Defense Minister Yisrael Katz on Wednesday morning issued a sharp threat to the Islamic Republic ahead of further IDF attacks in Iran. He wrote on X: “A tornado is sweeping through Tehran. Symbols of government are bombed and collapsing—from the broadcasting authority and soon more targets—and masses of residents are fleeing. This is how dictatorships collapse,” he said. The statement came after dozens of air force fighter jets bombed a centrifuge production site and a number of weapons production sites of the Iranian regime in the Tehran area overnight Tuesday. (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

Dramatic details are now being revealed behind the scenes of the preparations for Israel’s war against Iran, with Ynet reporting that only a few months ago, Israel’s preparations for a conflict with Iran were partial—and in fact almost nonexistent. Sources in the IDF said that until February, “the target bank was almost empty,” and the assumption in the defense establishment was that the operation would be carried out mainly in covert missions and not through a large-scale military campaign. Serious preparations began in October—amid the war with Hezbollah. The IDF then decided to launch operational preparations for a campaign against Iran.

In an operation deep inside Iranian territory, the IDF announced on Wednesday that it carried out a large-scale aerial assault targeting Iran’s nuclear weapons development infrastructure and missile production industry. “Over the past few hours, more than 50 IAF fighter jets completed a series of intelligence-based strikes on military targets in the area of Tehran,” the IDF said in an official statement. The primary target was a centrifuge production facility in Tehran. According to the IDF, “the IAF struck a facility used to manufacture centrifuges in Tehran that was designed to enable the Iranian regime to expand the scale and speed of its uranium enrichment to develop nuclear weapons.” The Israeli military made clear that Iran’s nuclear ambitions are not for peaceful purposes.

The first flight carrying Israeli citizens back home since international air travel was halted due to the war with Iran has landed safely at Ben Gurion Airport. The flight, operated from Larnaca, Cyprus, is part of a national effort to bring back tens of thousands of Israelis who were stranded abroad after Iranian missile attacks and the ensuing closure of Israeli airspace caused widespread disruption to commercial flights. Israeli airlines—including El Al, Arkia, Israir, and the newly operational Air Haifa—are all participating in the coordinated repatriation campaign. Flights are scheduled throughout the week as the airspace gradually reopens under heavy security and with military coordination.

by Shira Miller Thomas Friedman has been a thorn in Israel’s side for several decades.  He recently penned a horrific article entitled, “This Israeli Government is a Danger to Jews Everywhere.” The truth is that Thomas Friedman has had a

As Israeli jets carved through Iranian airspace, reducing strategic targets to smoking craters, Iran’s “Supreme Leader” Ali Khamenei was wide awake—tucked under reinforced blankets and rage-tweeting in three languages from what we can only assume is a very well-insulated bunker. At 4:30 a.m. local time, Khamenei took to X with his latest outburst—this time in Hebrew: “We must act with force against the terrorist Zionist entity… We will not be merciful toward the Zionists.” This marked his third multilingual salvo in under 24 hours—first in Farsi, then in English, now Hebrew. The only medium left is Morse code tapped on a bunker wall flashlight.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz spoke out in support of Israel’s war against the Islamic Republic. Speaking to the press at the G7 conference in Canada on Tuesday, Merz said, “This is the dirty work Israel is doing for all of us. We are also victims of this regime. This mullah regime has brought death and destruction to the world.” “I can only say I have the greatest respect for the fact that the Israeli army and the Israeli government had the courage to do this,” Merz asserted. Merz also told Welt TV that he thinks the war could bring about a regime change in Iran. “I assume that the attacks of the last few days have already weakened the mullah regime considerably and that it is unlikely to return to its former strength, making the future of the country uncertain,” Merz said.

Iran has prepared missiles for potential strikes against U.S. forces in the Middle East, according to reports. The New York Times reported that the Iranian military is planning possible attacks against American forces if the U.S. joins Israel as it continues to launch strikes against the Islamic Republic, citing American officials. As an example, if the U.S. strikes Fordow, a key Iranian nuclear facility, Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen could attack ships in the Red Sea, as they have done since Oct, 7, 2023, the Times of Israel reported. The US has thousands of troops deployed in the region. Meanwhile, Iran has missile bases within range of some of the American forces.

The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem will be closed from Wednesday through Friday. “As a result of the current security situation and ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, the U.S. Embassy has directed that all U.S. government employees and their family members continue to shelter in place in and near their residences until further notice,” a security alert states. The closure includes the consular sections in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. There will be no passport or consular report of birth abroad services, either. “We have no announcement about assisting private U.S. citizens to depart at this time,” the alert said. “The Department of State is always planning for contingencies to assist with private U.S. citizens’ departure from crisis areas. We will alert the U.S.

A missile launched by Iran almost destroyed a parked car in a Chareidi neighborhood in Haifa but the tefillin inside it were unharmed. B’Chasdei Hashem, no one was injured in the incident. Deputy Transportation Minister Uri Maklev traveled on Tuesday to the impact site and spoke with the residents of the neighborhood, who have been under continuous threat. Iran has been targeting Haifa in their barrages, as there are many strategic assets in the city: the Haifa Port, the city’s industrial zone and oil refineries (the largest of which was hit and is currently closed down), and a naval base. The owner of the car told Maklev that part of the neis was that the missile first hit the nearby water pipe, which quelled the fire before it hit the car.