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IDF Military Intelligence Directorate chief Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder said on Thursday that Israel will continue to hunt down Iran’s senior military command.
According to a statement released by the IDF, Binder visited a unit responsible for target planning in Iran and revealed that dozens of Iranian military commanders were struck in the opening phase of Israel’s ongoing campaign.
He said that Israel inflicted significant damage on Iran’s forward operational command structure in the first night of strikes, killing approximately 30 senior officers. “We’re talking about chiefs of staff, air force commanders,” he said.
According to him, Israel attacked a secret Iranian command post in the mountains. While some Iranian commanders managed to escape, Israeli forces were able to strike again 12 hours later, targeting the chief of staff of Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters after he relocated to another mountainous ridge near Tehran. “This was made possible through excellent work by the targeting and command units,” he said.
“We must hunt them wherever they flee,” Binder told troops. “You are transforming Iran from a distant threat, 1,500 kilometers away, into something we can confront like a first-tier enemy. You’ve turned the third ring of threats into the first.”
He emphasized the importance of accelerating the pace of strikes. “Bringing in high-value targets in the coming days is critical,” he said. “We must intensify our efforts. These are threats Israel simply cannot live with. That’s why we launched this campaign and why you’re working so hard.”
The IDF said Thursday that missiles were launched from Iran toward Israel, prompting air raid sirens in several areas across the country’s north.
The alerts were activated in a wide area stretching from the Golan Heights and Galilee to the Carmel region, the Haifa Bay area, the Jezreel Valley, Wadi Ara and the Menashe region.
Sirens were heard in major towns including Yokneam Illit, Shefa-Amr, Kiryat Yam, Acre, Haifa, Daliyat al-Karmel, Kiryat Bialik, Kiryat Ata, Kiryat Motzkin, Nesher, Tirat Carmel, Atlit, Nahariya, Deir al-Asad, Yarka, Sakhnin, Karmiel, Nazareth, Migdal HaEmek, Nof HaGalil, Beit Jann, Safed and Tiberias.
Roughly 15 missiles were identified in the barrage, most of which were intercepted. Sirens continued to sound across the region, from the Golan Heights to Mount Carmel.
The alerts caused delays in rescue flights returning Israeli nationals stranded abroad. Later in the evening, the Home Front Command lifted its shelter-in-place orders.
The Magen David Adom emergency service said there were no immediate reports of injuries or missile impacts. However, one woman was reportedly hurt while running to a shelter.
The military said the Israeli Air Force was operating to intercept the missiles and strike targets as needed to neutralize the threat. Authorities warned that the defense system is not impenetrable and urged the public to strictly follow the instructions of the Home Front Command.
Residents were advised to seek shelter immediately upon hearing alerts and remain there until further notice.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the Soroka Medical Center in Beer Sheva after it sustained a direct hit from an Iranian ballistic missile, causing severe damage. "They fire at hospitals where people are unable to escape danger," he said. "This is the difference between a functioning democracy that adheres to the law and these murderers."
Netanyahu also said there is a cost to war and people get hurt. "My family suffered too," he said. "My son had to cancel his wedding."
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Soroka Medical Center after it was hit by a missile
The prime minister said no member of Iran's leadership is immune to attack after reporters asked if Israel intended to assassinate Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei
For the previous live update press here
Sirens warned of an Iranian drone strike targeting Israel's eastern Jordan Valley on Thursday afternoon. No injuries were reported. the drone attack came hours after drones targeted the area during a missile strike on central and southern Israel, causing over 200 injuries and considerable damage to residential areas and to the Soroka Hospital in Beer Sheva.
Israeli security officials said Iran fired banned cluster munitions in the barrage targeting Israel on Thursday morning were packed with bombs that exploded upon impact, based on preliminary findings.
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Soroka Hospital takes a direct hit from an Iranian ballistic missile on Thursday
(Photo: Amir Cohen / Reuters)
The Home Front Command warned Israelis not to touch suspected explosives that may still be on the ground. Read full story here
The Health Ministry instructed hospitals to immediately implement sweeping measures to thin inpatient populations. Among them: new guidelines to discharge women 12 hours after childbirth, compared to the current standard of 36 hours for vaginal births and 48 hours for cesarean sections.
Hospitals are also required to ensure outpatient services can be fully relocated to reinforced shelters within the standard warning time for incoming rocket attacks. Institutions are instructed to rehearse this protocol and advance home hospitalization programs using hospital-based medical teams. Read full story
Russia called on Israel to immediately stop all airstrikes on the nuclear reactor in Bushehr, where Russian experts were employed. The reactor, which is the last to remain operational in Iran, uses Russian fuel that is returned to Russia when it is spent to reduce proliferation risk.
Putin said on Wednesday that Moscow had agreed with Israeli leaders that the safety of Russian workers at the site would be guaranteed. "Our specialists are on site. This is more than two hundred people. Putin told journalists.
Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a statement to the media at the site of the direct missile hit in Holon, and for the first time threatened to eliminate Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. "Preventing the existence of Khamenei, the modern Hitler - one of the goals of the operation," he said. "A dictator like Khamenei, who leads Iran and has inscribed the destruction of Israel on his flag - he cannot continue to exist."
Katz added that Khamenei "has great ideological influence, he uses all his resources for the cause, and today we see proof that he is giving orders to shoot at hospitals. We see that he should not be on the agenda."
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At least 200 people hurt in the missile barrage launched by Iran Thursday morning arrived at hospitals across the country, including from impact sites in Ramat Gan and Holon, as well as those who evacuated independently. Some 37 wounded were evacuated to Wolfson Hospital in Holon, 36 to Ichilov in Tel Aviv, 21 to Sheba in Tel Hashomer, 14 to Beilinson in Petah Tikva, 16 to Assaf Harofeh in Beer Yaakov, 13 to Barzilai in Ashkelon, six to Mayanei HaYeshua in Bnei Brak, three to Assuta in Ashdod and one to Schneider in Petah Tikva. Six were classified as being injured seriously.
El Al announced the expansion of rescue flight destinations to Israel, with two flights expected to take off from New York and one from Bangkok Thursday night. Read about rescue flights here.
The company is preparing to operate rescue flights next week from major destinations where many El Al passengers are, and to which there is "high connectivity" from many destinations - London, Paris, Larnaca, Athens, Rome, New York, Los Angeles and Bangkok.
Rocket alert sirens sounded in the Gaza border community of Nahal Oz early afternoon on Thursday. The alarms were later determined to be false.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei attacked the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi, stating that he "betrayed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and turned the IAEA into a partner in an unjust war and violence by Israel."
"Misleading narratives have bad consequences. You have turned the IAEA into a convenient tool for non-NPT member states to deny its members their basic rights," he added.
Following the Iranian missile barrage Thursday morning, the Lithuanian embassy in Israel reported that the direct hit in Ramat Gan occurred approximately 200 meters from its location; no damage was caused. The Austrian embassy is located in the same building, as well as the Kenyan embassy. The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs also reported that minor damage was caused to the country's embassy building in Ramat Gan. "Diplomatic missions, which are protected under international law, must not be harmed," the Kenyan Foreign Ministry stated. "They should be kept away and protected from any conflict."
Also following the attack, Israel Police raided a foreign news agency complex through which Al Jazeera was broadcasting, which documented a rocket impact site while exposing its exact location. It was reported that the officers "stopped the illegal broadcasts" in accordance with "the policy of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, under the instruction of Police Commissioner Dani Levy and in cooperation with Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi - to protect the safety and security of Israel's citizens."
Despite the massive missile attack, The Home Front Command did not change the state of emergency guidelines, which had been relaxed on Wednesday. Read about the relaxed guidelines here. A special state of emergency was declared in the home front throughout the country with the start of the war on Iran a week ago, and it was later extended by government decision until June 30.
Defense Minister Israel Katz addressed the barrage of missiles launched by Iran Thursday morning and stated that "the cowardly Iranian dictator sits deep in his fortified bunker and fires deliberately at hospitals and residential buildings in Israel. These are war crimes of the most severe kind - and Khamenei will pay for his crimes."
Katz said that he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "have instructed the IDF to intensify attacks against strategic targets in Iran and government targets in Tehran - to remove threats against the State of Israel and undermine the ayatollahs' regime."
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said of the missile strike that "Iran will make the attackers regret their big mistake." His deputy, Kazem Gharibabadi, added that "if the U.S. actively intervenes in favor of Israel, Iran will have to use its tools to teach the attackers a lesson - and protect its security and national interests. For our military decision-makers - all options are on the table."
The number of people seriously injured in Thursday morning's missile attack has risen to 6. Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer reported that two severely injured individuals from the latest barrage were evacuated to the hospital, and four were evacuated to Wolfson Hospital in Holon. A total of 65 people were injured in the Iranian missile barrage.
First published: 15:11, 06.19.25