Iran on Tuesday fired close to 200 ballistic missiles targeting Israel, prompting all civilians to seek refuge in bomb shelters.
The attack followed Israel’s ground offensive in Lebanon aimed at Hezbollah, and came days after key figures, including Hezbollah commander Hassan Nasrallah and senior members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), were killed in Israeli strikes in Beirut.
Reports indicate that around 100 missiles were launched from Iran, with Israel’s Iron Dome and Arrow defense systems intercepting several.
Explosions were heard in Jerusalem and other regions, though no casualties have been reported so far.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) urged citizens to stay in protected areas, while Iran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed responsibility for the attack as retaliation for the deaths of their leaders.
This escalation followed a suspected terror shooting in Tel Aviv that left at least four people dead.
Israel Defense Forces while reacting to the attack announced:
“This will have consequences. We have plans. We will act, deciding where and when”
UN chief Antonio Guterres condemned the “broadening conflict in the Middle East”, adding in a statement: “This must stop. We absolutely need a ceasefire.”
Israeli airspace was closed with all flights diverted, a spokesman for the airport authority said.
Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan, which lie between Iran and Israel, closed their airspace too.
As the missiles made their way to Israel from the east, blasts were heard over the Jordanian capital Amman, as Israel’s allies moved to intercept them, an AFP correspondent said.
