'Mission fulfilled,' says Israel, warns Iran will 'pay heavy price' if it begins new round of escalation
According to the Israeli military, its aircraft struck missile manufacturing facilities used to produce the missiles that Iran fired at the state of Israel over the last year. Iran acknowledged that an Israeli attack targeted several military bases, but claimed that it "caused limited damage."
Amid fears of the breakout of a full-blown war between Israel and Iran, following the IDF airstrikes in Tehran in the early hours of Saturday, Jerusalem has indicated that its mission objectives have been fulfilled. The Israeli military said early Saturday it had completed its strikes targeting Iran and its planes ¡°have safely returned home.¡±
CREDIT: REUTERS
What Israel said about airstrike
According to the Israeli military, its aircraft ¡°struck missile manufacturing facilities used to produce the missiles that Iran fired at the state of Israel over the last year. These missiles posed a direct and immediate threat to the citizens of the state of Israel.¡±
Israel also claims to have struck surface-to-air missile arrays and additional Iranian aerial capabilities, without going into details of the targets. Israel further stated that Iran will "pay a heavy price" if it begins a new round of escalation.
'Will pay heavy price'
"If the regime in Iran were to make the mistake of beginning a new round of escalation, we will be obligated to respond. Our message is clear: All those who threaten the State of Israel and seek to drag the region into a wider escalation will pay a heavy price," Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a statement.
¡°I can now confirm that we have concluded the Israeli response to Iran¡¯s attacks against Israel. We conducted targeted and precise strikes on military targets in Iran ¡ª thwarting immediate threats to the State of Israel.¡±
¡ª Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 26, 2024
Watch IDF Spokesperson RAdm. Daniel Hagari talk about the¡ pic.twitter.com/1OOss3etpV
What Iran said
Earlier, Iran's air defence forces acknowledged that an Israeli attack targeted several military bases in Tehran and other cities, but claimed that it "caused limited damage."
CREDIT: REUTERS
"This fake regime (Israel) attacked parts of military centres in Tehran, Khuzestan, and Ilam provinces," it said in a statement, adding that the attack "caused limited damage" while being intercepted.
To the esteemed people of Iran, it is hereby reported that, despite previous warnings from the authorities of the Islamic Republic to the criminal and unlawful Zionist regime to refrain from any adventurous actions, this illegitimate regime, in a provocative act, targeted¡ pic.twitter.com/pBHkmDSWdq
¡ª Iran Military (@IRIran_Military) October 26, 2024
Notably, Iran, while playing down the Israeli airstrike, has been silent about any retaliatory action.
CREDIT: REUTERS
Israel vs Iran
The two sides have been engaged in limited fire exchanges ever since the war in Gaza broke out last year. While Israel has gone after Iran-backed militant groups like Hamas and Hezbollah with brute force, its military response to the Islamic Republic has been limited and calculated, which many, including the US, see as a move to avoid an all-out war.
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Bobins Abraham is the Assistant News Editor at Indiatimes. He has more than twelve years of experience in TV and digital journalism. An avid student of history and geopolitics, he is a conservationist and environmentalist at heart. He writes on environment, sustainability, human-animal conflict and more.
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