‘Till all objectives achieved’: IDF instructed to intensify strikes on regime targets in Iran

Israel Defence Minister Israel Katz has instructed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to "intensify strikes on regime targets in Tehran" to destabilise the Iranian regime. This comes hours after Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu said the goal was not to bring the fall of the Iranian regime but it was a possible result of the Iran-Israel conflict.

“We must strike all symbols of the regime and its mechanisms of oppression, such as the Basij, as well as the base of the regime's power, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps," Katz said during an assessment with IDF Chief of Staff Lt Gen Eyal Zamir and other top officers.

Katz says Israel must bring about "a mass evacuation of the population from Tehran, in order to destabilise the regime and increase deterrence in response to missile fire on Israel’s home front, while continuing to target facilities and scientists to thwart Iran’s nuclear program, until all objectives of the operation are fully achieved."

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said on Friday it carried out strikes on dozens of military targets in Iran overnight. Among the targets was the Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research, which Israel said is involved in Iran's nuclear weapons development.

Iranian media reported on Friday that an industrial plant in northern Iran was damaged in the attack. This came hours after Israel warned residents to move away from nearby areas. Earlier media reports stated that the plant in the Sefidrud industrial area was involved in producing carbon fibre. Carbon fibre can be used in manufacturing weapons systems such as missile bodies.