Trump says wants 'real end' to Israel-Iran conflict, not ceasefire / Photo: Jack GUEZ - AFP
Trump says wants 'real end' to Israel-Iran conflict, not ceasefire
US President Donald Trump said he wants a "real end" to the conflict between Israel and Iran, not just a ceasefire, as the arch foes traded fire for a fifth day on Tuesday.
The escalating clashes saw Israeli warplanes target military sites in Iran, killing a senior commander and drawing retaliatory missile fire from Iran.
Explosions were heard over Tel Aviv and Jerusalem shortly after air raid sirens sounded in many parts of Israel following missile launches from Iran, the Israeli military said.
The air force was "operating to intercept and strike where necessary to eliminate the threat", the military said.
About 20 minutes later, it said people could leave shelters as police reported debris fell in the Tel Aviv area and the fire brigade said it was tackling a blaze in the surrounding area.
The Israeli military said it killed senior Iranian commander Ali Shamdani in an overnight strike on a "command centre in the heart of Tehran", just four days after his predecessor, Golam Ali Rashid, was killed in a similar Israeli attack.
It also said it targeted multiple missile and drone sites in west Iran, including infrastructure, launchers and storage facilities, with black-and-white footage showing some of them exploding.
Despite mounting calls to de-escalate, neither side has backed off from the missile blitz that began Friday, when Israel launched an unprecedented aerial campaign targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities.
A new wave of Israeli strikes on Tehran -- including a dramatic hit on state television headquarters that the broadcaster said killed three people -- prompted both sides to activate missile defence systems overnight.
A cyberattack on Tuesday crippled Sepah Bank, one of Iran's main state-owned banks, the Fars news agency reported.
- 'Complete give-up' -
Trump said on Tuesday that he wanted a "complete give-up" by Iran in return for peace.
"I'm not looking for a ceasefire, we're looking at better than a ceasefire," he told reporters on the plane home after cutting short his attendance at a Group of Seven summit in Canada.
Trump again warned Iran against targeting US troops and assets in the Middle East, saying "we'll come down so hard, it'd be gloves off".
Trump had earlier issued an extraordinary warning on his Truth Social platform, saying: "Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!"
Trump has repeatedly declined to say if the United States would participate in Israeli military action, although he has said Washington was not involved in initial strikes.
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said the United States was deploying "additional capabilities" to the Middle East.
The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz left Southeast Asia Monday, scrapping a planned Vietnam port call, amid reports it was heading to the region.
China accused Trump of "pouring oil" on the conflict.
"Making threats and mounting pressure will not help to promote the de-escalation of the situation, but will only intensify and widen the conflict," said foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun.
After decades of enmity and a prolonged shadow war, Israel launched its surprise air campaign last week, saying it aimed to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons -- an ambition Tehran denies.
Iran has responded with multiple missile salvos. The Revolutionary Guards vowed Monday night the attacks would continue "without interruption until dawn".
State television said the Tel Aviv headquarters of Israel's Mossad intelligence agency was among the Guards' targets.
- G7 urges de-escalation -
The escalation has derailed nuclear talks and stoked fears of broader conflict.
At least 24 people have been killed in Israel and hundreds wounded, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office.
Iran said on Sunday that Israeli strikes had killed at least 224 people, including military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians. It has not issued an updated toll since then.
Netanyahu said Israel was "changing the face of the Middle East, and that can lead to radical changes inside Iran itself".
Iran's ISNA news agency quoted a medical official saying all doctors and nurses had their leave cancelled and were ordered to remain at medical centres.
International calls for calm have mounted.
At the G7 summit, leaders including Trump called Monday for "de-escalation" while stressing Israel had the right to defend itself.
"We urge that the resolution of the Iranian crisis leads to a broader de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza", G7 leaders said in a joint statement that also affirmed "Iran can never have a nuclear weapon".
The United States and Iran had engaged in several rounds of indirect talks on Tehran's nuclear programme in recent weeks, but Iran said after the start of Israel's campaign that it would not negotiate while under attack.
"It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu. That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy," he wrote on X.
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