TEHRAN, Iran: Iran on Thursday claimed that its armed forces carried out a precision strike targeting an Israeli Military Command, Control & Intelligence Headquarters, along with another key site, in a retaliatory military action earlier.
The announcement was made by Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi in an official statement on social media.
According to Araghchi, the strike caused only minor, superficial damage to a nearby facility — the Soroka Military Hospital — which was already largely evacuated.
He clarified that the hospital primarily served Israeli soldiers involved in ongoing military operations in Gaza, where he accused Israel of committing genocide and destroying nearly all Palestinian medical infrastructure.
“The blast wave caused superficial damage to a small section of the nearby, and largely evacuated, Soroka Military Hospital,” Araghchi stated.
“The facility is mainly used to treat Israeli soldiers engaged in the Genocide in Gaza 25 miles away, where Israel has destroyed or damaged 94% of Palestinian hospitals.”
Earlier today, our powerful Armed Forces accurately eliminated an Israeli Military Command, Control & Intelligence HQ and another vital target.
The blast wave caused superficial damage to a small section of the nearby, and largely evacuated, Soroka Military Hospital. The… pic.twitter.com/39tOeRtgYG
— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) June 19, 2025
The Iranian Foreign Minister strongly blamed Israel for what he called the “illegal war” launched against Iran last week, and rejected accusations that Iran is targeting civilian infrastructure.
He claimed hundreds of innocent Iranians have been killed since hostilities began, describing the Israeli government as the real aggressor.
“It is the Israeli regime and not Iran that initiated all this bloodshed,” he said. “It is Israeli war criminals and not Iranians who are targeting hospitals and civilians.”
Araghchi further warned Israeli citizens to heed Iran’s evacuation notices and distance themselves from military and intelligence facilities, adding that Iranian forces would persist in targeting “criminal aggressors” until attacks on Iran cease.
“Our powerful Armed Forces will continue to pummel the criminals who target our people until they cease and pay for their criminal aggression against our nation,” he concluded.
Israel claims strikes on Iran’s nuclear facility
The Israeli army said its fighter jets struck dozens of sites in Iran, including Natanz and the heavy water nuclear reactor, which was originally called Arak and is now named Khondab.
The military said it specifically targeted “the structure of the reactor’s core seal, which is a key component in plutonium production”.
Iranian media reported air defences were activated in the area of the Khondab nuclear facility and two projectiles hit an area close to it.
Officials told Iranian state TV that evacuations were made before the strikes and no risk of radiation or casualties was detected. There was no mention of any damage.
An Israeli military spokesperson later said that fighter jets had struck the Bushehr nuclear power plant located on Iran’s Gulf coast, the Reuters news agency reported.
But an Israeli military official later said the statement was “a mistake” and said he could not confirm or deny if the facility had been targeted.
The escalation comes after Israel launched a major attack on Iranian military facilities and nuclear sites last Friday, killing senior military officials and top nuclear scientists.
Iran responded to that attack by launching waves of missiles at targets in Israel, although most have been shot down by Israel’s multitiered air defences. The conflict has quickly widened this week with both countries striking one another.
Israel threatens Khamenei
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Iranian leaders they would pay “a heavy price” for the attack on Soroka Medical Centre, and Defence Minister Israel Katz threatened to eliminate Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“Such a person is forbidden to exist,” Katz said in a statement cited by the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.
The Iranian news agency IRNA said the “main target” of the Beersheba attack “was the large [Israeli army] Command and Intelligence (IDF C4I) headquarters and the military intelligence camp in the Gav-Yam Technology Park”.
The facility is next to the Soroka Medical Centre, it said, claiming the health facility suffered only minor damage from the shockwave resulting from the missile strike.
