TEL AVIV/DUBAI/WASHINGTON — Iranian missiles struck Israel’s Tel Aviv and the port city of Haifa before dawn on Monday, destroying homes and fueling concerns among world leaders at this week’s Group of Seven (G7) meeting that the confrontation could lead to a broader regional conflict.

At least five people were killed in the latest Iranian strikes, the national emergency service said, raising Israel’s death toll to 18 since Friday. At least 100 more were wounded in the overnight blitz, part of a wave of attacks by Tehran in retaliation for Israel’s preemptive strikes targeting the nuclear and ballistic missile programs of sworn enemy Iran.

Search and location operations were underway in Haifa where around 30 people were wounded, emergency authorities said, as dozens of first responders rushed to the strike zones. Fires were seen burning at a power plant near the port, media reported.

Video footage showed several missiles over Tel Aviv and explosions could be heard there and over Jerusalem. Several residential buildings in a densely populated neighborhood of Tel Aviv were destroyed in a strike that blew out the windows of hotels and other nearby homes just a few hundred meters from the US Embassy branch in the city. The US ambassador said the building sustained minor damage, but there were no injuries to personnel.

Guydo Tetelbaun was in his apartment in Tel Aviv when the alerts came in shortly after 4 a.m. (0100 GMT).

“As usual, we went into the (shelter) that’s right across the street there. And within minutes, the door of the (shelter) blew in,” the 31-year-old chef said.

“A couple of people came in bloody, all cut up. And then when we came to the apartment, after it quietened down, we saw there wasn’t much of it… Walls are caved in, no more glass,” he added.

“It’s terrifying because it’s so unknown. This could be the beginning of a long time like this, or it could get worse, or hopefully better, but it’s the unknown that’s the scariest.”

The predawn missiles also struck near Shuk HaCarmel, a popular market in Tel Aviv that typically draws large crowds of residents and tourists buying fresh fruits and vegetables, and to popular bars and restaurants. A residential street in nearby Petah Tikva and a school in ultra-Orthodox Jewish city Bnei Brak were also hit.

‘NEW METHOD’
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said the latest attack employed a new method that caused Israel’s multi-layered defense systems to target each other and allowed Iran to successfully hit many targets.

The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the strikes. Israeli officials have repeatedly said its “Iron Dome” defense system is not 100% and warned of tough days ahead.

“The arrogant dictator of Tehran has become a cowardly murderer who targets the civilian home front in Israel to deter the IDF from continuing the attack that is collapsing his capabilities,” Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement. “The residents of Tehran will pay the price, and soon.”

The death toll in Iran was already at least 224, with 90% of the casualties reported to be civilians, an Iranian health ministry spokesperson said.

Israel’s military said on Monday morning it had struck again at command centers belonging to the Revolutionary Guard and Iran’s military.

LEADERS MEET
G7 leaders began gathering in the Canadian Rockies on Sunday with the Israel-Iran conflict expected to be a top priority.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said his goals for the summit include for Iran to not develop or possess nuclear weapons, ensuring Israel’s right to defend itself, avoiding escalation of the conflict and creating room for diplomacy.

“This issue will be very high on the agenda of the G7 summit,” Merz told reporters.

Before leaving for the summit on Sunday, US President Donald J. Trump was asked what he was doing to de-escalate the situation. “I hope there’s going to be a deal. I think it’s time for a deal,” he told reporters. “Sometimes they have to fight it out.”

Brent crude futures were up 0.5% in Asian trade on Monday, having surged late last week. While the spike in oil prices has investors on edge, stock and currency markets were little moved in Asia.

“It’s more of an oil story than an equity story at this point,” said Jim Carroll, senior wealth adviser and portfolio manager at Ballast Rock Private Wealth. “Stocks right now seem to be hanging on.”

TRUMP VETOES PLAN TO TARGET KHAMENEI, OFFICIALS SAY
In Washington, two US officials told Reuters that Trump had vetoed an Israeli plan in recent days to kill Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

When asked about the Reuters report, Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu told Fox News on Sunday: “There’s so many false reports of conversations that never happened, and I’m not going to get into that.”

“We do what we need to do,” he told Fox’s Special Report With Bret Baier.

Israel began the assault with a surprise attack on Friday that wiped out the top echelon of Iran’s military command and damaged its nuclear sites, and says the campaign will escalate in the coming days.

Iran has vowed to “open the gates of hell” in retaliation.

TRUMP WARNS IRAN NOT TO ATTACK US TARGETS
Mr. Trump has lauded Israel’s offensive while denying Iranian allegations that the US has taken part and warning Tehran not to widen its retaliation to include US targets.

Two US officials said on Friday the US military had helped shoot down Iranian missiles that were headed toward Israel.

The US president has repeatedly said Iran could end the war by agreeing to tough restrictions on its nuclear program, which Iran says is for peaceful purposes but which Western countries and the International Atomic Energy Agency nuclear watchdog say could be used to make an atomic bomb.

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian told parliament on Monday the country has no intention to produce nuclear weapons but it would continue to pursue its right to nuclear energy and research. — Reuters

WASHINGTON — US President Donald J. Trump’s administration is considering significantly expanding its travel restrictions by potentially banning citizens of 36 additional countries from entering the United States, according to an internal State department cable seen by Reuters.

Earlier this month, the Republican president signed a proclamation that banned the entry of citizens from 12 countries, saying the move was needed to protect the United States against “foreign terrorists” and other national security threats.

The directive was part of an immigration crackdown Mr. Trump launched this year at the start of his second term, which has included the deportation to El Salvador of hundreds of Venezuelans suspected of being gang members, as well as efforts to deny enrollments of some foreign students from US universities and deport others.

In an internal diplomatic cable signed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the State department outlined a dozen concerns about the countries in question and sought corrective action.

“The Department has identified 36 countries of concern that might be recommended for full or partial suspension of entry if they do not meet established benchmarks and requirements within 60 days,” the cable sent out over the weekend said.

The cable was first reported by the Washington Post.

Among the concerns the State department raised was the lack of a competent or cooperative government by some of the countries mentioned to produce reliable identity documents, the cable said. Another was “questionable security” of that country’s passport.

Some countries, the cable said, were not cooperative in facilitating the removal of its nationals from the United States who were ordered to be removed. Some countries were overstaying the US visas their citizens were being granted.

Other reasons for concern were the nationals of the country were involved in acts of terrorism in the United States, or antisemitic and anti-American activity.

The cable noted that not all of these concerns pertained to every country listed.

“We are constantly reevaluating policies to ensure the safety of Americans and that foreign nationals follow our laws,” a senior State department official said, declining to comment on specific internal deliberations and communications.

“The Department of State is committed to protecting our nation and its citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public safety through our visa process,” the official said.

The countries that could face a full or a partial ban if they do not address these concerns within the next 60 days are: Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cote D’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, Ethiopia, Egypt, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, South Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

That would be a significant expansion of the ban that came into effect earlier this month. The countries affected were Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.

The entry of people from seven other countries — Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela — has also been partially restricted.

During his first in office, Mr. Trump announced a ban on travelers from seven Muslim-majority nations, a policy that went through several iterations before it was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018. — Reuters

BRITAIN on Sunday named Blaise Metreweli, a career intelligence officer, as the first female head of the Secret Intelligence Service, the foreign spy service known as MI6.

Metreweli, 47, who is currently MI6’s head of technology, known as “Q,” joined the Secret Intelligence Service in 1999, and has spent most of her career in operational roles in the Middle East and Europe, the government said in a statement.

Richard Moore, the current chief of MI6, will step down in the autumn after a five-year tenure.

“I am proud and honored to be asked to lead my service,” said Metreweli, who takes on one of the most powerful jobs in Western intelligence and will be known by the code name “C.”

MI6, founded in 1909, joins the other main British spy agencies, the domestic spy service MI5, and the intelligence communications agency GCHQ, in having appointed a female head.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who is currently in Canada for the G7 summit, said Ms. Metreweli’s appointment comes when Britain is “facing threats on an unprecedented scale.”

“I know Blaise will continue to provide the excellent leadership needed to defend our country,” he said.

Metreweli’s biggest challenges are likely to be dealing with Russia, China and Iran.

Britain’s spy agencies have accused Russia of waging a campaign of sabotage across Europe to scare other countries off from backing Ukraine in its fight against a Russian invasion.

Moore in 2021 said China was the single greatest priority for his spy agency, while MI5 said last year that Iran had been behind 20 plots to kill, kidnap or target dissidents or political opponents in Britain since 2022.

MI6, depicted by novelists as the employer of some of the most memorable fictional spies, from John le Carré’s George Smiley to Ian Fleming’s James Bond, operates overseas and is tasked with defending Britain and its interests.

Ms. Metreweli previously held a director-level role in MI5, and studied anthropology at the University of Cambridge, the government said.

MI5 has had two female bosses, starting with Stella Rimington in 1992. Eliza Manningham-Buller ran MI5 between 2002 and 2007.

In 2023, Britain named its first female director of GCHQ.

Ms. Metreweli’s appointment comes three decades after the actress Judi Dench first played a female boss of MI6 in the James Bond film GoldenEye. — Reuters