Tension rises again in the Middle East. This Friday, Israel carried out its first military response to the offensive that Iran launched with more than 300 drones and rockets last Saturday. The retaliation was with a “narrow and limited” attack on a military base in Isfahan, one of the strongholds from where the Tehran regime had launched its air operation.
The American network CBS News cited two military sources to maintain that, at least, an Israeli missile hit Iran. In turn, the international agency Reuters reported alleged drone attacks. Finally, the diary New York Times confirmed the military attack with two Israeli and three Iranian defense officials.
When there were still no details about the detonations, numerous commercial flights were diverted of the region’s airspace.
Dubai-based airlines, such as Emirates and FlyDubai, began diverting their flights over western Iran around 4:30 local time. No formal reasons were disclosed, although local warnings to pilots suggested that airspace could have been closed.
The semi-official Iranian agency Fars – linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a group considered terrorist by the United States – reported explosions over Isfahan, near its international airport. That city, located about 340 kilometers south of the capital Tehran, is home to a major air base for the Iranian military, as well as sites associated with its nuclear program.
Iran fired its air defense batteries in the local morning after reports of explosions near Isfahan, state news agency IRNA reported.
There was no confirmation that the country was under widespread attack. However, tensions remain high across the Middle East following Iran’s unprecedented missile and drone offensive against Israel.
In fact, Isfahan was one of Iran’s drone and missile launch sites in its April 13 attack on Israel. In turn, Tehran has systematically accused Israel of attacks and sabotage activities against its past nuclear and military sites, including Isfahan, home to some of its major missile and nuclear enrichment facilities.
The official Iranian TV, in that sense, pointed out that nuclear sites in the Iranian province of Isfahan they were not damaged. He also reported that they observed three drones in the sky over Isfahan. And that the air defense system was activated and “destroyed these drones in the sky.”
The Iranian authorities suspended this Friday the flights in at least three citiesincluding Tehran, after “strong explosions” were heard in the center of the country.
The Israeli military declined to comment on the first reports.
The Iranian state news agency also reported that local defenses shots were fired in several provincesas in the city of Tabriz. He did not provide further details about the cause of the activation of those batteries.
Hossein Dalirian, spokesman for Iran’s civil space program, posted on his networks that several small “quadcopter” drones had been shot down, but did not give further details.
Despite confirmation of Israel’s attack by various sources, including Iranian ones, Tehran officials came out to deny incidents in Isfahan: they pointed out that the reports about the explosions were false and attributed them to “propaganda by the Israeli and American media.”
This Friday, April 19, Ali Khameneithe supreme leader of the Iranian theocracy, turns 85.
Israel’s warning to the United States and Iran’s warnings
According to the English newspaper The Guardian, Israel warned Joe Biden’s administration early Thursday that an attack would occur in the next 24 to 48 hours.
The Israelis assured the US government that Iran’s nuclear facilities would not be attacked.
According to that report, Israel told the United States that its response would have “limited scope”. “US intelligence had already revealed that Israel was considering an attack.”narrow and limited inside Iran because they feel they have to respond with kinetic action of some kind,” given the unprecedented scale of the Iranian attack.
The scope of the objectives “was never specified in precise terms, but the nuclear and civilian locations were clearly not in that category“added another source in contact with CNN.
The president of Iran, Ebrahim Raisihad warned last Wednesday that Israel would see a “massive and harsh” response to the “smallest invasion.”
This Thursday night, the Iranian foreign ministerHossein Amir-Abdollahian, had said in a interview with CNN that if Israel takes any action against Iranian interests, the response would be “immediately and at a maximum level“.
With information from agencies.
