Israel launched a large-scale attack on Iran on Friday morning, killing top military officials and targeting key nuclear sites, marking a major escalation that brings the two countries to the brink of all-out war.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz warned of retaliation from Iran, saying “a missile and drone attack against the state of Israel and its civilian population is expected in the immediate future”. The Israeli army said more than 100 drones were launched from Iran.
Iranian state media announced Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Commander-in-Chief Maj Gen Hossein Salami was killed in the strikes, along with another senior IRGC figure. Chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces Maj Gen Mohammad Bagheri was also killed in the strikes, Fars news said.
Six Iranian nuclear scientists were also killed, according to Tasnim news agency. At least 50 Iranians were injured in the Israeli attack, it added.
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei threatened “severe punishment” and warned Israel it should brace for a “bitter and painful fate” in response to its attack on his country.
Ali Shamkhani, a top aide to Mr Khamenei, was “critically injured” in a strike that targeted his residence in Tehran, Nour news reported.
Iran, Iraq and Jordan announced they had closed their airspace.
The US denied involvement in the strikes. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement that “Israel advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its self-defence”. He notably did not say the US supported Israel's attack, which comes as President Donald Trump had been trying to negotiate a new nuclear deal with Iran.
Explosions were heard north-east of Tehran, state-run Nour News reported. Local news outlets said at least one of the strikes had hit a residential area, with reports of civilian casualties. Witnesses reported other strikes around the central city of Natanz − where nuclear sites are located − and elsewhere.
The UN nuclear watchdog confirmed that the Natanz nuclear site had been struck and said it was in contact with Iranian authorities regarding radiation levels.
Videos and photos posted on social media showed plumes of smoke rising from several locations in the Iranian capital.
Iran's air defence system was activated on Friday morning at full capacity, state TV reported. Iranian officials previously warned that any military action would elicit a firm and definite response from Tehran, news outlet Tasnim reported.
Israel's military said in a post on X that “dozens of jets” had carried out the attack on nuclear sites in Iran.
“The state of Israel has no choice but to fulfil the obligation to act in defence of its citizens and will continue to do so everywhere it is required to do so, as we have done in the past,” the military said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the strikes as a “targeted military operation to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel's very survival”.
“We struck at the heart of Iran's nuclear enrichment programme. We struck at the heart of Iran's nuclear weaponisation programme. We targeted Iran's main enrichment facility in Natanz,” he said in an address. “We targeted Iran's leading nuclear scientists working on the Iranian bomb. We also struck in the heart of Iran's ballistic missile programme.”
Israel's ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, said the country had launched “Operation Rising Lion” against Iranian nuclear and missile infrastructure. He also thanked the US, particularly Mr Trump, for its “leadership in confronting Iran's nuclear weapons programme”.
Mr Rubio said in a statement that “President Trump and the administration have taken all necessary steps to protect our forces and remain in close contact with our regional partners”. He also warned Tehran not to take action against the US.
“Let me be clear: Iran should not target US interests or personnel,” Mr Rubio said.
Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, said in a post on X before reports of the strike that he was “at our embassy in Jerusalem and closely following the situation. We will remain here all night. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.”
The US embassy in Israel has directed “all government employees and their family members to shelter in place until further notice”.
Israel has repeatedly warned it could attack Iranian nuclear plants, particularly if US-Iran talks on a deal to put limits on Tehran's nuclear programme were to collapse.
Mr Trump said on Thursday that a potential attack by Israel “looks like it’s something that could very well happen”.
Tehran had on Wednesday threatened to hit US military bases in the region if conflict breaks out, and if it were attacked over its nuclear programme. Hours later, the US announced it was evacuating non-essential staff from its missions in Iraq and elsewhere in the region.
Further fuelling tension, Iran said on Thursday it had built and would activate a third nuclear enrichment plant, after the UN's atomic watchdog censured Tehran for failing to comply with non-proliferation obligations meant to prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon.
Checks continue
A High Court judge issued an interim order on Friday suspending a decision by Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots to direct a stop to Brexit agri-food checks at Northern Ireland ports.
Mr Justice Colton said he was making the temporary direction until a judicial review of the minister's unilateral action this week to order a halt to port checks that are required under the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Civil servants have yet to implement the instruction, pending legal clarity on their obligations, and checks are continuing.
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
Five expert hiking tips
Always check the weather forecast before setting off
Make sure you have plenty of water
Set off early to avoid sudden weather changes in the afternoon
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear
Take your litter home with you
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Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
More coverage from the Future Forum
RESULT
Australia 3 (0) Honduras 1 (0)
Australia: Jedinak (53', 72' pen, 85' pen)
Honduras: Elis (90 4)
Multitasking pays off for money goals
Tackling money goals one at a time cost financial literacy expert Barbara O'Neill at least $1 million.
That's how much Ms O'Neill, a distinguished professor at Rutgers University in the US, figures she lost by starting saving for retirement only after she had created an emergency fund, bought a car with cash and purchased a home.
"I tell students that eventually, 30 years later, I hit the million-dollar mark, but I could've had $2 million," Ms O'Neill says.
Too often, financial experts say, people want to attack their money goals one at a time: "As soon as I pay off my credit card debt, then I'll start saving for a home," or, "As soon as I pay off my student loan debt, then I'll start saving for retirement"."
People do not realise how costly the words "as soon as" can be. Paying off debt is a worthy goal, but it should not come at the expense of other goals, particularly saving for retirement. The sooner money is contributed, the longer it can benefit from compounded returns. Compounded returns are when your investment gains earn their own gains, which can dramatically increase your balances over time.
"By putting off saving for the future, you are really inhibiting yourself from benefiting from that wonderful magic," says Kimberly Zimmerman Rand , an accredited financial counsellor and principal at Dragonfly Financial Solutions in Boston. "If you can start saving today ... you are going to have a lot more five years from now than if you decide to pay off debt for three years and start saving in year four."
Results
4pm: Al Bastakiya – Listed (TB) $150,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Panadol, Mickael Barzalona (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer)
4.35pm: Dubai City Of Gold – Group 2 (TB) $228,000 (Turf) 2,410m; Winner: Walton Street, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
5.10pm: Mahab Al Shimaal – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Canvassed, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Midnight Sands, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
6.20pm: Jebel Hatta – Group 1 (TB) $260,000 (T) 1,800m; Winner: Lord Glitters, Daniel Tudhope, David O’Meara
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 – Group 1 (TB) $390,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Salute The Soldier, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
7.30pm: Nad Al Sheba – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Final Song, Frankie Dettori, Saeed bin Suroor
The Intruder
Director: Deon Taylor
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Michael Ealy, Meagan Good
One star
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Barbie
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Prop idols
Girls full-contact rugby may be in its infancy in the Middle East, but there are already a number of role models for players to look up to.
Sophie Shams (Dubai Exiles mini, England sevens international)
An Emirati student who is blazing a trail in rugby. She first learnt the game at Dubai Exiles and captained her JESS Primary school team. After going to study geophysics at university in the UK, she scored a sensational try in a cup final at Twickenham. She has played for England sevens, and is now contracted to top Premiership club Saracens.
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Seren Gough-Walters (Sharjah Wanderers mini, Wales rugby league international)
Few players anywhere will have taken a more circuitous route to playing rugby on Sky Sports. Gough-Walters was born in Al Wasl Hospital in Dubai, raised in Sharjah, did not take up rugby seriously till she was 15, has a master’s in global governance and ethics, and once worked as an immigration officer at the British Embassy in Abu Dhabi. In the summer of 2021 she played for Wales against England in rugby league, in a match that was broadcast live on TV.
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Erin King (Dubai Hurricanes mini, Ireland sevens international)
Aged five, Australia-born King went to Dubai Hurricanes training at The Sevens with her brothers. She immediately struck up a deep affection for rugby. She returned to the city at the end of last year to play at the Dubai Rugby Sevens in the colours of Ireland in the Women’s World Series tournament on Pitch 1.
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
