Iran has launched a new round of retaliatory attacks on Israel, killing at least eight people in Tel Aviv and striking the northern port city of Haifa. The assault comes just hours after Israeli airstrikes hit Tehran, the Iranian capital.
Emergency medical teams in central Israel reported that at least 90 people were taken to hospitals, with most suffering minor injuries.
The death toll from Israeli airstrikes on Iran has reached 224, Iranian officials reported, with at least 70 women and children among the dead.
Among the high-profile casualties were the intelligence chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and two other senior generals, who were killed in targeted strikes on Sunday.
More than 20 people have been killed in Israel and over 300 injured since it launched military operations against Iran four days ago, as the conflict between the two nations escalates rapidly.
Addressing Iran’s parliament, President Masoud Pezeshkian called for unity in the face of what he described as “genocidal criminal aggression.” He urged the nation to set aside internal differences and stand together.
“The enemy cannot erase us through violence and assassination,” Pezeshkian said. “For every fallen hero, hundreds more will rise to resist the cruelty, injustice, and betrayal carried out by these cowards.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian emphasized that Iran is not the aggressor in the current conflict and reaffirmed the country’s commitment to peaceful diplomacy, particularly in ongoing nuclear negotiations with the United States.
“We are not seeking nuclear weapons,” Pezeshkian said during a parliamentary address, rejecting Western claims about Iran’s nuclear ambitions. “They say Iran must not obtain such weapons, while we have no intention of doing so.”
While ruling out the pursuit of nuclear arms, the president maintained that Iran would continue enriching uranium for civilian purposes. “We have the right to benefit from nuclear energy,” he stated, underscoring Iran’s stance on using its nuclear program solely for energy production.
