Israel has gutted Iran's nuclear and military leadership with airstrikes that leave a weakened Tehran with few options to retaliate, including an all-out war that it is neither equipped for nor likely to win,

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel “should expect severe punishment” for the attacks, which he said struck residential centers and killed several commanders and scientists. “The powerful hand of the armed forces of the Islamic Republic will not let them go unpunished,

The widescale overnight strikes have ratcheted up the direct confrontation between the arch foes to an unprecedented level following years of war in the shadows that burst into the open when Iran's ally Hamas attacked Israel in 2023.