Iran launched a drone offensive against Israel, in what appears to be a widely anticipated retaliatory attack and a new escalation in the Middle East confrontation.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard confirmed the attack, according to a statement in which it said it had launched “dozens of drones and missiles.”
In Jerusalem, hours after the launch, sirens began to be heard and explosions were seen over the sky in what appears to be the Israeli defense system neutralizing the attack.
The Iranian statement indicates that the offensive is related to Israel’s “repeated crimes,” including the April 1 bombing of the Iranian consulate in Damascus for which Tehran accused the Israeli government and in which several Iranian military commanders were killed.
Tonight’s attack has been called by Iran as “Operation True Promise” and justified by its right to exercise “self-defense.”
Israeli forces reported that They are on high alert“monitoring all objectives.”
Iran suggested there will be no more attacks but warned of possible consequences if Israel decides to respond.
In recent hours, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the country’s “defensive systems” have been deployed to confront the Iranian offensive:
“We are prepared for any scenario, both defensive and offensive. The state of Israel is strong. The Israel Defense Forces are strong. The people are strong.”
“We appreciate that the US stands with Israel, in addition to the support of the United Kingdom, France and many other countries,” added Netanyahu, who convened his war cabinet.
Biden returns to the White House
The American president, Joe Bidensuspended his vacation in Delaware and met with his National Security Council to evaluate the situation.
Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson told The New York Times that “the attack is expected to take place over several hours.”
“President Biden has been clear: our support for Israel’s security is unwavering. “The US will stand with the people of Israel and support their defense against threats from Iran.”
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned the Iranian attack “in the strongest terms.”
“One more time, Iran shows that its intention is to sow chaos a your own backyard. “The United Kingdom will continue to support Israel and all our allies in the region, including Jordan and Iraq,” the prime minister said.
closed skies
Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq have closed their airspace, while Israel and Iran have only kept their skies open for military vessels.
The attack comes after days of tension following a bombing against the Iranian consulate in Syria in which a senior Iranian military officer was killed.
Iran accused Israel of this attack, but Netanyahu’s government neither confirmed nor ruled out its participation in the operation in which a total of 13 people died.
Jonathan Conricus, a former spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces, told the BBC that “this is the first day of the new Middle East: for the first time Iran is attacking Israel directly from sovereign Iranian soil“.
Tension between the two great regional rivals has intensified since the start of the war in Gaza on October 7 of last year.
“I think Israel is good at planning military contingencies, but they don’t always excel in the strategic part. “I think there are some plans on file that point to targets in Iran,” Conricus added.
Tit for tat risks escalating into a regional war
Frank Gardner, BBC News Security Correspondent
This is exactly the escalation that everyone feared in the simmering conflict between Iran and its allies and Israel: a direct attack from one country to another.
For nearly two weeks, Iran’s security forces have been mulling over their response to the April 1 airstrike on its consulate in Damascus, widely believed to be the work of Israel and in which several top Iranian commanders were killed.
Clearly, the decision was reached that such an important step – an attack that brought down a diplomatic building and, therefore, sovereign Iranian territory – required a forceful response.
Israel has several air defenses and has promised to respond to any attack on its territory, and he will do it.
The risk now is that this tit-for-tat will continue to escalate into a full-blown regional war, something that most governments in the region have been trying hard to avoid since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on the 7th. October.
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