PDB Afternoon Bulletin | June 13th, 2025: Israel Hits Iran's Nuclear Sites, Decapitates Military Leadership & World Reacts To The Historic Strikes
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It's Friday the 13th of June. Welcome to an early edition of the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Now, if this morning's PDB sounded a little, well, dated, it's because I was crossing the Atlantic when everything began to pop off in the Middle East. But the PDB team was busy monitoring the fast-breaking developments and we wanted to get you an update today as quickly as possible. Alright,

Let's get briefed. Obviously, we're starting off with the news out of the Middle East. Israel launching Operation Rising Lion, targeting Iran's nuclear program with multiple rounds of airstrikes. We'll have the latest details. Later in the show, the world responds to the ongoing operation against Iran. What leaders around the globe are saying about Israel's preemptive strike. But first, today's afternoon or, well, late morning spotlight.

Okay, well, buckle up because last night, a region in conflict just got far more complex. At approximately 3 a.m. local time, the Israeli military launched a sweeping assault on Iran in what has officially been dubbed Operation Rising Lion. The stated goal of the operation is to destroy Iran's nuclear program and cripple its long-range missile capabilities. This marks the most direct and aggressive Israeli strike on Iranian soil ever.

Prime Minister Netanyahu addressed the nation shortly after the operation began, calling Iran's nuclear advances a clear and present danger to Israel's very survival. He confirmed that the operation would continue, quote, for as many days as it takes to remove the threat.

One of the first targets of the operation was Iran's nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz. Now, that's a name familiar to anyone who's a regular listener to the PDB. Natanz is Iran's largest and most sophisticated uranium enrichment site and one of their few sites capable of refining uranium to weapons-grade levels. It's long been a primary target for Israeli defense planners and last night, well, it was one of the first sites hit.

But Israel didn't stop there. According to the IDF, over 200 fighter jets were involved in the operation. Their targets included surface-to-surface missile platforms, air defense batteries, and military compounds tied to Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC. The strikes were designed to unfold simultaneously across the country, crippling response capabilities and targeting leadership.

And so far, the evidence is pointing to a major success, at least so far. Among the high-profile Iranian figures confirmed killed are Mohammad Bagheri, the chief of staff of Iran's armed forces, and Hossein Salami, the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. Also eliminated, most of the IRGC's senior Air Force officials, along with several of Iran's top nuclear scientists. Tehran has already named some replacements,

but the damage to the command structure appears significant.

Now, the air assault was just one layer of Israel's operation. Behind the scenes, the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad ran multiple parallel operations deep inside Iran. According to Israeli sources and reports from the Associated Press, Mossad had infiltrated Iranian assets, planted weapons systems, and laid the groundwork well in advance. In central Iran, Mossad commandos reportedly deployed precision-guided missile systems near key anti-air sites.

disguised and left dormant until the operation began.

As Israeli jets struck from the sky, these systems were activated and fired in sync, targeting Iranian surface-to-air missile systems with pinpoint accuracy. A second operation saw Mossad agents rig vehicles near air defense bases with advanced attack systems. Once the main operation kicked off, these hidden weapons launched and destroyed their intended targets from inside Iranian territory, clearing a path for Israeli aircraft to operate with minimal resistance.

And in what may have been the boldest move, Mossad reportedly established an internal drone base weeks ago, smuggling explosive drones into Iran. Last night, those drones were launched at Iranian missile platforms near Tehran, striking locations where Iran stores surface-to-surface missiles capable of hitting Israeli cities.

By sunrise, Iran's air defense network was in disarray. However, Iran did try to retaliate. Iran launched more than 100 drones toward Israeli territory. Every one of them reportedly intercepted, according to the IDF. No casualties or significant damage has been reported inside Israel, though missile and drone fragments are said to have landed inside Syria.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a warning today, calling the Israeli operation a criminal act and vowing that, quote, the Zionist regime has prepared a bitter and painful fate for itself, end quote.

As for the United States, Washington was quick to make it clear it had no involvement in the operation. Secretary of State Marco Rubio released a statement shortly after the attack, writing, quote, "'Tonight, Israel took unilateral action against Iran. We are not involved in strikes against Iran, and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region. Israel advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its own self-defense.'" End quote.

So, you ask yourself, why now? Well, if you listened to this morning's PDB, the writing seemed to be on the wall. This strike comes just one day after the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN's nuclear watchdog, issued a rare and damning resolution against Iran, stating that the Islamic Republic was not in compliance with its non-proliferation obligations. It was the first such censure in 20 years.

Iran responded furiously, accusing the agency of political bias and vowing to move ahead with its nuclear ambitions, which it was doing anyway. In fact, Tehran declared yesterday that it had constructed and would soon activate a third enrichment facility, further escalating the standoff. This was, well, likely the final straw for Israel.

As of now, Israeli officials say Operation Rising Lion is ongoing. What that means, whether more strikes are imminent or whether Tehran will mount a larger response remains uncertain, but one thing is clear: the shadow war between Israel and Iran, which has been going on for decades, is now completely out in the open.

Coming up next, world leaders are reacting today to Israel's pre-emptive strike against the Iranian regime. I'll be right back.

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Welcome back to the Afternoon Bulletin. Continuing with our coverage of Israel's precision strikes on Iran's military leadership and nuclear infrastructure, reactions have already begun to pour in from around the world, and the international sentiments are predictably mixed, though mostly critical.

Starting with the U.S., as we mentioned earlier, Secretary of State Marco Rubio quickly issued a carefully worded statement in the wake of the strikes that distanced the U.S. from any direct involvement but emphasized that Israel had every right to act, as they felt this operation was necessary for the protection and existence of the Jewish state.

Rubio added a direct warning to Tehran regarding any retaliations against America, saying, quote, "...let me be clear, Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel," end quote. This morning, President Trump also weighed in on Truth Social, writing, quote, "...there has already been great death and destruction, but there is still time to make this slaughter, with the next already planned attacks being even more brutal, come to an end. Iran must make a deal before there is nothing left," end quote.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed grave concerns over the strikes, but was careful not to directly criticize Israel. He called on, quote, all parties to step back and reduce tensions urgently, adding, quote, now is the time for restraint, calm, and a return to diplomacy, end quote. Turning to Israel and Iran's immediate neighbors, as expected, there's much hand-wringing going on about Jerusalem's unilateral actions from the Persian Gulf states. A

Officials in Oman, who have been mediating the nuclear negotiations such as they are between the U.S. and Iran, condemned Israel's operations, calling it a, quote, dangerous, reckless escalation, representing a flagrant violation of the U.N. Charter and the principles of international law. Such aggressive, persistent behavior is unacceptable and further destabilizes the regional peace and security, end quote.

The statement did continue, "The Sultanate of Oman holds Israel responsible for this escalation and its consequences and calls upon the international community to adopt a firm and unequivocal stance to halt this dangerous course of action." Officials in Saudi Arabia also denounced what they called "blatant Israeli aggressions against the Brotherly Islamic Republic of Iran," adding that Jerusalem strikes constitute a clear violation of international laws and norms.

Those further from the consequences of Iran's regional belligerence were also quick to criticize Israel's preemptive strikes.

Australia's foreign minister said they were, quote, alarmed by the escalation between Israel and Iran, which they warned risks further destabilizing a region that is already volatile, end quote. Well, one could argue that it's volatile in large part due to Iran's pursuit of its often stated goal of destroying Israel and their building, training, and arming of terrorist groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah.

New Zealand echoed the sentiment from Australia, calling Israel's operation a, quote, really unwelcome development in the Middle East. How long did they think about that statement? Adding that, quote, the risk of miscalculation is high. That region does not need any more military action. Indonesia's foreign minister said his country strongly condemns Israel's attack on Iran, saying it could, quote, potentially trigger a broader conflict.

A spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also issued a predictable rebuke of Israel, saying, "The Secretary-General condemns any military escalation in the Middle East. He is particularly concerned by Israeli attacks on nuclear installations in Iran, while talks between Iran and the US on the status of Iran's nuclear program are underway." The Secretary-General called for both sides to show maximum restraint to avoid a descent into deeper conflict.

We could go on here, but, well, you get the idea. Those far from the threats posed by Iran's flagrant pursuit of nuclear weapons are piling on Israel, accusing Jerusalem of recklessly inflaming regional tensions. Israeli leaders, however, are unperturbed, as they're more than accustomed to facing criticism from the international community, particularly ever since the 7 October attacks by Iranian proxy Hamas that provoked the current war in Gaza.

Leaders in Jerusalem remained focused on completing their mission against Iran, which Netanyahu called a "decisive moment in Israel's history."

And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon or relatively late morning bulletin for Friday, the 13th of June. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdb at thefirsttv.com. Our latest episode of the PDB Situation Report, by the way, our extended weekend show, all that hits the airwaves tonight at 10 p.m. on the First TV. You can also catch it in past episodes

on our YouTube channel, at President's Daily Brief, and of course, podcast platforms everywhere. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back over the weekend with the BDB Situation Report. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.