Here’s the latest.

 

Updated

June 19, 2025, 4:00 a.m. ET44 minutes ago

Adam Rasgon Ephrat Livni and David E. Sanger

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/06/19/world/iran-israel-trump-news

 

Here’s the latest.

Israel’s defense minister warned on Thursday that the Israeli military would intensify its strikes on “strategic targets” in Iran, after a barrage of Iranian missiles hit several locations including the largest hospital in southern Israel.

 

The threat from Defense Minister Israel Katz came after the Israeli military launched a wave of strikes against targets in Iran, including a nuclear complex. Stepping up Israel’s attacks, Mr. Katz said, would “remove the threats to the state of Israel and to destabilize the ayatollahs’ regime” in Iran.

 

The Israeli hospital, the Soroka Medical Center in the city of Beersheba, said it had sustained widespread damage and asked people to stay away. The hospital said the building that was hit had been largely evacuated in recent days, and that it was treating several patients with mild injuries. It is the first Israeli hospital to be hit directly since the war with Iran began last Friday, the Israeli military said.

 

The latest exchange of strikes came as uncertainty hung over the Middle East about whether or not President Trump would send American forces to join Israel’s sweeping campaign against Iran’s nuclear program and military.

 

“I have ideas as to what to do,” Mr. Trump said during an Oval Office event. He added, “I like to make a final decision one second before it’s due, you know, because things change.”

 

The supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had earlier warned that the United States would suffer “irreparable” harm if it joined the Israeli campaign.

 

Israel has pressed Mr. Trump to use powerful American weapons to attack Iran’s underground nuclear sites, and the prospect of American involvement in the war has added to fears that it could spiral into a wider conflagration in the Middle East.

 

There were conflicting signals from Iran as well on Wednesday, with a senior diplomat telling The New York Times that Iran was open to negotiations with the United States, hours after the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, rejected Mr. Trump’s call for an “unconditional surrender.”

 

Mr. Trump has also suggested it was not too late for diplomacy to head off a wider war, and he has held out the possibility that his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, or even Vice President JD Vance could meet with Iranian officials to seek a negotiated deal. A senior official in Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that the country’s foreign minister would accept such an offer to talk.

 

Here’s what else to know:

Diplomatic effort: A senior Iranian foreign ministry official said that Iran would accept Mr. Trump’s offer to meet soon. The official said the country’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, would accept a meeting with senior American representatives to discuss a cease-fire with Israel, though Mr. Trump has indicated he wants talks to focus on Iran’s nuclear program. Read more ›

 

Internet blackout: Iran has been under a near-total internet blackout for more than 12 hours, NetBlocks, a connectivity monitor, reported late Wednesday. There have been severe internet disruptions in Iran since the war began. Press TV, an Iranian state news outlet, said the government was taking steps to prevent Israel from using Iranian networks for spying and military operations.