President Donald Trump is understood to have approved plans for a U.S. attack on Iran, though he has not given the go ahead to carry them out.
Trump met with his top generals in the Situation Room on Wednesday night as details on a potential US offensive were discussed.
Senior White House officials are now preparing for the U.S. to strike Iran 'in the coming days,' Bloomberg reported.
A series of plans have been proposed. One possible option was the deployment of B-2 stealth bombers to drop 30,000-pound bunker-busters on Iran's heavily fortified nuclear sites.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Iran will 'pay a heavy price' following an attack on Soroka Hospital in Beersheba. The hospital was one of several areas struck by Iranian missiles on Thursday.
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Trump has 'approved attack' on Iran but has yet to give go ahead
Donald Trump has told senior aides that he gave a thumbs up to plans for an attack of Iran but has not yet approved it to go forward.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump looked over the plans to go after the Fordow enrichment facility.
He is still waiting to see if Iran will give up its nuclear program before giving the final go ahead. WSJ reported that Trump hopes that having a plan set will encourage the Iranians to negotiate.
One Trump administration official said there are multiple options for how to proceed and Trump is keeping a watchful eye on the Israeli plan of attack.
Trump said earlier when asked about attacking Iran: 'I may do it, I may not do it.'
08:52
Key updates as Israeli hospital and Iranian nuclear site struck as conflict enters day seven
A nurse carries medical supplies past Soroka Hospital
If you're just joining us this morning, Israel and Iran have again traded missile attacks while Donald Trump has reportedly approved plans to join the conflict but is yet to give the go ahead.
Here's what you need to know this morning
An Iranian missile has struck a hospital in southern Israel and caused 'extensive' damage after a number of Israeli cities were attacked this morning
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Iran will 'pay a heavy price' following the strike at the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba
Israel has reported 65 people have been injured following missile strikes in a number of cities including Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, Holon with some buildings destroyed as a result
Meanwhile Israel has attacked Iran’s Arak heavy water reactor and a nuclear weapons development site in the area of Natanz
Iranian state media there was 'no radiation danger whatsoever' and that the Arak facility had already been evacuated before the attack
Iran's deputy foreign minister has warned the US should not intervene in conflict or it will 'teach aggressors a lesson' while Hezbollah said any plot to assassinate supreme leader Ali Khamenei would have 'disastrous consequences'
It comes as Donald Trump told senior aides that he gave a thumbs up to plans for an attack of Iran but has not yet approved it to go forward
The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump looked over the plans to go after the Fordow enrichment facility
Stick with us as we bring you the latest updates throughout the day.
08:39
Pictures: Destroyed headquarters of Iran's state broadcaster after being hit by Israeli strike
08:27
Iran claims IDF tech base was main target of hospital strike
Iran's state news agency (IRNA) is reporting the main target of a missile attack which struck an Israeli hospital was a nearby IDF base used for military intelligence.
According to the IRNA, the strike was intended for Gav-Yam Negev technology park, which is less than a mile from Soroka Medical Center in Bersheeba.
It reported:
The principal target of the attack was the vast command and intelligence base of Israel’s army (IDF C4i) and the campus of their military intelligence, located in the Gav-Yam technology park, next to Soroka hospital in Be’er Sheva.
The technology park’s website describes itself as 'Israel’s most advanced center of research and development… adjacent to the Ben Gurion University campus and the IDF C4i Branch campus.' C4i directorate is the IDF’s elite technological unit.
According to its website, the park connects 'veterans of the IDF’s elite technological units, graduates of Ben Gurion University, the high-tech industry'.
08:15
Hezbollah warns Khamenei assassination would have 'disastrous consequences'
Hezbollah has declared any plot to assassinate Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would have 'disastrous consequences' in a new statement released today.
The Iran-backed Lebanese militant group and political party has not joined the fighting against Israel since it started striking Iran on Friday but has condemned its actions.
It released a new statement after Israel launched strikes in the Tehran neighbourhood where Khamenei is thought to be hiding in an underground bunker.
Threats to assassinate [Khamenei] are foolish and reckless, and will have disastrous consequences… Merely uttering them is an offense to hundreds of millions of believers and those connected to Islam, and it is utterly reprehensible. Today, we are more determined and united around him.
It's name - Ḥizb Allah - means 'Party of God', and since the 2000s it has become one of the foremost political forces in Lebanon and by far the strongest military force. It is designated a terrorist group by the US, UK and Israel.
Ayatollah Khamenei is seen during a state TV broadcast in Iran yesterday.
08:12
Pictures: Destroyed buildings after Iran's missile attacks on Israel
08:03
Kremlin issues another warning to US over getting involved in Israel-Iran conflict
Russia has issued another warning to the United States over a possible intervention in the Iran-Israel conflict.
Assisting Israel in the war would mark a 'terrible spiral of escalation', Interfax news agency quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying on Thursday.
It comes after Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned that the world was 'millimetres from catastrophe'.
President Vladimir Putin said today that a deal to guarantee both Israel's security and Iran's desire for a civilian nuclear programme was possible.
'I believe it would be good for all of us together to look for ways to stop the fighting and seek ways for the participants in the conflict to find an agreement,' he told foreign journalists at a televised event.
He said Iran had not asked Russia for military help.
07:50
Europe doesn't have enough influence to mediate Israel-Iran conflict, Greek PM says
Only the United States has the clout to engage Israel and Iran in negotiations as the two countries continue to trade air attacks, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said today.
Speaking in an interview on the sidelines of an energy conference in Athens, Mitsotakis said:
Europe alone does not have the necessary influence to bring the parties concerned to the (negotiation) table. Only the United States can do that. So I think it is up to the President of the United States to decide which path to take.
Tomorrow, the foreign ministers of Germany, France and Britain plan to hold nuclear talks with their Iranian counterpart in Geneva, it has been reported.
French President Emmanuel Macron is said to be spearheading a European proposal to help resolve the conflict.
07:47
US Embassy in Israel warns staff and families to continue sheltering in place
The US Embassy in Israel, which is based in Jerusalem, has continued to warn its staff and their families to shelter in place following the Iranian missile barrage today.]
In a statement it said:
As a result of the current security situation and ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, the US Embassy directed all U.S. government employees and their family members to continue to shelter in place until further notice.
It added that the Department of State is planning for contingencies to assist with private US citizens’ departure from Israel, and will alert US citizens to potential departure options.
07:32
IDF says it assassinated two senior Hezbollah commanders overnight
The Israeli Air Force assassinated senior Hezbollah commander Muhammad Ahmed Kharis in an overnight strike on Lebanon, the military said in a statement.
It earlier reported that Yassin Izz a-Din, a rocket artillery unit commander, was also killed.
He had launched numerous rocket attacks on northern Israel and was involved in 'attempts to restore Hezbollah’s artillery forces,' the IDF said.
07:22
Video: Iranian missiles slam into Israeli hospital causing damage to building
As we've been reporting this morning, Soroka hospital was hit in a barrage of 'dozens' of missiles launched by Iran, according to Israeli officials.
'A direct hit has been reported at Soroka Hospital in Beersheba, southern Israel,' the Israeli foreign ministry posted on X.
A spokesperson for the hospital reported 'damage to the hospital and extensive damage in various areas.'
Videos show collapsed ceilings and smashed windows inside the building. Dramatic footage also shows a huge cloud of smoke erupting from the site.
