Iran has launched missile and rocket attacks targeting military installations of Israel on Tuesday, October 1st, evening from different parts of the country. The Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has claimed that it has fired missiles at military targets in occupied Palestinian territories to avenge the latest rounds of killings by Israel. “In response to the martyrdom of Ismail Haniyeh, Hassan Nasrallah and IRGC commander Abbas Nilforushan, we targeted the heart of the occupied territories,” the IRGC said in a statement following Iran’s missile attack on Israel.
Despite the risk of further escalation of conflict in West Asia, Iran’s missile attack on Israel became a domestic compulsion for its Supreme Leader Seyyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei and recently-elected President Dr Masoud Pezeshkian.
Israel has not just killed Iran-backed top leaders of the resistance in Lebanon and Palestine, but Tel Aviv allegedly launched a surprise attack on Tehran and killed Mr Haniyeh, a top political leader of Hamas, challenging the Islamic Republic.
Moreover, Israel has also killed IRGC commander Mr Nilforushan in Beirut, along with Mr Nasrallah.
To remain mum and tolerate Israel’s ongoing aggression in the region would have raised questions on Iran’s capabilities and could have resulted in the overall demoralisation of the Axis of Resistance fighters as well as fuelled discontent in the country against the government.
All these factors have forced Tehran to react with over 400 missiles and rockets.
Along with Iran’s missile attack on Israel, the other members of the Axis of Resistance led by it have also ramped up attacks targeting Israeli military installations.
According to reports from Lebanon, the Hezbollah guerillas have launched artillery attacks and fired missiles at Israeli military targets in northern occupied territories.
Hezbollah has launched an artillery attack at the Shtula settlement and the Palestinian Sama news agency reported that the Lebanese group, which recently lost its secretary general Mr Nasrallah to Israeli bombing in Beirut, also fired missiles targeting a group of Israeli military forces at Metula base in the northern occupied territories.
Other reports claim that Hezbollah projectiles have hit Mossad headquarters at the outskirts of Tel Aviv.
Hezbollah also claimed that it has attacked with “a salvo of Fadi-4 rockets at the Sde Dov air base” in retaliation for Israeli attacks on civilians in Lebanon and in support of the Palestinian people in Gaza.
In response to Hezbollah’s attack, Israel has bombed several regions in South Lebanon and killed scores of civilians.
Apart from Hezbollah, the Iraqi resistance has claimed firing Al-Arqab advanced cruise missiles at three vital targets in the occupied territories.
For several days, the Iraqi resistance has been firing missiles at occupied Golan Heights.
Finally, the Yemeni Houthi militia has also hit Israel with its drone forces. The Houthis have hit an Israeli military target in occupied Yafa (Eilat) using a Yafa-type drone, said spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree on Tuesday.
To justify Iran’s missile attack on Israel, the IRGC has called it a strike to protect the sovereignty of Iran, which was attacked by Israel.
The Iranian mission in the United Nations has also reiterated the same, accusing the “Zionist regime” of terrorism
The IRGC warned the Israelis that any retaliation would fuel further escalation, indicating that like in April, Iran didn’t intend to enter into a war with Israel but just limited itself to firing missiles and rockets, which allegedly failed to deliver any considerable damage to Israel.
“It is being warned that if the Zionist regime reacts militarily to this operation, which is in accordance with the legal rights of the country and international laws, it will face further crushing and destructive attacks,” the IRGC said in its statement.
The clear picture regarding who stands where and how the US, under the pretext of supporting Israel’s “right to defend itself”, would be helping Israel against Iran, has not emerged yet.
In the meantime, Israel has claimed its Iron Dome air defence system has intercepted several missiles while many of them hit the targets.
While the equation stays hidden with no indication of a full-scale war against Israel, which itself isn’t possible due to the distance between them.
Whether Iran’s missile attack on Israel provided the latter with an opportunity to hit Tehran or to take careful steps can only be found in days, if not hours.
