AG百家乐在线官网

By Alistair Bunkall, Middle East correspondent

Benjamin Netanyahu has again spoken about the possibility of regime change in Iran as part of Israel's war on Iran.

It's not entirely clear though whether this is an actual objective or still being hope for as a possible consequence of the bombing.

Although there have been calls in Israel for the people of Iran to rise up and overthrow the regime, we are unlikely to see mass protests whilst the capital, Tehran, is under heavy bombardment.

And there is another factor to consider: Israel has been a deeply divided country for years, with many protesting weekly against the Netanyahu government and its ongoing war on Gaza. But the conflict with Iran has generally united Israelis behind the cause, at least so far.

To an extent, the same can be said of Iran. The regime is certainly unpopular amongst many millions of Iranians, but it is a country of immense pride and they don't see Israel's bombing as the right way to topple the Ayatollah.

More to bring you from Benjamin Netanyahu now, who has been at the site of the Soroka Hospital in Beer Sheba, southern Israel.

As we've been reporting, Israel says the hospital was hit by an Iranian missile, leaving at least 40 injured - Iran denies striking the hospital directly, claiming it was damaged by the shockwave of a strike on a nearby military headquarters.

"People ask me are we targeting the downfall of the regime," Netanyahu told reporters at the hospital site. 

"That may be a result but that's up to the Iranian people to rise for their freedom. 

"Freedom is never cheap, it's never free. Freedom requires the subjugated people to rise up and it's up to them but we may create conditions that will help them do it."

Netanyahu's message strikes a similar tone to Israel's foreign minister, who told reporters that a regime change in Iran "can be a result" of its attacks, but it is not the goal (see 14.25 post).

The US and Israel will dodge responsibility for the aftermath of attacks on Iran, says Emile Hokayem, senior fellow for Middle East security at the International Institute for Strategic Studies thinktank.

He said the conflict is going to be a "major shock" to the balance of power in the region.

"There's also a broader expectation that this is about regime change.

"There's a broader understanding that the US and Israel will not own the problem and it will be pushed onto other players to essentially manage the aftermath."

Speaking at a panel about the war, he pointed out differences between the conflict and 2003 Iraq war.

On the international stage, he noted that in 2003, both France and Germany opposed the invasion of Iraq.

"Whereas reading the G7 statement there's broad endorsement of the war - not necessarily support, but endorsement."

He continued: "There's no ground invasion on the cards, the goal of regime change is still being debated at very senior levels."

Here are some of the latest pictures from the Israel-Iran conflict.

We've reported throughout the day at the Soroka Hospital, in Beer Sheba, southern Israel.

Israel says it was hit by an Iranian missile early this morning, injuring at least 40.

Iran has denied striking the hospital directly, claiming it was damaged by the shockwave of a strike on a nearby military headquarters.

Donald Trump has rubbished reports by the Wall Street Journal that he approved attack plans for Iran but is holding back on the final order for now.

Trump told senior aides he is waiting to see if Tehran would abandon its nuclear programme first, the WSJ reported, citing people familiar with the deliberations.

But the president has since posted a brief rebuttal on his social media platform, Truth Social.

"The Wall Street Journal has No Idea what my thoughts are concerning Iran," he wrote.

As our US correspondent Mark Stone explained yesterday, Trump has been ambiguous on his next steps.

This suits him, Stone said, with his support base split firmly between those supporting intervention and those against entering the US into a war.

Watch Mark Stone's analysis below...

Israel's military has just said alerts have been activated in several parts of the country, warning of a wave of missiles launched from Iran.

"At this time, the Air Force is working to intercept and attack wherever necessary to eliminate the threat," the IDF said in a short statement on social media.

We've been reporting on the strike at Soroka Hospital in Beer Sheba today, which happened during an Iranian attack overnight.

While Israel has accused Iran of a direct hit, Tehran has now said it struck a military command headquarters nearby - with the "blast wave" causing "superficial damage" to the hospital.

The hospital's director general, Shlomi Kodesh, told reporters at the site that several wards have been destroyed and 40 people injured, mostly staff and patients.

Iran's foreign minister said on social media there is damage to a "small section" of the "largely evacuated" facility, which he claimed is used mainly to treat Israeli soldiers.

"It is the Israeli regime and not Iran that initiated all this bloodshed, and it is Israeli war criminals and not Iranians who are targeting hospitals and civilians," Abbas Araghchi added.

"Hundreds of innocent Iranians have been murdered in cold blood since Israel launched its illegal war against the Iranian people last week."

He also called on Israelis to "heed our evacuation orders" before strikes and to "avoid proximity to military and intelligence sites".

"Our powerful armed forces will continue to pummel the criminals who target our people until they cease and pay for their criminal aggression against our nation," he said.

Regime change in Iran "can be a result" of its attacks, but it is not the goal, according to Israel's foreign minister.

Gideon Saar told reporters it isn't "at least until now" one of the aims of the security cabinet.

"The goals are connected to the nuclear program, to the ballistic missiles program, to the elimination program," he said.

Earlier today, defence minister Israel Katz said Iran's supreme leader "cannot continue to exist" (see our 11.13 post).

Saar, however, said it's "not the goal for the time being". 

"Maybe it will be changed in the future," he said.

Israel has taken out the majority of Tehran's missile launchers, a military official has said.

According to the official, Israel estimates it has hit two-thirds of Iran's launchers.

But it was said Iran still has more than 100 missile launchers left.

Early this afternoon, Israel's air force said it had conducted attacks on "infrastructure and surface-to-surface missile launchers" in western Iran.

Lithuania will evacuate the family members of embassy staff in Tel Aviv after a missile struck 200 metres from its building.

It follows moves taken by other embassies in the central Israeli city, which has become a focal point of Iranian attacks.

Non-essential staff will also be evacuated after the missile hit the Ramat Gan neighbourhood, Lithuania's foreign ministry said.

The area suffered heavy damage in overnight attacks.