Israel said that Iran had launched missiles several hours after Israel carried out airstrikes in the central and western Iran in response to rocket fire from Tehran. This latest exchange of fire threatens to drag the wider Middle East back into regional war.
Sirens sounded in central Israel and the government urged the population to go to shelters. Explosions were heard in central Israel as Israeli air defenses tried to intercept incoming Iranian fire.
Today is the 100th day of the Iran war launched on February 28 when Israel and the US killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other senior Iranian leaders. The war raged until a nominal ceasefire was reached on April 8, but a permanent end to hostilities was not achieved due to Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas passed, and fighting between Israel and the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah.
At a time when global energy supplies are under threat, Iran still has a large amount of highly enriched uranium, and Yemen's Houthi rebels seem to be joining the fighting today, and the risks of a renewed war seem to be growing.
Iranian state television reported that explosions were heard in Isfahan, Karaj, Tabriz and Tehran, without providing further details. Tehran closed the airspace around Imam Khomeini International Airport, the country's main airport, after the Israeli attack.
Israel used ballistic missiles
In Iran, officials did not provide details on what was hit or information on the damage. Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Israel used air-launched ballistic missiles during its attack this morning.
The Israeli army issued a brief statement at dawn that the strikes had begun.
"A short time ago, the Israeli Air Force hit military targets belonging to the Iranian terrorist regime in western and central Iran," the statement said.
In Saudi Arabia, sirens sounded this morning in the area where the air base with American forces is located. Saudi state media reported that sirens were heard around Al Kharj Governorate, where the Prince Sultan Air Base is located. The alert was announced after Israeli strikes on Iran. Soon after, Saudi Arabia announced that the threat of missiles in the area had passed.
A senior US official said yesterday that President Donald Trump called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and urged him not to immediately retaliate against Iranian missile attacks. The official said Trump believed he had convinced Netanyahu to wait.
On Sunday, Israel launched attacks on the southern suburbs of Beirut. Iran retaliated by striking Israel, which led to Israel's strikes on Iran this morning.
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