Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqhchi talks during a press conference in Istanbul, Turkey, June 22, 2025.
Umit Bektas | Reuters
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday said Tehran reserves all options to defend its sovereignty and people after the “outrageous” U.S. attacks on three major nuclear enrichment facilities in the Middle Eastern country.
Iran also launched its 20th wave of missile and drone strikes against Israeli military targets, according to Iran state-owned media Fars. The Israel Defense Forces on Sunday reported sirens blaring due to further Iranian offensives and added it had begun its own missile offensives in western Iran.
The two regional foes have been exchanging attacks since Israel’s surprise attack on Iran last week.
Tehran’s response comes after the U.S. conducted a direct military attack on Iran for the first time, a move that has dramatically ratcheted up geopolitical tensions in the already volatile region.
Israeli security forces and first responders gather at the site of an Iranian strike that hit a residential neighbourhood in the Ramat Aviv area in Tel Aviv on June 22, 2025.
Jack Guez | Afp | Getty Images
Araghchi said on social media that the U.S. attacks targeting the Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear sites would have “everlasting consequences,” adding that “every member of the United Nations must be alarmed over this extremely dangerous, lawless and criminal behavior.”
In a separate post, Araghchi accused the U.S. and Israel of destroying recent efforts to achieve a diplomatic breakthrough.
“Last week, we were in negotiations with the US when Israel decided to blow up that diplomacy. This week, we held talks with the E3/EU when the US decided to blow up that diplomacy,” Araghchi said on X. The E3 refers to the informal diplomatic grouping of Germany, France and Britain.
Addressing the nation on Saturday evening, U.S. President Donald Trump said strikes on three of Iran’s nuclear sites were a “spectacular military success” that “completely obliterated” the country’s key enrichment facilities.
The U.S. president’s claim about the result of the operation could not be independently confirmed. The International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran’s nuclear safety center had reported no radiation or contamination at the nuclear centers following the attacks, as of Sunday morning London time.
Protesters in support of Iran and Palestinians in Gaza hold flags and placards during a demonstration against the actions of Israel and the United States in Sydney on June 22, 2025.
David Gray | Afp | Getty Images
“There will be either peace, or there will be tragedy for Iran far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days. Remember, there are many targets left,” Trump said.
Israel welcomed Trump’s intervention in the conflict. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Trump’s “bold decision will change history.”
Elsewhere in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman and Qatar’s respective governments all expressed deep concern in reaction to the U.S. incursion on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
Lebanon, meanwhile, called “for restraint and the launch of constructive and serious negotiations to restore stability to the countries of the region,” according to a Google-translated post from the presidency.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “gravely concerned” by the U.S. use of force against Iran, warning that “there is a growing risk that this conflict could rapidly get out of control.”
At least 430 people have been killed in Iran since Israel began its attacks, according to Iranian state media, citing Tehran’s health ministry. Twenty-four civilians were last reported killed in Israel due to Iran’s retaliatory strikes, according to U.N. experts.
