (“He who grants deliverance”), asking that God bless him for standing with the Jewish nation and against evil, Israel’s Channel 12 News reported.

Hours before the Israel Defense Forces launched its opening strike against Iran’s nuclear program on June 13, Netanyahu visited the Western Wall alongside Argentine President Javier Milei.

The premier during the visit placed a note in the wall with a verse from the book of Numbers (23:24): “Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion,” his office said.

The IDF’s aerial assault on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program has been named “Operation Rising Lion,” after the biblical prophecy.


86 wounded by Iranian missile attacks on Israel after US strikes 3 Iran nuclear sites
An Iranian ballistic missile barrage injured dozens of people in Israel on Sunday morning as nearly 30 projectiles targeted the country, causing widespread destruction to residential areas in Tel Aviv and the central town of Ness Ziona.

An air defense interceptor, meanwhile, malfunctioned and impacted the northern city of Haifa, causing damage and slightly wounding three people. No sirens had sounded in the city during the incident.

The Health Ministry reported that among those who arrived at hospitals were two in moderate condition, 77 in good condition, four victims suffering from acute anxiety, and three more people who were undergoing medical evaluation and whose condition had not been immediately determined.

Ichilov Medical Center in Tel Aviv said there were two children among the five people who arrived at its emergency room with minor injuries.

The injuries were largely at the two impact sites in Tel Aviv and its Ness Ziona suburb, according to medical officials. One man was moderately hurt by shrapnel on the Route 431 highway, near Be’er Yaakov in central Israel.

The Iranian attack came hours after the United States bombed three key nuclear sites in Iran, joining an Israeli air campaign against Iran’s nuclear and military infrastructure that began on June 13.

Iran has responded to the Israeli attacks with near-daily barrages of missiles at cities, killing 24 people and wounding thousands, according to health officials and hospitals.

At least 27 missiles were launched from Iran in Sunday morning’s attack in two salvos, the military said, setting off sirens in north and central regions, as well as Jerusalem, between 7:30 and around 8 a.m.

The first salvo consisted of at least 22 missiles, and the second was made up of five, according to IDF assessments.


Israel destroys missile launchers used in Iranian attack
The Israeli Air Force “swiftly neutralized” the launchers used in Sunday morning’s Iranian missile attacks on the Jewish state, the Israel Defense Forces announced just over an hour after the barrages.

The launchers targeted, in western Iran, were being prepared for further attacks on Israeli territory, according to an IDF spokesperson, who added that Iranian armed forces personnel operating in the area were also hit.

Subsequently, IAF aircraft targeted and struck two F-5 fighter jets belonging to the Iranian Armed Forces at Dezful Airport in Iran.

The IAF carried out an additional wave of strikes with 30 fighter jets in four areas of the Islamic Republic, targeting missile and drone launch pads, the IDF said on Sunday afternoon.

Dozens of sites were hit in simultaneously attacks on Isfahan, Bushehr, Ahvaz and, for the first time, Yazd, according to the IDF. It said around 60 munitions were dropped by fighter jets in the assault.

“As part of the wave of strikes, fighter jets targeted for the first time the Imam Hussein strategic missile headquarters in the Yazd area, where long-range Khorramshahr missiles were stored,” the IDF said, noting that some 60 missiles had been fired at the Jewish state from the site.

Simultaneously, in Isfahan, Bushehr and Ahvaz, the IDF targeted missile launch pads, air defense battery production sites, the headquarters of an Iranian drone regiment and a UAV storage facility, it announced.


IDF PodCast: Daily Brief: Inside Operation Rising Lion
In this episode of Mission Brief, IDF International Spokesperson LTC Nadav Shoshani joins Captain Tammy to break down the launch of Operation Rising Lion- Israel's largest and most complex preemptive strike to date. We cover why the IDF acted when it did, the evolving Iranian nuclear threat, the scale and scope of the mission, and how Israel’s home front is responding with resilience. Get a clear, inside look at one of the most significant security developments in the region’s modern history.
Commentary PodCast: America Goes All In With Israel
Emergency Podcast taped Sunday morning on the Trump raid on the Iranian nuclear sites and what it means for the Republican Party, the MAGA coalition, the Middle East, and the world. Joining us: Jonathan Schanzer.


Call Me Back: Can Israel do it alone? - With Nadav Eyal
If President Trump decides against the U.S. joining the war, what can the IDF achieve on its own? In today’s episode, senior analyst at Yedioth Achronot and Call me Back regular Nadav Eyal discusses this very question as well as the damage caused by Iran’s most recent missile barrages and how Israeli air defenses are working to confront the threat.


Trump Bombs Iran’s Nuclear Sites | Bari Weiss, Haviv Rettig Gur, Eli Lake, & More
Minutes ago Donald Trump announced that the United States had just completed a “very successful attack” on Iran’s three nuclear sites: Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan.

"A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow," referring to Iran's most hard-to-reach uranium enrichment facility,” he added.

This is by far the most important foreign policy decision made by Trump. And its implications are profound and far-reaching. Join me right now to discuss the impacts on the wider Mideast conflict, a potential Iranian response and the effects on U.S. politics.

Our Free Press experts and special guests help explain all of these issues.


School of War: Ep 208: Mike Doran on America’s Strikes in Iran
Mike Doran, senior fellow and director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East at the Hudson Institute, joins the show to break down America’s strikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities and what might come next.

Times
• 01:00 Reactions
• 08:00 Deception
• 12:00 More to come
• 17:00 Self-deception
• 24:00 Next few days
• 31:00 Escalation
• 34:00 Not over
• 41:00 Trump is serious
• 44:00 Restraintists
Ask Haviv Anything: Episode 22: A new dawn in the Middle East?
The United States has struck the Iranian nuclear program, marking a watershed moment for the region.

It will take days to determine the scale of the damage and many years to understand the implications of President Trump’s decision. But a few things are already clear. A new relationship was established between the US and its ally Israel that defined a new security architecture for the American-led alliance worldwide. Israel did the heavy lifting, suffered the blowback, and only because it was willing to fight successfully itself was then able to call on America’s unique capabilities. Taiwan, take note. Russia’s European neighbors, ditto. Be ready and able to fight, and America will help. But America will no longer fight for you as in the past.

This episode is dedicated to the memory of Willy Field by his family. Willy Field was born Willy Hirschfeld in Bonn, Germany and is perhaps the only survivor of a Nazi death camp who managed to survive, escape and return to German soil in a British tank. His story of disaster, recovery and frontline heroism against Nazi Germany is a testament to over a million brave Jewish soldiers who fought the Nazis in the Allied armies.




‘Hard morning’ for people of Israel after ‘massive’ missile attack from Iran
Deputy Director and Chief of Staff Magen David-Ado Uri Shacham discusses the latest situation within Israel after Iranian strikes.

Mr Shacham told Sky News Australia that Israel has suffered two “massive” missile attacks from Iran.

“It’s a hard morning for the people of Israel.”


Americans are ‘behind’ Trump’s strikes on Iranian nuclear sites
President of the Centre of the American Experiment John Hinderaker discusses the Trump administration's strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

"The American people are behind Donald Trump on this issue, you look at the polls, 75-80 per cent of Americans understand the danger from Iran," Mr Hinderaker told Sky News Australia.

"Donald Trump is playing a very, very, strong hand in terms of domestic support."


Netanyahu’s ‘greatest success’ is destroying Iran’s nuclear capabilities
Former Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “greatest success” is destroying Iran’s nuclear weapon program.

“We were invaded by Hamas it was the worst failure of his premiership,” Mr Levy said.

“That has now led to the greatest success of his leadership, which is the destruction of the Iranian nuclear program.”


‘He knows how to lie’: Former IDF colonel slams Iran’s foreign minister’s press conference
Former IDF colonel Miri Eisin says Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi “knows how to lie” in response to Mr Araghchi’s recent press conference in Turkey.

“He knows how to talk, he knows how to sell an idea, and let me tell you, he knows how to lie,” Ms Eisin said.

“When he stands there and says now we don’t trust the West … go right now and see what the Islamic regime of Iran talks about the West day in and day out.”


Erin Molan: AMERICA just bombed IRAN - Trump Speaks - ISRAEL braces for revenge! AN HISTORIC DAY!
In this gripping episode, Australian journalist Erin Molan dives into the historic events of last night, June 21, 2025, when U.S. President Donald Trump announced that American forces conducted precision airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities—Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan. Watch the full, unedited speech from the White House, where Trump, flanked by Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, declared the strikes a “spectacular military success,” claiming Iran’s key nuclear enrichment sites were “completely and totally obliterated.”

A breakdown of the operation, including the use of B-2 stealth bombers dropping 30,000-pound “bunker-buster” bombs (GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrators) on Fordo and 30 Tomahawk missiles targeting Natanz and Isfahan. She covers Trump’s warning to Iran to pursue peace or face “far greater” consequences, the geopolitical context of Israel’s ongoing conflict with Iran, and Iran’s pledge to retaliate.


Attack on Iran a ‘spectacular demonstration’ of US power
Executive Council of Australian Jewry Co-CEO Alex Ryvchin reacts to the United States’ attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, calling it a “spectacular demonstration” of US power.

“I feel like we’re living through one of the most fateful moments in Jewish history and perhaps in world history,” Mr Ryvchin told Sky News host Paul Murray.

“What occurred today was a resounding blow by the United States, a spectacular demonstration of US power and also the strength of the relationship between Israel and the US.”




UN chief calls US strikes on Iran ‘dangerous escalation’
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said on Saturday night that he is “gravely alarmed by the use of force by the United States against Iran today.”

He deemed Washington’s strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities “a dangerous escalation in a region already on the edge—and a direct threat to international peace and security.”

Guterres warned of a “growing risk” that the conflict “could rapidly get out of control, with catastrophic consequences for civilians, the region, and the world.”

He called on U.N. member states to “de-escalate and to uphold their obligations under the U.N. Charter and other rules of international law.

“At this perilous hour” Guterres added, “it is critical to avoid a spiral of chaos. There is no military solution. The only path forward is diplomacy. The only hope is peace.”

The U.N. Security Council held an emergency session on Friday at the request of Iran.

Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon blasted his Iranian counterpart for forcing the session to voice complaints about Israeli military strikes on the Islamic Republic.

“You are not a diplomat. You are a wolf in disguise,” Danon told Amir Saeid Iravani, the regime’s envoy. “How dare you come here to ask for help while your regime calls for the destruction of our people.”


IDF recovers bodies of three hostages from Gaza
Israeli security forces have recovered the bodies of three hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday.

The operation, carried out by the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and the Israel Defense Forces on Saturday, brought back the remains of Ofra Keidar, Yonatan Samerano and Staff Sgt. Shay Levinson. All three were abducted and killed during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas.

Netanyahu, addressing the families of the victims, said, “Together with all the citizens of Israel, my wife and I send our deepest condolences to the dear families and share in their profound sorrow.”

He praised the commanders and soldiers involved in the mission for their determination and courage.

The prime minister emphasized that efforts to return all Israeli hostages continue alongside ongoing operations against Iran. “We will not rest until we bring all our abductees home—both the living and the fallen,” Netanyahu said.

Defense Minister Israel Katz also commented on the operation, expressing deep condolences to their families. He emphasized that returning the bodies was a key objective of “Operation Gideon’s Chariots” and reaffirmed Israel’s ongoing commitment to bringing all hostages—both living and deceased—back to Israel, vowing to persist until the mission is complete.

Fifty hostages remain in captivity in the Gaza Strip. Jerusalem believes that at least 20 of the captives are still alive.

Keidar, 71, was killed at Kibbutz Be’eri along with her husband, Shmuel.

Levinson, 19, served as a tank commander in Nahal Oz and was killed in action after engaging Hamas terrorists on the morning of Oct. 7.

Samerano’s father announced the recovery earlier on Sunday.

The recovery coincided with Yonatan’s 23rd birthday on the Hebrew calendar on Saturday. In a moving message, his father recounted his unwavering belief that the army would bring his son back, and expressed deep gratitude to the Israeli government, security forces and the people of Israel for their prayers and support.


travelingisrael.com: No Jews, No Views: The Guardian Tried to Smear Israel — and Failed Miserably
God gave us Israel, all of it — that’s the provocative title The Guardian chose for its latest episode in the Along the Green Line series, produced by reporter Matthew Cassel. He didn’t invite me to be part of it, so I invited myself.

In this video, I break down the narrative The Guardian is pushing: religious Jews as dangerous fanatics, Arabs as helpless victims, and Israel as the root of all evil in the Middle East. But what about the actual history of the Green Line? What about the Arab rejection of a two-state solution since 1947? What about the wars, the British-backed Jordanian army, and the ethnic cleansing of Jews from Jerusalem in 1948?

And while The Guardian can’t stop producing content critical of Israel, they have nothing to say about the deadliest conflict in the region — the war in Yemen — or about women’s and LGBTQ rights in the Muslim world. Why? Because it doesn’t fit the narrative that gets views.

This video exposes the double standards, historical omissions, and ideological framing that fuel The Guardian’s Israel obsession — and explains why the Temple Mount, Jewish sovereignty, and peace in this region can’t be understood through slogans and shallow documentaries.




Investigation: The Branded Revolution – How Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Grassroots’ Campaign Became a $6.3 Million Corporate Production
Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani wants New York voters to believe they’re witnessing a revolution. His mayoral campaign markets itself as a “grassroots, volunteer movement”—powered by neighborhood organizers, fueled by authentic passion, and guided by democratic socialist principles that reject corporate politics.

But a forensic examination of campaign finance records, coordinated political messaging, and strategic timing reveals something entirely different: a meticulously choreographed performance that has spent over $6.3 million while claiming to be volunteer-driven.

The evidence suggests potential violations of campaign finance law. Documented coordination between Mamdani’s operation and his political allies raises serious questions about compliance with disclosure requirements—activities that warrant immediate Campaign Finance Board scrutiny.

This isn’t grassroots organizing—it’s political theater with a revolutionary costume, a corporate budget, and serious questions about transparency in campaign finance reporting.

The Coordinated Campaign Timeline Between Zohran Mamdani and Justin Brannan

📊 The Poll That Brannan Paid For — And The Strategic Timing
The most revealing evidence of this coordination emerged in early June, when a carefully orchestrated sequence exposed both the calculated machinery driving Mamdani’s supposedly authentic movement and the strategic timing that raises campaign finance questions.

On June 11, 2025, Politico broke news of a political upset: Zohran Mamdani had overtaken Andrew Cuomo in a new poll just two weeks before the Democratic primary. The surprising twist? The poll wasn’t funded by Mamdani’s mayoral campaign — it was paid for by Justin Brannan’s campaign for Comptroller.

That’s where the story stops being about momentum — and starts becoming about coordination and strategic campaign finance activities. Specifically, it raises red flags under the NYC Campaign Finance Board’s rules on coordinated expenditures.


Seven Iranian nationals are charged with GBH after two pro-Israel protesters were attacked outside the Iran embassy in London
Seven Iranian nationals have been charged with causing grevious bodily harm (GBH) after two pro-Israel protestors were attacked outside the Iran embassy in London.

Police arrested eight people after two men were set upon outside the embassy, opposite Hyde Park, just before 10am on Friday.

The force say two men, aged 37 and 39, were taken to hospital with 'serious but non-life threatening injuries'.

They also confirmed the identities of the seven men charged with GBH, who they said all hail from Iran:
Mohammad Nadiri, 30, of Central Street, Islington
Pourrezaei Vahid, 41, of Hamlet Square, Cricklewood
Armin Hasanlov, 35, of Prescot Road, Liverpool
Esmaeil Balouchy, 50, of Brent Lea, Brentford
Saeed Hosseingholipoor, 34, of Wilkins Close, Mitcham
Farzin Suleimani, 31, of Selsey Road, Birmingham
Aref Yazdan Parast, 31, of Worton Road, Isleworth

They have all been remanded in police custody and are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Monday, June 23.

The eighth person arrested is the 39-year-old who remains in hospital and has been bailed.

Officers and paramedics swooped on Princes Gate, Knightsbridge, scrambling to detain suspects and treat the injured activists on Friday morning.

Witnesses told MailOnline on Friday how pro-Israeli protesters were chanting support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and calling for the Iranian regime to be toppled before violence erupted and two of the activists were attacked.

It comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East, with Iran and Israel locked in a brutal conflict that has continued to escalate.

Dramatic pictures from the scene showed the protesters being treated by paramedics on stretchers and receiving oxygen, while the alleged attackers were seen being hauled away in handcuffs.





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This blog may be a labor of love for me, but it takes a lot of effort, time and money. For 20 years and 40,000 articles I have been providing accurate, original news that would have remained unnoticed. I've written hundreds of scoops and sometimes my reporting ends up making a real difference. I appreciate any donations you can give to keep this blog going.

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