Over 200 Israeli Warplanes Used Against Iran, Trump Warns 'Even More Brutal' Attacks Coming Without Nuclear Deal

Up until yesterday the Trump White House had been publicly distancing itself from any potential Israeli attack on Iran. But that major attack did occur overnight, reportedly involving over 200 Israeli warplanes, as well as potential intelligence-assisted drone attacks on the ground conducted by Mossad assets.

And yet following days of contradictory messaging coming from the White House, President Trump has told ABC news early Friday that "there's more to come" in terms of Israeli military action that the operation was "excellent". ABC's Jonathan Karl writes:

I just spoke to President Trump and asked him about the Israeli attack on Iran. Here’s what he told me: "I think it's been excellent.  We gave them a chance and they didn't take it. They got hit hard, very hard. They got hit about as hard as you're going to get hit. And there's more to come. a lot more."

Washington and Tehran were literally days away from the next round of nuclear negotiations, and this certainly wasn't the messaging Trump was sending just over 24 hours ago.

Either he could be trying to save face as Israel perhaps went rogue, or the more likely scenario is that Washington quietly approved what Israel is defending as a 'preemptive attack' to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons (a narrative Tel Aviv has been pushing going back to the 1990s).

And more from Trump on Friday morning, as the smoke still smolders over Tehran and Iranian nuclear energy sites in other parts of the country:

This certainly isn't going to hasten negotiations, it is their death knell, and Iran has issued a statement saying it holds the United States responsible for last night's attack and destruction.

Iran has said it is preparing a "harsh response" - with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei warning that Israel faces a "bitter and painful" fate. "By God’s will, the powerful hand of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic will not let it [Israel] go unpunished," he said Friday.

Government and residential buildings in Iran were damaged, and as we reported earlier, top nuclear scientists and military officials were targeted and in some instances killed, most importantly the head of IRGC, General Major Gen. Hossein Salami.

Al Jazeera has listed that trikes have been confirmed in the following locations:

• The capital, Tehran, and military sites in the surrounding area.
• The city of Natanz, where explosions were reported at the main uranium enrichment facility.
• The city of Tabriz, where explosions have been reported near a nuclear research centre and two military bases.
• The city of Isfahan, south of Tehran.
• The city of Arak, southwest of Tehran.
• The city of Kermanshah, west of Tehran.

Iran has already appointed a new IRGC leader, per WSJ. Gen. Mohammad Pakpour has been placed in charge of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and Maj. Gen. Sayyed Abdolrahim Mousavi has made chief of staff of the armed forces, while Lt. Gen. Ali Shadmani was named to succeed Lt. Gen. Gholam Ali Rashid.

Major fire near Tabriz Airport in Iran after attack...

In a remarkable revelation (if true), the Wall Street Journal describes an operation that's parallel to both Ukraine's 'Operation Spider's Web' and Israel's covert pager bombings of Hezbollah:

Long before Israel launched its attacks against Iran on Friday, agents from Mossad smuggled explosive drones and other guided weapons into Iran. As the attack got under way, Mossad assets on the ground used the drones and other weapons to attack Iran’s air-defense system and ballistic-missile launchers: WSJ

The Israeli army said it had damaged the Natanz uranium enrichment site’s underground structures. It says that "vital infrastructure at the site that allows for its continuous functioning and the continued advancement of the Iranian regime’s project to obtain nuclear weapons was attacked."