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A former director of intelligence at Israeli spy agency Mossad has told Sky News it was "shocking" how quickly Israel "took down" Iran's air defences.

On 13 June, the Israeli military started carrying out aerial attacks on Iran, hitting sites including some of its most important nuclear installations.

Israel said Iran was on the verge of building a nuclear bomb - something Tehran has always denied seeking from its uranium enrichment programme.

Since those attacks, both countries have been trading daily missile strikes.

Ex-Mossad boss Zohar Palti told The World with Yalda Hakim that it took his country's air force 36-48 hours to "dominate completely" the skies above Iran.

Read more and watch the interview here:

The US military is ready to carry out any decision Donald Trump may make on Iran, the country's defence secretary has said.

Testifying before a Senate committee, Pete Hegseth acknowledged being ready to carry out any orders on Iran and warned Tehran it should have heeded the US president's calls for it to make a deal on its nuclear programme.

"They should have made a deal, President Trump's word means something. The world understands that," he said.

"And at the Defence Department, our job is to stand ready and prepared with options and that's precisely what we're doing."

Hegseth was asked at the Senate Armed Services Committee whether the Trump administration was moving to re-establish deterrence, a term used to describe actions meant to constrain an adversary from taking hostile action.

He said: "I think we already have in many ways in this environment re-established deterrence. The question is, in the coming days, exactly what direction that goes."

Pictures show a drone downed in Isfahan, Iran, which the Iranian army says belongs to Israel.

This morning, the Israeli Defence Forces said one of its drones had been blown out of the AG百家乐在线官网 by a surface-to-air missile.

The Iranian Army has now released these images.

Iran will impose temporary restrictions on internet access, the communications ministry has said, according to Iranian media.

The statement said the move was to prevent "the enemy from threatening citizens' lives and property".

Internet monitor NetBlocks said: "Live network data show Iran is now in the midst of a near-total national internet blackout; the incident follows a series of earlier partial disruptions and comes amid escalating military tensions with Israel after days of back-and-forth missile strikes."

The nuclear watchdog does not believe Iran was trying to develop a nuclear weapon, its chief tells Sky News.

"We came to the conclusion we could not affirm there is any systematic effort in Iran at the moment to manufacture a nuclear weapon," says Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

He tells lead world news presenter Yalda Hakim the IAEA's report, which has been widely cited by Israel, found Iran is enriching 60% uranium, the only country in the world doing that, so "there were elements for concern".

"But as to saying they are building and manufacturing a nuclear weapon - no, we didn't say that."

Asked if the IAEA was concerned about the impact of nuclear facilities being targeted by Israel, Grossi says: "Of course we are."

He warns there "is always the possibility of a radiological event" when a nuclear site is hit, such as the "dispersion of nuclear material in the atmosphere".

Missiles have been launched from Iran towards Israel, the Israeli military says.

The UK remains focused on de-escalation in the Middle East amid reports Donald Trump is considering joining Israeli military action against Iran, Downing Street has said.

Asked whether Sir Keir Starmer was confident the US president would not bring US forces into the conflict, a Number 10 spokesperson said: "You have the PM's words but the position remains that we want to de-escalate the situation, we want to de-escalate rather than escalate.

"We are clear that de-escalation is the right outcome for the Middle East, we are conscious, as the PM has said, that this has an impact on the lives of people in the United Kingdom.

"That is why the prime minister's been focused in recent days at the G7 on de-escalation and we will continue to be focused on de-escalation."

They added: "This is an extremely fast-moving situation and we are working with partners to reiterate the need to return to diplomacy."

Earlier we brought you news that Sir Keir Starmer was chairing a COBRA meeting on the situation in the Middle East (see 13.29 post).

Sky News now understands the meeting is over.

COBRA, which stands for Cabinet Office Briefing Room A, is often called in times of emergency such as civil unrest or flooding.

A Downing Street spokesperson said: "Ministers were updated on efforts to support British nationals in region and protect regional security, as well as ongoing diplomatic efforts."

The prime minister chaired the meeting after returning to London from the G7 summit in Canada.

Watch: Starmer tells Sky he is 'worried' about the escalation

The US is working to evacuate its citizens from Israel by arranging flights and cruise ship departures, the US ambassador to the country has said.

The US embassy in Jerusalem was working on the evacuation arrangements, Mike Huckabee said in a post on X.

He also urged Americans in the country to sign up for updates through the state department's Smart Traveler programme.

While the world's focus has switched to Iran since Israel began its attacks, Palestinians are continuing to be killed in Gaza.

Israeli gunfire and strikes killed at least 140 people in the past 24 hours, Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry has said.

At least 40 of those were killed today, said the ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians.

The deaths included people killed in the Maghazi refugee camp, the Zeitoun neighbourhood and Gaza City.

Medics told Reuters that 14 people were killed in Israeli fire at crowds waiting for aid trucks brought in by the United Nations along the Salahuddin Road in central Gaza.

Responding to the Salahuddin road incident, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said despite repeated warnings that the area was an active combat zone, individuals approached troops in a manner that posed a threat to forces.

Its troops fired warning shots, it said, adding it was unaware of injuries.

Commenting on the other strikes, it said it was "operating to dismantle Hamas military capabilities" while taking "feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm".

Earlier this week, Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry said 397 Palestinians among those trying to get food aid had been killed and more than 3,000 injured since aid deliveries started in late May.