What we know about Israel's attacks on Iran's nuclear sites and military commanders

Israel launched strikes crossed Iran connected Friday, saying they targeted the "heart" of Iran's atomic programme.

The strikes killed Hossein Salami, main of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards - a almighty subdivision of the country's equipped forces - different elder subject figures and atomic scientists.

Civilians, including children, were besides among those killed, Iranian authorities media reported. The BBC is not capable to independently verify these reports.

The Israeli subject said Iran launched astir 100 drones towards Israel connected Friday morning, which the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was intercepting. A authorities of exigency was declared successful Israel.

Explosions were reported successful Iran's superior Tehran astatine astir 03:30 section clip (01:00 BST).

Iranian authorities TV said residential areas successful Tehran were hit, with blasts besides heard north-east of the capital.

In Israel, residents were woken by aerial raid sirens astir the aforesaid clip and received exigency telephone alerts.

Israel's subject said it had struck "dozens of subject targets, including atomic targets successful antithetic areas of Iran".

Hours aft the archetypal strikes, an detonation was reported astatine the Natanz atomic facility, which is located astir 225km (140 miles) southbound of the capital, according to Iranian authorities media.

The IDF aboriginal confirmed it had struck the tract and said its onslaught had resulted successful important damage.

The planetary atomic watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said it was informed by Iranian authorities that determination has been nary summation successful radiation levels astatine the Natanz plant.

IAEA caput Rafael Grossi said atomic facilities "must ne'er beryllium attacked" and specified strikes person "serious implications for atomic safety, information and safeguards, arsenic good arsenic determination and planetary bid and security".

In a connection to committee members, helium called "on each parties to workout maximum restraint to debar further escalation", saying "any subject enactment that jeopardises the information and information of atomic facilities risks sedate consequences for the radical of Iran, the region, and beyond".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strikes - called Operation Rising Lion - were "a targeted subject operation to rotation backmost the Iranian menace to Israel's precise survival".

He said the cognition would "continue for arsenic galore days arsenic it takes to region the spread".

Netanyahu said Iran has taken steps to "weaponise" successful caller months and that, "if not stopped, Iran could nutrient a atomic limb successful a precise abbreviated time".

An Israeli subject authoritative told the BBC that Iran had capable atomic worldly to make atomic bombs "within days".

In his address, Netanyahu besides thanked US President Donald Trump for "confronting Iran's atomic weapons programme".

The strikes travel arsenic US talks implicit Iran's atomic programme, which began successful April, look to person stalled successful caller days. The adjacent circular of talks was scheduled for Sunday.

US President Donald Trump had hoped to onslaught a woody to halt Tehran processing a atomic weapon. Iran has agelong insisted that its atomic activities are peaceful.

Earlier this week, Trump reportedly held a "tense" telephone telephone with Netanyahu, who has agelong argued for a subject alternatively than diplomatic attack to Iran's atomic abilities.

Last year, Iran and Israel launched a fig of airstrikes against each other successful April and October - though Israel's strikes past twelvemonth were not believed to person been arsenic wide-ranging arsenic its existent operation.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel "should expect a terrible punishment", portion Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi described the onslaught arsenic a "declaration of war".

Iran launched astir 100 drones towards Israel connected Friday morning, the IDF said. The subject said it was intercepting the drones.

Iran's overseas ministry said its equipped forces would not "hesitate to support Iran's sovereignty with afloat spot and successful the mode they deem appropriate".

In a statement, the ministry called Israel's cognition "acts of aggression" and said "the US government, arsenic the superior patron of this regime, volition besides carnivore responsibility".

Reacting to the strikes, Trump said helium gave Iran "chance aft chance" to marque a deal, but "they conscionable couldn't get it done".

Certain Iranian officials "spoke bravely, but they didn't cognize what was astir to happen," Trump wrote successful a societal media post, adding: "They are each DEAD now."

"There has already been large decease and destruction, but determination is inactive clip to marque this slaughter, with the adjacent already planned attacks being adjacent much brutal, travel to an end.

"Iran indispensable marque a deal, earlier determination is thing left, and prevention what was erstwhile known arsenic the Iranian Empire. No much death, nary much destruction, JUST DO IT, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE."

Earlier, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US was not progressive with the strikes and did not supply immoderate assistance.

He said the apical precedence for the US was to support American forces successful the region.

In different planetary reaction, Oman, which has been mediating US-Iran atomic talks, said it held Israel liable for "this escalation and its consequences".

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said reports of the strikes are "concerning" and urged for de-escalation, arsenic did France.

Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the strikes risked "further destabilising a portion that is already volatile".

The strikes were besides condemned by Japan, Turkey, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia.

China said it was "deeply disquieted astir the terrible consequences" that the strikes whitethorn bring.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres asked some sides for "maximum restraint" to debar "at each costs a descent into deeper conflict", his spokesperson said.

The IDF said that 3 Iranian subject commanders had been "eliminated successful the Israeli strikes crossed Iran".

They were Hossein Salami, the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), Gholamali Rashid, the commandant of Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters, and the main of unit of Iran's equipped forces, Mohammad Bagheri.

IRGC aboriginal said Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the commandant of its aerial force, was besides killed alongside a radical of different IRGC forces.

The Israeli subject said its overnight onslaught focused connected "over 100 targets, including elder figures of the Iranian General Staff and leaders of the atomic program".

IRGC-affiliated quality bureau Tasnim reported six atomic scientists were besides killed successful the strikes, of whom 5 person been named:

• Fereydoon Abbasi, erstwhile caput Iran's Atomic Energy Organization
• Mohammad Mahdi Tehranchi, who was progressive successful Iran's atomic weapons programme
• Abdulhamid Minouchehr, caput of atomic engineering astatine Iran's Shahid Beheshti University
• Ahmad Reza Zolfaghari, a atomic engineering prof astatine Shahid Beheshti University
• Amirhossein Feqhi, different atomic prof astatine Shahid Beheshti University

Ali Shamkhani, elder advisor to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was besides reported to person been earnestly injured, according to Iranian reports.

State media reported civilians, including children, were besides among those killed.

The BBC is not capable to independently verify these reports.

Iran has agelong maintained that its atomic programme is for civilian purposes only. It has respective facilities astir Iran, astatine slightest immoderate of which person been targeted successful the Israeli strikes.

But galore countries - arsenic good arsenic the planetary atomic watchdog, IAEA - are not convinced Iran's programme is for civilian purposes alone.

This week, the watchdog's committee of governors formally declared Iran successful breach of its non-proliferation obligations for the archetypal clip successful 20 years.

It cited Iran's "many failures" to supply afloat answers astir undeclared atomic worldly and Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium.

An earlier IAEA study said Iran had enriched uranium to 60% purity, capable adjacent weapons people uranium to marque 9 atomic bombs.