Declaring the launch of Operation Rising Lion aimed at foiling Iran's nuclear ambitions, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed on Friday that his country has struck at the heart of the Islamic regime's nuclear programme, including its main enrichment facility in Natanz.

"Moments ago, Israel launched Operation Rising Lion, a targeted military operation to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel's very survival. This operation will continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat," Netanyahu said in a video message in the early hours of Friday.

"For decades, the tyrants of Tehran have brazenly, openly, called for Israel's destruction. They have backed up their genocidal rhetoric with a programme to develop nuclear weapons. In recent years, Iran has produced enough highly-enriched uranium for nine atom bombs. Nine," the Israeli prime minister claimed.