Iran launched a fresh barrage of retaliation strikes on Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, killing at least two, injuring dozens and sending terrified civilians into shelters.
Israel said the military’s defense systems have been intercepting the missiles throughout the day Friday, and that most were intercepted or fell short. Air raid sirens could once again be heard across Israel as the sun began to rise on Saturday.
The strikes were in retaliation to Israel’s blistering attacks on the heart of Iran’s nuclear and military structure overnight Friday, a barrage it said was necessary before Iran got any closer to building an atomic weapon.
At least 78 people were killed and more than 300 wounded in the strikes on Iran, the country’s ambassador told the U.N. Security Council. He said “the overwhelming majority” of victims were civilians.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel initiated a war and it would not be allowed to do “hit and run” attacks without grave consequences. He vowed not to let Israel “escape safely from this great crime.”
Earlier on Friday, Israel said 200 fighter jets took part in strikes on more than 100 targets in Iran overnight in an escalation that threatens to spark a wider conflict in the Middle East.
Iran’s strikes against Israel will continue, senior military officials say
Iran’s strikes against Israel will continue, senior Iranian military officials have said
“This confrontation will not end with last night’s limited actions and Iran’s strikes will continue, and this action will be very painful and regrettable for the aggressors,” Iran’s Fars news agency reported. citing an unnamed official.
Two killed in strikes on Israeli coast, medics say
At least two people have killed following Iran’s retaliatory strikes on Israel.
According to Israeli emergency service Magen David Adom (MDA) said a man around 45 and a woman in her 60s had died after strikes in Israel’s Coastal Plains region.
“We arrived with large forces and encountered extensive destruction to several buildings. Some of the injured were trapped under the rubble; others were walking wounded,” MDA said.
“A woman in her 60s was rescued unconscious and without vital signs, a man around 45 was transported while being resuscitated, a woman was seriously injured, and 16 others were treated for mild to moderate injuries. This was a difficult and complex scene, and we are continuing to search to ensure no one remains trapped.”
Separately, Israeli ambassador to US Yechiel Leiter confirmed a woman had died in the city of Ramat Gan earlier, when a weapon fragment fell to the ground.
People scramble to leave as Jordan reopens airspace on Saturday,
Jordan reopened its airspace at 7:30 am local time on Saturday.
The civil aviation commission suspended flights as Israel and Iran targeted each other with missiles overnight.
The Independent’s Chief International Correspondent – who is in Jordan’s capital Amman – said the airport was in chaos as people scrambled to leave.
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Fears of all-out war in Middle East rise after Israel strike Iran’s nuclear sites
Israel has long threatened to carry out military action against Iran’s nuclear facilities, claiming Tehran was secretly building an atomic bomb.
The strikes were carried out Friday, raising the prospect of a regional war between the longtime foes over Tehran’s nuclear program.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country had started a “targeted military operation to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel’s very survival.”
“This operation will take as long as is needed to complete the task of fending off the threat of annihilation against us,” he added.
Richard Hall reports:
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Source: independent.co.uk