The ongoing exchange of attacks has brought the regional death toll to at least 24 in Israel and 224 in Iran. Israel’s military has “achieved full aerial control above Tehran” and destroyed roughly one-third of Iran’s surface-to-surface missile launchers, an Israeli government spokesperson said Monday.

President Trump rejected an Israeli plan in recent days to kill Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a senior U.S. official told USA TODAY.

Iran fired a new wave of missile attacks on Israel early Monday, triggering air raid sirens across the country as emergency services reported at least five killed and dozens more wounded in the fourth day of a conflict between the regional foes that showed no sign of slowing.

While the U.S. insists it is not involved in strikes on Iran, American officials have confirmed military forces have been helping to intercept Iranian missiles fired at Israel.

Despite stunning early successes in Israel’s unprecedented strikes on Iran, a weekend of intensive bombardment and retaliation is raising questions about Israel’s exit strategy – how it can end this conflict with its ambitious goals achieved.

President Donald Trump said the United will come down on Iran “at levels never seen before” if the Middle Eastern country attacks.

Shapiro served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East until January—charged with, among other things, considering scenarios in which tensions between Israel and Iran escalated into all-out war and preparing U.

During the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq War, Iran’s US-made F-14 Tomcat fighters were a crucial asset, using their powerful AWG-9 radar and long-range AIM-54 Phoenix missiles to achieve air superiority, intercept Iraqi bombers,