IAEA Statement: Direct Impacts on Underground Enrichment Halls at Natanz + Iran Supreme Leader Defiant : "No mercy" + IDF Kills Latest Top General of Iranian Armed Forces + Will US Bunker-Busters Be Used at Fordo?

I - On Defense Podcast

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1. Iran Supreme Leader Defiant : "No mercy."

Iran fired a pair of ballistic missile barrages at Israel early Wednesday, as Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared “the battle begins” and called to show “no mercy” toward Israelis.

2. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issues an evacuation warning for part of Tel Aviv, according to Iranian news agencies.

3. Iran has prepared missiles and other measures for potential strikes against US forces in the Middle East, (New York Times reports). The Iranian military is planning the possible attacks as a retaliatory measure if American forces join Israel’s strikes against Iran, the report says, citing American officials.

4. Iran has been launching smaller salvos of missiles at Israel over the past two days because its capabilities have been degraded by Israeli strikes, the IDF believes.

5. In an interview with the London-based opposition outlet Iran International on Monday, PM Netanyahu responded to a question on whether eliminating Iran’s ruler was on the table, saying, “I’m not gonna get into specific targets because I’m leaving that open.”

6. IDF Kills Latest Senior General of Iranian Armed Forces. An airstrike Monday night killed Major General Ali Shadmani, the new head of the Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters, also known as Iran’s military emergency command.

7. IAEA Statement: Direct Impacts on Underground Enrichment Halls at Natanz.

On Tuesday, the IAEA said on X: “Based on continued analysis of high-resolution satellite imagery collected after Friday’s attacks, the IAEA has identified additional elements that indicate direct impacts on the underground enrichment halls at Natanz.”

8. Will US Bunker-Busters Be Used at Fordo?

The US GBU-57 A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator bomb: The roughly 30,000 pound (13,600 kilogram) precision-guided bomb is designed to attack deeply buried and hardened bunkers and tunnels, according to the US Air Force.

It’s believed to be able to penetrate about 200 feet (61 meters) below the surface before exploding.

9. US President Donald Trump declared Tuesday that he is seeking Iran’s “Unconditional Surrender” and that Washington is only holding off on assassinating Islamic Republic Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei “for now.”

10. USS Nimitz (CVN-68) sailed west through the Singapore Strait Monday, bound for the Indian Ocean (and Middle East Region).