Jerusalem: Israel hailed the success of its defences in the face of an unprecedented attack by Iran involving hundreds of drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles.
An Israeli military spokesman said Sunday the launches numbered more than 300, but 99 per cent of them were intercepted. Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said Iran fired 170 drones, more than 30 cruise missiles and more than 120 ballistic missiles. Several ballistic missiles reached Israeli territory, causing minor damage to an air base.
The Iranian attack on Saturday, less than two weeks after a suspected Israeli strike in Syria that killed two Iranian generals in an Iranian consular building, marked the first time Iran has launched a direct military assault on Israel, despite decades of enmity dating back to the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Israel and Iran have been on a collision course throughout Israel’s six-month war against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.
The war erupted after Hamas and Islamic Jihad, two militant groups backed by Iran, carried out a devastating cross-border attack on October 7 that killed 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped 250 others.
An Israeli offensive in Gaza has caused widespread devastation and killed over 33,000 people, according to local health officials.
Here is the latest:
RUSSIA EXPRESSES CONCERN FOLLOWING IRAN’S ATTACK ON ISRAEL
Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its “utmost concern” Sunday following Iranian strikes on Israel.
It said it hoped that Middle Eastern governments would resolve their problems through political and diplomatic means.
It also said that Western states had stopped the UN Security Council from “adequately responding” to the April 1 strike on Iran’s consulate building in Syria.
“We have repeatedly warned that unresolved crises throughout the Middle East — primarily in the area of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict — are often being fuelled by irresponsible and provocative actions and will lead to increased tensions in the area,” the ministry said in a statement.
IRAN WARNS US AGAINST COOPERATION WITH ISRAEL IN ANY NEW ATTACK
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran has sent a message to the U.S. warning Washington against cooperation with Israel in any military operation again Tehran following its unprecedented attack on Israel.
The state-run IRNA news agency quoted Gen. Mohammad Hossein Bagheri, the chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces, as saying that Tehran had communicated its message to the US through the Swiss Embassy, which handles US interest in Iran in the absence of diplomatic relations.
President Ebrahim Raisi sent a message praising Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard for launching the attack, saying it had taught a lesson to the “Zionist regime.”
He also warned that “any new adventure against the interests of the Iranian nation would be met with a heavier and regretful response from the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
State TV meanwhile broadcast interviews with people on the street who praised the Iranian missile and drone attack on Israel and thanked the Iranian military.
HAMAS DEMANDS WRITTEN COMMITMENT THAT ISRAEL WILL WITHDRAW FROM GAZA
CAIRO — Hamas has demanded a “clear written commitment” that Israel will withdraw from the Gaza Strip during the second of a three-phase cease-fire deal, a senior Egyptian official and a Hamas official said Sunday.
The Palestinian militant group said Saturday it submitted its response to a six-week cease-fire proposal to Egyptian and Qatari mediators.
It said it’s still committed to its demands for a permanent cease-fire, Israeli army withdrawal from all parts of Gaza, the return of displaced people to their homes, intensifying the flow of aid and the start of reconstruction. Israel said earlier Sunday that Hamas had rejected the latest proposal for a deal submitted last week.
“We confirm our readiness to reach a deal regarding a serious exchange of prisoners between the two sides,” Hamas said.
The proposal presented to both sides calls for a six-week cease-fire in Gaza, during which Hamas would release 40 of the more than 100 hostages the group is holding in the enclave in exchange for 900 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, including 100 serving long sentences for serious crimes.
The Egyptian official said Hamas wants “a comprehensive, phased deal” that included ending the war, Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and an agreement of all hostages in return for a large number of Palestinian prisoners. Israel says it wants to destroy Hamas’ military and governing capabilities.
The officials said the response also included an increase in the number of Palestinian prisoners Hamas wants released from Israel.
The officials from Egypt and Hamas spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to disclose details from the sensitive negotiations. They said that Hamas’ response included the unrestricted return of displaced Palestinians in northern Gaza through the two main south-north thoroughfares.
The Egyptian official said mediators will carefully review the response before calling for another round of talks.
G7 LEADERS WILL CONVENE SUNDAY IN A VIDEO CALL
ROME — Leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized nations will hold a video conference Sunday to discuss an unprecedented Iranian attack against Israel.
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, whose country holds the G7 rotating presidency, wrote on X: “We express strong concern about a further destabilization of the region and continue to work to avoid it.”
US President Joe Biden said the meeting is “to coordinate a united diplomatic response to Iran’s brazen attack.” The language indicated that the Biden administration does not want Iran’s assault to spiral into a broader military conflict.
