Israel reportedly carried out airstrikes on Iranian sites on Friday, marking the latest escalation in tensions between the two long-standing adversaries.
Iranian media initially reported explosions, which an Iranian official attributed to air defense systems. State media later claimed that three drones over the central city of Isfahan had been intercepted.
Israel’s leadership and military remained silent following the attack. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Iran had no immediate plans for retaliation, and state media provided a subdued response to the incident.
According to a source familiar with the situation, the United States was notified before Israel’s attack. This move came in the wake of Iran’s recent strike on Israel using drones and missiles, most of which were intercepted.
Western leaders, including Biden administration officials in Washington, had urged Israel to exercise restraint and avoid further escalation following a surge in violence triggered by an airstrike on the Iranian embassy compound in Damascus on April 1, allegedly carried out by Israel.
The airstrike coincided with Iran’s support for the Palestinian Hamas militant group, whose incursion into Israel on October 7 had led to Israel’s incursion into Gaza.
A senior Iranian official expressed skepticism about Israel’s involvement in the recent attack, stating, “The foreign source of the incident has not been confirmed. We have not received any external attack, and the discussion leans more towards infiltration than attack.”
In most official comments and news reports, there was no mention of Israel, and state television featured analysts and pundits who appeared dismissive about the scale of the incident.
Before Friday’s strike, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi had warned Israel that Tehran would deliver a “severe response” to any attack on its territory.
Iran communicated to the United Nations Security Council on Thursday, stressing that Israel “must be compelled to stop any further military adventurism against our interests,” as the U.N. secretary-general cautioned that the Middle East was in a “moment of maximum peril.”