Iran launched more than 200 drones and missiles against Israel

Iran has launched Saturday more than 200 drones and missiles against Israel in response to a strike against his consulate à Damascus, the first direct attack ever carried out by the Islamic Republic against Israeli territory.

At the same time, Iran's allies Lebanese Hezbollah and Yemeni Houthi rebels have carried out anti-Israeli attacks, the former firing rockets into the Israeli-occupied Golan, and the seconds by launching drones towards Israeli territory.

Certaining around 03:20 local time (00:20 GMT) on Sunday that the Iranian attack was still in progress, the Israeli army assured that “the vast majority” of the missiles had been intercepted, and reported “minor damage” to a military base. The official Iranian agency Irna, however, reported “serious damage in the most important air base in the Negev (south)”.

While Iran has asked Washington to “stay away” from the conflict, US forces in the region have shot down Iranian drones targeting Israel, a US official said.

Iran fired more than 200 drones and missiles towards Israel, the Israeli army said.

Several detonations were heard in the sky in Jerusalem, where alert sirens sounded, according to AFP journalists. Sirens were also activated in the Negev region and the north of the country.

Protesters wave Iranian and Palestinian flags in Palestine Square in Tehran on April 14, 2024, after Iran launched a drone and missile attack on Israel © AFP – ATTA KENARE

About an hour after the announcement of the launch of the Iranian operation, called “Honest Promise”, the official Irna agency in Tehran indicated that “a first wave of ballistic missiles” had been launched “deep inside the occupied territories (Israel, Editor's note)”.

In total, “the Revolutionary Guards air force fired dozens of missiles and drones at specific targets” against Israel, according to state television citing the Guards, the ideological army of the Revolutionary Guards. Iran.

This attack is in particular in response to the strike on April 1 which destroyed the Iranian consulate in Damascus and cost the lives of two senior officers of the Guards, they said. they clarified. Iran accused Israel of this strike, but the latter neither confirmed nor denied.

This photo provided on April 14, 2024 by the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shows him (C) during a war cabinet meeting after the Iranian attack © Israeli Prime Minister Office – –

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose army is engaged in a war in Gaza, immediately gathered his staff and his close collaborators in a bunkered room, according to his services.

President Joe Biden once again assured the Israeli ally that “the commitment (of the United States) to the security of Israel in the face of threats from Iran and its relays (in the region) is unwavering “, during an emergency meeting with his national security team.

– “Stay away!” –

Protesters wave Iranian and Palestinian flags in Palestine Square in Tehran on April 14, 2024, after Iran launched a drone and missile attack on Israel © AFP – ATTA KENARE

“We are closely monitoring the killer drones sent by Iran and en route to Israel,” Daniel Hagari, the Israeli army spokesman, said in a televised address shortly after 11 p.m. Saturday (8 p.m. GMT).

“We work closely with the United States and our partners to act against the launches and intercept them”, he said, denouncing it as a “serious and dangerous escalation” this “direct attack launched from Iranian soil”.

Other “waves of drones” targeting Israel are possible, warned a military official Israeli.

A photo provided by the White House on April 13, 2024, shows U.S. President Joe Biden (C) during a meeting with his national security team in Washington, after Iran launched a drone and missile attack on Israel © WHITE HOUSE – –

Israel closed its airspace on Sunday at 12:30 a.m. local (Saturday at 9:30 p.m. GMT). Schools will be closed on Sunday, the first day of the week in Israel, and Monday, and “teaching activities, trips and outings” for school and extracurricular activities will be suspended, the army announced.

“This is a conflict between Iran and the rogue Israeli regime, from which the United States MUST STAY AWAY!”, Iranian mission to UN says in a message posted on considerably more severe,” she warned.

– “Evil diet” –

Within minutes of the operation beginning, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's X account posted a message saying: “the evil regime will be punished.”

Jordan and Lebanon, Israel's neighbors, have announced the closure of their airspace, as has Iraq, which borders Iran. Also neighboring Israel, Egypt has announced that it is putting its air defenses on high alert.

Photo released by the office of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, showing him during Eid al-Fitr prayers, in Tehran on April 10, 2024 © KHAMENEI.IR – –

The British government said it was sending additional fighter jets to the Middle East and would intercept “any air attack… if necessary”.

Paris condemned the Iranian attack and Berlin said it could plunge the region “into chaos”.

– War in Gaza –

Palestinians injured during Israeli bombardments on the Nusseirat refugee camp in central Gaza wait to receive medical treatment at al-Aqsa Martyrs' Hospital in Deir el-Balah, April 13, 2024 © AFP – –

Earlier Saturday, Revolutionary Guard maritime special forces seized a ship accused of being “linked” to Israel, with 25 crew members on board, in Gulf waters.

The Islamic Republic of Iran, which does not recognize the existence of Israel, is an ally of Hamas, author of an unprecedented bloody attack on October 7 on Israeli soil which provoked a devastating Israeli offensive in Gaza, where 33,686 people, mainly civilians, died according to the authorities of the Palestinian movement which took power in Gaza in 2007 and is classified as a terrorist group by the United States and the Union European.

The Israeli army continued its war in the Gaza Strip, which it has besieged since October 9 and where the majority of the 2.4 million inhabitants are threatened with famine according to the UN.

On October 7, Hamas commandos infiltrated from Gaza carried out an attack in southern Israel, resulting in the death of 1,170 people, the majority civilians, according to a report established by AFP based on official data. More than 250 people have been kidnapped and 129 remain detained in Gaza, 34 of whom have died, according to Israeli officials.

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