Iran said Tuesday that two people were killed in the latest Israeli airstrikes, identifying them as employees of its Defense Ministry, backtracking on an earlier claim in which officials had said the attacks caused no deaths.

The acknowledgment marked a shift from Iran’s initial messaging. After Israel struck targets across the country early Monday, Iran’s National Emergency Medical Organization reported at least 15 people wounded and said no fatalities had been recorded so far. Iranian authorities did not immediately release further identifying details about the two Defense Ministry personnel or say where they were killed.

The strikes were part of the most serious escalation since a ceasefire reached April 8 ended the first phase of the 2026 Iran war, which began Feb. 28. The sequence began Sunday, when Israel struck a Hezbollah stronghold in the southern suburbs of Beirut. The strike came after Tehran had warned it would resume its suspended operations against Israel if Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon continued. Hours later, Iran fired missiles at the Ramat David Air Base in northern Israel — its first direct attack on Israeli territory since the April ceasefire — with the Revolutionary Guard confirming the use of air-launched ballistic missiles.

Israel responded overnight into Monday. The IDF said it hit surface-to-surface missile launch sites and military infrastructure across western and central Iran while explicitly excluding energy-sector targets, with residents reporting explosions in Tehran, Tabriz and Isfahan. Iran launched several further waves of missiles at Israel through Monday, and Yemen’s Houthi rebels fired at Israel and threatened to disrupt Red Sea shipping.

The exchange unfolded against pressure from Washington to de-escalate. President Trump telephoned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the escalation, urging Israel not to retaliate, but Netanyahu proceeded with limited strikes.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)