Wave of Israeli airstrikes hits Iran

Israel launched a huge wave of airstrikes across Iran on Friday, blasting Iran's huge underground nuclear site, wiping out its entire top echelon of military commanders and killing nuclear scientists in the biggest ever direct attack between the foes.

- Agencies

[e-mail] JERUSALEM/DUBAI/WASHINGTON: Iran said "the gates of hell will open" in retaliation, while Israel said the strikes were only the start of its campaign. US President Donald Trump said it was not too late for Iran to halt the Israeli attacks by reaching a deal to curb its nuclear programme.

As evening fell on Friday, Iranian media reported a number of explosions in what appeared to be a second wave of strikes. "Moments ago, Israel launched Operation Rising Lion, a targeted military operation to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel's very survival," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said early on Friday in a televised address that invoked the failure of the world to prevent the Holocaust in World War Two. Israel's operation "will continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat," he said. "Generations from now, history will record our generation stood its ground, acted in time and secured our common future."

Later in the evening, an Iranian news outlet close to the government reported on Friday that two explosions were heard near the Fordo nuclear enrichment site, which is buried deep underground. Israel army said it also struck Iran's nuclear facility in Isfahan.

decapitation reminiscent of Israeli attacks that swiftly wiped out the leadership of Lebanon's once-feared Hezbollah militia last year. An Israeli security source said Mossad commandos had been operating deep inside the Islamic Republic before the attack, and the Israeli spy agency and military had mounted a series of covert operations against Iran's strategic missile array.