Iran late on Tuesday fired ballistic missiles targeting two military bases of Israel and the headquarters of Mossad, Israel's intelligence service, claimed Iranian state television, citing Mohammad Bagheri, Iran's top military officer.
The firing of missiles came after Israeli troops launched ground raids into Lebanon, in the biggest escalation of regional warfare since fighting erupted in Gaza a year ago.
According to a report in the Tehran Times, The Nevtim air base houses Israel's F-35 fighter jet. The report added that the fighter jets that bombarded Beirut on September 27 flew from this military air base. The Islamic Revolution Guard Corps used hypersonic Fatah missiles in targeting the three sites, as per the Iranian news outlet.
It also reported that a significant number of Iranian rockets hit the Nevatim base in southern Israel’s Negev desert. It is the same facility — one of Israel’s largest — that Iran had targeted in its previous attack on April 13. The Israeli military, however, said the damage was minimal.
Chief of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, Mohammad Bagheri, told Press TV that the Nevatim air base, the Netzarim military facility and the Tel Nof intelligence unit, were hit in the Tuesday night attack dubbed 'Operation True Promise II'.
Meanwhile, Bagheri further said that Iran deliberately did not attack civilian targets and infrastructure. The ballistic missile attack by Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force, said Bagheri, was in response to the July 31 killing of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyah and IRGC commander Abbas Nilforoushan and the September 27 killing of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described Iran's missile attack on his country as a "big mistake" and said Tehran would pay for it. "Iran made a big mistake today and will pay for it. The Iranian regime does not understand our determination to defend ourselves and our determination to take revenge on our enemies," he said.
Defence Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said Tuesday night that US forces, who helped Israel shoot down missiles, remained ready to protect US troops and help defend Israel. In a statement, he called the attack by Iran "an outrageous act of aggression."
(With ANI inputs)
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