Iran has launched hundreds of missiles and drones strikes on Israel, in response to an Israeli raid on the Iranian consulate in Syria.
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Israel says that Iran launched nearly 300 missiles and drones from Iran, Iraq and Yemen on Sunday.
Iran says the attack came in response to an Israeli raid on its consulate in Syria on April 1, adding the matter could now “be deemed concluded.”
The attacked triggered anti-aircraft defenses in Israel, and also prompted Israel’s allies to scramble jets in the region.
The United States and United Kingdom scrambled jets from their bases in the Middle East in an effort to shoot down the missile before they reach their targets.
Israeli military said the Iranian salvo consisted of more than 300 “killer drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles”, but that 99 percent were intercepted with help from forces from France, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) confirmed the attack, saying it launched the drones and missiles under Operation True Promise as part of the punishment for “the Zionist entity’s crime of targeting the Iranian consulate in Syria” on April 1.
Al Jazeera reported that the raid in Damascus killed 12 people, including two senior generals in the IRGC’s elite Quds Force.
Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the consulate attack.
With the missiles and drone attack, Iran’s mission to the United Nations said it now deemed the matter “concluded” and warned Israel of a “considerably more severe” response should the “Israeli regime make another mistake”.
The closest allies of Israel, including the US, UK, Germany, and other Western nations, were quick to condemn the strikes. Biden has convened an emergency G7 meeting to assess the situation and “coordinate a united diplomatic response to Iran’s brazen attack.”
Israel and Iran have also traded accusations at the UN, with the latter insisting that it is exercising its right to self-defense in the wake of the consulate attack, while the former accused Tehran of breaching the UN Charter. Israel has requested an extraordinary UN Security Council meeting, urging the body to designate the IRGC as a terrorist group.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned the Iranian attack as a “serious escalation” and urged an end to the hostilities immediately. “Neither the region nor the world can afford another war,” he stated.
Iran has signaled that the massive strike was a one-time retaliatory action for the Israeli actions, rather than the beginning of a broader military campaign.
PM Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel is “prepared for any scenario, both in defense and offense,” without, however, explicitly promising to take direct military action against Iran.
The escalation is coming more that six months into Israel’s war on the Gaza strip, which in turn was triggered by the attack of Palestinian militant group, Hamas, on October 7.
Nnamdi Maduakor is a Writer, Investor and Entrepreneur
