Amidst the ongoing war in Gaza, Iran launched a swarm of explosive drones and fired missiles at Israel late on Saturday in its first-ever direct attack on Israeli territory. For days, Tel Aviv had braced for an attack — claimed by Iran as retaliation for a suspected Israeli strike this month on an Iranian consular building in Syria that killed 12 people, including two senior Iranian generals in the Revolutionary Guard’s elite Quds Force.
READ HERE | Iran's attacks Israel: Latest developments as over 200 drones shot down by IDF forces
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement early Sunday the “vast majority” of missiles launched from Iran were intercepted outside of Israel’s borders. Dozens of Israeli Air Force fighter jets are currently operating to intercept aerial threats approaching Israeli territory, it added.
Meanwhile, a video shared on X (formerly Twitter) from the official handle of the Israeli Defense Forces on Sunday morning got flagged -- causing an uproar. The 37-second long clip, titled "Israelis’ reality in the last hours" showed the night sky being lit up by waves of aerial attacks and explosions. Towards the end of the video, severe land-to-air projectiles launch are shown as that of an "attack that shows Iran's true colours."
However, soon after the video was uploaded, a disclaimer appeared below the post that claimed the video was misleading. "The last clip in this video is actually from a video that surfaced in 2014, showing Russian Missiles (MLRS) and not Iranian attacks as the post claims," the disclaimer alongside a YouTube link read.
WATCH THE YOUTUBE VIDEO HERE:
NOW, CHECK OUT THE IDF POST ON X HERE:
Uploaded on February 21, 2017 from a channel called "world weapons", the video was titled "Night volley of Russian MLRS "Grad". Fire!!!" in Russian. The heavy launch scenes shown around the 40-second mark in the minute-long YouTube video were very similar towards the final few seconds of the IDF post.
'MLRS Grad' refers to Soviet-built BM-21 Grad Multiple Launch Rocket Systems. Developed in 1963, the self-propelled rocket launchers are still in use across frontlines.
Iran attacks Israel: The latest developments
Booms and air raid sirens sounded across Israel early Sunday after Iran launched hundreds of drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles in an unprecedented revenge mission that pushed the Middle East closer to a regionwide war.
The attack marked the first time Iran has launched a direct military assault on Israel, despite decades of enmity dating back to the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution. Condemnation from the United Nations chief and others was swift, with France saying Iran “is risking a potential military escalation,” Britain calling the attack “reckless" and Germany saying Iran and its proxies “must stop it immediately."
The Israeli military's spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said Iran fired scores of drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles — with the vast majority intercepted outside Israel’s borders. He said warplanes intercepted over 10 cruise missiles alone, also outside Israeli airspace.
Hagari said a handful of missiles landed in Israel. Rescuers said a 7-year-old girl in a Bedouin Arab town was seriously wounded in southern Israel, apparently in a missile strike, though they said police were still investigating the circumstances of her injuries. Hagari said a missile struck an army base, causing light damage but no injuries.
"A wide-scale attack by Iran is a major escalation,” he said. Asked whether Israel would respond, Hagari said only that the army “does and will do whatever is required to protect the security of the state of Israel.” He said the incident was not over, and dozens of Israeli warplanes remained in the skies.
U.S. forces downed some of the Iran-launched drones flying toward Israel, according to a U.S. defense official and two U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the matter. Israel’s military said its Arrow system, which shoots down ballistic missiles outside the atmosphere, handled most interceptions and noted that “strategic partners” were involved, reported the Associated Press said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said he was speaking to U.S. President Joe Biden early Sunday. No details on their conversation were immediately made public. But Biden has said his commitment to Israel's security is “ironclad” in the face of Iranian threats — a departure from his harsh criticism over Israel's handling of the war in Gaza.
Iran had vowed revenge since an April 1 airstrike in Syria killed two Iranian generals inside an Iranian consular building. Iran accused Israel of being behind the attack. Israel hasn’t commented on it.