World leaders at this week’s G7 conference are worried that the battle between the two regional adversaries might escalate into a wider Middle East war after Iranian rockets destroyed houses in the Israeli towns of Tel Aviv and Haifa.
What damage did Iranian missiles cause in Israel?
Iranian missiles destroyed windows, burned concrete walls, and seriously damaged many apartments in a residential building in the central Israeli city of Petah Tikva, which is close to Tel Aviv, according to authorities.
Search and locating efforts were continuing in the northern port city of Haifa, where emergency workers said over 30 people were hurt as hundreds of first responders rushed to the attack zones.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards say the latest attack employed a new method that caused Israel’s many defensive systems to attack each other. Israeli officials have repeatedly said that the defensive system is not flawless and warned of challenging times ahead.
How is Israel responding to Iran’s missile barrage?
As it continued its response to Israel’s surprise strike on Tehran’s nuclear program and military leadership on Friday, According to Iranian official media, the country fired at least 100 missiles toward Israel’s direction, showing that it has no intention of giving in to international calls for a de-escalation.
Mohammad Kazemi, the head of the Revolutionary Guards’ intelligence section, and two commanders were killed in Israeli attacks on Iran on Sunday. The Israeli military said late Sunday that it was hitting Iranian surface-to-surface missile targets.
Following Israel’s attacks on Iran’s oil and gas industry, images from Tehran showed a massive fire at a fuel storage lighting up the night sky, raising the stakes for both the Tehran state’s procedures and the global economy.
Authorities in Israel said that prior strikes in the run-up to Monday’s bombings killed at least 14 people, including children. According to a spokeswoman for the Iranian health ministry, the death toll in Iran has risen to at least 224, with 90% of the victims reportedly being civilians.
What role will G7 leaders play in de-escalation?
The Israel-Iran dispute is anticipated to be a primary issue for the G7 leaders as they begin their meeting in the Canadian Rockies on Sunday. US President Donald Trump was questioned about his efforts to defuse the tension before departing for the meeting on Sunday. “I’m hoping an agreement will be reached. He told reporters,
“I believe it’s time for a deal.” “They have to battle it out sometimes.”
According to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, he wants the meeting to focus on preventing Iran from developing or acquiring nuclear weapons, protecting Israel’s right to self-defense, preventing the situation from getting worse, and making space for negotiation. Merz told reporters, “This issue will be very high on the agenda of the G7 summit.”
According to reports, Iran has informed mediators Qatar and Oman that it is not willing to negotiate a truce while it is being attacked by Israel. Trump recently blocked an Israeli proposal to assassinate Iran’s top leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to two US officials in Washington who spoke to Reuters.
Iran claims its nuclear program is for peaceful reasons, but Western nations and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a nuclear watchdog, warn it might be used to create an atomic weapon. The US president has stated time and again that Iran could stop the conflict by agreeing to tight constraints on its nuclear program.
