Iran has launched a large-scale ballistic attack on Israel, with the elite Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) claiming it has fired “dozens” of missiles at military targets across the country.
The IRGC has said the attack comes in response to the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of the Palestinian group Hamas, who was killed in Tehran back in July, as well as to the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Lebanon last week. Iran warned Israel against retaliation, promising a “crushing response” should any action be taken.
Many of the missiles, launched on Tuesday evening, made it through Israel’s anti-aircraft defenses, multiple videos circulating online suggest.
Some of the videos appear to show interceptions of the incoming rockets. The scale of the attack, however, has allowed Iran to penetrate the defenses, with multiple hits observed on the ground.
At least one hit was reported at an offshore gas platform near Ashkelon. The installation, apparently engulfed in flames, was visible from far away, one of the unverified videos suggests.
Apart from activating ground defenses, Israel reportedly scrambled 25 of its F-15 fighter jets to respond to the attack. Much of the IDF’s fleet, however, remains in the north of the country, where it has been busy with the bombing campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon.