Israel and Iran move to war footing as conflict enters fourth day

Israel and Iran are moving to a war footing, with renewed strikes leading to evacuations, emergency shelter plans and frantic efforts to contain the Middle East conflict.

The Israeli military said it was hitting “dozens more targets” in Tehran, hinting at a lengthy campaign as warplanes bombed military sites, laboratories and a tanker aircraft in Iran. Iranian state media said car bombs had blown up near government buildings on Sunday.

Iran retaliated with missile attacks, prompting Israel to order its citizens to take shelter. Yemen's Houthi rebels also launched missiles in an operation “co-ordinated” with Iran, with sources saying the rebels were considering strikes on US targets.

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US President Donald Trump threatened to retaliate with America's “full strength and might” in the event of an attack by Iran. Mr Trump and his fellow G7 leaders are in Canada for a summit that concludes on Tuesday.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke to several Middle East leaders in a diplomatic push on Sunday, warning that Israel's attacks could “drag the whole region into the fire”. US-Iran talks scheduled to have taken place in Oman on Sunday and intended to ease the situation by peaceful means, did not take place.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at potential regime change in Iran, saying in an interview with Fox News that it “could certainly be the result”. He would not be drawn on reports that Mr Trump vetoed an Israeli strike on Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iranian government spokesman Fatemeh Mohajerani said metro stations and mosques would be available as bomb shelters for the public from Sunday night, state media reported. It said plans were being made to supply food and medicine as the conflict widens and civilian areas come under attack.

In Tehran, residents heard warplanes and explosions overhead, with one reporting that drones flew “very low” over the capital. Local media said air defences were activated in several areas of the city.

The exchange of fire stretched into a fourth night as sirens and air defences were triggered in both countries late on Sunday. A ban on public gatherings was extended to Tuesday in Israel, which said it had meanwhile begun a strikes on “dozens of surface-to-surface missile targets” in western Iran.

Flights were cancelled across the Middle East. Etihad Airways cancelled flights between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv until June 22, while Egyptair suspended routes to Beirut, Amman, Baghdad and Erbil. Egyptian authorities held air defence drills nationwide.

The Israeli air force announced late on Sunday that it had struck an Iranian refuelling plane at an airport 2,300km from Israel, in its longest-range strike so far. The Israeli military said it was “operating to establish aerial superiority over Iranian airspace”.

Israel said 14 people had been killed and 400 injured since Friday, when its military launched a surprise attack on Iran that killed several senior military leaders. Israel says it is acting to prevent Iran from advancing a nuclear weapons programme, something Tehran says it has no intention of doing.

Israelis were told to avoid gatherings and minimise “movement in public areas” as sirens signalled incoming fire. The army said about 20 drones had been intercepted, with more Iranian retaliation expected.

“We are removing an existential threat and reinforcing our security,” said Israel's army chief Lt Gen Eyal Zamir. Iranian media, meanwhile, reported that at least 128 people had been killed in Israeli attacks on Friday and Saturday.

The conflict could consolidate Mr Netanyahu's hold on power, just days after his coalition had appeared on the brink of collapse over exceptions to military service for ultra-Orthodox men. Opposition leader Yair Lapid said the operation against Iran was a “necessity”.

In Israel's first apparent attack on energy infrastructure, Iran's Tasnim news agency said production was partially suspended at South Pars, the world's biggest gasfield. Russia was drawing up plans to evacuate citizens from Iran, as Mr Trump suggested President Vladimir Putin could help to mediate in the conflict.

“Iran and Israel should make a deal, and will make a deal,” Mr Trump wrote on social media. He added that “we will have peace, soon".

President Nikos Christodoulides of Cyprus said his country had been asked to convey “some messages” to Israel, which Iran later denied.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, meanwhile, urged neighbouring Iraq to show “greater vigilance” in preventing Israel from using its airspace for attacks. Iraq, in turn, called on the US to prevent that.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani said his country is “keen to prevent the war from expanding” and assured Mr Pezeshkian of Iraq's solidarity “in the face of the blatant Zionist aggression”.

The Iranian government insists its nuclear activities are peaceful and civilian in nature. UN inspectors said they cannot verify that and the US and Europe have accused Iran of enriching uranium to a level close to weapons grade.

Mr Trump abandoned a deal in 2018 that limited Iran's enrichment. The US and Iran have held five rounds of talks since April to try to find a path to a new accord.