Abir Sultan / EPA
Smoke comes out of building hit by Iranian missile in Tel Aviv
After the attacks by Israel and the US, which killed Khamenei and beheaded his military leadership, Iran launched waves of retaliatory attacks against Israel and US air bases, which hit several Gulf countries allied with the United States. “They are responding by spreading pain throughout the region.”
When the US and Israel launched the coordinated military offensive against Iran this Saturday, Tehran reacted quicklywith his promised counterattack, which targeted American and allied interests across the Middle East.
The expanded retaliation of the Islamic republic, which, Ali Khameneiand saw its military leadership , risks triggering a regional conflict broader, writes .
The Iranian news agency Fars reported that the Iranian missile strikes had targeted military installations North American cities, including Al Udeid Air Base, in Qatarto Ali Al Salem Air Base, no Kuwaitto Al Dhafra Air Base, we United Arab Emiratesand the U.S. Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain.
Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia were also hit in Iran’s first retaliatory strikes.
For weeks, as the US reinforced its military presence in the region, rIranian officials had promised to retaliate against Israel and “transform all interests, bases and centers of influence Americans” on targets. Saturday’s response was comprehensive, but fell short of intensity that many anticipated.
It is still too early to assess the true extent of Iran’s response, but early signs indicate that was more diffuse than during the 12-day war last June, when Iran launched almost 600 missiles against Israel.
At the time, US forces attacked three Iranian nuclear facilities, and Tehran took more than a day to respondlaunching missiles against the North American Al Udeid Air Base, in Qatar. Most of these missiles were intercepted without causing casualties.
The attacks were widely considered to contain and largely symbolic, and Iran had previously warned the US and Qatar. that it would launch a retaliatory attack. The president Trump even thanked Tehran for the restraint shown, stating that it was “a time of peace”.
Spread the pain in the region
A this Saturday’s retaliationwhich targeted multiple North American interests in several countries, raised fears that the conflict could escalate even more, putting at risk to civilians and infrastructure throughout the region.
“The Iranians are respond by spreading the pain throughout the region and seeking to impose costs on U.S. allies and partners who host U.S. forces and bases,” he said. Dana Stroulformer Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East.
Among the countries targeted on Saturday were the United Arab EmiratesAccording to a statement from the US Ministry of Defense, 132 missiles and 195 drones fired at its territory by Iran were successfully intercepted. However, missile debris fell on a residential neighborhood in Abu Dhabisaid the ministry, causing the death of a person and material damage.
The state news agency Jordan reported that the Jordanian armed forces had intercepted two ballistic missiles that entered the country’s airspace, although the origin of the projectiles was not specified.
The Ministry of Defense of Qatar reported having intercepted by least two vacancies of missile attacks. In a statement, the Qatari Ministry of Interior indicated that no neither victims nor material damage in residential areas.
A Saudi Arabia also stated that he had intercepted attacks aimed at the capital, Riyadh, and the eastern region, condemning the “cowardly” Iranian attacks in its territory. In a statement released on Saturday, the Saudi government expressed solidarity with other Arab countries who had been targets of retaliatory attacks and pledged to provide them with assistance.
Erbil Airport, in the autonomous region of Kurdistan, in the north of Iraqwhere the US still maintains a military presence as part of the international coalition against the Islamic State, was the target of two missile and drone attacks.
O Strait of Hormuza navigation route of global importance, is “effectively closed“, according to Tasnim, the media outlet affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or CGRI, Iran’s most powerful military force.
The measure may cut off one of the energy transport routes most vital in the world: around 1/5 of oil and natural gas liquefied at a global level passes through this channel.
Sirens sounded across Israel in the hours following the launch of the attacks against Iran. Israeli media reported Iranian missile attacks in Tirat Carmel, in the Haifa District, where a large fragment hit a residential building, causing structural damage and injuring a resident.
In Umm al-Fahm and another location in northern Israel, minor injuries were reported. Debris and impact points were also identified in JerusalemBeit Shemesh, Kafr Manda, Kafr Harif and in areas of southern Israel.
So far, There are no fatalities recorded in Israelwith only reports of injuries during the movement to shelters, reported the Israeli emergency service Magen David Adom in a post on social media.
Resistance axis
Iran has supported what it calls “resistance axis“, through terrorist groups spread across the Middle East, such as the Huthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon, which they use to conduct “proxy wars“, expand your influence and challenge your rivals.
Although weakened, These groups maintain the capacity to attack US forces and regional allies, could widen the conflict beyond the borders of Iran.
Following attacks on one of its strongholds, the Kataib Hezbollahthe most powerful Iranian-allied militia in Iraq, announced that they will retaliate. “We will soon begin attacking American bases in response to their aggression,” one of the group’s leaders told The New York Times.
Not Saturday, Hezbollah condemned the attacks Americans and Israelis against Iran in a statement, but was not conclusive regarding possible participation in the conflict in defense of Tehran.
Iran’s air defenses and other military capabilities left weakened last year’s war with Israel, reducing Tehran’s readiness in the face of these new attacks.
Still, experts consider that Tehran may also be preserve its military potentialanticipating that the operation could last several days, as some North American officials warned.
“Iran’s policy here is one of resistance“, he stated Ali Vaezfrom the International Crisis Group, adding that Iran has a high capacity to absorb stress. “If this becomes a war of attritionthe US and Israel are more likely to give in first than Iran.”
