We have the latest on the U-S and Israeli war on Iran, where in the past 48 hours, Israel has struck one of Iran’s nuclear facilities and Iran has responded with strikes in Israel.
AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
The war in Iran has moved into its fourth week with all sides appearing to ramp up threats and attacks. President Trump issued new warnings late Saturday that the U.S. will, quote, “obliterate” Iran’s power plants if the Strait of Hormuz waterway is not open to international traffic within 48 hours. Iran doesn’t appear to be deterred by the threats. It launched a new wave of airstrikes in Israel starting last night, with missiles striking two cities near Israel’s nuclear research center. More than 100 people have been injured. For more now, we go to NPR’s Carrie Kahn who’s in the Israeli city of Arad, where one of the Iranian missiles hit. Carrie, welcome.
CARRIE KAHN, BYLINE: Hi. Good morning.
RASCOE: So can you tell us what you’re seeing there?
KAHN: Sure. I’m in the south of Israel, close by the Dead Sea in the city of Arad. I’m at the blast site where the missile fell last night. It landed right in the middle of a dense residential apartment complex, Ayesha. The missile didn’t fall directly on an apartment, but the shock wave from the hit is extensive, blocks and blocks wide. You can see the walls are blown out of several homes. You can see inside the apartments with furniture and fixtures strewn about, clothes and glass everywhere. Across the street, there’s a large mall, and all the glass doors have been blown out there. Here’s Lemor Malkov (ph). She’s a 50-year-old worker in the grocery store at the mall. She lives just around the corner from the blast.
LEMOR MALKOV: (Non-English language spoken).
KAHN: She said she thought she was hallucinating. It was like something out of the movies. The blast was so strong, it blew out all her windows, damaged her ceiling. Her four kids were terrified. They did not make it to the bomb shelter in time, she said.
RASCOE: What have Israeli authorities said about these missiles getting through their, I mean, robust air defense systems?
KAHN: I just spoke with the Israeli military spokesman. He says two missiles got through the Israeli defense system. One hit here in Arad and the other not far away in Dimona. And these two southern cities are the closest to Israel’s nuclear research center, which is widely believed to be connected to Israel’s nuclear program. And just so you know, Israel authorities have never confirmed or denied that they have nuclear weapons. And so I asked the spokesman, Nadav Shoshani, how did Iran penetrate the air defenses? And he said, look, no air defense system is perfect and said of the 400-some missiles Iran has fired at Israel, its defenses have intercepted 92%. He also said that more than – as you said – a hundred were injured. More than a thousand people now are homeless.
RASCOE: And what has Iran said about the strikes?
KAHN: Iran state media said the attack was in response to a strike yesterday on its Natanz uranium enrichment facility. Israel says it has no knowledge of that strike. Iran’s defense ministry spokesman said Iran, quote, “must continue the war without interruption with intensity and strength until the enemy’s complete surrender.” And then we also heard from Iran’s Parliament speaker who also threatened that, quote, “the critical infrastructure, energy infrastructures and oil facilities throughout the region will be considered legitimate targets and will be destroyed in an irreversible manner.” And he also said the price of oil will remain high for a long time. And as there has been in recent days, there were multiple missiles and drones intercepted in Gulf States this morning.
RASCOE: And, Carrie, you’re in Israel. What are you hearing from people there after three, four weeks of war?
KAHN: Well, I’ll tell you, here in Arad, which was just devastated by this Iranian missile, people are defiant. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was just here, and so was the president, and people are telling them, keep going, go strong against Iran. This is the worst damage Israel has experienced in the war. In this last 24 hours, two cities very badly hit, and also, Tel Aviv was struck this morning by a missile damaging the main train station, which is very close to the Kirya, which is the main military headquarters. Support is still strong in Israel for the war, but Israelis are getting tired and exhausted running into these shelters four to five times a day and throughout the night.
RASCOE: That’s NPR’s Carrie Kahn in Arad, Israel. Thank you so much.
KAHN: You’re welcome.
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