Explosion heard in Tehran as IDF announces Israeli strikes against Iran – National
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – Israel launched airstrikes early Saturday against what it described as military targets in Iran in retaliation for an October 1 ballistic missile attack, officials said. There was no immediate information on damage in the Islamic Republic.
Israel's military described the attack as “direct strikes against Iranian military targets,” without immediately elaborating.
“The Iranian regime and its proxies in the region have been attacking Israel relentlessly since October 7 – in seven locations – including direct attacks from Iranian soil,” an Israeli military statement said. “Like every other independent country in the world, the State of Israel has the right and duty to respond.”
In Tehran, the Iranian capital, explosions were heard, with state media initially admitting the explosions and saying some of the sounds came from air defense systems in the city.
A resident of Tehran told the Associated Press that at least seven explosions were heard, which hit the surrounding area. This resident spoke and asked not to be identified because he is afraid of retaliation.
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Iran has launched two missile attacks on Israel in recent months amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip that began with Hamas's attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Israel attacked Lebanon again.
The strike occurred when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken returned to the US after a trip to the Middle East where he and other US officials warned Israel to provide a response that would not escalate the conflict in the region and not include nuclear weapons. sites in Iran.
The spokesman for the White House National Security Council, Sean Savett, said in a statement that “we understand that Israel is conducting military-targeted strikes in Iran” and referred reporters to the Israeli government for more information about their operations.
Israel had vowed to hit Iran hard following a major Iranian missile attack on October 1. Iran said dozens of Israelis were reacting to the deadly Israeli attack against its proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah, and vowed to respond to any what retaliatory strikes.
Israel and Iran have been bitter enemies since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Israel considers Iran to be its biggest threat, citing its leaders' calls for Israel's destruction, their support for anti-Israel groups and the country's nuclear program.
Israel and Iran have been locked in a shadow war for years. A suspected Israeli operation killed Iranian nuclear scientists. Iran's nuclear facilities have been hacked or destroyed, all of which are mysterious attacks blamed on Israel. Meanwhile, Iran has been blamed for a series of attacks on ships in the Middle East in recent years, which later escalated into attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels on ships in the Red Sea corridor.
But since the attack by Hamas on October 7, the fighting has increasingly moved into the open. Israel recently turned its attention to Hezbollah, which has been firing rockets into Israel since the Gaza war began. Throughout the year, a number of senior Iranian soldiers have been killed in Israeli strikes in Syria and Lebanon.
Iran fired a wave of missiles and drones at Israel last April after two Iranian generals were killed in an apparent Israeli airstrike in Syria on an Iranian diplomatic compound. Missiles and drones caused little damage, and Israel – under pressure from the West to show restraint – responded with a limited strike.
But after Iran's early October strike, Israel promised a strong response.
Associated Press writer Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
