Shortly before sunrise in Iran on Friday, Israel launched the first strikes of its operation against the regime’s nuclear program.

Israeli emergency services have said at least two people were killed in the strikes and dozens of people are injured.

Sirens sounded in Israel as Iran launched dozens of ballistic missiles in retaliation for Israel's strikes on its nuclear facilities.

In remarks before the UN Security Council, Iranian Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani claimed that 78 people had been killed in Israeli attacks across Iran -- using the term "martyred" -- and that another 320 had been injured.

Iran says there was damage to its Fordow and Isfahan nuclear sites from an earlier attack as the Israeli PM vows that "more is on the way".

Interviews with half a dozen senior Iranian officials show that they were not expecting Israel to strike before another round of talks.

The explosive conflict between Israel and Iran is roiling the Middle East – and raising questions about whether the world is moving ahead without the U.S. Colonel Jack Jacobs, Anthony Fisher, Pablo Torre,

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. was not involved in Israel's attack and warned Iran not to target U.S. forces. “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,