Iran’s ‘new method’ causes major destruction as Israel threats Tehran residents
TEHRAN
An explosion is seen during a missile attack in Tel Aviv, Israel, Sunday, June 15, 2025
Iran has said a newly implemented method resulted in significant destruction in Israeli cities, while Israel threatened to make “Tehran residents” pay the price for civilian deaths.
On June 16, Iran and Israel entered the fourth day of mutual airstrikes, following decades of enmity and a prolonged shadow war.
So far, Israel’s strikes have killed at least 224 people inside Iran — including top military commanders, nuclear scientists, and civilians — according to authorities in the Islamic Republic.
In retaliation, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Monday it had “successfully” struck Israel with a salvo of missiles and warned of “effective, targeted and more devastating operations” to come.
The IRGC said it used new methods during an eighth wave of strikes to disrupt Israel’s multi-layered defense systems, causing the systems to mistakenly target one another.
According to the IRGC, improved intelligence and advanced equipment used in the “more powerful and devastating than before” attack led to malfunctions in Israel’s defense systems.
The death toll in Israel rose by 11 on June 16, the prime minister's office said, bringing the total since June 13 to 24.
Speaking on Iranian attacks on civilians, the Israeli defense minister warned that Tehran's residents would "pay the price."
“The arrogant dictator from Tehran has become a cowardly murderer, targeting civilian areas in Israel in order to deter the IDF from continuing its attack, which is crippling his capabilities,” Israel Katz wrote on X.
“The residents of Tehran will pay the price, and soon," he added.
However, he later backtracked, saying that there is no intention “to ohysicla harm the resident of Tehran.”
,“The residents of Tehran will be forced to bear the cost of the dictatorship and evacuate their homes from areas where it will be necessary to strike regime targets and security infrastructure in Tehran,” he said.
Some news agencies reported that residents of Tehran have begun fleeing toward the northern parts of the country, where Israeli strikes have been relatively less intense.
Regime change in Iran emerges as Israel’s possible endgame
Meanwhile, several analyses examining the political calculations behind the ongoing Israel-Iran strikes suggest that one of Israel’s broader objectives may be regime change in Iran.
While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said over the past three days that the operation’s goal is to eliminate the threat of a “nuclear Holocaust,” he has also noted that military actions could ultimately lead to the downfall of the Iranian regime.
Addressing the Iranian people directly, Netanyahu stated that the choice lies with them — and emphasized that Israel stands by their side.
The expanding range of targets — including industrial sites, local security forces and infrastructure — indicates that Israel’s war plans go beyond Iran’s nuclear facilities. Former officials and analysts argued that Israel aims to further cripple Iran’s economy, undermine the state’s power and potentially ignite a movement and push people into streets that could lead to regime change.
These claims came shortly after two U.S. officials told media that U.S. President Donald Trump recently vetoed an Israeli plan to assassinate Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
