Israeli media cited Israel’s military as saying on Tuesday that the air force will continue conducting “powerful strikes” tonight throughout the Middle East, hours after Iran launched a salvo of ballistic missiles at Israel.
Iran launched a significant missile attack on Israel Tuesday night, escalating tensions across the Middle East. The Israeli military reported that its air defense systems intercepted the majority of the 180 missiles fired by Iran, but some struck central and southern Israel. Casualties and damage are yet to be fully assessed.
The Iranian strikes came in response to recent Israeli operations, including the death of Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, in a Beirut airstrike last week, as well as the earlier killings of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyah in Tehran and an Iranian military commander.
The Israeli military is expected to carry out more powerful airstrikes tonight, continuing its military campaign across the region. Iran’s attacks mark a significant escalation, with air raid sirens blaring across Israel as explosions lit up the sky.
In a statement, Iran claimed its attack was a “legal, rational, and legitimate” response to Israeli actions, warning that any retaliation would be met with even more destructive force. Iranian officials stated that their military targets were Israeli defense sites, though civilian casualties may have occurred.
Ebrahim Azizi, the head of Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, says on Iranian state TV that this was the first wave of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ attacks.
He says Israeli “military centres and facilities were our targets, but the attacks might have lead to civilians being hit as well due to possible miscalculations”.
Azizi says if Israel “makes a mistake” again, there is going to be a second wave which will be “even more destructive”.
He adds that according to Iran’s assessments, Israel “cannot retaliate” to Iran’s attack tonight.
The missile barrage follows Israel’s ground offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon, a group backed by Iran for decades. Israeli military officials have warned that this could lead to a prolonged regional conflict.