Iran intensifies retaliatory attacks, bombs Israeli cities, US military sites
Iran intensifies retaliatory attacks, bombs Israeli cities, US military sites
Iran on Wednesday escalated hostilities in the Middle East with a fresh wave of missile strikes targeting Israeli cities and United States military facilities across the region.
Iran’s state broadcaster, IRIB, reported that the barrage was “the most intense and heaviest since the start of the war,” adding that the strikes lasted for about three hours.
The broadcaster cited a statement from Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards.
According to the report, the missiles were directed at major Israeli locations, including Tel Aviv and Haifa, as well as “West Jerusalem,” referring to the part of the disputed city under full Israeli control.
Israel’s military confirmed detecting incoming missiles and said air defence systems had been activated in response. Journalists on the ground reported hearing air raid sirens in Jerusalem, followed by explosions in the distance.
The Iranian broadcaster also claimed that the strikes extended beyond Israel, with missiles targeting “numerous US targets in Erbil” in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, as well as the base of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.
The renewed attacks come amid an ongoing conflict that began on February 28 following US and Israeli strikes on Iranian territory, which triggered a series of retaliatory missile launches by Tehran.
In a separate statement carried by Iran’s Tasnim news agency, the Revolutionary Guards said “a mass” of ballistic missiles had been fired at the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet base in Bahrain and at three additional facilities located in Iraq’s Kurdish region.
The Guards also claimed on Tuesday that no US naval vessel had “dared” approach the Strait of Hormuz.
The claim followed a now-deleted social media post by US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, who initially said the US Navy had escorted an oil tanker through the strategic waterway.
Meanwhile, the regional fallout from the escalating conflict widened early Wednesday, with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates reporting that their air defence systems intercepted missiles and drones over their territories.
