Farrukh Abadi
Israel attacked Iran early Saturday morning (10/26) local time, with explosions heard in Iran’s capital Tehran and two other cities. The attacks are in response to Iran’s Operation True Promise II on October 1, which saw hundreds of ballistic missiles strike military targets throughout Israel, bypassing its Iron Dome and sending virtually the entire Israeli population scrambling for shelter. Iran’s much-anticipated attack in turn was in retaliation for Israel’s assassinations of Hamas’s political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, and senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) commander Abbas Nilforoushan, all over the past few months.
Israel and Iran have provided conflicting accounts of the attack.
Israel claims to have struck precise military targets across Iran, carrying out 20 attacks in three waves with over 100 aircraft, including US-made F-35 jets and drones, which returned to Israel safely.
However, Iran’s air defense force claims to have successfully neutralized the attacks and prevented major damage, attributing the sounds of explosions to Iran’s interception system. Iranian media reports “small flying objects” were intercepted and accused Israel of exaggerating the extent of its attack. The Iranian army reported the deaths of two of its soldiers resulting from the attack. So far, no civilian casualties have been reported and only limited damage from the attacks.
US monopoly media Axios reports that Israel warned Iran ahead of the attack “what they are going to attack in general and what they are not going to attack,” and asked the Iranians not to respond. Israel’s limited attack is in stark comparison to its threats on October 2nd, the day after Iran’s Operation True Promise II, when they promised a “significant retaliation” that would target Iranian oil production and military sites.
Iran’s foreign ministry has stated that Iran is “entitled to defend itself against foreign acts of aggression,” and it is anticipated that Iran will retaliate tit for tat. In preparation for Iran’s response, the US has shipped the THAAD anti-ballistic missile defense system to Israel earlier this month, highlighting Israel’s increasing inability to defend itself while it continues its genocide in Palestine and strikes out on all fronts. Iran’s IRGC Commander Hossein Salami stated earlier this week: “Don’t count on THAAD. Every time you fire a projectile, we will fire more than you.”
Israel’s tepid response further confirms its deterioration over the last year since the Palestinian resistance Operation al-Aqsa Flood, marked by a rapidly declining economy, significant military losses, and a reduced ability to prevent counter attacks on areas it occupies. Just before its attack on Iran, Israel announced suffering its deadliest days in Lebanon and Gaza, while Hezbollah announced a record 48 operations against Israel in a single day and a direct hit on an Israeli airbase south of Tel Aviv. Israel’s army chief of staff Herzi Halevi announced the possibility of its front with Lebanon “reaching a sharp end” amid its heaping losses.
Photo: Iranian air defense system in action. Tasnim news agency.
