GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 13th June: The pre-dawn hours of Friday, June 13, 2025, marked a chilling turning point in the Middle East. Under the ominous banner of “Operation Rising Lion,” dozens of Israeli jets launched an unprecedented aerial assault deep into Iranian territory. This was no mere tactical strike; it was a sweeping, targeted blow against the very heart of Iran’s nuclear and military infrastructure. It has irrevocably reshaped the regional landscape, pushing it to the precipice of a wider, devastating war.
The stark image of black smoke billowing from Natanz, Iran’s principal uranium enrichment site, just hours after the first wave, painted a grim picture of the operation’s severity. This sprawling complex, home to thousands of centrifuges and long a global flashpoint, appears to have sustained significant damage. While the full extent remains unclear, early images showed fires near the above-ground Pilot Fuel Enrichment Plant. Even if its more fortified underground sections withstand conventional strikes, any disruption to this crucial facility in Iran’s rapidly accelerating nuclear program carries profound implications. This marks the most direct Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear infrastructure since the infamous Stuxnet cyberattack over a decade ago, signaling a new, perilous chapter in this decades-long shadow war.
The horror intensified with a confirmation from Iranian state television: Major General Hossein Salami, chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), was killed. Termed a “direct assassination by Zionist forces,” Salami’s death removes the public face and, critically, the chief architect of Iran’s expansive proxy warfare across Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. The confirmed loss of another senior IRGC commander and two prominent nuclear scientists further underscores the precision and devastating impact of the Israeli assault. Iran’s immediate declaration of a state of national mourning is a stark testament to the monumental blow it perceives.
This audacious operation comes against the dire backdrop of Iran steadily accelerating its uranium enrichment program. Reports indicate that its “breakout time”—the period needed to produce fissile material for a nuclear weapon—had reportedly shrunk to mere weeks. With the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) estimating Iran possesses enough 60% enriched uranium to manufacture nearly four nuclear warheads if further enriched, Israel’s preemptive strike reflects a deep-seated, perhaps existential, fear of an imminent nuclear threat. This is a gamble of catastrophic proportions, born of perceived necessity.
Beyond Natanz, other critical sites such as Fordow, deeply embedded within a mountain near Qom and hosting advanced centrifuges, and the Isfahan complex, where yellowcake uranium is processed, highlight the multi-faceted nature of Iran’s nuclear architecture. Even the Khondab facility, a heavy water reactor with plutonium potential, and the Tehran research reactor, supplied by the US in the 1960s, serve as pieces in a complex puzzle that has long alarmed the international community.
The jarring sounds of explosions and air raid sirens across Tehran’s Chitgar district, coupled with the abrupt closure of Iranian airspace, paint a grim picture for ordinary citizens caught in this terrifying escalation. Israel, too, has declared a full airspace lockdown and heightened emergency readiness, bracing for an expected missile and drone counter-attack. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz’s blunt statement, confirming responsibility and noting the anticipated retaliation, leaves no doubt: the established rules of engagement have been shattered.
The immediate future appears terrifyingly uncertain. The assassination of a figure as central as Salami and the direct targeting of nuclear facilities will undoubtedly elicit a forceful, and likely asymmetric, response from Tehran. The international community, already grappling with profound global instability, now faces the nightmare scenario of a full-blown regional conflict spiraling out of control. This is not merely an escalation; it is a reckless plunge into an abyss, the depth of which remains to be seen. “Operation Rising Lion” may well be the roar that unleashes an unprecedented storm across the Middle East and far beyond.
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