Israel launched airstrikes on western and central Iran early Monday as explosions were reported in several Iranian cities, according to Israeli and Iranian media reports.
The Israeli army claimed its air force struck military sites belonging to the “Iranian regime”.
Iranian state TV reported explosions in the capital Tehran as well as in Tabriz and Isfahan, while Tasnim News Agency reported blasts near the city of Karaj.
IRNA also reported that at least three explosions were heard in Isfahan.
In response to Iran’s ballistic missile attack, Israel has closed all crossings into Gaza, cutting off the flow of food and humanitarian aid into Gaza.
This new planned starvation of Gaza is being implemented under the guise of ‘security measures’.
Israel has imposed similar blanket closures during previous periods of regional escalation, including immediately after the outbreak of war in late February, collectively punishing Gaza’s civilian population.
This latest round of exchanges followed an attack on a residence in Beirut by Israel. Iran responded to this by launching several missile barrages toward northern Israel. Iran’s missile attack came in response to repeated Israeli strikes on Lebanon despite multiple US-brokered ceasefires, including a strike on a claimed Hezbollah position in Beirut on Sunday.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump urged Iran to return to negotiations after missile strikes on Israel while calling on Tel Aviv not to retaliate, saying more time was needed for diplomacy, according to media reports.
“You’ve shot your missiles, that’s enough. Get back to the table and make a deal,” Trump told Fox News, referring to Iran.
The president said he expected that an agreement with Tehran could be signed “Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday of this coming week”.
Tehran has said that a permanent Israeli ceasefire in Lebanon must be in place before any deal with Washington can be reached.
The Iranian attack, which targeted Haifa and Nazareth, was the first on Israeli territory since the April 8 ceasefire and came after an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs earlier Sunday.
Addressing the Israeli strikes in Lebanon, Trump claimed that the military actions were “not coordinated with the United States”. He said he was “not happy” about the strikes targeting Hezbollah in Beirut but has not taken any concrete action against Israel. Several European countries have condemned Israel’s agression against Lebanon, but have done nothing more than release press statements.
Trump previously said he was “perturbed” by Netanyahu’s position of “constantly fighting” with Lebanon. – AA
