Trump vetoed Israeli proposal to assassinate Iran’s supreme leader

The head of intelligence for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and his deputy have been killed in Israeli strikes, Iran's Tasnim News Agency reported.

Tasnim said the intelligence chief, Gen. Mohammad Kazemi; his deputy, Gen. Hassan Mohaqeq; and Gen. Mohsen Bagheri were all killed in Tehran today.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed strikes on the two men earlier today in a Fox News interview, saying Israel "got" them in Tehran.

The Iranian foreign ministry building has been damaged in Israel's strikes on the country, according to the government-linked news agency Nour News.

Saeed Khatibzadeh, Iran's deputy foreign minister, blamed Israel for deliberately targeting a section of the government building, the outlet said.

Nour News reported that "several" civilians were injured but did not provide additional details.

Eight people were treated by the Magen David Adom emergency services after Iranian strikes in northern Israel, the organization said.

An elderly woman was in "moderate condition" at a hospital where she was being treated for smoke inhalation, MDA said. Seven other people were treated for minor injuries.

Members of the search-and-rescue team work in front of a damaged building in the northern Israeli town of Tamra on Sunday. Ahmad Gharabli / AFP - Getty Images

Nine more people were evaluated and found to be experiencing anxiety-related symptoms, according to the organization.

Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., appeared to have similar feelings about Iran, both telling "Meet the Press" host Kristen Welker that the United States should be wary of engaging in military conflict with Iran.

In an interview today, Schiff said he thinks Israel found an "opportune moment" to go after Iran's nuclear program after the regime's proxy militias in the region were weakened. Schiff said that he hasn't received a recent intelligence report about the matter with Iran but that he doesn't support engaging further in direct hostilities.

"I think the United States should be very loathe to engage in another war after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan," Schiff told Welker.

Paul said in his interview today that he doesn't consider war to be a game and that hundreds of thousands of people are at risk of being killed. He questioned whether war would push Iranians toward nationalism, even though the Iranian regime is deeply unpopular among civilians.

"I think it's going to be very hard to come out of this and have a negotiated settlement," Paul said. "I see more war and more carnage — and it's not the U.S.' job to be involved in this war."

Sen. Rand Paul says ‘it’s not the U.S.’ job to be involved’ in Israel-Iran conflict: Full interview

11:16

The Israeli military identified hostage Aviv Atzili, a reserve lieutenant colonel, after it recovered his body from the Khan Younis area of Gaza last week.

Atzili, 49, was part of the readiness squat at kibbutz Nir Oz during the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the IDF said. He and his wife, Liat, were taken hostage, but Liat returned to Israel after 54 days in captivity as part of a negotiated agreement between Israel and Hamas.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered heartfelt condolences to Atzili's family a statement on behalf of his family and the Israeli government.

"Aviv bravely went out to defend his kibbutz Nir Oz, fell in battle with the murderers, and was kidnapped to the Gaza Strip," Netanyahu said.

Israel's Home Front Command has given the all-clear for civilians to exit their shelters after Iranian strikes on the country.

"Search and Rescue forces are operating in several locations across the country in which reports of fallen projectiles were received," it said in a statement.

Magen David Adom emergency services said its medics were scanning areas of reported Iranian strikes in northern Israel for casualties.

Two people were treated and referred to the hospital for shrapnel wounds, the organization said.

Iranian missiles directed toward Israel were identified and defensive systems are working to intercept the threat, the IDF said in a statement.

Sirens were heard in Haifa and Tel Aviv around the time the military released the statement. The public was told to enter a protected space and to leave only after authorities issued an explicit directive.

Israel intercepts missiles launched from Iran, IDF says

03:15

Traffic is heavy in Tehran as people are trying to escape from all possible routes leaving Iran's capital city after heavy bombardment from Israel.

Jam-packed roads are experience two to three hours' worth of traffic for roughly 6 miles of travel.

President Donald Trump rejected a proposal from Israel in the last days to assassinate Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a U.S. official told NBC News.

Earlier today in an interview on Fox News, Netanyahu did not directly refute the initial Reuters report about the proposed assassination attempt but dismissed “false reports” about discussions between the United States and Israel.

Iran is threatening to strike U.S. military installations if it continues to assist Israel in its defenses against Iranian airstrikes. In the Fox News interview, Netanyahu asserted that U.S. military pilots continue to shoot down drones from Iran.

Reuters was the first to report about a plan to kill the ayatollah.

Trump rejects Israeli plan to kill Iran’s supreme leader, U.S. official says

02:57

Israel's air force has begun a series of strikes on "dozens of surface-to-surface missile targets in western Iran," the Israeli military said in a statement.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a video circulating on social media that appeared to show people cheering with joy after an Iranian missile struck the Arab-populated city of Tamra, Israel.

"I reject this with all my heart," Netanyahu said. "The missile does not discriminate, it hits both Jews and Arabs."

Four citizens were killed in the strike, Netanyahu said in an address released by his office.

There were nine others killed by Iranian strikes in Bat Yam just south of Tel Aviv. Netanyahu's address was from Bat Yam, describing today as a "difficult" one.

The IDF said in a statement that it hit an Iranian aircraft refueling in eastern Iran, calling it the longest-range strike since its operation against the Iranian regime began.

According to the Israeli military, the Mashhad airport where the aircraft was struck is 2,300 km, or about 1429 miles, away from Israel.

Tasnim News Agency, an Iranian-state news outlet, reported that shells fell near the Shahid Hashemi Nejad Airport in Mashhad. There was no damage to the airport and runway, it reported, and air defenses were immediately activated.

Israel has asked Iran, through Western countries as intermediaries, to stop attacks and return to the nuclear negotiations, a senior Iranian source told NBC News in Tehran.

A representative for Israel's prime minister did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the matter.

President Donald Trump has publicly urged Israel and Iran to make a deal, writing in a Truth Social post this morning that "many calls and meetings" were taking place.

Iran has cancelled a funeral procession for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officers who were killed by Israeli strikes last week.

A procession was scheduled for Tuesday in downtown Tehran, from Enghelab Square to Azadi Square.

According to Iranian state media, Israel’s attack last week killed at least eight senior commanders, including General Hossein Salami, Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and Mohammad Hossein Bagheri, Iran's top military official.

IRGC Greater Tehran Command said a new date for the ceremony will be announced in the coming days.

Iranian retaliatory strikes kill several people in Israel

00:58

In a quiet southern suburb of Tel Aviv, Iranian reprisals landed like a bolt of lightning.

The direct hit from an Iranian missile sheered the front off of a ten-story residential building, killing six people and burying several more under mounds of rubble. Rescue workers are reportedly still trying to dig them out.

The impact was extensive, damaging buildings for an entire city block and covering much of the neighborhood in bits of debris.

Those killed here, along with four members of an Arab-Israeli family who were killed in northern Israel, has brought the death toll to 13, more than triple the number of Israeli fatalities recorded on Friday, the first night of Iranian reprisals.

That made last night’s attack on Bat Yam the deadliest Iranian airstrike against Israel in its history.

Quds Square has been hit, as well as the Foreign Ministry building in north Tehran, and the Police headquarters in central Tehran, according to state media.

Israeli has struck Valiasr Square and Keshavarz Boulevard in downtown Tehran, Niruhavayi neighborhood in east Tehran, and northwest Tehran close to Espinas Palace Hotel.

Areas close to Mehrabad airport have also been attacked, as well as southern Tehran in Islamshahr.

President Donald Trump promised peace between Israel and Iran, in a post on his social networking site Truth Social.

“Iran and Israel should make a deal, and will make a deal, just like I got India and Pakistan to make,” he said, referring to a U.S. brokered ceasefire that the two nations struck in May following a short conflict. 

“Likewise, we will have PEACE, soon, between Israel and Iran!” he added. “Many calls and meetings now taking place.”

His post comes as Israel ramps up its bombardment of Tehran, and as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian threatened a “more severe and decisive” response to Israeli bombing. 

“MAKE THE MIDDLE EAST GREAT AGAIN,” Trump said in the post.

People are stressed and panicking. There are explosions and car alarms going off, and everyone is worried for their lives and for their loved ones’ lives. But the lines are overloaded and it’s difficult to get through to anyone.

People are trying to evacuate as fast as possible, but some streets are closed and traffic to get out of the city is heavy. Quds Square has been hit and a burst water line has flooded the streets.

The intensity of these attacks are a surprise to many of us in Tehran. No one thought it would become this serious, and some people blame both sides for dragging this country to war.

Some people are wondering why Iran has a nuclear program, and are hoping for diplomacy instead.

Iran’s Ministry of Health has advised people to stay away from windows and glass surfaces as Israel ramps up its bombardment of Tehran, the capital.

“The blast waves from missile attacks can cause shards of glass and metal objects to be propelled over significant distances,” the statement said.

The statement also advised people to stay in safe areas in their home and workplace, “located away from windows and deep inside the building.”

“There are currently no concerns regarding nuclear radiation, according to assessments by relevant authorities,” it added.

Iran’s Ministry of Education said that all school exams had been cancelled.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said today that if Israeli bombings continue, Tehran’s response will be “more decisive and severe.”

His comments come as explosions were heard across Tehran and close to Mehrabad airport as defense systems were activated. Schools, mosques, and the metro were opened for people to shelter in during the bombardment. 

According to Pezeshkian, President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff told Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi that “Israel can’t do anything without our permission,” arguing that Israel’s actions were directly authorized by the U.S.

Trump said yesterday that the U.S. had “nothing to do” with Israel’s overnight strikes, and the U.S. has distanced itself from Israel’s attacks on Iran. Trump has also said the U.S. “knew everything” following Israel’s initial strikes on Iran last week. 

The Israeli military has identified missiles launched from Iran moving toward Israel, and the air defense systems are operating to intercept them, the IDF said in a statement this afternoon.

“Upon receiving an alert,” the IDF said, “the public is instructed to enter a protected space and remain there until further notice. Leaving the protected space is only permitted following an explicit directive.”

Today's Iranian bombing has been more extensive than yesterday’s, and air raid sirens sounded across nearly all of Israel: in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Jaffa, Haifa, the Galilee, and the Golan Heights.

The intensity of the attacks mean people are evacuating Tehran now. There's heavy traffic out of the city and some roads have been closed due to attacks.

Iran has not sent any messages to Israel “through any country,” according to foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Telegram.

The comments come in response to reports that Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian had asked the President of Cyprus to deliver a message to Israel.

Just days ago, Tehran was signaling hope for a breakthrough in U.S. nuclear talks, but ongoing strikes in the region have undercut diplomatic momentum, and Baghaei’s comments underscore the deepening collapse of backchannel communication.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in a statement today named 7 more senior commanders of its air force who were killed in Israeli strikes after earlier confirming its top commander Amirali Hazijadeh was also killed.

These are: Mahmoud Bagheri, Davoud Shekhiyan, Mohammad-Baqer Taherpour, Mansour Safarpour, Masoud Tayyeb, Khosro Hassani, Javad Jarsara.

Iran has opened its underground metro system, mosques and schools for people to shelter in as the Israeli military bombards the capital.

“From tonight metro and mosques will be open 24/7 as safe locations,” government spokesperson Fatameh Mohajerani posted on Telegram. “People can also go to schools as safe places.”

The head of Tehran's City Council, Mehdi Chamran, said on Telegram that Tehran and other cities “lack fully prepared shelters,” and that multi-story carparks and tall buildings were also “suitable locations that can be prepared for emergency situations.”

A line of cars outside a gas station in Tehran.  ATTA KENARE / AFP - Getty Images

So far people are not rushing to leave Tehran yet, though many have traveled for this weekend's Eid al-Ghadir holiday and may stay out of the city.

Evacuations are also limited by caps at the pump. Gas stations are only allowing 25 liters, about 5 and a half gallons, of fuel at each visit. 

The core purpose of Israel’s operation is to "remove existential threats." That means preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. 

It remains an ambition that will not be achieved easily.

Today an Israeli military official told NBC News the Fordow nuclear site, buried deep underground, still hasn’t been targeted. "We have seen a lot of success in Natanz and Isfahan," he added. "It will take them many months, maybe more to restore the sites we have already operated in." 

But Israel wants to devestate Iran’s nuclear capability to a far greater extent. "Iran has worked for decades to disperse their nuclear program, to put it underground, to put it in different sites to try and hide it," he added. 

"During the night we have carried out an operation against different sites that are related to their nuclear program including one of their most important headquarters in Tehran. And this is ongoing," he said. "The job’s not done."

There are explosions being heard across Tehran now: in the western, northwestern and central parts of the city, and close to Mehrabad airport. The aerial defense systems have been activated.

The strikes in Tehran feel stronger and seem to be targeting more insfrastructure locations in what could be a next phase of the attacks.

Iranian airpsace will remain closed today until 2 a.m. Monday local time (6 p.m. ET Sunday), according to Iranian media ISNA.

Meanwhile, Israel's flag carrier, El Al announced it was cancelling all flights today and suspending new bookings for flights for the rest of this month.

Israel endured its second night of Iranian reprisal attacks last night when three rounds of ballistic missiles and drones inflicted widespread damage across Tel Aviv and multiplied the country’s death toll.

Israeli medical officials said ten people were killed in the overnight attacks, raising the total number of deaths to 13, including at least 2 children.

Iran’s attack included 70 surface-to-surface missiles and dozens of drones, some of which are “still incoming,” an Israeli military official said.

An Israeli sodlier checks the damage from on Iranian strike on the northern Israeli town of Tamra. AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP - Getty Images

Meanwhile, Israel continued to pummel targets in Iran into a third day after striking 80 targets in Tehran, Iran’s capital, last night, according to the Israeli military official.

“The aircraft operated via the aerial corridor we paved into the heart of Tehran,” the official said. “So far, over 250 targets have been struck and more than 720 different components have been destroyed. Even now, we are continuing to attack dozens more targets in Tehran.”

The same official said Israel gave prior warning to civilians in the areas around its targets warning them to leave the vicinities of Iranian weapons sites.

Israel’s initial attacks against Iran early Friday morning “limited the Iranian response so far,” the official said. But Iran still has about 2,000 missiles in reserve, said the official, with plans to reach 8,000 missiles in the future.

Explosions are currently being heard in Sa'adat Abad, a wealthy neighborhood in northwest Tehran, near the Espinas Palace Hotel.

Iranian police in Alborz province said it has arrested two operatives of Israeli spy agency, Mossad, according to state news agency Tasnim.

The individuals were working from a safe house, making car bombs and other explosives, police said.

Alborz is in nothern Iran, bordering Tehran province.

Israeli strikes hit an Iranian defense ministry site in Isfahan Governorate, Iran's state media ISNA reported, quoting Isfahan's deputy governor.

No casualites were reported and damage was still being assesed, the official said. Separately, a residential building was hit in Narmak around Tehran, state media Tasnim reported.

Explosions were also heard in Shiraz city in southern Iran.

Israel’s Oil Refineries said its pipelines and transmission lines in Haifa had been damaged by missile strikes by Iran, according to a regulatory filing to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.It said that no injuries or casualties were reported at the sites, with refining facilities continuing to operate despite a shutdown of some downstream operations.

It said it is examining the impact of the damage on its operations and implications on its financial results.

Video posted online verified by NBC News shows the aftermath of an Israeli strike last night on an oil refinery near Shahran, a neighborhood on the outskirts of Tehran.

It shows two massive fires raging as huge black clouds of smoke cloud the night sky.

Iran confirmed last night that the depot was targeted, but that the “situation was under control,” according to SNN, a news agency close to the Iranian regime.

Bystanders in Tehran watching the burning Shahran oil depot. Getty Images / Getty Images

Footage posted on Telegram and verified by NBC News shows missiles striking the city of Tel Aviv on Sunday morning.

In the video, three Iranian missiles streak across the sky. One plunges toward the ground, triggering a massive explosion as a fireball erupts, and a shockwave of light flashes across the ground with a loud bang.

Israeli air defence systems intercept Iranian missiles over Tel Aviv before dawn today. JALAA MAREY / AFP - Getty Images

A second missile appears to descend in the distance before the camera shakes and voices erupt in panic as the cameraman runs inside a building.

Israeli firefighters said they were responding to multiple incidents following the latest missile barrage, saying a direct hit on an eight-story building in the Dan District had caused significant damage. It said ten firefighting teams were on site.

Israeli defense minister Israel Katz today instructed the IDF to issue evacuation warnings to Tehran residents living near "weapons production compounds," his spokesperson said in a statement today.

The IDF then issued messages to those in Tehran "living near weapons manufacturing sites, urging them to evacuate for their own safety."

"The IDF will strike these sites and will continue to peel away the Iranian snake’s skin in Tehran and wherever nuclear or weapons capabilities exist," the statement added.

The U.S. "had nothing to do with the attack on Iran" last night, Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform.

"If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the U.S. Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before," he said.

"However, we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!" the president added.

Earlier, Trump said in another post that he had spent about an hour on the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “He feels, as do I, this war in Israel-Iran should end, to which I explained, his war should also end,” Trump said, referring to Russia's war against Ukraine.

Iran's retaliatory strikes have killed at least 13 people in Israel, including 3 children, Netanyahu's office said today.

Emergency and rescue soldiers search for trapped after an overnight missile strike from Iran on Bat Yam, an Israeli city south of Tel Aviv. Amir Levy / Getty Images

Over 370 people were injured, including 9 who were seriously injured, it added. Israel's foreign ministry in a post on X today that 35 people were still missing.

The Trump administration confirmed that U.S.-Iran nuclear talks that had been scheduled for today have been canceled due to the ongoing attacks between Israel and Iran.

“While there will be no meeting Sunday, we remain committed to talks and hope the Iranians will come to the table soon,” a senior administration official told NBC News.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had earlier said that the sixth round of U.S.-Iran talks, which had been set to take place in Oman, could not go ahead while Iran was under attack.

Israel completed a "wide-scale strike" on Tehran's nuclear and fuel storage facilities, the Israeli military said in a statement last night.

The targets, which included Iran’s defense ministry headquarters, "play a key role in advancing Iran’s efforts to obtain nuclear weapons," the IDF said, adding the strikes were carried out by Israeli fighter jets.

Video circulating on social media and verified by NBC News shows Iranian missiles striking the Israeli port city of Haifa late last night.

The footage shows bright flashes of orange light in the darkness before one missile appears to streak through the sky, striking the ground, causing an explosion, as a plume of smoke rises in the distance.

Iranian state TV reported last night that it was attacking with a combination of drones and missiles, and that Haifa and Tel Aviv were the main targets.

There is no apparent damage at Iran's Fordow nuclear site, which has an enrichment plant buried deep underground, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said.

The Khondab heavy water reactor, which is under construction, also appears to be undamaged, the International Atomic Energy Agency said in a post on X.

The agency said there had been no further damage at Iran's Natanz nuclear facility since it was targeted by Israeli strikes on Friday.

No increase in off-site radiation is expected at Natanz, and the agency said it had been been informed by Iran’s Nuclear Regulatory Authority that off-site radiation levels also remained unchanged at the Esfahan nuclear facility, where Israeli strikes damaged four "critical buildings."

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