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israel-iran war: latest developments as of june 17, 2025 (detailed, hour-by-hour)

early morning (12:00 am – 6:00 am)

• iran launched over 40 ballistic missiles targeting dimona, be’er sheva, and eilat. israeli air defenses intercepted most of the attacks.
• an air defense battery near dimona was hit; 2 israeli soldiers were killed, 7 were wounded.
• the u.s. temporarily closed jordanian airspace and moved an aircraft carrier closer to israel’s coast.
• explosions were heard over tehran; residents spent the night in metro stations and basements.
• iran’s revolutionary guard claimed to have bombed mossad centers and military intelligence units in tehran.
• israel reported no civilian casualties. iran reported fatalities in an attack on its state television building in tehran.

morning (6:00 am – 12:00 pm)

• iranian ground forces commander colonel general ali shadmani was killed by israel — the second high-ranking iranian officer lost since the war began.
• israel targeted missile production facilities in kerman and isfahan. iran claimed to have shot down some israeli aircraft.
• significant weaknesses were observed in iran’s air defense systems.
• the international atomic energy agency reported losing contact with several nuclear facilities in iran.
• heavy bombardments continued in tehran, targeting airports and police-intelligence sites. thousands of foreign nationals began evacuating. the u.s., india, russia, china, ukraine, and south korea issued urgent evacuation advisories for their citizens.
• donald trump posted on social media: “everyone evacuate tehran immediately,” adding that while the u.s. knows the iranian leader’s location, they do not plan to act for now.

midday (12:00 pm – 2:00 pm)

• israel’s ministry of defense announced that iran’s long-range strike capabilities had been largely neutralized.
• massive traffic jams formed in tehran as civilians tried to flee the city. internet and mobile phone access were heavily restricted.
• hospitals in iran exceeded capacity, and some stadiums were converted into field hospitals.
• trump stated: “the iranian leader is an easy target, but we do not plan to strike him at this time.”

afternoon (2:00 pm – 4:00 pm)

• iran’s revolutionary guard struck an israeli commercial vessel in the strait of hormuz, causing a fire; the crew was evacuated.
• in retaliation, israel bombed a naval base at the port of bandar abbas.
• iran imposed a curfew around tehran; state television broadcast only written statements.
• turkey, qatar, and china issued urgent calls for a ceasefire.

early evening (4:00 pm – 8:00 pm)

• israel struck a major military command center in shiraz. iran condemned the attack as a “war crime.”
• clashes erupted with hezbollah forces on the lebanon border; northern israel went on high alert.
• g7 leaders held an emergency meeting. trump left the summit early without signing the communique and returned to washington.
• the u.s. department of defense stated: “we are not directly involved in the conflict but are ensuring regional security.”

evening and beyond (after 8:00 pm)

• iran used a new-generation hypersonic missile for the first time, causing significant damage at the port of haifa.
• in tehran, civilians moved into underground parking lots, metro stations, and rural areas.
• infrastructure damage in both countries continued to trigger crises in water, electricity, and communications.

basically, the washington consensus is the name for a set of economic policies that came out of washington, d.c., in the late 1980s. picture this: latin american countries were dealing with debt crises, inflation through the roof, and overall economic chaos. so, economists from places like the imf, world bank, and the u.s. treasury got together and said, "alright, here's the game plan to fix this."

the game plan boiled down to about ten policies, stuff like:
- cut government spending
- open up to international trade
- privatize state-owned companies
- encourage foreign investment
- deregulate industries
- keep taxes simpler and broader

the thinking was, if you let markets work freely, economies would stabilize and grow. in theory, it makes sense. in practice? mixed results.

some countries saw short-term growth and lower inflation. others ended up with higher unemployment, growing inequality, and economies that were basically built for foreign investors rather than local people. it often felt like the medicine was worse than the disease, especially when governments slashed spending on healthcare and education just to balance their books.

the name itself came from an economist named john williamson, who wrote it down as more of an observation than a commandment, but it took off because it perfectly described the economic "starter pack" washington was pushing at the time.

today, people use the term either as a neutral description of free-market reform or, more often, as a critique of globalization and how rich countries try to shape poorer ones in their image. if you ever hear someone complain about "neoliberalism," they're probably talking about some version of the washington consensus.

the new deal was the u.s. government's huge "oh shit" response to the great depression in the 1930s. when the stock market crashed in 1929, unemployment hit nearly 25%, banks were collapsing left and right, and people were literally lining up for bread. fdr (franklin d. roosevelt), who became president in 1933, rolled out the new deal as an emergency playbook to save the economy and calm the chaos.

world-systems theory is a social science theory developed by immanuel wallerstein in the 1970s.

it explains global inequality by viewing the world as a single interconnected economic system, where countries are divided into three types:

- core countries: wealthy, powerful, industrialized nations.
- semi-periphery countries: in-between nations, developing economies that have some industry but still depend on core countries.
- periphery countries: poorer, less developed countries that mainly export raw materials and labor to core countries.

the system is based on exploitation:
core countries exploit both the semi-periphery and the periphery for cheap labor and raw materials, keeping them dependent and underdeveloped.

1- core country example:
united states, germany, japan
explanation: high technology, advanced industries, strong political power. they manufacture goods from raw materials imported from poorer countries and export finished products globally.

2- semi-periphery country example:
mexico, brazil, south africa
explanation: countries that have growing industries and some political power, but still depend on core countries for capital and technology.

3- periphery country example:
bangladesh, ethiopia, democratic republic of congo
explanation: these countries primarily export raw materials (like cotton, coffee, or minerals) and cheap labor to richer countries.

buttercup refers to any plant in the genus ranunculus, which includes about 600 species of herbaceous flowering plants.

these plants are known for their bright yellow, cup-shaped flowers and are commonly found in meadows and gardens worldwide. image