US president Donald Trump has urged Iran to make a deal over its nuclear programme, saying in a post on his Truth Social platform that there was still time for the country to prevent further conflict with Israel:
“I gave Iran chance after chance to make a deal. I told them, in the strongest of words, to “just do it,” but no matter how hard they tried, no matter how close they got, they just couldn’t get it done.
I told them it would be much worse than anything they know, anticipated, or were told, that the United States makes the best and most lethal military equipment anywhere in the World, BY FAR, and that Israel has a lot of it, with much more to come – And they know how to use it.
Certain Iranian hardliner’s spoke bravely, but they didn’t know what was about to happen. They are all DEAD now, and it will only get worse!
There has already been great death and destruction, but there is still time to make this slaughter, with the next already planned attacks being even more brutal, come to an end.
Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left, and save what was once known as the Iranian Empire. No more death, no more destruction, JUST DO IT, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE. God Bless You All!
Earllier, the Guardian’s senior international correspondent Julian Borger reported from Jerusalem the morning after an unprecedented Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities
For the latest episode of theToday in Focus podcast, Borger has spoken to Michael Safi, an international correspondent for the Guardian, based in the Middle East, about whether the latest events mean we are on the brink of a regional war.
Reuters, citing Iran’s Nournews, reports that 78 people have been killed and 329 injured by Israel’s attacks on residential areas in Tehran.
The UN security council will meet later on Friday over Israel’s strikes on Iran, diplomats said, at the request of Tehran.
According to CNN, US president Donald Trump will speak with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday.
More details to follow …
German chancellor Friedrich Merz, French president Emmanuel Macron and UK prime minister Keir Starmer have spoken on the phone to discuss Israel’s attacks on Iran, a German government spokesperson said on Friday.
“They discussed today’s Israeli strikes against the Iranian nuclear programme and Iran’s military response and agreed to remain in close contact,” the spokesperson added, according to Reuters.
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, on Friday called for de-escalation after the Israeli strikes on Iran. After convening a special national defence and security meeting in Paris, Macron wrote in English on social media:
To avoid jeopardising the stability of the entire region, I call on all parties to exercise maximum restraint and to de-escalate.
He said:
France has repeatedly condemned Iran’s ongoing nuclear programme and has taken all appropriate diplomatic measures in response. In this context, France reaffirms Israel’s right to defend itself and ensure its security.
He added:
France stands ready to work with all its partners to push for de-escalation in the near and Middle East.
On Friday morning, Macron spoke to several leaders including Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, the US president, Donald Trump, the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, and the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer.
Macron is expected to speak to the media late on Friday afternoon to comment further.
Hamas said Iran, its strategic ally, was “paying the price” for supporting militant groups in Gaza in their decades-long struggle against Israel, after Israel launched large-scale attacks on Friday against Iran, reports Reuters.
Hamas leaders have repeatedly thanked Iran for its military and financial support to the group in its fight against Israel, including during the ongoing war that erupted in October 2023.
“Iran is today paying the price for its steadfast positions in support of Palestine and its resistance, and its adherence to its independent national decision,” Hamas said in a statement, according to Reuters.
Hamas armed wing spokesperson Abu Ubaida said in a post on Telegram on Friday that the group would stand by Iran in its conflict against Israel.
“The Zionist enemy is completely deluded if it thinks that these treacherous strikes can undermine the fronts of resistance or stabilise the pillars of this fragile entity in the region,” he said.
US president Donald Trump said on Friday he had given Iran a 60-day ultimatum on a nuclear deal before Israel’s strikes, but added Tehran now has a second chance.
“Two months ago I gave Iran a 60-day ultimatum to ‘make a deal.’ They should have done it! Today is day 61. I told them what to do, but they just couldn’t get there. Now they have, perhaps, a second chance!” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Israel has launched an overnight attack on Iran after claiming Tehran was building nuclear warheads. The country said it targeted “dozens” of targets including Iran’s nuclear facilities, military commanders and scientists.
Iranian state media said the strikes hit the headquarters of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and killed its leader, Gen Hossein Salami.
The video below shows the aftermath of Israeli strikes on Tehran, including smouldering buildings in residential areas.
The UK Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch referenced Israel’s attack on Iran in her keynote address to the Scottish Conservative conference in Edinburgh this lunchtime, but only to attack Labour on energy and defence policy.
“The strikes overnight in the Middle East remind us of how vital it is that we can rely on our own energy and natural resources,” she told delegates, and went on to accuse UK Labour of “killing the oil and gas industry”, calling for the energy profits levy to be scrapped and the ban on new oil and gas licences to be lifted.
She said that she had not agreed with the former Tory prime minister Rishi Sunak when he introduced the levy but now “Labour is doubling down on what we got wrong.”
She also attacked Labour on defence spending, saying:
As our world gets ever more dangerous, whether in the Middle East or Ukraine, it becomes even harder to understand why this week Labour didn’t use the spending review to get up to 3% on defence spending.
Israel is shutting its embassies around the world and has urged citizens to stay alert and not display Jewish or Israeli symbols in public places, statements posted on embassy websites said on Friday after Israel launched large-scale attacks on Iran.
According to Reuters, the statements said Israel would not be providing consular services and urged citizens to cooperate with local security services if faced with hostile activity.
No timeframe was given for how long the embassies would be closed. A person picking up the phone at the embassy in Berlin gave no further details, reports Reuters.
“In light of recent developments, Israeli missions around the world will be closed and consular services will not be provided,” the statement said.
German chancellor Friedrich Merz, who spoke with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday, said Germany was stepping up protection of Jewish and Israeli sites.
Visible security was increased outside the Great Synagogue of Stockholm, with a police van and car parked near the building, a Reuters witness said.
