On Iranian television shortly after the American attacks, prominent political scientist and analyst Mahdi Khanalizadeh said: Mr. President of the United States, you started this war, but we will end it! He denied that there had been any major explosions or ground shaking in the Ford area, where Iran's most important underground uranium enrichment plant is located, 80 meters below rocky hills and fortified with concrete walls, which would indicate the success and effectiveness of the American attack. He continued: It is therefore possible, as is often the case with this American president, that this is again bluffing and exaggerating. From now on, Iran knows no more reservations. The Islamic Republic of Iran now considers all American bases in the region with 40,000 American soldiers as legitimate targets. The United States is the one who started this war.

The Revolutionary Guards, the elite military force of the Islamic Republic, have announced a regrettable retaliation."We will use means beyond anything the aggressor camp can imagine," the Revolutionary Guards leadership said. They also vowed to continue their attacks on Israel.

Netanyahu: A historic turning point

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on television shortly after the US attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities: Congratulations, US President Donald Trump, your bold decision to attack Iran's nuclear facilities with the extraordinary power of the US is changing history. He then praised the effectiveness and success of Israel's attacks on Iran. He continued: But with tonight's action against Iran's nuclear facilities, the US has proven itself unsurpassed. It has done what no other country in the world could have done. History will remember that President Trump prevented the most dangerous regime in the world from obtaining the most dangerous weapon. Trump's decision is supposed to be a turning point in history that will enable prosperity and a bright future with peace in the Middle East. Netanyahu also emphasized that peace can only be achieved through force. And: Thank you, President Trump, Israel and the civilized part of the world thank you.

The Israeli military said it was still investigating the results of the US strike. Asked whether Iranian authorities had moved highly enriched uranium elsewhere in the days before the strike, General Effie Defrin, an Israeli military spokeswoman, said:"It is too early to know." Reuters has heard from Iranian authorities that Iran had moved highly enriched uranium elsewhere before the strike. Satellite images were said to show this on Thursday. Defrin also told reporters that Israeli attacks on Iran would continue because Israel had other goals in the country (presumably referring to the overthrow of the Islamist-fundamentalist regime that is hostile to Israel).

Russia strongly condemns the US attacks on three major Iranian nuclear facilities. In a press release, the Russian Foreign Ministry wrote: The irresponsible decision to launch missile and bomb attacks on the territory of a sovereign state, regardless of the arguments, clearly violates international law. Iran is also an important ally of Russia in its war against Ukraine, which was reflected in the supply of hundreds of thousands of Iranian drones to the Russian army.

Fear of escalation of war

Following the US bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities, the EU's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas , called on all sides to take a step back and return to negotiations to prevent the escalation and spread of the war. She also wrote on the social network X: Iran must not develop nuclear weapons, as this would endanger nuclear security. She announced that foreign ministers would discuss the new situation in the Middle East on Monday. This is a ministerial meeting that had been announced earlier and at which they are also expected to consider whether Israel should be punished for the monstrous situation in Gaza. They are also expected to talk about Ukraine, but Iran will definitely be at the forefront.

The President of the European Council, Portuguese Antonio Costa , called on the parties involved to respect international law and nuclear safety on the X network. He stressed that diplomacy is the only way to establish peace and security in the region. He expressed his fear that civilians will once again be victims of the escalation of the war. He assured that the EU will continue to seek a peaceful solution to the conflict.

Chancellor Friedrich Marz has reiterated his call for Iran to immediately begin negotiations with the US and Israel in order to resolve the conflict diplomatically, a German government spokeswoman said in a press release after its extraordinary session.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot insisted on the X network that France did not participate in the US attacks on Iran or in the preparations. He called on both sides to exercise restraint in order to prevent the spread and escalation of the conflict. He recalled that France has repeatedly opposed Iran obtaining nuclear weapons, while at the same time favoring negotiations based on the international agreement on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. It is worth remembering that it was France that enabled Israel to produce nuclear weapons more than 60 years ago.

Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India, which also has nuclear weapons - like Pakistan - wrote on the X network that he had a very thorough telephone conversation about the current situation with the respected and moderate Iranian President Masoud Peshmerga. Modi advocated dialogue and peace.

Egypt condemned the attack on Iran. It warned of the spread of chaos and war to the entire region. Turkey also fears the consequences that an American attack will have on the entire region. A few days ago, Turkish diplomats warned the EU that there would probably be a large wave of refugees from Iran, a country of 95 million people, and Turkey would not be able to contain them all.