Israel launched a barrage of direct airstrikes on Iran overnight in a high-stakes retaliatory strike that threatened to push the Middle East closer to a regional war.
The Israeli military said it completed its airstrikes in the early hours of Saturday morning, hitting military targets and air defenses across Iran.
While the strikes reportedly targeted missile factories, they did not appear to target the country’s most sensitive oil and nuclear targets, following urgent calls from allies and neighbors for restraint following an earlier exchange.
The risk of direct conflict between Israel and Iran – the Middle East’s two largest military powers – has long jeopardized the broader security of the region already besieged by wars in Gaza and Lebanon. While the US insisted that “this should be the end of direct military exchanges between Israel and Iran,” it is not yet clear whether the latest attacks would lead to further escalation.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry has since emphasized that it has “the right and obligation to defend itself against external aggressive acts.”
A general view of Tehran after a series of explosions (Photo: Majid Asgaripour/West Asia News Agency/Reuters)
How did the Israeli attack on Iran proceed?
The attacks in the early hours of Saturday morning consisted of three waves that the Israeli military described as “precision strikes” targeting missile factories and military bases.
Several explosions were reported just after 2:30 a.m. local time over Tehran, Karaj and Mashhad, as Israeli fighter jets fired on the military targets, triggering Iranian air defense systems.
Amid the rocket fire, Israeli military spokesman Admiral Daniel Hagari said: “In response to months of continued attacks by the regime in Iran against the State of Israel – the Israeli military is currently conducting precision strikes against military targets in Iran. ”
The attack on Iran ended just before dawn in Tehran, with the Israeli military insisting it had “fulfilled its mission” by carrying out what it called “targeted and precise attacks on military targets in Iran.”
The attacks involved dozens of fighter jets, Israeli public broadcaster KAN reported.
Israel’s acknowledgment of the attack on Iran is a rare move for the IDF, which has previously not commented on similar military action. The move seemed to show that the long-running shadow war between the two military powers has entered a new, more open phase.
Tehran, meanwhile, appeared to downplay the airstrikes, saying there was only minimal damage. A regime spokesman said Tehran airport was functioning normally.
Iran later confirmed that two soldiers had been killed as a result of the attacks.
Israeli military spokesman Admiral Daniel Hagari calls on the Israeli people to be “alert and vigilant” when carrying out attacks on military targets in Iran (Photo: Israeli Army/AFP)
Was the US involved in the attacks on Iran?
On a late-night conference call, a senior U.S. official told reporters that the United States did not participate in Saturday’s strikes but was working with the Israeli government to encourage low-risk attacks that minimized harm to the civilian population.
“The effect was a proportionate self-defense response. The effect is to deter future attacks and compromise Iran’s ability to carry out future attacks,” the official said.
They added that the US viewed the strikes as an “end to the firefight between Israel and Iran.”
“This should be the end of the direct military exchange between Israel and Iran – we had a direct exchange in April and it closed and now we have had this direct exchange again.”
Smoke rises from the scene of an Israeli airstrike on a neighborhood in Beirut’s southern suburbs, October 25 (Photo: Ibrahim Amro/AFP)
What was Israel’s attack in retaliation for?
Israel’s retaliatory strikes on Iran had been expected for several weeks after the Islamic regime launched a barrage of 180 rockets on Tel Aviv earlier this month.
Tehran’s attack on October 1, most of which was shot down by Israeli air defenses with the help of US forces, targeted Israel’s economic center and a series of military bases.
The Iranian attack was also in response to a series of Israeli attacks on Hezbollah – an Iranian proxy that has long been backed financially and militarily by the Islamic regime in Tehran – following the assassination of its leader Hassan Nasrallah in an airstrike in September. Israel also sent its troops across the northern border into Lebanon and began a direct conflict with the militant group.
Israel’s war with Hezbollah has now lasted almost a month and has cost the lives of thousands of people.
What did Britain say after the strikes?
Britain urged Tehran not to retaliate after the overnight strikes and said it was “closely” monitoring the unfolding situation in the Middle East.
Speaking at a press conference during the Commonwealth Summit in Samoa, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “I am clear that Israel has the right to defend itself against Iranian aggression and I am equally clear that we must avoid further regional escalation and urge everyone to show restraint.
“Iran must not respond. We will continue to work with allies to de-escalate the situation across the region.”
A spokesperson for Number 10 said on Saturday morning that the government supports “Israel’s right to self-defence and to protect itself”, as long as it adheres to “international humanitarian law”.
“Further escalation is not in anyone’s interest,” the statement said.