On 14 April, 13 days after the bombing of the Iranian embassy, Iran retaliated by raiding Israel, making its first direct attack on Israeli territory. On April 19, Israel retaliated and attacked Iran, and the "Iran-Israel war" was imminent. Will Israel and Iran fall into an endless "spiral of retaliation"? What impact will this have on the situation in the Middle East? Will a sixth Middle East war break out?
The site of Iran's nuclear facilities was attacked
U.S. official: Israel's target is not a nuclear facility
According to the Jerusalem Post, in the early morning of April 19 local time, explosions were heard in Isfahan in central Iran, the Baghdad region of Syria and the Babylon region of Iraq. After explosions were heard in Isfahan, air defense systems in several Iranian cities were activated.
On April 19, explosives flew over the central region of Iran
A U.S. official confirmed that an Israeli missile hit a location inside Iran, but it was not yet possible to confirm whether Syria and Iraq had also been attacked, ABC reported. Flight tracking shows that a number of flights to Iran have made U-turns and deviated from their original routes, including several UAE flights.
Three explosions occurred near an air base northwest of the Iranian city of Isfahan, where radar was said to be a possible target, and windows of several office buildings in the area were shattered, the report said. Iraqis said they heard the sound of warplanes in the early morning of the 19th. Syria said the airstrikes targeted Syrian army positions in the southern governorates of Suweida and Dara'a.
The glare-light of an Iranian target after it was bombed
It is reported that Isfahan, where the attack was struck, is the site of Iran's nuclear facilities. Isfahan is home to the Iranian military's main air base, as well as sites related to its nuclear program, and it is located about 350 kilometers south of the Iranian capital, Tehran. Several of Iran's nuclear facilities are located in Isfahan, including the Natanz facility, which is at the heart of Iran's uranium enrichment program. However, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported that Iran's Isfahan nuclear facility was completely safe after the explosion.
The commander of the nuclear facilities safety detachment of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Haktarab, warned on the 18th that if Iran's nuclear facilities were attacked by Israel, Iran would immediately carry out a corresponding strike on the Israeli side.
A U.S. official told CNN that Israel had carried out an attack inside Iran that could plunge the region deeper into conflict, but that Israel was not targeting a nuclear facility. Israel has been fairly secretive about the operation, and the United States and other Western allies have been urging Israel to abandon military strikes against Iran in order to avoid triggering a broader regional conflict.
After explosions were heard in Isfahan, Iranian space agency spokesman Dalyan said several drones had been successfully shot down by Iranian defenses, but no missile strikes have been reported so far, AFP reported.
An Iranian official said the explosion heard in Isfahan was the result of the activation of Iranian air defenses, according to Reuters, adding that no missile attacks had been launched against Iran.
Iran urgently activated the air defense system
Warning: If you dare to retaliate, you will respond decisively
According to Iranian media reports, explosions were heard near Isfahan airbase, air defense systems have been activated in several Iranian provinces, and all flights to Tehran, Isfahan and Shiraz have been suspended.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abdollahian stressed in an interview with CNN earlier that if the Israeli side takes another risky action and carries out actions that are not conducive to Iran's interests, the Iranian side will immediately respond to the maximum extent. "Iran sincerely hopes that Israel will not repeat its grave mistakes, and Iran has made it clear to the White House that if the Israeli regime makes another mistake, Iran's response will be decisive and unequivocal," he said. ”
After Israel was attacked by Iranian drones and missiles, the Biden administration continued to reassure its ally Israel, persuading Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to launch retaliatory attacks, and even declaring that "almost all incoming attacks are victorious." However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu still said on the 18th: "Israel will make its own decisions." ”
Caught in a "spiral of revenge" with no end in sight
Iran and Israel are once again detonating a war in the Middle East?
In fact, Iran's attack on Israel last weekend was also in retaliation for Israeli airstrikes on the Iranian embassy in Syria. Now, unable to swallow this breath, Israel has retaliated against the attack despite the opposition of the United States.
A senior Iranian official has warned that Iran could build nuclear weapons if Israel attacks Iran's nuclear facilities, the latest escalation of mutual threats between the two sides amid heightened tensions in the Middle East.
Many experts fear that Iran and Israel, which have always fought each other in the past in the form of "proxy wars", will fall into a "revenge spiral" with no end in sight, and finally detonate a war in the Middle East again.
Prior to that, Israel and Iran had been engaged in a years-long "proxy war" — attacking each other's targets without admitting responsibility, according to the BBC.
However, there has been a thaw in relations between Israel and Iran. During the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s, Israel sold weapons to Iran. However, after the end of the Iran-Iraq war, there was a rift in relations between Israel and Iran. Iran's leaders are increasingly unhappy with Israel's treatment of Palestinians, and Israel is on high alert to Iran's ambitions for a new nuclear program and its support for Allah in Lebanon.
The bombing of the Iranian embassy was the trigger
Israel believes that Iran is behind Hamas
The escalation of the conflict between Israel and Iran began with the bombing of the Iranian embassy, which was also the trigger. On April 1, a missile attack on the Iranian embassy in Syria shook the world. At least 13 people, including senior commanders of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force, were killed in a missile attack on the consular building of the Iranian embassy in Syria.
After a missile attack on the Iranian embassy in Syria on April 1
Why did Israel bomb the Iranian embassy? According to the analysis, Israel's target is the senior commander of the Quds Force, the overseas branch of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the embassy. He was a key figure in Iran's operation to arm the Lebanese Shiite militant group Allah. The IRGC sends weapons and equipment, including high-precision missiles, to Allah through Syria. And Israel is trying to block the delivery of these supplies and prevent Iran from strengthening its military presence in Syria.
In fact, Israel and Iran have been in tension since the new round of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out in October last year. Iranian-backed Lebanese Allah began exchanging fire with Israeli forces on the northern border shortly after the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen attacked Red Sea shipping merchant ships in solidarity with Hamas.
Yemen's Houthi rebels control the most densely populated areas of Yemen. In a show of support for Hamas, the Houthis fired missiles and drones into Israel, and also attacked merchant ships off the coast of Israel, sinking at least one ship.
In addition, Israel believes that Iran is behind Hamas, providing it with weapons and training. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict escalated again with Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7 last year and drew Iran, its proxies and Israel's allies into the broader Middle East conflict, but Iran has denied any involvement in the October 7 attack.
Iran has a huge arsenal of weapons,
But there is a lack of modern air defense systems and fighters
According to the BBC, Iran is geographically much larger than Israel, with a population of nearly 90 million, almost 10 times the size of Israel, but this does not mean that Iran has a stronger military.
Iran has invested heavily in missiles and drones. Iran not only has a large arsenal of its own, but also supplies large quantities of weapons to its "proxies" Houthis in Yemen and Allah in Lebanon. But what Iran lacks is modern air defense systems and fighter jets.
In contrast, Israel has one of the most advanced air forces in the world. According to a military report by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), Israel has at least 14 fighter squadrons, including F-15s, F-16s, and the newest F-35 stealth fighters. In addition, Israel has experience in striking deep into enemy territory.
Do Iran and Israel have nuclear weapons? The BBC reports that Israel is believed to have its own nuclear weapons, but its official policy is deliberately vague. Iran does not have nuclear weapons and has denied trying to use its civilian nuclear program to become a nuclear state.
Huashang Daily Gale News reporter Guo Ji compiled and edited by Li Zhi