Israel claimed to operate almost freely in the skies over Iran during a third day of airstrikes Sunday and killed more high-ranking security figures, while some Iranian missiles slipped through Israel's air defenses. Both sides threatened to launch more attacks.
In an indication of how far Israel was prepared to go amid fears of all-out war, a U.S. official told The Associated Press that President Donald Trump in recent days vetoed an Israeli plan to kill Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The Iranian Health Ministry said late Sunday that 224 people have been killed since Israel's attack began Friday. Spokesman Hossein Kermanpour said on social media that 1,277 other people were hospitalized. He asserted that more than 90% of the casualties were civilians.
The paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which controls Iran's arsenal of ballistic missiles, said intelligence chief Gen. Mohammad Kazemi and two other generals were the latest killed, Iran's state TV reported Sunday night. Israel's attacks have killed several top generals and nuclear scientists.
Iran also said Israel struck two oil refineries, raising the prospect of a broader assault on Iran's heavily sanctioned energy industry that could affect global markets. Israel's military warned Iranians to evacuate arms factories, signaling a further widening of the campaign. Iran's military, on state TV, warned Israelis to stay away from "occupied" areas.
Israel, the sole though undeclared nuclear-armed state in the Middle East, has said it launched the attack — its most powerful ever against Iran — to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. The two countries have been adversaries for decades. The latest U.S.-Iran talks on its nuclear program were canceled.
