Iran launched a wave of missiles at Israel last night to avenge the killing of top leaders of Hezbollah and Hamas, as the Middle East war threatens to spiral into a wider regional conflict. Israelis rushed to bomb shelters as sirens sounded across the country and orange streaks lit up the night sky, showing footage. Israel said it had intercepted most of the missiles and vowed to make Iran “pay” for the attack. Amid the claims and counterclaims from Iran and Israel, it is difficult to know how successful Tuesday's attacks were and whether Israel will immediately retaliate.
Here's what Israel and Iran said about Tuesday's attacks:
ADVERTISEMENT
- There were reports yesterday that as many as 400 rockets were fired into Israel from Iran. But Iran confirmed this morning that it had fired 200 missiles, while Israel gave a count of 180. Sirens sounded across the country and most of the rockets were intercepted by Israeli air defenses or allied air forces before reaching their territory.
- State media footage showed Iranian missiles being fired at Israel. The missiles targeted “three military bases” around Tel Aviv and other bases, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said, adding that 90% of these “hit their targets.” Israel denied this claim, saying only twenty rockets were landed, while the rest were intercepted.
- Iran claims to have hit the headquarters of Mossad, Israel's main intelligence agency. However, Israel has denied this and said some rockets landed on empty ground. A video has emerged on social media of a huge crater near the Mossad headquarters – probably the result of a rocket attack.
- Iran said yesterday it used hypersonic Fattah missiles to attack military facilities in Israel, which was successful. This claim was countered by Israel, which claimed to have intercepted most of the rockets. Israel said the attacks resulted in only two injuries.
- Iran warned it would launch “crushing attacks” on Israel if it retaliated against the Iranian missile attack. But Israel called the missile attack Iran's “biggest mistake” and promised retaliation at a time and place of its choosing. “This attack will have consequences. We have plans and we will operate at the place and time we decide,” said IDF spokesman Admiral Daniel Hagari.
