Two soldiers were killed this morning in Israeli air strikes on Iran, the official news agency IRNA reported, as reported by the Reuters agency.
"The army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in defense of the security of Iran and the protection of the people and Iranian interests, sacrificed two of its fighters while opposing the missiles of the criminal Zionist regime," the statement said.
Reuters reports that Israel attacked military sites in Iran early this morning, but that retaliation for Iran's strike this month did not target the country's most sensitive oil and nuclear targets after urgent calls for restraint from allies and neighbors.
The risk of a wider conflict between heavily armed Israel and Iran rattled a region already battered by wars in Gaza and Lebanon, but it was unclear whether Israel's strikes would trigger a further escalation.
Israel's military said a number of jets had completed three waves of strikes before dawn on rocket factories and other sites, and warned its heavily armed enemy not to strike back.
Iran said its air defenses successfully countered the attack, but that some sites suffered "limited damage".
Iran's semi-official news agency promised a "proportionate response" to the Israeli strikes.
Israel carried out "precision strikes on military targets in Iran": A series of explosions over Tehran
The Israeli military carried out three waves of "precision strikes on military targets in Iran" early Saturday morning, October 26, while a series of explosions were heard over Tehran.
"The strikes are a response to the continuous attacks of the regime in Iran on the State of Israel," the Israeli military announced.
"The regime in Iran and its proxies in the region have been mercilessly attacking Israel since October 7 – on seven fronts – including direct attacks from Iranian soil. Like every other sovereign state in the world, the State of Israel has the right and duty to respond. Our defensive and offensive capabilities are fully mobilized. We will do whatever it takes to defend the State of Israel and the people of Israel," they said in the announcement.
US and Israeli officials said the first wave targeted Iran's air defense systems, while the second and third targeted missile and drone bases, as well as weapons factories.
The White House said that Israel has the right to self-sufficiency. Washington called on Iran not to retaliate against the latest Israeli strikes against it.
"If Iran decides to respond again, we will be ready and there will be consequences for Iran again," senior administration officials said in a statement.
It is added that the United States of America (USA) does not want this to happen.
"This should be the end of this direct exchange of fire between Israel and Iran," the statement said.
Washington, as stated, is ready to "lead efforts to ensure the end of the war in Lebanon" and try to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza, along with the return of hostages kidnapped from Israel.
US defense official: We were informed of the attacks, but not involved"
Voice of America reports that the scope of the attack was not immediately clear. Iranian state television reported that several powerful explosions were heard around the capital Tehran. Semi-official Iranian media reports that explosions were also heard in the nearby city of Karaj.
Voice of America asked the National Security Council if US President Joseph Biden was informed about the explosions in Iran. Spokesman Sean Savet did not respond directly, but said the attacks were ongoing.
"We understand that Israel is conducting targeted strikes against military targets in Iran as a self-defense exercise and in response to Iran's October 1 ballistic missile attack on Israel," the council said.
A US defense official told VOA "we were informed" of the attacks, "but we were not involved".
All of the additional U.S. forces the Pentagon ordered to the Middle East earlier this month arrived in the region ahead of Israel's strikes on Iran, another U.S. defense official told VOA.
The Tasnim news agency said that "so far no sounds of rockets or planes have been heard in the sky of Tehran". State television quoted unnamed Iranian intelligence officials as saying the origin of the loud explosions "could be from the activation of Iran's air defense system."
Iranian authorities have repeatedly warned Israel not to launch an attack, saying that any action would be met with stronger retaliation.
The Middle East was expecting an Israeli response to the Iranian attack, in which around 1 ballistic missiles were fired at Israel on October 200, marking the second direct Iranian attack on Israel in six months.
The Syrian state news agency SANA reported that Israel also attacked several military sites in southern and central Syria.
The strikes happened at the same time as the first wave of attacks on Iran, which closed the airspace for several hours, but announced shortly before 8 a.m. CET that flights were continuing as normal.
The flights resumed about two and a half hours after the Israel Defense Forces announced that the attack was "complete and mission accomplished."
Concerns have grown that Iran and the US could be drawn into a regional war as Israel steps up attacks in Lebanon against Hezbollah - the militant group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon.
The airstrikes that hit Beirut and southern Lebanon were also followed by a ground operation.
Hezbollah - designated a terrorist organization by the US - is backed by Hamas, which has been targeted by Israel throughout the past year.
This, after Hamas - considered a terrorist group by the US and the European Union - attacked Israel on October 7 last year, killing around 1.200 people and taking hundreds more hostage.
The attack triggered an Israeli military operation in Gaza that is still ongoing and has killed and wounded tens of thousands of civilians, women and children, and killed senior Hamas figures.
Turkey: Israel has brought our region to the brink of destruction, to an even bigger war
Turkey called today to "end the terror that Israel has created in the region" of the Middle East and condemned Israel's attack on Iran last night.
In the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it is written that "ending the terror created by Israel in the region has become a historic task for the establishment of international security and peace".
"We strongly condemn the Israeli attack on Iran. By committing genocide in Gaza, preparing for the annexation of the West Bank and killing civilians in Lebanon every day, Israel has brought our region to the brink of destruction, to an even bigger war," the Ministry said.
"We call on the international community to immediately take measures to implement the law and stop Netanyahu's government," he writes, adding that "the countries of the region and extra-regional actors take a rational and cautious stance."
Solz to Iran: Mass escalation reactions must not continue
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz today warned Tehran not to initiate any "escalation" after Israel's attack last night on Iranian territory.
"My message to Iran is clear: massive escalation reactions must not continue. It must stop," Scholz wrote on Platform X.
He indicated that the end of the series of tightening "will open the possibility of peaceful development in the Middle East".
Zaharova: We call on all involved parties to exercise restraint, stop the violence and avoid a catastrophic scenario
The Russian Foreign Ministry said today that it is deeply concerned about the escalation between Israel and Iran and called for the normalization of the situation in the Middle East, after Israel carried out airstrikes on military sites in Iran, Reuters reports.
"We call on all parties involved to exercise restraint, stop the violence and avoid a catastrophic scenario," said ministry spokeswoman Marija Zaharova.
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