'More is on the way': Netanyahu calls on Iranians to unite against 'evil and oppressive regime'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - FIle Photo

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday in a message to Iranians that Israel would press its campaign after launching waves of strikes at military and nuclear sites.

"In the past 24 hours, we have taken out top military commanders, senior nuclear scientists, the Islamic regime's most significant enrichment facility and a large portion of its ballistic missile arsenal," Netanyahu said in a video statement, adding: "More is on the way. The regime does not know what hit them, or what will hit them. It has never been weaker."

Netanyahu called on Iranians to unite against what he described as an "evil and oppressive regime", telling them Israel was engaged in "one of the greatest military operations in history".

"The time has come for the Iranian people to unite around its flag and its historic legacy, by standing up for your freedom from the evil and oppressive regime," Netanyahu said in a video statement after Israel struck over 200 military and nuclear sites in the Islamic republic.

"We are in the midst of one of the greatest military operations in history, Operation Rising Lion", he added.

The remarks came as Iran fired a barrage of ballistic missiles at Israel in a counter-strike Friday, after an unprecedented onslaught hammered the Islamic republic's top military brass and targeted its nuclear facilities and bases.

Air raids sirens and explosions rang out across Israel after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to the airways to issue a word of caution, saying he expected "several waves of Iranian attacks" in response.

Smoke could later be seen billowing above the skyscrapers in downtown Tel Aviv, according to an AFP journalist, as Iran's Revolutionary Guard said it attacked dozens of targets in Israel.

The salvo came hours after Israel said its wide-spread air raids had killed several top Iranian generals, including most of the senior leadership of the Revolutionary Guards' air force, following several rounds of strikes that hit about 200 targets including nuclear facilities.

As the two sides traded blows, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed to bring Israel "to ruin" during a televised address.

"The armed forces of the Islamic republic will inflict heavy blows upon this malevolent enemy," Khamenei told the nation.

In the onslaught's wake, Trump urged Iran on Friday to "make a deal" on its nuclear programme, warning of "even more brutal" attacks to come.

The United States underlined that it was not involved in the Israeli action and warned Iran not to attack its personnel or interests, but Tehran said Washington would be "responsible for consequences".

Netanyahu said Israel -- the Middle East's only, if undeclared, nuclear poewr -- struck at the "heart of Iran's nuclear enrichment programme", taking aim at scientists and the main uranium enrichment facility in Natanz.

The strikes would "continue as many days as it takes", the Israeli premier said, while the military said intelligence showed Iran was approaching the "point of no return" on its nuclear programme.

The strikes killed Iran's highest-ranking military officer, armed forces chief of staff Mohammad Bagheri, and the head of the Revolutionary Guards, Hossein Salami, Iranian media reported.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected "calls for Iran to show restraint in the face of Israeli aggression", according to a statement.