Israel airstrikes on Iranian military targets raise concerns as reports of ‘limited’ damage By Reuters

Written by Parisa Hafezi, Emily Rose, Ahmed Tolba

DUBAI/JERUSALEM/CAIRO (Reuters) – Israel bombed Iranian military facilities early on Saturday, but did not target Iran’s most sensitive oil and nuclear installations in retaliation for attacks this month and made no immediate vow of revenge.

The risk of a larger conflagration between heavily armed Israel and Iran has already rattled war-torn areas in Gaza and Lebanon, but Tehran’s initial response appeared to be muted.

The Israeli military said dozens of jets completed three strikes before dawn against missile factories and other sites near Tehran and western Iran, and warned its heavily armed adversary not to return fire.

Iran said its air defenses successfully responded to the attack, but four soldiers were killed and some areas suffered “limited damage.” Iran’s semi-official news agency said there would be a “proportional response” to the Israeli attack.

Tensions between Iran and Israel have risen sharply since the Iranian-backed Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, raising concerns about a wider regional conflict that could draw world powers in and put global energy supplies at risk. It’s getting bigger.

Concerns about proliferation have grown in response to Israel’s previous actions since Iran launched about 200 ballistic missiles at Israel on Oct. 1, killing one person in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Temperatures have risen further as the conflict worsens in Lebanon, where Israel is waging a fierce campaign to stop Hezbollah, Iran’s main regional ally, from firing rockets into northern Israel.

The United States and other countries have responded to Israel’s attacks by calling for an end to the cycle of confrontation. President Joe Biden said Israel appeared to have only hit military targets in the attack and hoped that would be “the end.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Arakhchi said there were no limits to defending his interests, territorial integrity and people, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.

The Foreign Office previously said in a statement that Iran had the “capability and obligation” to defend itself, but added that it “acknowledges its responsibility for regional peace and security.” This is a more conciliatory statement than after previous escalations.

Two regional officials briefed by Iran told Reuters that several high-level meetings had been held in Tehran to determine the scope of Iran’s response. One official said damage was “very minimal” but added that several Revolutionary Guard bases in and around Tehran were also damaged.

Iranian news sites broadcast footage of passengers at Tehran’s Mehrabad airport, appearing to show there was little impact.

The Israeli military signaled that it did not expect an immediate response from Iran and said there were no changes to public safety restrictions across the country.

‘Message to Iran’

Beni Sabti, an Iran expert at the Tel Aviv Institute for National Security Studies, said Israel’s airstrikes appeared designed to give Tehran an opportunity to avoid further escalation.

“We want Israel to close this case and send a message to Iran that the case is closed, and we know that we do not want to escalate the case,” he said.

Footage reported by Iranian media shows air defense forces continuing to fire at projectiles that appear to be coming from central Tehran, without specifying which area is being attacked.

The Israeli military said its warplanes attacked a missile manufacturing facility and a surface-to-air missile array and returned home safely.

“If the Iranian regime makes the mistake of starting a new escalation, we have an obligation to respond,” the military said.

Israel notified the United States before the attack but the United States was not involved in the operation, a U.S. official told Reuters. U.S. officials said the targets did not include energy infrastructure or Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Just days after Iran attacked Israel this month, Biden warned that Washington, Israel’s main backer and arms supplier, would not support retaliatory strikes on Tehran’s nuclear facilities, and that Israel would seek alternatives to Iran’s attack on its oil fields. He said it should be considered.

Arab countries located between Israel and Iran have been particularly concerned that using their airspace could trigger retaliation.

Jordanian television quoted a Jordanian military source as saying no military aircraft were allowed to transit Jordanian airspace. Saudi officials also said Saudi airspace was not used in the attack.

A local intelligence source said the Israeli jet fired a sonic blast across southern Syria near the Jordanian border before crossing into Iraq.

Saudi Arabia, which has been working to improve ties with Iran after years of regional rivalry and with Israel even before the war in Gaza, condemned the attack as a violation of Iran’s sovereignty and international law.

Lebanon conflict

In Lebanon, Hezbollah said it carried out a drone attack on Israel’s Telnof air base south of Tel Aviv on Saturday and targeted an intelligence base in the northern city of Safed with rockets.

Israel said it had attacked Hezbollah facilities in the southern Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh, including a weapons manufacturing site and intelligence headquarters.

The civil war in Lebanon has escalated significantly in recent weeks, leading to airstrikes against sites linked to Iran and Hezbollah in Syria.

Israel has carried out air strikes on some military bases in central and southern Syria since Saturday morning, Syria’s state-run SANA news agency reported. Israel has not confirmed the attack on Syria.

Efforts to secure a ceasefire and hostage release agreement in Gaza that could help calm the wider conflict are expected to resume in Doha when negotiators fly there on Sunday.