Iran responds to Trump’s threat by new round of missile attacks

New Delhi (India) June 18: Amid rising tensions with Israel, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei notified the "terrorist Zionist regime" and said that "the battle begins" in a number of posts on Wednesday. Khamenei's announcement came after growing threats from US President Donald Trump, who had demanded Iran's "unconditional surrender."

Khamenei posted,“We must give a strong response to the terrorist Zionist regime. We will show the Zionists no mercy” on social media platform X.

Around 12.40 am, Iran launched its most recent round of missiles, which included about 15 projectiles and set off sirens throughout Israel. About 40 minutes later, a second wave of ten missiles followed, causing the West Bank and the country's centre regions to become alert. A fire in a downtown Israeli parking lot damaged multiple cars, but no deaths were reported.

Iran is also now at greater risk due to the heightened tensions, as President Donald Trump has warned Tehran that the United States' patience is running out. According to Trump, the White House is aware of the exact location where the Iranian Supreme Leader is hiding, but there was no plan to kill him "for now.”

Trump wrote, "We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding. We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now...Our patience is wearing thin" on his Truth Social account.

Once supported by a tight network of reliable commanders and strategists, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is now becoming more and more alone as Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the head of Iran's missile program, Mohammad Kazemi, the country's top intelligence official and Guards commander Hossein Salami were among the top commanders killed in the latest Israeli airstrikes.

There is a major strategic void in Iran as a result of the departure of top IRGC officials, who the Supreme Leader trusts most. The Iranian Supreme Leader has assigned important authority to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Supreme Council of the Iranian military, amid rising tensions with Israel and fresh threats from the White House.

Israel on the other hand kept up its assault inside Iranian territory. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) issued an evacuation order for District 18 residents of Tehran early on Wednesday morning, claiming potential military action against key infrastructure. There are also reports of explosions in the city of Karaj, which was once the location of an Israeli-targeted nuclear centrifuge complex.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, has stated that the war between Iran and Israel would stop if Khamenei were killed. He said, "It's not going to escalate the conflict, it’s going to end the conflict.”

Israel began its military campaign six days ago, claiming that the attack was required to neutralize Iran's nuclear and missile programs, which it termed as an "existential threat." Top Iranian military commanders, nuclear scientists, missile launch sites and uranium enrichment facilities are all targeted in the operation.

There have already been a lot of casualties from the fighting. Israel claims that Iran has launched hundreds of drones and more than 370 missiles, while Iranian officials believe that Israeli strikes have killed at least 224 people. In Israel, there have been 24 deaths and over 500 injuries.

Aadrika Tayal