Why Iran attacked Israel with missiles and drones
Tension had been simmering between Iran and Israel amid the Israel-Hamas war.
Iran launched a missile and drones attack at Israel late on Saturday. "The regime in Iran sent a massive swarm of over 200 killer drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles," Israel's Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in a statement. US, UK and Jordan forces have shot down Iranian drones. US President Joe Biden has promised "ironclad" support for Israel against attacks by Iran.
"I just met with my national security team for an update on Iran's attacks against Israel. Our commitment to Israel's security against threats from Iran and its proxies is ironclad," Joe Biden said on X (formerly Twitter).
Why Iran has attacked Israel
Tension had been simmering between Iran and Israel amid the Israel-Hamas war. Iran has been engaging in proxy warfare by supporting Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon who launched strikes into Israel on many occasions.
Now, Iran has launched a direct attack after it claimed that Israel recently killed its officials in the Damascus embassy. Several officials including a senior commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps' overseas Quds Force were killed in an airstrike on April 1 while they were attending a meeting in the Damascus embassy compound.
Blaming Israel for killing an Iranian official, Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had vowed to take revenge. Khamenei had said Israel "must be punished and shall be" for an operation he said was equivalent to an attack on Iranian soil.
Israel neither confirmed nor denied its involvement in the attack.
Iran today said the strike was a punishment for "Israeli crimes".
"Should the Israeli regime make another mistake, Iran's response will be considerably more severe," the Iranian mission to the United Nations said, warning the US to “stay away”. It said the matter should be deemed concluded.
UN Security Council to hold emergency meeting
Meanwhile, the UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting Sunday over Iran's unprecedented drone and missile attack on Israel.
Several countries have condemned Iran's attack on Israel. Countries like Britain and France have pledged support to Israel's security.
