- Israel plans retaliation for Iranian missile strike
- U.S. and Israel coordinate military response
- Hezbollah clashes escalate; regional war feared
Israel may strike Iranian oil refineries in retaliation for Tuesday night’s attack, in which Tehran launched an estimated 180 ballistic missiles at Tel Aviv and other locations across the country, dramatically escalating the situation between the two countries.
According to the US website Axios, Israeli officials are considering a “significant retaliation” to the Iranian attack within the next few days, which may target Iranian oil production facilities and other vital targets.
Israeli officials are said to be consulting with the United States on how to tailor their military reaction, which may push the Middle East closer to a regional war.
Analysts have also recommended that Israel strike Iranian nuclear sites, although the US may prefer to rule that out due to the possibility of additional escalation in the conflict.
There will be severe consequences for this attack, and we will work with Israel to make that the case,” the US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said on Tuesday evening, adding that the US would have “ongoing consultations with the Israelis this afternoon and evening.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a security cabinet meeting on Tuesday night to determine a military response to the incident. According to Axios, Israeli authorities agreed in principle to launch a reprisal. Still, they needed to consult US officials about defensive cooperation from the US Central Command, ammunition, and other operational support.
Iran made a big mistake tonight – and it will pay for it,” Netanyahu warned a security cabinet meeting late Tuesday. “The Iranian regime does not understand our determination to defend ourselves and retaliate against our enemies…” “They’ll understand.”
US politicians have supported a strike against Iran’s oil production. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina stated that he would “urge the Biden administration to coordinate an overwhelming response with Israel, starting with Iran’s ability to refine oil”. In a statement, he stated that Iran’s oil refineries should be “hit and hit hard”.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Wednesday that more troops would be sent into southern Lebanon as part of the largest operation in the nation since the 2006 war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah.
In a Telegram message, the IDF claimed it would send the 36th Division, which includes troops from three brigades, to join the “limited, localised, targeted raids on Hezbollah terror targets and terrorist infrastructure in southern Lebanon that began on Monday”.
“The soldiers are being accompanied by the IAF and the 282nd Artillery Brigade,” the notification stated.
Israeli media said that over 100 rockets were launched into Israel from Lebanon on Wednesday amid rumours of the first direct battles between Israeli ground forces and Hezbollah.
So yes, Israel has only deployed the 98th Division to start operations into southern Lebanon, a significantly smaller operation than the military’s incursion into Gaza. The most recent Israeli deployment suggests that Israel may intensify its operations there.
Israel continued to execute airstrikes on targets in Beirut overnight, and images showed smoke rising over the city before dawn. According to medics in the Gaza Strip, Israeli military attacks killed at least 60 Palestinians overnight, including in a school that housed displaced families.
IDF spokespeople issued further warnings overnight for inhabitants of villages in southern Lebanon and certain Beirut suburbs to evacuate, claiming that their homes would be targeted because they were close to purported Hezbollah bases.
The Iranian missile volley targeted many Israeli air bases. However, the strike resulted in few casualties. On Tuesday night, a Palestinian man from the West Bank town of Jericho was reported killed when shrapnel from a crashed Iranian missile dropped on him while he was crossing an intersection. Two more people were reportedly injured.
The majority of the Iranian missiles appeared to have been intercepted by Israeli and US air defences, and Tehran appeared to be targeting many military bases, implying that the rockets landed outside of densely populated areas.
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Guardian reporters in Jerusalem saw dozens of missiles flying over Israel’s major coastal cities in a massive onslaught shortly after 7.30 pm, with the rocket engines visible from below.
Air sirens wailed throughout Israel as missiles, several of which were intercepted by Israeli air defences, flashed over the night sky in red and gold trails. Some intact missiles appeared to proceed towards the shore and central Israel, accompanied by distant explosions.
At least five Israeli attacks struck Beirut’s southern suburbs early Wednesday after the Israeli military issued several evacuation orders for municipal structures, claiming to be targeting Hezbollah positions.
Minutes before Iran launched the strike, at least two shooters in the Israeli beach city of Jaffa carried out an attack that killed six and injured ten, including an IDF soldier, raising further concerns that the increasing cycle of violence could lead to terrorist strikes inside Israel.
