Israel conducted a military strike inside Iran on Friday, according to sources quoted by Reuters, in the latest back-and-forth between the two long-standing adversaries.
This ongoing conflict, which had previously been conducted covertly, has now escalated into more open hostilities, raising concerns about wider regional conflict.
Reports from Iranian media indicated there were explosions, but an Iranian official informed Reuters that these were caused by their air defence systems. State media in Iran reported that three drones flying over Isfahan were intercepted and shot down.
Meanwhile, Iran has rebuffed the Israel’s attack claim and said it was a failed and humiliating attempt of deploy quadcopters, all of which were successfully intercepted and brought down.
“As of now, there has been no air attack from outside our borders targeting Isfahan or any other part of our country. Instead, there was a failed and ineffectual attempt to deploy quadcopters, all of which were successfully intercepted and brought down,” Hossein Dalirian, spokesperson from the National Center for Virtual Space of Iran, said.
The reports circulating in American media are inaccurate, he said. They claimed that we launched 500 suicide drones and missiles, describing it as the largest drone attack ever carried out against Israel.
“In response, our operation involved just three quadcopters, all of which were swiftly neutralised. They conveniently forgot to mention that they didn’t inform America beforehand,” he wrote on his official X handle.
Reuters quoting a source in the report said that the United States was notified prior to Israel’s attack. This action by Israel follows recent strikes by Iran targeting Israel with a significant number of drones and missiles, most of which were intercepted.
The US and other global powers had urged Israel not to retaliate or to keep any response limited to prevent further escalation, particularly after recent violence stemming from an Israeli air strike on the Iranian embassy compound in Damascus on April 1, which was attributed to Israel.
These developments occurred against a backdrop of Iran’s support for the Palestinians, where Israel is conducting genocide and has killed 34,000 people so far, mostly children and women since October 7, 2023.
