Demonstrators wave a large Iranian flag in their anti-Israel rally in front of an anti-Israel banner on the wall of a building in Felastin (Palestine) Square. In Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 15, 2024.
Wahid Salemi/AP
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Wahid Salemi/AP
Demonstrators wave a large Iranian flag in their anti-Israel rally in front of an anti-Israel banner on the wall of a building in Felastin (Palestine) Square. In Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 15, 2024.
Wahid Salemi/AP
The Israeli military launched missile strikes against Iran, a senior US military official told NPR on Thursday. There have also been reports of explosions in Iraq and Syria.
The attacks appear to be retaliation for what Israel promised after Sunday's Iranian attack, when Tehran fired hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel. Most of Iran's volleys were intercepted or caused little damage. The U.S. military official spoke on condition of anonymity Thursday.
Brigadier General Mihan Dost, an army officer in the central Iranian city of Isfahan, heard a loud noise east of the city, sounding like air defenses intercepting what he called a “suspicious target,” Iran's state news agency IRNA reported. reported in the area.
Iranian news reported no such strike and concluded that the sounds reported near Isfahan were the interception of one or more drones. Israel's military has not yet responded to NPR's request for comment.
The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed on social media that there was no damage to Iran's nuclear weapons sites.
The scale of Israel's attacks and the weapons used are unclear.
The United States and other Western allies have been urging Israel to abandon the military offensive to avoid a regional conflict emerging from the Israel-Hamas war.
Those concerns were heightened on April 1 when an airstrike on the country's consulate in Damascus, Syria — which Iran blamed on Israel — killed two Iranian military commanders.
Iran said it launched an attack on Israel on Sunday in retaliation.
The region has been on the brink of wider conflict since Hamas attacked Israel, which Israel says killed 1,200 people. Israel claims to have killed 1,200 people, and according to Gaza health officials, Israel's occupation of Gaza has killed more than 30,000 people.
Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah are frequently firing along the northern Israeli border. Houthi fighters, backed by Iran, have been pursuing international merchant ships transiting the Red Sea in recent months. The group's leaders say they are targeting ships linked to Israel in response to the country's continued occupation of Gaza.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
