Iran attacks Israel!
Tehran/Jerusalem/Washington, Apr 14 (EFE) –
Iran has launched a wave of missiles and drones against Israel in response to the recent attack on its consulate in Syria, attributed to Israel, causing alarm in much of the international community.
Sirens and loud booms were heard north and south of Israel, as well as in Jerusalem and many towns in the northern West Bank, following a massive Iranian drone and missile attack on Israel.
A ten-year-old boy from a Bedouin community in southern Israel is in “critical condition” after being wounded by shrapnel during the Iranian drone strike, the Magen David Adom emergency service reported.
The Revolutionary Guard confirmed that this offensive, Iran’s first direct attack on Israeli territory, was in retaliation for the April 1 bombing of its consulate in Damascus, which killed seven Revolutionary Guard members.
The Iranian government, through its mission to the UN, invoked Article 51 of the UN Charter to justify its attack on Israel, which it considers “legitimate self-defense,” and warned that the United States should not interfere.
“The matter can be deemed concluded. However, should the Israeli regime make another mistake, Iran’s response will be considerably more severe. It is a conflict between Iran and the rogue Israeli regime, from which the U.S. MUST STAY AWAY!” the mission said in English on its X account.
Iran has developed a national weapons industry over the past four decades and has several that have a range of 2,000 kilometers, enough to reach Israel.
Iran’s ballistic missiles are a source of concern for the United States, Europe, and some Middle Eastern countries, although the authorities in Tehran have so far maintained that they are for defensive and deterrent purposes only.
The Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, a key ally of Tehran and part of the so-called Axis of Resistance, announced Sunday that it had fired “dozens” of rockets at a major military base in northern Israel.
Israel confirms launch, closes airspace
Israel, which had cautioned for several days that Iranian retaliation was imminent, confirmed the launch of more than 100 drones against its territory and closed its airspace, a measure also taken by Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq.
More than 100 Iranian drones have already been intercepted outside Israeli airspace by the United States and the United Kingdom, an Israeli defense official told Israel Army Radio.
Israeli authorities urged citizens not to leave their homes and to stay close to available bomb shelters.
The army said that sirens will sound across the country to alert the population the moment the drones are detected and that they will try to be “as accurate as possible” in intercepting them.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called an emergency meeting of the war cabinet.
International condemnation and concern
The United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, and others rushed to condemn the Iranian attack and express concern about the new upsurge in violence in the region.
US President Joe Biden cut short a weekend getaway to return to the White House and meet with his National Security Council in the Situation Room.
“I just met with my national security team for an update on Iran’s attacks against Israel. Our commitment to Israel’s security against threats from Iran and its proxies is ironclad,” US President Joe Biden posted on social media.
The British government authorized the deployment of additional air force aircraft and refueling tanks to the Middle East to “intercept air attacks within the range of our existing missions,” British Defense Minister Grant Shapps confirmed Sunday.
The European Union “strongly condemned” the “unacceptable” attack, according to the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, the Spaniard Josep Borrell, who stated in X that “this is an unprecedented escalation and a grave threat to regional security.” EFE
int./ics