conflicts
Israel was apparently planning a major attack against Iran
The center of the Iranian capital Tehran with an anti-Israel banner. photo
© Vahid Salemi/AP/dpa
Diplomatic efforts in the Middle East have been in full swing for weeks. This is also why, according to a report, a suspected Israeli attack was smaller than planned.
According to a media report, Israel originally launched a broader attack against the Iran planned. This was reported by the New York Times, citing three high-ranking Israeli government officials.
Accordingly, several military targets in Iran should be bombed, including near the Iranian capital Tehran. After appeals from the USA, Germany and Great Britain, Israel ultimately decided on a limited strike.
According to consistent media reports, Israel carried out an attack against Iran last Friday. According to the New York Times, an air force base in Isfahan province, not far from Iranian nuclear facilities, was hit by a missile. Israel has not officially commented on the attack, and Iran has played it down.
The limited strike allowed Iran to avoid a counter-reaction, the newspaper reported. The Israeli Air Force deliberately destroyed a second rocket to avoid greater damage. According to the report, the military strike was intended to show that Israel was capable of attacking Iran without invading its airspace. The province of Isfahan was also deliberately chosen. There are important facilities for the Iranian defense industry as well as the Natanz nuclear facility, where Iran enriches uranium up to 60 percent.
Israel’s military strike followed an attack by Iran on Israel with more than 300 drones and missiles on April 13. This followed the deaths of two Iranian generals in an attack on an embassy building in the Syrian capital Damascus. This attack was attributed to Israel. It is Israel’s long-standing practice not to comment publicly on reports of military operations abroad.