The US has carried out attacks on three nuclear sites in Iran, in what Donald Trump called a "spectacular military success". Iran's foreign minister says it is considering "all options" for its response. Watch and follow the latest from Sky News below.
Sunday 22 June 2025 09:50, UK
We're getting more pictures from Israel now, after Iranian strikes this morning.
Buildings and vehicles are damaged in a number of towns and cities, with rescue workers responding.
Iran launched the attacks this morning, in response to the US strikes overnight on its nuclear sites.
The UK and EU have released statements this morning calling for Iran to return to negotiations over its nuclear programme (see our two previous posts), with UK cabinet minister Jonathan Reynolds telling Sky News that Tehran had "rejected" a diplomatic path.
But Iran's foreign minister has just responded to those statements.
Seyed Abbas Araghchi wrote on X: "Last week, we were in negotiations with the US when Israel decided to blow up that diplomacy.
"This week, we held talks with the E3/EU when the US decided to blow up that diplomacy. What conclusion would you draw?
"To Britain and the EU High Rep, it is Iran which must 'return' to the table. But how can Iran return to something it never left, let alone blew up?"
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy has urged Iran to "show restraint" after its nuclear sites were bombed by the US.
He reiterated lines we previously heard from Sir Keir Starmer this morning.
Lammy also re-emphasised that the UK did not take part in the strikes.
Like the EU's foreign policy chief (see previous post), Lammy called for a diplomatic solution.
In Europe, the European Union's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has called for "all sides to step back" after US strikes on Iran.
Kallas added that EU foreign ministers would discuss the situation on Monday.
She was in Geneva on Friday with David Lammy and foreign ministers from France and Germany to meet with Iran's foreign minister.
Israeli airspace is expected to reopen today for repatriation flights.
The country's airports authority said airspace would reopen from 11am to 5pm GMT (12pm to 6pm UK time) for landings only.
Countries trying to evacuate their citizens are waiting for the airspace to reopen fully to charter flights out.
More from the US now, where several politicians have been reacting to Donald Trump's decision to attack Iran overnight.
We reported earlier (see our 6.22 post) on two senior Democrats calling on the US president to provide more details about the strikes.
However, some Republicans have also criticised the move.
Thomas Massie, a Republican House representative, called Trump's strikes "not constitutional".
Republican senator Jim Risch also responded, albeit more positively, adding: "This war is Israel鈥檚 war, not our war, but Israel is one of our strongest allies and is disarming Iran for the good of the world."
He added this was not the start of a "forever war" and promised there would be no American boots on the ground in Iran.
Several Democrats also criticised Trump's decision, including Hakeem Jeffries, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib.
Trump himself ran for the office promising not to get involved in any more "forever wars".
His decision to strike Iran has proven controversial with some of his base support.
Watch our US correspondent Mark Stone explain more about MAGA's split over Iran below:
By Mark Stone, US correspondent, in Washington DC
Donald Trump has rolled the dice. He is gambling on being correct about two key variables.
First, he is banking on being right that the US military strikes have really "completely and totally obliterated" the Iranian nuclear sites, as he claimed.
US military officials have frequently said that destroying the whole nuclear apparatus would be very hard, and the more likely outcome of airstrikes would be to set the nuclear programme back.
The second gamble holds far more jeopardy. The president is betting that Iran will not have the capability, or the guts, to hit any of the many US bases and diplomatic missions in the region or to meaningfully disrupt international shipping.
His hope is that the moderates in the Iranian regime will now recognise their own strategic defeat and will adopt a position of dialogue and de-escalation.
President hopes to repeat first term success
The best-case scenario now would be a repeat of history, a repeat of a moment when Donald Trump, in his first term, got lucky.
In December 2019, he made a decisive decision to order the assassination of the then head of the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guard, Qassem Soleimani.
Trump opted for a seismic retaliation in response to Iranian attacks on Americans in the region.
In early January 2020, Iran's most senior military figure was killed in a drone strike in Baghdad.
At the time, the region braced, and many predicted, a huge Iranian counter-attack. But it didn't come. There were isolated attacks but nothing sustained.
Two weeks ago, Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff warned that an Israeli preemptive strike on Iran would prompt a massive Iranian retaliation. He predicted what he called a "mass casualty event" in Israel. That too has not materialised.
Two ways this could go
The US president is said to have been surprised and impressed by Israel's defensive capabilities but also its offensive operations in Iran.
He seems to be convinced enough that the Iranian response in the days ahead will be limp.
He cited the assassination of General Soleimani in his late-night address to the nation. He sees that as his success - a gamble that paid off.
If he is right again on both of his new gambles - that he has destroyed the nuclear facilities and that Iran does not hit back with any effectiveness 鈥� then, just maybe, this will be a game-changing moment.
But if Iran manages even to hit one US base and kill some Americans, then the whole thing will spiral.
Watch below: Stone explains the US strikes on Iran
Trump's domestic political gamble
Trump made one more gamble this weekend. He bet that his own base of supporters will be with him on this.
He is the president who campaigned on a pledge not to involve America in far-away wars, and yet he has just dramatically inserted himself into a new one.
He now needs to show them he is right - that this was a one-off game-changing strike of American might - strength to bring peace, he'd say.
In his short late-night address to the nation, he made a point of reminding America of Iran's malign behaviour over decades - their weapons killed and maimed many Americans, he told them.
It was notable too that he was flanked by his vice-president, secretary of state and defence secretary.
He doesn't want to own this gamble alone.
Most of the highly enriched uranium at the Fordow nuclear facility was moved ahead of the attack, the Reuters news agency is reporting.
It cited a senior Iranian source saying the materials were moved to an undisclosed location.
Personnel numbers were also reduced at the site, according to the report.
Satellite images from Fordow yesterday and the day before show queues of trucks lining up at the site.
Our lead world news presenter Yalda Hakim and Middle East correspondent Alistair Bunkall are in Jerusalem, where they've been discussing Iran's retaliatory strikes against Iran this morning.
Hakim says Israel is a nation on high alert, which Bunkall explains has contributed to keeping casualties relatively low.
He says many Israelis are prepared and have safe rooms in their homes.
"People know where their bunkers are - that helps save lives here," Bunkall says.
"Also, the alarm system is incredibly sophisticated, and people obey it. That helps keep the death toll very low, despite what you're watching here, which is massive, massive disruption."
Watch their discussion below:
The international nuclear watchdog has said it is convening an emergency meeting.
Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said the decision was taken "in light of the urgent situation in Iran".
The meeting between the IAEA's governors will take place tomorrow.
