Iranian Nuclear Scientist Eliminated in Israeli Strikes, Claims PM Benjamin Netanyahu (Watch Video)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Thursday that Israeli operations have successfully targeted senior members of Iran’s nuclear program, including the killing of a top nuclear scientist. The announcement comes during a period of heightened regional volatility following the recent leadership transition in Tehran.
Tel Aviv, March 13: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli attacks have killed a top Iranian nuclear scientist and hit several others. Speaking Thursday night at a news conference, Netanyahu denounced Iran's new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, as a "puppet of the Revolutionary Guards" who cannot appear in public. And he addressed the Iranian people, saying the moment for a "new path of freedom" was approaching and that Israel stands with them. "But at the end of the day, it depends on you. It is in your hands," he said.
Meanwhile, Iran's secretive new supreme leader on Thursday vowed to keep up attacks on Gulf Arab countries and use the effective closure of the strategic Strait of Hormuz as leverage against the United States and Israel. It was his first public statement since being chosen to succeed his father, who was killed in an Israeli strike. PM Narendra Modi Discusses Escalating West Asia Tensions With Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Stresses Indian Nationals’ Safety and Uninterrupted Energy Transit. Middle East Conflic: Damage to Historical Sites in Iran Raises Alarm About War’s Impact on Protected Places.
Benjamin Netanyahu Talks About Return of the Messiah to Israel
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, who Israel suspects was wounded in the opening salvo of the war, has not appeared in public since then. In the statement read by a state TV news anchor, he vowed to avenge those killed in the war, including in a strike on a school that killed over 165 people.
The statement signaled a willingness to continue the war that has disrupted global energy supplies, international travel and the relative safety enjoyed by the Gulf Arab states. Iran's unrelenting attacks on shipping traffic and energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf had earlier pushed oil back above $100 a barrel. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei Resolves To Keep Fighting in His First Public Remarks.
U.S. and Israeli strikes have exacted a heavy toll on Iran's leadership, military and ballistic missile program but have failed to topple the government, which U.S. President Donald Trump has at times suggested is his goal.
Iran is trying to inflict enough global economic pain to pressure the United States and Israel to halt their bombardment, which began on Feb. 28. Those strikes killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei - Mojtaba's father - and the younger Khamenei's wife.
Trump has meanwhile promised to "finish the job," even though he claimed Iran is "virtually destroyed." He said in a social media post Thursday that ensuring Iran does not develop a nuclear weapon was a higher priority than soaring oil prices.
The U.S. military said Thursday that American forces have now struck more than 6,000 targets since the operation against Iran began, including more than 30 minelaying vessels.
AD
Iran-backed Hezbollah militants meanwhile launched some 200 rockets from Lebanon at northern Israel while sirens rang out and loud booms from the interception of Iranian missiles could be heard in other areas. Israel launched another wave of attacks on Tehran and in Lebanon, where 11 people were killed.
The U.N. refugee agency said up to 3.2 million people in Iran have been displaced by the ongoing war. It said most have fled from Tehran and other major cities toward the north of the country or rural areas. Around 800,000 people have been internally displaced in Lebanon, prompting fears of a humanitarian crisis.
Khamenei's first statement signaled a continuation of his late father's strategy in confronting the United States and Israel. He called on Gulf Arabs to "shut down" U.S. bases in the region, saying protection promised by Washington was "nothing more than a lie."
He also said Iran has studied "opening other fronts in which the enemy has little experience and would be highly vulnerable" if the war continues. He did not elaborate, but Iran has been linked to previous attacks on U.S., Israeli and Jewish targets around the world.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 13, 2026 07:54 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).