Iran launched a barrage of 200 missiles at Israel on Tuesday night and sparked terror on the streets of Tel Aviv in response to the death of Hezbollah’s senior leadership and the ground invasion of southern Lebanon.
Rockets lit up the sky and smashed into buildings as air sirens blared across the country just hours after the White House warned an attack was ‘imminent’.
Terrifying footage showed the Iron Dome shooting down some of the rockets and sending burning fragments to the ground as Americans were urged to take cover in bomb shelters.
The missiles rained down in two major salvos about 15 minutes apart. Explosions were heard in Tel Aviv and Israel.
Other nations in the Middle East went on alert. Officials in Baghdad said Iraq is closing its airspace for safety reasons. Israel also closed its airspace and incoming flights are being diverted to airports outside the country.
It remains unclear exactly what was hit in Israel and what the impact on the ground will be. Tehran was targeting Mossad headquarters and military bases, CNN reported. The headquarters of Israeli’s spy agency is just outside Tel Aviv.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the attack was in response to Israeli attacks in Lebanon that killed several Hezbollah leaders.
‘In response to the martyrdom of Ismail Haniyeh, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, and martyr Neilvorushan, we are striking military targets with dozens of missiles,’ the Iranian military said.
Iran’s state TV claimed that 80% of their missiles launched at Israel hit their target. It’s unclear exactly what the targets were.
Israeli army spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the country’s air defense system was fully operational, detecting and intercepting threats.
‘However, the defense is not hermetic,’ he noted.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are in the White House Situation Room monitoring the attack.
The two are ‘receiving regular updates from their national security team. President Biden directed the U.S. military to aid Israel’s defense against Iranian attacks and shoot down missiles that are targeting Israel,’ the White House said in a statement.
Just before the Iranian missile barrage began, Israeli police said gunmen opened fire in Tel Aviv on the boundary with Jaffa, leaving at least eight dead.
TV footage showed gunmen getting off at a light rail station and opening fire.
Earlier Tuesday, the U.S. Embassy in Israel told its employees to return home and be prepared to enter bomb shelters as the White House warned of an imminent ballistic missile attack from Iran.
The attack could see the Middle East on the brink of an all-out war and comes a day after Israeli forces launched a ground invasion of southern Lebanon aimed at crippling the Iranian-backed militia Hezbollah.
‘Iran’s legal, rational, and legitimate response to the terrorist acts of the Zionist regime—which involved targeting Iranian nationals and interests and infringing upon the national sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran—has been duly carried out,’ Iran’s representative to the United Nations said.
The first missiles were fired around 12:30 pm ET, according to reports out of Israel. The U.S. warning had come about five hours earlier.
The White House had warned any attack would carry ‘severe consequences.’
‘The United States has indications that Iran is preparing to imminently launch a ballistic missile attack against Israel,’ a senior administration official told DailyMail.com earlier Tuesday.
‘We are actively supporting defensive preparations to defend Israel against this attack. A direct military attack from Iran against Israel will carry severe consequences for Iran.’
Israeli defense minister Defense Minister Yoav Gallant discussed the ‘imminent’ threat with U.S. defense secretary Lloyd Austin.
The attack was expected to exceed the scale of a previous bombardment in April which saw hundreds of drones and missiles launched at the country.
A Western source had told Axios that unlike the April attack, this time Iran is expected to launch ballistic missiles that can reach Israel within 12 minutes and not with drones or cruise missiles that allow for much longer preparation time for defense and interception.
The Pentagon said on Monday that United States was sending a few thousand additional forces to the Middle East to bolster the 40,000 already in the region and to help defend Israel.
U.S. fighter jet squadrons were deployed to the region, including F-15E and F-16s – jets which played a significant role in shooting down Iranian drones when Tehran launched a missile and drone attack on Israel back in April.
F-22 jets and A-10 warplanes are also being sent, while the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier is already positioned in the Gulf of Oman, with the USS Harry S Truman on its way as part of a scheduled deployment.
The attack raises the possibility of all-out war between the two bitter enemies, who have fought a shadow war for years as Tehran sought to destroy Israel and Israel tried to rein in Iran’s nuclear program.
When Iran launched the direct attack on Israel in April, few of the missiles reached their targets. Many were shot down by a U.S.-led coalition, while others apparently failed at launch or crashed in flight.
Israeli attacks on Lebanon have been escalating as they move to pick off the top leaders of Hezbollah.
Over the past year, Hezbollah has been attacking Israel in solidarity with Hamas, the Gaza-based armed group also backed by Iran.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a Tuesday statement that Israel is facing ‘large challenges’ as it fights an Iranian axis.
In the videotaped statement, he urges the public to listen to public safety guidelines from the army´s Home Front Command. He made no direct mention of a missile threat.
Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Israel and its allies are in a ‘high state of readiness’ and any attack from Iran would have repercussions.
Fears of an Iranian attack were raised as the Israeli military warned the residents of more than two dozen Lebanese border communities to immediately evacuate their homes after announcing the start of ground operations against Hezbollah late last night.
IDF spokesman Avichay Adraee told Lebanese citizens to flee north of the Awali River, some 60 kilometres (36 miles) from the border, raising fears that the IDF may intend to send its forces deep into southern Lebanon or step up the intensity of airstrikes.
‘You must head north of the Awali River to save yourselves and leave your houses immediately,’ said the statement.