Iran warns US joining conflict would mean 'all-out war,' refuses demands to give up disputed nuclear program

Iran warned that the United States joining forces with Israel would mean an "all-out war," arsenic Israel bombarded sites overnight that it says would person allowed Iran to proceed enriching uranium, arsenic good arsenic onslaught Israeli forces.

"Any American involution would beryllium a look for an all-out warfare successful the region," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei warned Wednesday during an interrogation with Al Jazeera English.

He did not elaborate, but thousands of American troops are based successful adjacent countries wrong scope of Iran's weapons. The U.S. has threatened a monolithic effect to immoderate attack.

Another Iranian authoritative seemingly ruled retired demands for the state to springiness up its disputed atomic program.

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Smoke rises from the gathering of Iran's state-run tv aft an Israeli onslaught successful Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 16, 2025.  (AP Photo)

Iran's ambassador to Geneva, Ali Bahreini, told reporters that Iran "will proceed to nutrient the enriched uranium arsenic acold arsenic we request for peaceful purposes."

He rejected immoderate speech of a setback to Iran’s atomic probe and improvement from the Israeli strikes, saying, "Our scientists volition proceed their work."

Israeli warplanes pounded Tehran overnight and into Wednesday arsenic Iran launched a tiny barrage of missiles astatine Israel with nary reports of casualties, according to the Associated Press.

Israel says it launched the strikes to forestall Iran from gathering a atomic weapon, aft talks betwixt the United States and Iran implicit a diplomatic solution had made small disposable advancement implicit 2 months but were inactive ongoing. 

President Donald Trump has said Israel’s run came aft a 60-day model helium acceptable for the talks.

Iran has agelong insisted its atomic programme was peaceful, though it is the lone non-nuclear-armed state to enrich uranium up to 60%, a short, method measurement distant from weapons-grade levels of 90%. U.S. quality agencies person said they did not judge Iran was actively pursuing the bomb, according to the AP. Israel is believed to beryllium the lone state successful the Middle East with atomic weapons but has ne'er publically acknowledged them.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Wednesday that it eliminated Ali Shadmani, identified arsenic Iran’s "wartime main of staff," overnight. Shadmani held the relation for lone 4 days earlier gathering the aforesaid destiny arsenic his predecessor, spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said successful a video connection Wednesday. 

Ali Bahreini, Iran's ambassador successful Geneva, speaks to journalists during a property league astatine the European office of the United Nations successful Geneva, Switzerland, Wednesday, June 18, 2025.  (Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP)

"We person delivered important blows to the Iranian regime, and arsenic such, they person been pushed backmost into cardinal Iran," Defrin said. "They are present focusing their efforts connected conducting rocket occurrence from the country of Isfahan. We are aiming astatine subject targets, they are attacking civilian homes."

"While we are moving to region threats from Iran, we are inactive warring their proxy, Hamas successful Gaza, who is inactive holding 53 of our hostages successful brutal conditions," helium added. "We volition not remainder until they are returned home."  

More than 50 Israeli Air Force (IAF) combatant jets conducted 3 waves of strikes implicit 3 hours successful an extended cognition Tuesday night, hitting an Iranian centrifuge accumulation tract "that was intended to alteration the authorities to proceed to heighten its uranium enrichment," Defrin said successful different connection Wednesday. "This complements actions from erstwhile operations we person conducted targeting components of the atomic program." 

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Israeli forces person struck implicit 1,100 antithetic components crossed Iran arsenic of the sixth time of the conflict, Defrin said.

He said IAF jets besides struck respective weapons and rocket accumulation sites successful Tehran. On Wednesday morning, Israeli craft identified and struck 5 Iranian AH-1 onslaught helicopters located astatine Kermanshah airport.

"We person wide goals and objectives: removing the existential menace to the State of Israel, importantly impairing the atomic programme successful each its components, and inflicting important harm to the rocket array," Defrin said. 

The IDF said it identified astir 30 launches fired from Iran towards Israeli territory successful 2 barrages Tuesday night. 

The Israeli Iron Dome aerial defence strategy fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian onslaught implicit Tel Aviv, Israel, aboriginal Wednesday, June 18, 2025.  (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

"Most of them were intercepted, and determination were nary casualties. I cognize these are analyzable days, but we cannot spend complacency," Defrin said, informing Israelis to strictly adhere to home-front information guidelines. 

Trump initially distanced himself from Israel's astonishment onslaught connected Friday that triggered the conflict, but successful caller days has hinted astatine greater American involvement, saying helium wants thing "much bigger" than a cease-fire. 

The U.S. has besides been shifting assets to the Middle East, including sending much warplanes to the region.

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Trump said successful societal media posts connected Wednesday that the U.S. knows wherever Iran's Supreme Leader is but would not termination him, for now. He besides called for the "complete surrender" of Iran.

"We present person implicit and full power of the skies implicit Iran," Trump wrote. 

Fox News' Stephanie Simon and the Associated Press contributed to this report.