Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Iran would face repercussions for its missile assault on Israel on Tuesday, while Tehran warned that any retaliation would result in 'vast destruction,' stoking fears of a broader conflict. As Washington fully supported its long-standing ally Israel, Iran's armed forces declared that any direct intervention by Israel's backers against Tehran would elicit a 'strong attack' targeting their 'bases and interests' in the region.
Oil prices surged by 5% due to concerns over a potential wider war between the two adversaries, and the U.N. Security Council scheduled a meeting on the Middle East for Wednesday. 'Iran made a big mistake tonight - and it will pay for it,' Netanyahu stated at the beginning of a political-security meeting, according to a statement.
Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed the attack was in response to Israeli killings of leaders and aggression in Lebanon against Hezbollah and in Gaza. Fears of a regional war involving Iran and the U.S. have escalated with Israel's intensified assault on Lebanon over the past two weeks, including the commencement of a ground operation there on Monday, and its ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip.
In its Tuesday attack, Iran launched over 180 ballistic missiles at Israel, according to Israel. Alarms rang out across Israel, and explosions were heard in Jerusalem and the Jordan River valley. Israelis sought refuge in bomb shelters, and reporters on state television lay flat on the ground during live broadcasts.
Iran's forces employed hypersonic Fattah missiles for the first time, with 90% of its missiles successfully hitting their targets in Israel, the Revolutionary Guards stated. Israeli air defenses were activated, and most missiles were intercepted 'by Israel and a defensive coalition led by the United States,' according to Israeli Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari in a video on X, who added: 'Iran's attack is a severe and dangerous escalation.'
Central Israel sustained 'a small number' of hits, and there were other strikes in southern Israel, Hagari said. The Israeli military released video of a school in the central city of Gadera that was heavily damaged by an Iranian missile. No injuries were reported in Israel, but one man was killed in the occupied West Bank, authorities there said.
U.S. Navy warships fired about a dozen interceptors against Iranian missiles headed toward Israel, the Pentagon reported. U.S. President Joe Biden expressed full U.S. support for Israel and described Iran's attack as 'ineffective.' He stated that discussions were ongoing about how Israel would respond and that he would confer with Netanyahu.
Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate for U.S. president, backed Biden's stance and affirmed that the U.S. would not hesitate to defend its interests against Iran. Israel pledged consequences for the onslaught. 'We will act. Iran will soon feel the consequences of their actions. The response will be painful,' Israel's U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon told reporters.
The White House similarly promised 'severe consequences' for Iran, and spokesman Jake Sullivan stated at a Washington briefing that the U.S. would 'work with Israel to make that the case.' Sullivan did not specify what those consequences might be but refrained from urging restraint by Israel, unlike in April when Iran carried out a drone and missile attack on Israel. The Pentagon noted that Tuesday's airstrikes were about twice the size of April's assault.
Any Israeli response to Tuesday's missile attack would be met with 'vast destruction' of Israeli infrastructure, Iran's General Staff of the Armed Forces stated in a statement carried by state media, also vowing to target regional assets of any Israeli ally that got involved. Iran's foreign ministry claimed its operation was defensive and only aimed at Israeli military and security facilities. Earlier, Iran's state news agency reported that Tehran targeted three Israeli military bases. Iran urged U.N. Security Council action.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned what he termed 'escalation after escalation,' stating: 'This must stop. We absolutely need a ceasefire.' EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also called for an immediate regional ceasefire, warning that 'The dangerous cycle of attacks and retaliation risks ... spiralling out of control.'
Escalation in Lebanon: Iran had vowed to retaliate following Israeli strikes that killed the top leadership of its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon, including the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah, a significant figure in Iran's network of fighters across the region. Hamas, the Iran-backed militant group in Gaza, praised the Iranian missile strikes, stating they avenged Israeli assassinations of three militant leaders, including Nasrallah.
Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, embroiled in nearly a year of war, celebrated as they watched dozens of rockets en route to Israel. Some of those rockets fell in the Palestinian enclave after being intercepted by Israel but caused no deaths, witnesses said. In Beirut, Israeli strikes killed the commander of the Imam Hussein division, according to Israel's military, referring to a Hezbollah-linked group based in Syria.
Lebanon's health ministry reported that 55 were killed and 156 wounded in Israeli attacks on Tuesday. Israel stated overnight that its troops had launched ground raids into Lebanon, though it described the forays as limited. Nearly 1,900 people have been killed and more than 9,000 wounded in Lebanon in almost a year of cross-border fighting, most in the past two weeks, according to Lebanese government statistics on Tuesday.
However, a ground campaign into Lebanon for the first time in 18 years, pitting Israeli soldiers against Hezbollah, Iran's most heavily armed proxy force in the Middle East, would represent a significant regional escalation.
