Israel began a military operation against Iran late Thursday night, with explosions reported in the capital city, Tehran.Iran’s state-run news agency confirmed the blasts, Israel’s defence minister described the attacks as "preemptive strikes."In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the airstrikes were aimed at key parts of Iran’s nuclear and military program."We struck at the heart of Iran's nuclear enrichment program, Iran's nuclear weaponization program, Iran's main enrichment facilities, leading nuclear scientists, and ballistic missile programs," Netanyahu said.

PM Netanyahu said in a video message: "Moments ago, Israel launched Operation Rising Lion, a targeted military operation to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel's very survival."

"This operation will continue as long as necessary, until we complete the mission," he added, saying the attacks were focused on Iran’s nuclear program, missile systems, and military infrastructure.Israel’s military chief of staff said the country is fully prepared along all its borders and issued a strong warning to its enemies. "We are prepared across all borders. I warn that anyone who will try to challenge us will pay a heavy price," he said.

After the attacks, Iran’s Tasnim news agency said flights were suspended at Tehran’s main airport—Imam Khomeini International—although the airport itself was not directly hit.

Israel has long warned it would strike Iran if it believed Iran’s nuclear program became a real threat. The two countries have been enemies for decades. International experts say Iran is still enriching uranium to levels close to what is needed for nuclear weapons.The Israeli strike comes while the Trump administration is trying to make a deal with Iran to limit its nuclear activity. US envoy Steve Witkoff has already held five rounds of talks with Iranian officials. It’s not clear whether the US helped with the attack, but there’s no sign that it did.US secretary of state Marco Rubio made it clear the US was not involved. He also said that Israel acted on its own.

"Tonight, Israel took unilateral action against Iran.

We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region," said Rubio."Israel advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its self-defense. President Trump and the Administration have taken all necessary steps to protect our forces and remain in close contact with our regional partners. Let me be clear: Iran should not target US interests or personnel."