Sam Cooper

As President Donald J. Trump opened meetings with Western leaders at the G7 summit in Alberta early Monday, multiple reports signaled a dramatic escalation in Israel’s military campaign against Iran—a broader and potentially more lethal phase of the conflict. In a televised address, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged citizens of Tehran to “evacuate,” confirming Israeli aircraft were operating deep inside Iranian airspace. Meanwhile, as U.S. military assets approach the Middle East by sea and air, Trump issued a stark warning to Iran’s leadership, cautioning against any retaliation targeting U.S. military assets in the region.

“We are telling the citizens of Tehran: evacuate,” Netanyahu reportedly declared from a secure facility beneath Tel Aviv. “We are taking action to eliminate the existential threat posed by Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile program.”

Trump, speaking from Calgary hours before his closed-door G7 meetings, warned that any attack on U.S. military personnel or facilities “would be met with overwhelming force,” according to statements confirmed by Reuters.

The warnings accompanied a new wave of Israeli airstrikes early Monday targeting underground missile facilities, command bunkers, and air defense batteries across central Iran. Reuters, citing Israeli military officials, confirmed that dozens of warplanes were involved in the overnight operation, striking missile storage sites near Qom and key military complexes southwest of Tehran.

Israel also said it had struck the Tehran command center of Iran’s elite Quds Force, in what The New York Times and Reuters described as a major escalation in the deadliest confrontation between the two countries to date. Analysts note the Quds Force plays a central role in organizing the Iranian regime’s network of regional proxy militias.

Now in its fourth day, the conflict has claimed at least 224 lives in Iran and more than 20 in Israel, with thousands wounded. Israeli officials said eight people were killed in Monday’s strikes alone.

Iran’s Health Ministry reported more than 1,400 wounded, while Israeli authorities said some 600 have been injured since hostilities began.

Meanwhile, President Trump reportedly rejected an Israeli plan to assassinate Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, three U.S. officials told CBS according to BBC, in a report published Sunday. Trump reportedly told Netanyahu the plan was “not a good idea,” and the conversation is said to have taken place after Israel launched its first strike on Friday.

Unverified reports on Monday suggested that Iranian leaders may be seeking a diplomatic exit from the conflict by pledging to halt nuclear enrichment—but are also searching for a face-saving mechanism that would allow them to preserve regime legitimacy. These claims have not been confirmed by U.S. or Israeli intelligence but are circulating among regional analysts.

BBC News, citing regional correspondents and satellite imagery, reported sustained Israeli bombardments along a corridor stretching from Esfahan to the outskirts of Tehran. Footage broadcast by Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency showed thick plumes of black smoke rising from industrial zones in Kermanshah and explosions near known missile research installations long suspected by Western governments of contributing to Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.

Iranian authorities, while acknowledging the scale of the attacks, have characterized them as “limited,” claiming that their air defense systems intercepted many incoming missiles.

According to the Wall Street Journal, U.S. early warning systems detected a flurry of retaliatory missile activity inside western Iran shortly after the Israeli strikes began. However, no launches were confirmed—fueling speculation that Iran’s top leadership is seeking to avoid a direct confrontation with the United States or Israel at this stage.

Still, the risks of an expanding war remain acute. U.S. Central Command has confirmed that naval and air assets—including carrier strike groups and long-range bombers—have been repositioned to heightened readiness levels across the Persian Gulf and Eastern Mediterranean.