Iran fired a new wave of missile attacks on Israel early Monday, triggering air raid sirens across the country as emergency services reported at least three killed and dozens more wounded in the fourth day of open warfare between the regional foes that showed no sign of slowing.
Iran announced it had launched some 100 missiles and vowed further retaliation for Israel's surprise attack on its nuclear program and military leadership, which has killed at least 224 since it began last Friday.
Israel said that in response its fighter jets had struck 10 command centers in Tehran belonging to Iran's Quds Force, an elite arm of its Revolutionary Guard that conducts military and intelligence operations outside Iran.
Powerful explosions, likely from Israel’s defense systems intercepting Iranian missiles, rocked Tel Aviv shortly before dawn on Monday, sending plumes of black smoke into the sky over the coastal city.
Authorities in the central Israeli city of Petah Tikva near Tel Aviv said that Iranian missiles had hit a residential building there, charring concrete walls, shattering windows and heavily damaging multiple apartments.
The Israeli Magen David Adom emergency service reported that two women and one man — all in their 70s — were killed in the wave of missile attacks that struck four sites in central Israel. That brought the total death toll in Israel to at least 17 since Iran began striking at the country in response to Israel’s sweeping attacks on its military and nuclear infrastructure.
“We clearly see that our civilians are being targeted,” said Israeli police spokesman Dean Elsdunne outside the bombed-out building in Petah Tikva. “And this is just one scene, we have other sites like this near the coast, in the south.”
The MDA added that paramedics had evacuated another 74 wounded people to hospitals, including a 30-year-old woman in serious condition, while rescuers were still searching for residents trapped beneath the rubble of their homes.
“When we arrived at the scene of the rocket strike, we saw massive destruction,” said Dr. Gal Rosen, a paramedic with MDA who said he had rescued a 4-day-old baby as fires blazed from the building.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday that Iran will stop its strikes if Israel does the same.
But after a day of intensive Israeli aerial attacks that extended targets beyond military installations to hit oil refineries and government buildings, the Revolutionary Guard struck a hard line, vowing that further rounds of strikes would be “more forceful, severe, precise and destructive than previous ones."
Health authorities also reported that 1,277 were wounded in Iran, without distinguishing between military officials and civilians.
Rights groups, like the Washington-based Iranian advocacy group called Human Rights Activists, have suggested that the Iranian government’s death toll is a significant undercount. Human Rights Activists says it has documented more than 400 people killed, among them 197 civilians.
Israel argues that its attack was necessary to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
Iran has always said its nuclear program was peaceful, and the U.S. and others have assessed that it has not pursued a nuclear weapon since 2003.
But Iran has enriched ever-larger stockpiles of uranium to near weapons-grade levels in recent years and was believed to have the capacity to develop multiple weapons within months if it chose to do so.
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20 Comments
HopeSpringsEternal
Seems a quick resolution is no longer in the cards...
HopeSpringsEternal
Thankfully, proxy problem in surrounding area of Isreal now largely diminished, so PM Bibbi's timing looks solid
kohakuebisu
Nice try, the most "powerful" explosions are from missiles that "Israel's defense systems" failed to intercept. If they all were intercepted, we could just breathe a sigh of relief and move onto Japan's top news, which is "man beats ex-wife" or something like that.
The opinion page of Haaretz, an Israeli newspaper says
This is the plan. Trump may want peace, he may not care, I do not know. But it is not for foreigners to decide how the US military gets used. How American lives are risked. How Americans' money is spent.
lincolnman
This Israeli-initiated war with Iran may just may be the straw that breaks the MAGA-camel's back...
MAGA-world is clearly split on supporting Israel...
One the one hand you have a portion of MAGA supporters now joining with the NEOCONs - the one's they've expressed disgust and hatred for over the past eight years - who want the US to join with Israel in attacking Iran. Think Lindsey Graham...
On the other hand, you have quite a few "America Firsters" like Steve Bannon who say this is a betrayal of the MAGA movement and no new wars pledge...and say Netanyahu is trying to lure the US into a trap...
Trump can't play the middle anymore and will be forced to choose one side over the other. When that happens all hell will break loose...and we'll have the pleasure of watching MAGA-world self-implode in real-time...
Desert Tortoise
This is about the most pointless war imaginable. Not sharing any land borders and lacking amphibious lift neither country can invade the other and win. Lacking the sorts of heavy ordnance necessary to penetrate into Iran's several deeply buried nuclear facilities it is impossible for Israel to completely stop Iran from further nuclear development. They will rebuild what they have lost deep underground and go on confident Israel can no longer harm their nuclear program and the IAEA will have lost any ability to monitor them.
About all either side can do is throw a finite number of missiles at each other and do some damage to each's economies and military sites but neither can destroy the other. A lot of death and destruction for nothing, all so Bibi can keep his fractured coalition together a few more months, maybe, and avoid an election at any cost. A lot of blood shed and material loss for no good purpose.
JJE
Fairly clear the latest hypersonic can penetrate the integrated 'dome', 'sling' and the other one from abroad.
This is going to really chew through stockpiles and stockpiles of finite AD interceptors.
Which really opens the question how long this will go on.
Nathaw
Israel said Iran had fired over 270 missiles since Friday, 22 of which slipped through the country’s sophisticated multi-tiered air defenses and caused havoc in residential suburbs, killing 14 people and wounding 390 others as of late Sunday.
Trump used to boost about he is peace loving president. During the election campaign, he said, he could end the war between Ukraine and Russia for 24 hrs. Although he was a draft dodger, he loves military parade like royals.
Before Trump has become the POTUS, there has been no large scale direct confrontation between Israel and Iran. Under Trump watch, both nations are killing each other and cities are burning. Even though, Nathanyaho has been pursuing US for striking Iran since 1996, no successive president has followed his advice. Trump is a stable genius and the most peace loving president since 1776.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-857635
ian
Madness
Mr Kipling
Not quite. Those powerful explosions were from Iran's hypersonic missiles that Israel's defense system is unable to hit. Iran sends waves of slow drones and ballistic missiles timed to arrive with the hypersonics. Many of the drones and ballistics can be hit but can still do damage when they hit the ground. None of the hypersonics are hit. Bibi probably hoping his initial attack took out most of Iran's stocks.
And don't believe either sides damage reports, there are plenty of videos showing missiles hitting Haifa, Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
geronimo2006
I am confident Trump will send Whitkoff as well as have good talks with Bibi, and along with support from Putin, quickly bring peace to the region. Yes. That does sound absurd. This will probably play out in the next few weeks, and afterwards I'm sure Iran will be hell bent on getting nukes after taking a bashing.
starpunk
trump doesn't want peace, he wants laudation and praise. What do you think yesterday's Ego Parade was all about? When Iran launched that historic and unprecedented drone and missile attack on Israel last year, the US Navy was able to knock them all down before anything even touched Israeli soil.
Who was behind that move? Joe Biden.
u_s__reamer
“We clearly see that our civilians are being targeted,” said Israeli police spokesman Dean Elsdunne outside the bombed-out building in Petah Tikva.
No, they are just "human shields", and the world has been watching for more than 2 years how the IDF has cruelly targeted civilians in Gaza and other countries 24/7. To bring peace to the region Netanyahu and his enablers must be sent to the Hague, by any means necessary.
TokyoLiving
Israel stared all this..
Iran is fighting for its survival..
Fight and resist Persians!!..
Wasabi
Iran is targeting civilian, Israel is targeting military and terrorist. This is all the difference.
XCAndtheband
Any civilian blood is squarely on the hands of the warmongers in Israel and the U.S. who have been PRAYING for this to happen.
Absolute monsters.
okinawarides
60 civilians, including 20 children, killed in Israeli strike on single building in Iranian capital
Do explain how hitting and collapsing a civilian apartment building killing 60 people including 20 children on day one during the initial unprovoked attack on Iran is just and different. No need to even get into civilians in Gaza.
HopeSpringsEternal
Latest news is Pakistan quietly promising to strike Israel with nukes, if Israel were to use nukes against Iran = more serious global escalation...
Time for all world leaders to put a lid on this madness, give Iran 'nuclear' umbrella assurances while not allowing Iran to enrich uranium.
John-San
kohakuebisu: But it is not for foreigners to decide how the US military gets used. How American lives are risked. How Americans' money is spent.
Have you ever heard of AIPAC. Every Senator and every congressperson has a member appointed to their staff in the federal and state administration. If you lived in Texas during the floods and applied for flood relief you had to sign a contract stating you support Israel
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41688999
So it is "Israel first" LOL. It would not happen in a real democracy.
bass4funk
No, he wants absolute peace, "peace through strength."
Fantastic!
Well, last year has nothing to do with this. This time, all the praise goes to Bibi.
lincolnman
So now you trying to tell us that Ukraine is the invader? ROFL..
You may want to ask Poland, Moldova, and Georgia who they think is the "bigger risk" and threat....or maybe Sweden and Finland who just joined NATO...