Israeli warplanes hammer Iranian capital

An Iranian attack over Tel Aviv was intercepted (AP)

Israeli warplanes have pounded Iran’s capital overnight, hitting a facility used to make uranium centrifuges and another that made missile components, military chiefs said.

Ten missiles were intercepted by Israel overnight as Iran’s retaliatory barrages diminished.

Iran, meanwhile, has warned that any US intervention in the conflict would risk “all-out war in the region”.

Israel is carrying out blistering attacks on Iran’s nuclear programme and military sites that began with a surprise bombardment on Friday.

A Washington-based Iranian human rights group said at least 585 people, including 239 civilians, have been killed and more than 1,300 wounded.

Strikes have injured hundreds of people in Tehran (AP/ISNA)

Shops have been closed across Iran’s capital, Tehran, including in its famed Grand Bazaar, as people wait in queues for petrol and pack roads leading out of the city to escape the onslaught.

Iran has fired some 400 missiles and hundreds of drones in retaliatory strikes that have killed at least 24 people in Israel and injured hundreds.

Some have hit apartment buildings in central Israel, causing heavy damage, and air raid sirens have repeatedly forced Israelis to run for shelter.

Iran has fired fewer missiles in each of its barrages, with just a handful launched on Wednesday. It has not explained the decline, but it comes after Israel targeted many Iranian launchers.

All eyes are on Washington, where US President Donald Trump initially distanced himself from the Israeli attacks but has hinted at greater American involvement, saying he wants something “much bigger” than a ceasefire. The US has also sent more warplanes to the region.

An oil storage facility was hit in Tehran on Sunday (AP)

The Washington-based group Human Rights Activists said it had identified 239 of those killed in Israeli strikes as civilians and 126 as security personnel.

The group, which also provided detailed casualty figures during 2022 protests over the death of Mahsa Amini, cross-checks local reports against a network of sources it has developed in the country.

Iran has not been publishing regular death tolls during the conflict and has minimized casualties in the past. Its last update, issued Monday, put the death toll at 224 people killed and 1,277 others wounded.

A major explosion could be heard around 5am local time (2.30am BST) in Tehran on Wednesday morning, following earlier explosions during the night. Authorities in Iran offered no acknowledgement of the attacks, which has become increasingly common as the Israeli air strikes have intensified.

At least one strike appeared to target Tehran’s eastern Hakimiyeh area, where the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard has an academy.

Israel says it launched the strikes to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon, after talks between the United States and Iran over a diplomatic resolution had made little visible progress over two months but were still ongoing.

Mr Trump has said Israel’s campaign came after a 60-day window he set for the talks.

Iran insists its nuclear programme is peaceful, though it is the only non-nuclear-armed state to enrich uranium up to 60%, a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%. US intelligence agencies have said they did not believe Iran was actively pursuing the bomb.

As the conflict entered a sixth day, neither side showed signs of backing down.

“We will show the Zionists no mercy,” Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said in a post on his official X account.

“A storm is passing over Tehran,” Israeli defence minister Israel Katz posted. “This is how dictatorships collapse.”