Israel initiated a pre-emptive attack against Iran on Saturday, and U.S. military forces began strikes on targets inside Iran the same day, officials said, marking a sharp escalation in hostilities that dims prospects for resolving Tehran’s nuclear dispute through diplomacy.
Two U.S. officials said the U.S. military launched a series of air and sea operations against targets in Iran. The precise scope of those operations was not immediately clear, and U.S. officials did not release details on the targets struck.
An Iranian official said Tehran was preparing a crushing retaliation. Separately, a source reported that Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was not in Tehran and had been transferred to a secure location.
Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz framed the action as defensive, saying, "The State of Israel launched a pre-emptive attack against Iran to remove threats to the State of Israel." An Israeli defence official added that the operation had been planned for months in coordination with Washington, and that the launch date had been set weeks in advance.
Explosions were heard in Tehran on Saturday, and sirens sounded across Israel at about 8:15 a.m. local time. The Israeli military described the siren alerts as a proactive measure to prepare the public for the possibility of incoming missile strikes.
In response to the hostilities, Israel announced a series of domestic precautions: closure of schools and workplaces except for essential sectors, a ban on public airspace use, and the closure of civilian airspace. The national airports authority advised the public not to travel to the country’s airports.
The strikes come against the backdrop of a pattern of recent military engagement between Israel and Iran. In June, a 12-day air war occurred between the two countries, and U.S. and Israeli officials had repeatedly warned they would conduct further strikes if Iran continued to advance its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Diplomatic efforts resumed earlier in February, with U.S. and Iranian delegations engaging in talks intended to address the long-running dispute and avert a military confrontation. Israel has maintained that any agreement must go beyond halting enrichment and should include dismantling of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, while also urging curbs on Tehran’s missile program. Iran has said it would consider discussing limits on its nuclear programme in return for sanctions relief, but it rejected linking negotiations on nuclear activities to restrictions on its missile program.
Tehran has reiterated that it will defend itself if attacked and has warned neighbouring countries that host U.S. troops that it would retaliate against American bases should Washington strike Iran.
In June, U.S. forces joined an Israeli campaign targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, an operation described at the time as the most direct U.S. military action against the Islamic Republic. Iran responded then by firing missiles toward the U.S. Al Udeid air base in Qatar.
Western governments have cautioned that Iran’s ballistic missile development poses a threat to regional stability and could enable delivery of a nuclear weapon if such a capability were ever developed. Iranian officials have denied seeking atomic weapons.
What happened
- Israel launched a pre-emptive attack on Iran; the United States began strikes as well.
- U.S. officials described a series of air and sea operations, though the full scope was not disclosed.
- Explosions were reported in Tehran; sirens sounded across Israel and authorities closed airspace and suspended many civilian activities.
Context
The operations occur after a 12-day air war in June between Israel and Iran and follow months of planning that Israeli officials say involved coordination with the United States. Diplomatic talks between Washington and Tehran resumed in February, but key disputes over nuclear infrastructure and missile restrictions remained unresolved.