Iranian missiles breached Israel’s sophisticated air defence systems again on Thursday, striking a major hospital in the south and residential areas in densely populated central regions.

Israel depends heavily on its multilayered missile defence architecture to shield cities and infrastructure from frequent rocket attacks originating from militants in Gaza and Lebanon. However, since Middle East tensions escalated dramatically in 2023, threats now also come from Iranian and Yemeni rebel missile launches, AP reported.

Developed over decades with significant assistance from the United States, Israel’s defensive array strategically identifies incoming threats, intercepting only missiles targeting population centres or vital infrastructure, allowing those headed for open terrain to pass.

This multilayered network includes systems capable of intercepting short-range rockets, medium-range missiles, attack drones, and ballistic missiles, including sophisticated long-range projectiles frequently launched by Iran.

Yet, Israeli military officials consistently emphasise that no air defence is entirely infallible. High interception rates notwithstanding, simultaneous missile barrages can overwhelm the sophisticated combination of technology and human oversight.

Since hostilities intensified on June 13, Iranian missile strikes have claimed at least 24 lives, leaving extensive damage across multiple Israeli towns and cities.

Israel’s air-defence system comprises:

The Arrow, a joint US-Israeli system designed specifically to counter long-range ballistic missiles, like those launched recently by Iran. Operating outside Earth’s atmosphere, the Arrow has also successfully intercepted missiles fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels during this conflict.

David’s Sling, also developed in partnership with the US, targets medium-range threats such as those employed by Lebanon’s Hezbollah militia. It has been activated multiple times during the current conflict.

The Iron Dome, renowned for intercepting short-range rockets, was developed by Israel with US backing and has neutralised thousands of rockets since deployment, boasting a success rate exceeding 90 percent.

Additionally, Israel is testing the Iron Beam, an innovative laser-based interception system, hailed by authorities as a potential breakthrough due to its significantly lower operational costs. While each Iron Dome interception reportedly costs approximately $50,000, and other systems upwards of $2 million per missile, Iron Beam interceptions may cost merely a few dollars each. Despite promising results in recent testing, this technology has yet to become operational.

Israel-Iran Conflict Highlights: Amid the ongoing growing hostilities, the United States is now weighing its role. The White House has confirmed that President Donald Trump is likely to decide ”within two weeks” whether the US will get involved on Israel’s behalf. The conflict between the two heavily armed nations, Iran and Israel, has entered its seventh day. Iran launched a barrage of missiles into Israel, which damaged four key sites in central and southern regions. Among the affected locations was Soroka Medical Centre, the largest hospital in southern Israel, which suffered “extensive damage,” according to Israeli officials. At least 47 people have been reported injured in these Iranian strikes.

Israel hits back: Israeli forces, in response to this, have intensified strikes on Iran. It targeted its Arak heavy water reactor, a critical nuclear facility. The attack came just hours after Israel issued evacuation warnings to civilians in Iran.

It also said that it struck an inactive nuclear reactor in Arak, which is a key component in plutonium production; a nuclear weapons development site, Ballistic missile & air defence production facilities, and Radar systems & missile storage sites.

‘I may do it, I may not,’ says Trump on US involvement: US President Donald Trump said that he is unsure if he will join the ongoing conflict in the Mideast. “I may do it, I may not do it… Nobody knows what I’m going to do,” Trump said. He added that he prefers to make decisions “one second before it’s due”.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump said that they know Khamenei’s whereabouts and that he is an “easy target”. He also said that the US will not kill him at the moment and demanded an “unconditional surrender” from Iran.

“We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there – We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, before demanding Iran’s “unconditional surrender” in a separate post.

‘Battle has begun,’ declared Iran: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared war on Israel yesterday, adding that they will show no mercy to Zionists.

“We must give a strong response to the terrorist Zionist regime. We will show the Zionists no mercy,” Khamenei wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter). In another post, he wrote, “The battle begins”. It accompanies a poster of a man entering a cave set on fire with a sword and lions on either side as others look at him. It is a reference to the historic Battle of Khaybar.

He also warned that the US military involvement would cause “irreparable damage to them”.

Iran said that it would not “grovel at the gates of the White House,” rejecting the idea of backing down in the face of American or Israeli aggression.

Russia offers to mediate: Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered to mediate between Iran and Israel. He proposed helping broker an agreement that would allow Iran to pursue a peaceful nuclear program while addressing Israel’s security concerns. According to reports, the proposal has been shared with leaders in Iran, Israel, and the United States.

Diplomatic efforts are also underway, with high-ranking European diplomats expected to hold nuclear talks with Iran on Friday. The discussions, reported by the Associated Press, are aimed at de-escalating the crisis, though the United States is not expected to participate at this stage. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reaffirmed the country’s position, stating that Iran remains “committed to diplomacy” and reiterated that it does not seek, and has never sought, nuclear weapons.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in contrast, emphasised that their military offensive is not aimed at the Iranian people. “We are doing everything we can to protect them,” he told Iran International, before adding, “That’s the difference between a terrorist regime and a democracy like ours, fighting a just war with just means.”

Why did Israel attack Iran? The attack came after tensions between Iran and the international community escalated sharply after Tehran announced the activation of a third nuclear enrichment facility. The announcement came just hours after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) issued its first formal censure against Iran in two decades, criticising its failure to meet nuclear non-proliferation commitments. However, it confirmed that no increase in radiation levels has been observed at the Natanz nuclear site, Iran’s largest uranium enrichment facility.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched “Operation Rising Lion” against Iran and stated the attack was on “the heart of Iran’s ballistic missiles program”. He asserted strikes would continue “for as long as it takes to remove this threat”. IDF Chief of Staff Lt Gen Eyal Zamir emphasised the urgency of the operation, saying, “We had reached the point of no return. Freedom is granted to those willing to fight for it.”

War casualties: Iran’s health ministry reported that at least 224 Iranians have been killed in Israeli strikes since Friday, while the Israeli death toll has climbed to 24. 500 people in Israel have been injured in the ongoing conflict. Despite repeated international calls for de-escalation, tensions continue to spiral.

Live Updates

Israel-Iran Conflict Live Updates: Stay up to date with all the latest updates and breaking news from the region as the Middle East heads into a dangerous war.

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US president Donald Trump has said he will make a decision on whether to strike Iranian nuclear facilities within the next two weeks.

Mr Trump said he would make the call on whether to order US warplanes to strike Iranian nuclear sites depending on whether Tehran engages in talks over ending its nuclear weapons programme.

“Based on the fact that there’s a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks,” he said.

It comes after Israel’s defence minister Israel Katz vowed that Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei “cannot continue to exist” said after the latest wave of Iranian missiles struck an Israeli hospital.

Mr Katz said the military “has been instructed and knows that in order to achieve all of its goals, this man absolutely should not continue to exist”.

US officials said this week that Mr Trump had vetoed an Israeli plan to kill Mr Khamenei.

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The Israeli army said on Thursday it had struck an “inactive nuclear reactor” in Arak in Iran during overnight raids that also saw the Islamic Republic’s Natanz nuclear site targeted again.

A statement said “the nuclear reactor in the area of Arak in Iran was targeted, including the structure of the reactor’s core seal, which is a key component in plutonium production”. It added that the strike on the site was carried out “to prevent the reactor from being restored and used for nuclear weapons development”.

At the same time, Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli forces killed at least 72 people on Thursday, including 21 who had gathered near aid distribution sites as famine looms after more than 20 months of war.

Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that six people were killed while waiting for aid in the southern Gaza Strip and 15 others in a central area known as the Netzarim corridor, where thousands of Palestinians have gathered daily in the hope of receiving food rations. In northern Gaza, Bassal said that nine separate Israeli strikes killed another 51 people, updating earlier tolls provided by his agency.

Israel thinking ‘longer term’ with strike on Ark reactor

Earlier we brought you news that Israel attacked a partially-constructed Iranian heavy water reactor roughly 400km west of Tehran.

While it was part of Iran’s nuclear programme, the IAEA has said that the site was not operational and contained no nuclear material.

So why did the IDF attack it?

It may have been because Israel is thinking ‘longer term’, Dr Alexander Bollfrass, an expert in preventing the spread of nuclear weapons at the International Institute for Strategic Studies thinktank, says.

“The concern there is that were the reactor to come online and to produce plutonium, in the long run that plutonium could find its use in a nuclear warhead,” he told a panel on Thursday afternoon.

Plutonium is an alternative fuel for nuclear weapons.

“That was a much longer term nuclear capability,” Dr Bollfrass added.

He also described the Israeli campaign in general in how it is seeking to destroy or disable Iran’s nuclear capability in general.

“They are really trying to systematically go through and eliminate the raw materials that would be needed for a nuclear weapon, the intellectual ability in the form of scientists and engineers, as well as things like test results, and also focussing on the longer term ability to produce plutonium.”