Israel launches airstrikes on Iran amid tension
Israel pounded Iran with a series of airstrikes, saying it was targeting military sites in retaliation for the barrage of ballistic missiles the Islamic Republic fired upon Israel earlier in the month.
Explosions could be heard in the Iranian capital, Tehran, though the Islamic Republic insisted they caused only “limited damage.”
The attack risks pushing the archenemies closer to all-out war at a time of spiraling violence across the Middle East, where militant groups backed by Iran — including Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon — are already at war with Israel.
Marked the first time Israel’s military has openly attacked Iran, which hasn’t faced a sustained barrage of fire from a foreign enemy since its 1980s war with Iraq.
Israel’s hourslong attack ended just before sunrise in Tehran, with the Israeli military saying it targeted “missile manufacturing facilities used to produce the missiles that Iran fired at the state of Israel over the last year.” It also said it hit surface-to-air missile sites and “additional Iranian aerial capabilities.”
The Israeli military said it is conducting "precise strikes" on military targets in Iran in response to what it called "the continuous attacks from the regime in Iran against Israel".
"In response to months of continuous attacks from the regime in Iran against the State of Israel—right now the Israel Defense Forces is conducting precise strikes on military targets in Iran. We will do whatever necessary to defend the State of Israel and the people of Israel," Israeli Military Spokesman, Rear Admiral Daniel Haggari said.
The Middle East has been on edge in anticipation of Israeli retaliation for a ballistic-missile barrage carried out by Iran on Oct. 1, in which around 200 ballistic missiles were fired at Israel, Iran's second direct attack on Israel in six months.
