Israel Strikes Iran, Crippling Air Defense Systems, Missile And Drone Production Sites

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Israel confirmed Saturday night that it had attacked numerous military sites during its retaliatory strikes on Iran early Saturday in an operation which it named “Days of Response” [a play on the word Teshuva which also means repentance-referring to the month of Tishrei]

The attack occurred in three major waves, US and Israeli officials said. The first wave paralyzed Iranian ground defense systems, while the second and third waves targeted Iranian drone and missile production sites, hitting over 20 targets, according to Axios and the New York Times.

Iran claimed to foreign media outlets that it had not received any reports of injuries from the strikes.

The IDF announced early Saturday morning that it had completed its reactive operation against Iran, although several military analysts have commented that the attacks, which crippled Iran’s air defense systems, may be a forerun to a larger attack targeting the country’s nuclear installations.

The IDF stressed that the strikes were conducted in response to the continuous attacks on the State of Israel and its citizens. IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari issued a statement regarding the attack:

“In response to months of continuous attacks from the regime in Iran against the State of Israel—right now the Israel Defense Forces is conducting precise strikes on military targets in Iran.

“The regime in Iran and its proxies in the region have been relentlessly attacking Israel since October 7th—on seven fronts—including direct attacks from Iranian soil.

“Like every other sovereign country in the world, the State of Israel has the right and the duty to respond.Our defensive and offensive capabilities are fully mobilized.We will do whatever necessary to defend the State of Israel and the people of Israel.”

Over 100 Israeli planes participated in the attack, targeting missile manufacturing sites that produced the missiles Iran fired at Israel over the last year.

🚨 Breaking: IDF released photos of Israel 🇮🇱 Air Force before launching the attack on Iran 🇮🇷

They show that several female pilots took part in the attack as well. pic.twitter.com/Kf4O91opq7

— Dr. Eli David (@DrEliDavid) October 26, 2024

Simultaneously, the IDF struck surface-to-air missile arrays intended to restrict Israel’s aerial freedom of operation in Iran. Israel estimates that all of the S-300 anti-aircraft batteries have been destroyed and missile manufacturing systems were also significantly damaged.

Israel warned Iran that it would strike much more intensely if there was an Iranian response to the attack.

The United States was notified by Israel ahead of its strikes on targets in Iran but was not involved in the operation, a US official told Reuters.

“We understand that Israel is conducting targeted strikes against military targets in Iran as an exercise of self-defense and in response to Iran’s ballistic missile attack against Israel on October 1,” said Sean Savett, White House National Security Council spokesperson, in a statement. “We would refer you to the Israeli government for more information on their operation.”

Israel reportedly also attacked the location of the headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps in Iran.

“We’re targeting things that might have threatened us in the past or could do in the future,” NBC News quoted an Israeli official saying. The official further stated that Israel is not striking Iranian nuclear facilities or oil fields and is focusing on military targets.

There were reports of widespread internet outages across Iran as the attacks continued. Several of the strikes in Tehran targeted military bases across southern and southwestern Tehran, according to Iranian media.

Karaj, one of the cities where explosions were heard, contains one of Iran’s nuclear power plants.

The Tasnim news agency said that “nothing has been reported about hearing the sound of rockets or airplanes in the sky of Tehran so far.”

Iranian officials and media have been denying that Israeli airstrikes took place, saying explosions were a result of Iranian air defense; an Israeli official strenuously denied this to Ynet, saying, “This is a lie. Total failure – zero interceptions.”