<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Hundreds of </span><a href="http://9news.com.au/australia" rel="" target="" title="Australians"><span>Australians</span></a><span> have asked for government help to leave </span><a href="http://9news.com.au/iran" rel="" target="" title="Iran"><span>Iran</span></a><span> and </span><a href="http://9news.com.au/israel" rel="" target="" title="Israel"><span>Israel</span></a><span> as the </span><a href="http://9news.com.au/israel-iran-conflict" rel="" target="" title="conflict between the two countries"><span>conflict between the two countries</span></a><span> trade deadly missile attacks in a worsening crisis.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Foreign Minister </span><a href="http://9news.com.au/penny-wong" rel="" target="" title="Penny Wong"><span>Penny Wong</span></a><span> revealed the figures today while calling for de-escalation on the fourth day of the conflict.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>She said about 350 Australians in Iran and 300 in Israel had registered with the government for help to leave the region.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/womans-caffeine-death-blamed-on-ambulance-ramping/5b912282-e1d9-4c9c-b3dd-f2e04b7acb99"><strong><span>Woman's caffeine overdose death blamed on ambulance ramping</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I understand how concerned, how distressed many Australians are about what is occurring," she said from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade crisis centre.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I understand, particularly those who are in the Middle East, in Israel or Iran, how worrying this situation is, how frightening it is. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"And I also recognise, for families of people who are in the region this is a distressing time."</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/world/israel-iran-update-hundreds-of-australians-trying-to-leave-as-conflict-intensifies/1e8ad380-7047-4256-9e68-1e2e720daef7" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>She said the Australian government was looking at all contingencies and planning for assisted departures when safe.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"What I would say is, at the moment, airspace is closed," she said. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"This means that governments have closed down airspace because of the risk of strikes on civilian aircraft.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/cooloola-cove-gympie-man-assisting-police-woman-fatally-wounded-queensland-crime-news/b10eded8-32f1-4304-b1e7-5905c2be285f"><strong><span>Town rocked by 'lovely' woman's stabbing death</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"So obviously we have to wait until airspace is open before we can try to get people out by air."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Meanwhile, Australians were urged to shelter in place and pay attention the advice from the Australian and local governments, as the foreign minister called on Israel and Iran to show restraint.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"No one doubts the threat Iran poses. We have long been speaking about this as an international community. We have long put sanctions in place," she said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We have, Australia has, been part of the pressure that has been applied to the Iranian regime in relation to their nuclear program and their non-proliferation obligations. So no one doubts that. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/sydney-auburn-shooting-three-people-injured-streets-shut/92df9ee4-3a07-4c77-8122-3087fad500d6" rel="" target="" title=""><strong><span>Car torched after innocent worker shot in kebab shop hit</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The question is, what do you do about it? Is your response going to risk dire consequences for the region. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Our call for diplomacy, for dialogue, for de-escalation, is the same call that is being made by the United Kingdom, by Canada, by France, by so many countries around the world, and it's consistent with what President Trump has said."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Iran fired a new wave of missile attacks on Israel early on Monday, killing at least five people, while Israel claimed it had achieved air superiority over Tehran and could fly over the Iranian capital without facing major threats.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The Israeli military said it had destroyed more than 120 surface-to-surface missile launchers in central Iran, a third of Iran's total. It also said fighter jets had struck 10 command centers in Tehran belonging to Iran's Quds Force, an elite arm of its Revolutionary Guard that conducts military and intelligence operations outside Iran.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"At this time, we can say that we have achieved full aerial superiority over Tehran's skies," said military spokesperson Brigadier General Effie Defrin. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Israeli strikes "amount to a deep and comprehensive blow to the Iranian threat", he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Iran announced it had launched some 100 missiles and vowed further retaliation for sweeping attacks on its military and nuclear infrastructure that have killed at least 224 people in the country since Friday.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Israel said so far 24 people have been killed and more than 500 injured as Iran launched more than 370 missiles and hundreds of drones.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The latest conflict began when Israel launched an assault on Iran's top military leaders, uranium enrichment sites and nuclear scientists that it said was necessary to prevent its long time adversary from getting any closer to building an atomic weapon.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Iran maintains that its nuclear program is peaceful, and the U.S. and others have assessed that Tehran has not pursued a nuclear weapon since 2003. But the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency has repeatedly warned that the country has enough enriched uranium to make several nuclear bombs if it chooses to do so.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Iran has retaliated by firing waves of ballistic missiles at Israel. The back-and-forth has raised concerns about all-out war between the countries and propelled the region, already on edge, into even greater upheaval.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><span>- Reported with Associated Press</span></em><span></span></div></div>