What We Know So Far About Israel’s Strike in Iran
Israel launched a strike on Iran, a US official told CNN Friday. The attack on Iran comes days after Iran launched missiles on Israel.
Explosions were heard near an army base in northwest Isfahan, according to Iran’s semi-official FARS news agency. However, Iranian media said that all facilities around Isfahan and the nuclear facilities are secure.
The US official told CNN that the target was not clear; however, FARS said that strikes possibly were meant to target a military radar.
The official added that Israel launched the strike in Iran, but Israel’s military has not commented and Israel has not taken responsibility for the attack.
“The attack on Iran was possibly meant to retaliate and send a cautionary message,” a retired US Army Major General told CNN.
According to a report by AP, there was no direct acknowledgment from Iranian officials regarding the possibility of an Israeli attack, and the Israeli military did not provide any comment in response.
However, tensions have been on the rise following the Saturday assault on Israel during its conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, as well as Israeli strikes targeting Iran in Syria.
The Tasnim news agency released a video through one of its reporters who claimed to be in the Zerdenjan area of Isfahan, near the “nuclear energy mountain.”
The footage revealed two different anti-aircraft gun positions, and the features shown in the video matched those of Iran’s Uranium Conversion Facility at Isfahan.
State television assured that all atomic sites in the region were “fully safe.”
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, also stated that there was no damage to Iran’s nuclear sites following the incident.
The IAEA emphasized the importance of extreme restraint from all parties involved and reiterated that nuclear facilities should never be targeted in military conflicts.
After a suspected Israeli strike on Iranian consular building in Syria on April 1, which killed seven Iranian officers including two senior commanders, Tehran vowed revenge, putting Israel and the US on high alert.
Last Saturday morning, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) seized an Israeli-linked container ship, the Portuguese-flagged MSC Aries, near the Strait of Hormuz.
Later on that Saturday, Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles towards Israel in an immense aerial attack.
Israel was swaying between Joe Biden’s warning to “take the win” and spare the region a wide scale conflict and calls from his hard right governing coalition to retaliate. Bezalel Smotrich is calling for “restore deterrence,” and popular Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir is demanding the Prime Minister to “go crazy.”
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