Some of the reports came from Iran on the late Saturday evening as the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps of Iran reported that it fired dozens of drones and missiles toward Israel late on Saturday.
With the United States promising to support Israel, this attack could lead to a significant escalation between the regional archenemies.
The Israeli military stated that it would take hours for more than 100 drones—which Iraqi security sources claimed to have observed flying over the nation from Iran—to reach their targets.
According to Israeli Channel 12, some were shot down over Jordan or Syria. According to a source quoted by Iran’s official news agency, the country’s military has also fired its first round of ballistic missiles against Israel.
Iran declared that it would strike back for “Israeli crimes”. It pledged to assassinate seven Guards soldiers, including two senior commanders, in response to what it claimed was an Israeli raid on its consulate in Damascus on April 1. Israel has not acknowledged or refuted being behind the attack on the consulate.
“The Iranian mission to the United Nations warned the U.S. to stay away, saying that Iran’s response would be considerably more severe should the Israeli regime make another mistake.” But it also stated that Iran “deemed the matter concluded”.
To meet with national security experts in the White House Situation Room, U.S. President Joe Biden—who had warned Iran against an attack on Friday—abruptly ended a visit to his home state of Delaware, according to an official. He promised to support Israel.
The Houthi faction in Yemen, which is affiliated with Iran, is also believed to have launched drones toward Israel, according to a statement released by the British marine security company Ambery.
With regional power Egypt advocating “utmost restraint,” such clashes now threaten to escalate into a direct open battle between Israel and the United States, Iran’s major ally.
According to Channel 12, American and British airplanes shot down a few drones that were headed toward Israel across the border between Iraq and Syria. Without specifying the number, three U.S. officials said that the military had shot down drone aircraft.
The war cabinet was gathered in a military headquarters in Tel Aviv by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose official aircraft took off soon after the attack started, according to his office.
The Israeli military declared that its defenses were ready to cope with the drones, which it described as “explosive,” and that sirens would sound in any threatened regions.
When missiles are launched, we are accustomed to having about 20 seconds to reach shelters. In this case, the warning is given hours in advance. The Israeli public’s worry level inevitably rises as a result, according to Nir Dvori, a social media correspondent for Channel 12 TV.
Residents of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights were advised by the Israeli military to remain near bomb shelters as they prepared for the possibility of drone strikes.
On Saturday night, Israel and Lebanon announced the closure of their airspace. According to two regional security sources, Jordan, which is sandwiched between Iran and Israel, has prepared its air defenses to stop any drone or missile that intrudes on its territory.
