Kamal Ghorui
Iranian forces fired long-range missiles for the first time on Saturday, marking an expansion of the conflict beyond the Middle East and raising concerns that European capitals could be within reach. The strikes also injured dozens of people near Israel’s nuclear site.Iran launched two 4,000-kilometer-range ballistic missiles at the US-UK military base Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, Israeli military chief Eyal Zamir said. The Israeli military described it as the “first time” Iran had used long-range missiles in the conflict.“These missiles are not intended to strike Israel. Their range reaches European capitals — Berlin, Paris, and Rome are all within direct threat range,” Zamir said in a statement, as quoted by Reuters.Follow US-Israel-Iran War News Live UpdatesReacting to this, British Housing Secretary Steve Reed said on Sunday there was no assessment supporting claims that Iran was planning to strike Europe with ballistic missiles, or that it had the capability to do so. “There is no assessment to substantiate what’s being said,” Reed told BBC. “I’m not aware of any assessment at all that they are even trying to target Europe, let alone that they could if they tried,” he added.Late on Saturday, Iranian missiles struck the southern Israeli cities of Dimona and Arad, injuring dozens of people, including children, in separate attacks. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said in a statement early Sunday that they targeted “military installations” and security centers in southern Israel.Israel’s secretive nuclear reactor is about 13 kilometers southeast of Dimona. Both Dimona and Arad lie near several military sites, including Nevatim Air Base, one of the country’s largest.Iranian media reported that US-Israeli forces had attacked the Shahid Ahmadi-Roshan Natanz enrichment complex on Saturday morning. Technical experts found no radioactive leaks, and nearby residents were not at risk. Israel said it was unaware of such a strike, while the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it was investigating.Iranian media later reported strikes on a passenger terminal in the southern port of Bushehr and an empty passenger ship at nearby Kharg Island, which handles nearly all of Iran’s oil exports. The island is seen as a potential target if Washington decides to hit Iranian energy sites or deploy ground troops.“This has been a very difficult evening in the battle for our future,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement released by his office following the strike on Arad. “We are determined to continue striking our enemies on all fronts,” the statement said.More than 2,000 people have been killed in Iran since the US and Israel began their attacks. In Israel, 15 people have been killed in Iranian strikes since the war started.US President Donald Trump on Friday posted that Washington was considering “winding down” its military operation against Iran. In a social media post, Trump said the US was close to meeting its goals but insisted that other countries should take the lead in policing the Strait of Hormuz, the shipping lane whose near-closure threatens a global energy shock.
