RIGA, June 13 (LETA) - The overnight Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear and other military targets do not automatically mean the start of a new war, but they have increased tensions in the region, Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze (New Unity) told Latvian Television this morning.

Of course, Iran will respond, but it is not yet foreseeable what that response will be, the minister said.

With the Israeli attack looking well prepared and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing that it will continue, the situation in the Middle East will not become easier or less tense, Braze predicted.

She added that the US has denied its involvement in the strikes and is now focusing on evacuating its citizens away from the threatened areas. Latvia is also considering what to do with diplomatic staff stationed in Israel. Latvia's ambassador to Israel is currently in Latvia, but only three Latvian nationals are registered in Iran and no news has yet been received from them, Braze said.

According to the information available on the website of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Latvian ambassador to Iran is based in Turkey.

"At the moment, according to information from the [Israeli] embassy, the situation is calm, [there is] no panic, everybody is going about their daily activities," Braze said, adding that whether to evacuate the Latvian embassy staff from Israel would be assessed today. This is not particularly easy, given that Israeli airspace is closed.

The AFP news agency reports that Israel pounded Iran in a series of air raids on Friday, striking 100 targets including Tehran's nuclear and military sites, and killing the armed forces' chief of staff, the head of Iran's Revolutionary Guards and top nuclear scientists.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Israel it faced a "bitter and painful" fate over the attack, which also killed a senior Guards commander according to Iranian media.

Iran had launched 100 drones in response towards Israel whose defenses were working to intercept, the Israeli military said.

US President Donald Trump told Fox News he had advance notice of the Israeli strikes which Israel's military said involved 200 fighter jets. Trump also stressed that Tehran "cannot have a nuclear bomb".

The United States also underlined that it was not involved in the Israeli action and warned Tehran not to attack its personnel or interests.

But Tehran said the United States would be "responsible for consequences" as Israel's operation "cannot have been carried out without the coordination and permission of the United States".

Israel's operation struck at the "heart of Iran's nuclear enrichment program", taking aim at the atomic facility in Natanz and nuclear scientists, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

The operation against Iran will "continue as many days as it takes," Netanyahu said, adding in a later video statement that the initial strikes were "very successful".

Iran's Revolutionary Guards leader Hossein Salami and armed forces Chief of Staff Mohammad Bagheri were killed in the Israeli operation, said Iranian media.

Iranian state media said residential buildings in Tehran were hit as well, killing a number of civilians including women and children.

Air traffic was halted at Tehran's main international airport Imam Khomeini, while neighboring Iraq has also closed its airspace and suspended all flights at all airports, state media reported.

Israel declared a state of emergency, likewise closing its airspace, with Defense Minister Israel Katz anticipating retaliatory action from Tehran.

"Following the State of Israel's preemptive strike against Iran, a missile and drone attack against the State of Israel and its civilian population is expected in the immediate future," Katz said.

An Israeli military official added that the Israeli army believed that Iran had the ability to strike Israel "any minute".