Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps has announced that they launched numerous drones and missiles at Israel on Saturday.
This attack has the potential to escalate tensions between these regional rivals, and the United States has pledged its support to Israel.
Israel’s military said the drones, which Iraqi security sources said were seen flying over the country from Iran, would take hours to reach their targets.
Israeli Channel 12 said missiles Iran had launched were likely to strike sooner but that some missiles and drones had been shot down over Syria or Jordan.
This is a significant moment in history as it’s the first time that Iran is launching a full-scale military assault on Israel, despite their longstanding enmity since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
According to a retired Israeli general, Amos Yadlin, the Iranian drones used in the attack were equipped with a whopping 20kg (44 pounds) of explosives each.
US President Joe Biden is being regularly updated by his national security team and is in constant communication with Israeli officials as well as US partners and allies, National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement.
Biden, who on Friday warned Iran against attacking Israel after saying such a scenario appeared imminent, has pledged to stand with Israel against Iran, the White House said.
The Iranian drone attack is being viewed as a “severe and dangerous escalation” by Israeli army, spokesman Daniel Hagari.
He emphasized that they are closely monitoring the Iranian killer drones that are en route to Israel.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has convened his war cabinet at military headquarters in Tel Aviv, his office said.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned the attack as “reckless”, adding that Britain would “continue to stand up for Israel’s security”.
“Alongside our allies, we are urgently working to stabilise the situation and prevent further escalation. No one wants to see more bloodshed,” Sunak said in a statement.
Iran has vowed retaliation for what it called an Israeli strike on its Damascus consulate on April 1 that killed seven Revolutionary Guards officers including two senior commanders.
Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the attack. Israel’s military said sirens would sound in any threatened areas and that its defences were poised to deal with them.
Israel, Jordan and Lebanon said they were closing their airspace on Saturday night.
