Tel Aviv, 20 June

Israel and Iran exchanged strikes a week into their war Friday as new diplomatic efforts appeared to be underway.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi appeared headed to Geneva for meetings with the European Union's top diplomat and counterparts from the United Kingdom, France and Germany.

A plane with his usual call sign took off from the Turkish city of Van, near the Iranian border, flight-tracking data from FlightRadar24 showed. Iran typically acknowledges his departure hours afterward.

The Israeli military said Thursday that Iran used a missile with multiple warheads, posing a new challenge to its defences. Instead of having to track one warhead, missiles with multiple warheads can pose a more difficult challenge for air defence systems, like Israel's Iron Dome.

A week of Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 657 people and wounded 2,037 others, the Washington-based group Human Rights Activists said Friday.

Israeli airstrikes reach into the city of Rasht

Israeli airstrikes reached into the Iranian city of Rasht on the Caspian Sea early Friday, Iranian media reported. Social media video posted online appeared to show explosions around the city. The semiofficial Fars news agency reported local air defence systems were firing into the night sky against the Israelis.

Ahead of the strikes, the Israeli military put out a warning urging the public to flee the area around Rasht's Industrial City, which sits a few kilometres southwest of the city's downtown.

The Israelis did not immediately describe what they sought to destroy in the area. However, with Iran's internet being shut off to the outside world, it was unclear how many people in Iran would be able to see the message.

French foreign minister speaks to US secretary of state

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot spoke by phone with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday evening.

A French diplomatic official said Barrot detailed the purposes of the Geneva meeting and Rubio “stressed the US was ready for direct contact with the Iranians at any time".

Aircraft transporting Iranian foreign minister to talks

An Iranian aircraft bearing a call sign associated with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is now airborne over Turkiye.

The Airbus A321 of Meraj Airlines took off from the Turkish city of Van, near the Iranian border, flight-tracking data from FlightRadar24 showed. It bore the call sign IRAN05, which Araghchi uses on his official travel.

Israel says missile systems and radar destroyed

The Israeli military said it has destroyed missile systems and radar installations around Isfahan. That corresponds to the sound of anti-aircraft fire heard in the area of Isfahan into Friday morning. Iran has not offered any acknowledgment so far of its military losses in the war.