Israel and Iran traded fire on Friday, a week into their war, as US President Donald Trump considered US military involvement and new diplomatic efforts were underway.
After Israel said its warplanes hit dozens of military targets across Iran, including missile manufacturing facilities, an Iranian missile landed in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, sending plumes of smoke over the Mediterranean port and wounding at least 31 people.
Meanwhile, the first face-to-face meeting between Western and Iranian officials during the current war ended four hours later with no signs of an immediate breakthrough.
To give diplomacy a chance, Trump said he would postpone the decision to join Israel's air campaign against Iran for up to two weeks. US participation would likely involve using US bunker-busting bombs against the Fordo underground uranium enrichment facility in Iran.
Regardless of whether the United States joins, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel’s military operation against Iran would continue “as long as necessary” to eliminate what he called the existential threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program and ballistic missile arsenal. Israel’s top general also said the Israeli military was ready “for a prolonged campaign.”

