Despite international warnings, Iran has attacked its arch-enemy Israel with more than 200 combat drones and missiles. Most were intercepted. So far it is unclear how Israel will react.
Iran attacked Israel with drones and missiles during the night. Air alerts were raised in several places, including Jerusalem and southern Israel. Explosions were also heard as a result. According to the Israeli army, Iran fired more than 200 drones and missiles.
The “vast majority” of them were intercepted, said army spokesman Daniel Hagari. Israeli warplanes intercepted more than ten Iranian cruise missiles outside Israeli territory. Dozens of unmanned aerial vehicles were also stopped outside Israel. According to Hagaris, the Iranian attack was still ongoing.
He urged people to immediately go to a shelter when an alarm sounds and stay there for at least ten minutes, “regardless of where the threat comes from.” It was Iran’s first direct attack on Israel. In addition to the drones, dozens of surface-to-surface missiles were fired at Israel. According to initial information from authorities, a seven-year-old girl was injured. A military base was slightly damaged.
Iran Revolutionary Guards talk about “punishment”
Later that night, the army lifted an appeal for people in certain parts of the country to be ready to flee to shelters. It is still unclear whether this signals the end of the attack.
In addition to Israel, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq also closed their airspace. Syria activated air defense systems around Damascus and at several military bases, presumably in anticipation of Israeli counterattacks on forces loyal to Iran. Air defense was also activated in Egypt.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard spoke of a “punishment” for Israel. The government in Tehran had announced retaliation for an airstrike attributed to Israel on its representation in Damascus on April 1.
Among others, a high-ranking commander of the Revolutionary Guard was killed in the attack. Diplomatic missions are exempt from attacks according to international agreements. Iranian state television that night quoted the Revolutionary Guard as saying that Operation True Promise was part of punishment for “Israeli crimes.”
Biden and Netanyahu are on the phone
Iran is a declared supporter of the Islamist Palestinian organization Hamas, whose major attack on Israel on October 7 triggered the war in the Gaza Strip. Tehran also supports the Houthi militia in Yemen and the Shiite Hezbollah in Lebanon. Both Iran and Hamas, which is classified as a terrorist organization by the EU and the USA, have claimed the destruction of Israel as their goal.
After the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened the War Cabinet. He then spoke by phone with Joe Biden, who had previously held an emergency meeting with his team in charge of security affairs. The US President pledged his “unwavering” support to Israel. According to Israeli media reports, a “significant reaction” from Israel is to be expected.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (center) during the War Cabinet meeting at Kirya in Tel Aviv.
Special session of the UNSecurity Council planned
The UN Security Council is planning a special session due to the unprecedented attack. Israel’s UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan called on the most powerful UN body to “condemn Iran for these serious violations” and to designate Iran’s Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization. In a letter to the head of the UN Security Council, Erdan called the Iranian attack on his country a “flagrant violation of Israel’s sovereignty.” This attack is “a serious and dangerous escalation.” Malta currently holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said he was “deeply concerned by the very real risk of a devastating escalation across the region.”
Jan-Christoph Kitzler, ARD Tel Aviv, tagesschau, April 13, 2024 10:20 p.m