‘We paved a highway to Tehran’ – PM Netanyahu says Israel ‘controls Tehran’s skies,’ vows to ‘eliminate the nuclear threat’

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a televised press conference on Monday evening in which he detailed the achievements of "Operation Rising Lion" to date. 

The conference was conducted from a secure location, with Prime Minister Netanyahu responding to reporters' questions via Zoom.

The prime minister began by reiterating key facts from the early days of the military operation, with a particular focus on the nuclear threat.

“We continue to systematically destroy nuclear targets. We hit Iran's main enrichment facility at Natanz, we destroyed factories for creating centrifuges, we hit and destroyed a uranium conversion facility, and the hand is still outstretched,” Netanyahu stated. 

He also highlighted Israel’s elimination of key leadership figures who posed a threat to the Jewish state.

"We hit 10 nuclear scientists, we eliminated the Iranian security leadership. Both the army and the Revolutionary Guards,” Netanyahu stated. “We are eliminating them one after the other, here too, the hand is still outstretched.” 

Eliminating the top military leadership of Iran was like “Operation Pagers on steroids,” he added.

Speaking of the threat of Iran’s ballistic missiles – one of the primary concerns at the onset of the war – Netanyahu said that IDF was destroying the regime's ability to strike Israel by attacking Iran's missile launchers. 

"We neutralized hundreds of ballistic missiles, and we hit a huge number of launchers," Netanyahu stated. "It doesn't matter how many missiles they have, it's a question of how many launchers they have, and we take them down one after the other.” 

According to the IDF's assessment, there has been a noticeable decline in the number of ballistic missiles launched per barrage, with the most recent waves consisting of ten or fewer missiles each.

Netanyahu also stated that Israel has achieved dominance of Iran’s skies. 

“We have achieved air control, Israel controls Tehran's skies. We paved an air highway to Tehran and we control it,” he affirmed. 

The remark echoed previous statements made in a visit to the Tel Nof airbase, where Netanyahu told Air Force pilots, “In the name of the people of Israel and the State of Israel, you are doing amazing things. The Israeli Air Force controls Tehran's skies – it's a change in the entire campaign.” 

“We are on our way to achieving our two goals: the elimination of the nuclear threat and the elimination of the missile threat,” Netanyahu said.

During his visit to the base, Netanyahu also compared Israel's war strategy with that of Iran.

חיל האוויר הישראלי שולט בשמי טהראן. אנחנו פוגעים במטרות של המשטר – לא באזרחים. זה ההבדל בינינו לבין משטר הטרור של איראן שמכוון לרצוח נשים וילדים.

בשם עם ישראל – אני מצדיע לכם. אתם מביאים את הניצחון. pic.twitter.com/1F5zIn7xHf

— Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) June 16, 2025

“In contrast to Iran's criminal regime, which targets our citizens and kills children and women, we tell the citizens of Tehran: 'Evacuate' – and we are acting.” 

Referring to the Iranian drone threat, which was previously believed to be a major threat to Israel, Netanyahu stated, “We have eliminated half of their array of UAVs – about 1,000 vehicles – which did not reach their target at all.” 

He also hinted at further Israeli action against the drone threat, but refrained from providing specific details.

“They have many more UAVs that have problems, I can't go into details,” he commented. 

When asked about reports suggesting that Iran is interested in a ceasefire and resuming negotiations with the United States, Netanyahu responded, “I am not surprised that they want an end to the war. We are hitting them. We gave negotiations a chance, but at the same time the dictatorial ayatollah tweeted that Israel would be destroyed.” 

Netanyahu affirmed that Israel has three goals for its military operation in Iran.

“We want three outcomes: the elimination of the nuclear program, of the axis of terror, and of the ability to produce [ballistic] missiles.” 

He spoke about his attempts to reach out to the Iranian people directly through video messages, saying: “I am releasing videos to the Iranian people and getting millions of responses. We can certainly see a change inside Iran. It can bring results.” 

In an earlier interview with ABC News, Netanyahu refused to rule out an attempt to eliminate Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, saying, “It’s not going to escalate the conflict – it’s going to end the conflict.

When asked about the possibility of U.S. involvement, Prime Minister Netanyahu said, “The United States is helping us, President Trump is helping us, and I am in constant daily contact with him. President Trump will decide what is best for America and I respect his wishes.”

He also said that "any help would be appreciated."  

At the conclusion of his remarks, Netanyahu reaffirmed his concern for the Israeli hostages still held in Gaza.

“I don't take my eyes off the hostages for a moment, there is an opportunity and potential here,” he said, suggesting that success in the war against Iran could positively impact ongoing hostage negotiations.