Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened to carry out “crushing attacks” against Israel if it retaliated after a missile attack by the Islamic republic.
“In response to the martyrdom of Martyr Haniyeh, Seyed Hassan Nasrallah and Martyr Nilfroshan, we targeted the heart of the occupied territories,” the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement. “If the Zionist regime reacts to Iran’s operations, it will face crushing attacks.”
The Israeli military’s initial assessment is that Iran fired about 200 missiles at Israel. The only known casualty from the strikes was a Palestinian man from Gaza who was killed by falling shrapnel in the West Bank city of Jericho, according to Palestinian governor Hussein Hamayel.
Photos show missiles exploding over Jerusalem after Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted them ( Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagar said the attack would have “consequences,” adding: “We have plans, and we will act in the time and place we decide.”
Photos show missiles exploding over Jerusalem after Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted them. Others made it to Tel Aviv, where a building was reportedly damaged.
Minutes before the attack, the U.S. reportedly sent out warnings to shelter in place, with the warnings reaching Israeli phones and playing on national television just before the missiles hit. The retaliatory strike comes days after the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and others.
Shortly before the missiles were fired eight people were shot dead and seven others injured in Jaffa. The two men who carried out the attack were killed by police. They were branded terrorists, according to the Times of Israel. Jaffa is near Tel Aviv, Israel and this is the second shooting in the area in less than 24 hours.
Israel and the United States have warned there would be severe consequences in the event of an attack on Israel from Iran, which backs the militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris monitored the attack on Israel from the White House Situation Room.
Israeli army spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the country’s air defense system was fully operational, detecting and intercepting threats. “However, the defense is not hermetic,” he said.
Orders to shelter in place were sent to Israelis’ mobile phones and announced on national television.
