JERUSALEM, June 16, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Iran unleashed a missile barrage on  Israeli cities Monday after Israeli strikes deep inside the Islamic republic,  leaving streets in ruins and the death toll in Israel climbing by 11 amid a  spiralling air war. After decades of enmity and a prolonged shadow war, Israel on Friday launched  aerial attacks on Iran in a surprise campaign it said was aimed at stopping  its arch-foe from acquiring atomic weapons -- an allegation Tehran denies. 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 said Monday it had  "successfully" struck Israel with a salvo of missiles and warned of  "effective, targeted and more devastating operations" to come. The latest Iranian onslaught left a trail of destruction across Israeli  cities -- including Tel Aviv, Bnei Brak, Petah Tikva and Haifa -- with  shattered homes, smouldering wreckage and stunned residents picking through  the debris. "We heard a strong bomb," said Henn, a father of four in Petah Tikva. "It was  very scary," he told AFPTV. The death toll in Israel rose by 11 on Monday, the prime minister's office  said, bringing the total since Friday to 24. The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, said the missile barrage also  lightly damaged a building used by the American embassy in Tel Aviv. - 'I will not leave' - Iran's attack followed a wave of intense Israeli air raids that struck  targets across the Islamic republic -- from the western border with Iraq to  the capital Tehran and as far east as Mashhad, where the airport was hit. Despite reports of civilians fleeing Tehran, some vowed to stay. "It is natural that war has its own stress, but I will not leave my city,"  Shokouh Razzazi, 31, told AFP in the Iranian capital. The rapid escalation has drawn mounting international concern and calls for  de-escalation. China urged both sides to "immediately take measures to cool down the  tensions" and "prevent the region from falling into greater turmoil". European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen also appealed for calm,  saying she had told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that "a  negotiated solution is, in the long term, the best solution". While critical of Israel's campaign in Gaza, von der Leyen blamed Iran for  the latest crisis, citing the UN nuclear watchdog's findings that it was not  in compliance with its obligations.  "In this context, Israel has the right to defend itself. Iran is the  principal source of regional instability," she said. Iran, meanwhile, called on the International Atomic Energy Agency to condemn  the Israeli strikes on its nuclear sites. "We expect the (IAEA) Board of Governors and the director general to take a  firm position in condemning this act and holding the regime (Israel)  accountable," foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said in Tehran. - 'A heavy price' - Residential areas in both countries have suffered deadly strikes since the  hostilities erupted, with Netanyahu accusing Iran of deliberately targeting  civilians. "Iran will pay a very heavy price for the premeditated murder of civilians,  women and children," he said while visiting a bombed-out apartment block in  Bat Yam. The military said Monday it had destroyed one third of Iran's surface-to- surface missile launchers. In a televised address, Iranian armed forces spokesman Colonel Reza Sayyad  vowed a "devastating response" to Israeli attacks. "Leave the occupied territories (Israel) because they will certainly no  longer be habitable in the future," he said, adding shelters would "not  guarantee security". Addressing Iran's parliament, President Masoud Pezeshkian urged citizens to  "stand strong against this genocidal criminal aggression with unity and  coherence". - 'Make a deal' - US President Donald Trump insisted Washington had "nothing to do" with  Israel's military campaign but warned any Iranian attack on American  interests would trigger "the full strength and might" of the US military. On Sunday, Trump urged both sides to "make a deal" while expressing doubts  about near-term peace prospects. "Sometimes they have to fight it out, but we're going to see what happens,"  he said. A senior US official told AFP Trump had intervened to prevent Israel from  carrying out an assassination of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali  Khamenei. "We found out that the Israelis had plans to hit Iran's supreme leader.  President Trump was against it and we told the Israelis not to," said the  official, speaking on condition of anonymity. Asked by Fox News whether regime change in Iran was one of Israel's  objectives, Netanyahu said: "It certainly could be the result, because the  Iran regime is very weak." As hostilities intensified, Iran said it was scrapping planned nuclear talks  with the United States, calling dialogue "meaningless" under bombardment.