TEL AVIV, Israel. A week into their escalating war, Israel and Iran exchanged deadly strikes Friday, as diplomatic efforts in Europe failed to make headway and U.S. President Donald Trump delayed a decision on potential American military involvement.
Trump said he would give diplomacy up to two weeks before deciding whether to back Israel’s aerial campaign, which could involve U.S. strikes on Iran’s heavily fortified Fordo uranium enrichment site, accessible only by advanced “bunker-buster” bombs.
Despite the high-stakes diplomacy, a four-hour meeting between European foreign ministers and Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, in Geneva ended without a breakthrough. Araghchi signaled openness to further dialogue but ruled out talks with the U.S. while Israeli attacks continued.
“Iran is ready to consider diplomacy if aggression ceases and the aggressor is held accountable for its committed crimes,” Araghchi said, as no date was set for another round of negotiations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to continue the offensive “for as long as it takes” to dismantle what he described as the existential threat posed by Iran’s nuclear ambitions and missile stockpiles. Israel’s top military officials echoed the sentiment, signaling readiness for a prolonged campaign.
The conflict, which erupted on June 13 with Israeli airstrikes on Iranian military and nuclear sites, has left at least 657 people dead in Iran, including 263 civilians, and over 2,000 wounded, according to a U.S.-based Iranian rights group. Iran has launched more than 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel, Israeli military sources reported, killing 24 people and injuring hundreds.
In a major escalation, an Iranian missile struck the northern Israeli city of Haifa on Friday, wounding at least 31 people. The attack came after Israeli warplanes struck dozens of targets across Iran, including missile-manufacturing facilities and a research institute known as SPND, alleged by the U.S. to be involved in nuclear weapons research.
As the civilian toll rose, Rafael Grossi, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), warned at a U.N. Security Council meeting of the dangers of attacking nuclear facilities. “A direct hit on the Bushehr nuclear power plant would result in a very high release of radioactivity,” Grossi said. While Bushehr has not been targeted, the IAEA confirmed damage to key buildings at the Arak heavy water reactor, which was struck by Israel. The facility was not operational and contained no nuclear material, posing no immediate risk of contamination.
Israel has focused its strikes on enrichment facilities in Natanz, centrifuge workshops near Tehran, and laboratories in Isfahan, steering clear of operational reactors. The Israeli military also claimed to have destroyed most of Iran’s ballistic missile launchers, although several Iranian projectiles evaded Israel’s defenses on Friday, triggering air raid sirens nationwide.
In Beersheba, a missile rigged with cluster munitions hit a residential area and damaged a hospital. Fortunately, no serious injuries were reported as residents had taken shelter. In Haifa, black smoke engulfed the skyline as a missile blast wounded worshippers and clerics at a mosque, shattered building facades, and damaged vehicles.
President Trump, while critical of Iran’s uranium enrichment, voiced skepticism about its need for nuclear power. “You’re sitting on one of the largest oil piles anywhere in the world. It’s a little bit hard to see why you’d need that,” he said Friday.
As Russia moved to secure the safety of its personnel at the Bushehr plant, Israeli President Isaac Herzog posted images of destruction from Haifa and expressed concern over injuries sustained by Muslim clerics.
Despite early military gains, Israeli army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir cautioned, “The campaign is not over,” warning of challenging days ahead in what he called the most complex operation in Israel’s history.
The war continues to stoke fears of wider regional instability and nuclear catastrophe, with diplomatic channels still uncertain and both nations showing no sign of backing down.
