Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said it launched dozens of drones and missiles at Israel late Saturday, potentially sparking a significant escalation between the regional archenemies, with the US vowing to support Israel.
Israel’s military said more than 100 Iranian drones were detected flying over Iraq and would take hours to reach their targets. According to Israeli Channel 12, some had been shot down over Syria and Jordan.
Iran has threatened vengeance for what it described as an Israeli raid on its Damascus consulate on April 1 that killed seven Guards members, including two senior commanders, and said the strike was retaliation for “Israeli crimes”. Israel has not confirmed or denied responsibility for the consulate attack. U.S. President Joe Biden, who cautioned Iran on Friday not to attack Israel, has committed to support Israel in its fight against Iran.
The Gaza war between Israel and Hamas, which is now in its seventh month, has heightened regional tensions, spreading to frontiers with Lebanon and Syria and drawing long-range fire from Yemen and Iraq.
Those skirmishes now threaten to escalate into an open conflict between Iran and its regional allies against Israel and its main patron, the United States, with regional power Egypt advocating “utmost restraint”.
Israeli channel 12 said US and British airplanes were involved in shooting down some Israel-bound drones over the Iraq-Syria border.
Israel has been bracing for an Iranian retaliation to the Damascus consulate strike since last week, when Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated that Israel “must be punished and shall be.”
Iran’s biggest regional ally, the Lebanese Shi’ite group Hezbollah, which has been exchanging fire with Israel since the Gaza conflict began, said early Sunday that it had launched missiles toward an Israeli base.