Israel’s Ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, on Wednesday asserted that his country had fulfilled its strategic aims in the recent conflict with Iran and expressed satisfaction with the ongoing ceasefire. Speaking to ABP News, he stated, “Israel has achieved its objectives, and Israel is satisfied with the ceasefire, but if Iran engages in uranium enrichment again, then Israel will act.”
Azar also dismissed the significance of classified U.S. intelligence reports that challenged Israel’s assessment of the situation.
U.S. Intelligence Downplays Impact of Airstrikes
As per news agency Reuters, the United States’ initial intelligence evaluation concluded that its airstrikes had not succeeded in wiping out Iran’s nuclear capabilities. Instead, they may have only delayed Tehran’s programme by a few months. While U.S. President Donald Trump had earlier claimed that the deployment of heavy bunker-buster bombs had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, the Defence Intelligence Agency’s assessment suggested otherwise.
Sources familiar with the report told Reuters and The Washington Post that many Iranian centrifuges remained operational, and underground facilities had not been destroyed, but merely sealed off at entry points. The White House pushed back on the assessment, branding it “flat out wrong”. At the United Nations Security Council, the U.S. delegation described the weekend attacks as having “degraded” Iran’s nuclear programme.
Netanyahu, Pezeshkian Both Declare Victory
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared the operation a major success, saying it had removed two existential threats—nuclear annihilation and missile attacks. “We have removed two immediate existential threats to us: the threat of nuclear annihilation and the threat of annihilation by 20,000 ballistic missiles,” Netanyahu said on Tuesday.
On the other side, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian characterised the conclusion of hostilities as a “great victory” for Iran, as reported by Iranian media. The official IRNA news agency quoted him saying that Tehran was open to dialogue with Washington, a message conveyed to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Israel-Iran Conflict Timeline, Civilian Toll and Fragile Truce
The air campaign began on 13 June, when Israel launched a surprise assault on Iranian nuclear sites and eliminated key military figures—reportedly the deadliest blow to Iran since its war with Iraq in the 1980s. Iran retaliated with missile barrages targeting Israeli cities and military sites. According to Iranian authorities, 610 people were killed and 4,746 injured in Israel’s strikes. Iran’s counterattacks reportedly left 28 Israelis dead, marking a rare breach of its air defence systems.
Following 12 days of fierce exchanges, both nations eased civilian restrictions. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz informed U.S. Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth that Israel would uphold the ceasefire provided Iran did the same. Iranian media reported a similar commitment from Pezeshkian.
Trump’s role as mediator was acknowledged by both sides, though the ceasefire remained tenuous. As Reuters reported, it took hours for Israel and Iran to formally confirm the truce, each accusing the other of post-deal violations.
Trump publicly reprimanded both nations for breaching the agreement. In an unusually blunt comment, he said, “I’ve got to get Israel to calm down now,” and added, “Iran and Israel had been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the fuck they’re doing.”
Netanyahu’s office later admitted that a radar installation near Tehran was struck in retaliation for missile launches from Iran, allegedly fired three-and-a-half hours after the ceasefire took effect. Iran, however, denied launching any missiles during that window and claimed Israel continued its assaults beyond the agreed timeline.
