Noting that Israel is not interested in escalation of situation in the Middle East, country’s Ambassador to India Reuven Azar said on Saturday that Israel defence forces attacked military targets in Iran “in a very precise way” and that “there is a price to pay when you attack the state of Israel”.

“Israel attacked military targets in Iran in a very precise way. We have neutralized the air defence system of Iran and we have destroyed missile capabilities, missile factories and other air capabilities that the Iranians have. Iran is now completely exposed. We have shown very clearly that there is a price to pay when you attack the state of Israel… Iran knows now very well that if it continues attacking Israel, any target in Iran is reachable,” he said.

“Probably Iran is not going to retaliate more, because if it does choose to retaliate again or counterattack Israel, the results will be much worse. So this is our clear message. If you stop attacking us, we will refrain from attacking you. We will continue defending ourselves, both against Hamas, Hezbollah, against any terrorists anywhere in the world, including inside Iran. But we are not interested in a regional escalation,” he added. (ANI)

US Defence secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant to discuss Israel’s “overnight precision strikes on military targets in Iran”. The US reaffirmed its ironclad commitment to Israel’s security and support for Israel’s right to defend itself.

“I emphasized that the United States is well postured to defend U.S. forces and facilities across the region and made clear that Iran should not make the mistake of responding to Israel’s strikes, which should mark the end of this exchange,” said Austin in a post on X.

“I also underscored the opportunities that exist for to use diplomacy to dial down tensions in the region, including with a hostage release and ceasefire deal in Gaza and an agreement that allows civilians on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border to return safely to their homes,” the post added.

Commercial satellite imagery showed that Israeli airstrikes hit buildings during an attack on Saturday that Iran used for mixing solid fuel for ballistic missiles, according to separate assessments by two American researchers.

The judgments were reached by David Albright, a former U.N. weapons inspector who heads the Institute for Science and International Security research group, and Decker Eveleth, an associate research analyst at CNA, a Washington think tank.

They told Reuters separately that Israel struck Parchin, a massive military complex near Tehran. Israel also hit Khojir, according to Eveleth, a sprawling missile production site near Tehran.

Reuters reported in July that Khojir was undergoing massive expansion.

Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir welcomed Saturday’s strikes against military targets in Iran, but said a “historic obligation” remained to remove the threat posed by Tehran.

“The attack on Iran is important as an opening blow to damage Iran’s strategic assets,” Ben Gvir wrote on X, adding: “We have a historic obligation to remove the Iranian threat to destroy Israel”.

The United Nations atomic energy watchdog on Saturday said that Iran’s nuclear programme was not affected by Israel’s air strike on its arch-rival’s military facilities.

“Iran’s nuclear facilities have not been impacted,” IAEA director general Rafael Grossi wrote on X, urging “prudence and restraint from actions that could jeopardize the safety and security of nuclear and other radioactive materials”.

Israel’s military eased some safety restrictions for residents in areas of northern Israel late on Saturday, a possible indication that it does not expect any immediate large-scale attack from Iran or its proxies in the region.

The decision followed a “situational assessment”, it said in a statement which made no mention of Israel’s bombing of military sites in Iran in the early hours of Saturday, carried out in retaliation for an Iranian attack on Israel this month. (Reuters)

Israeli President Isaac Herzog hailed the United States on Saturday as a “true ally” of Israel when it comes to mutual cooperation, in remarks that followed the strikes on Iran.

Applauding Israel’s strikes on Iran, Herzog said: “I especially wish to thank our great friend the USA for being a true ally, and for the overt and covert cooperation,” he said in a statement without elaborating. (AFP)

Iran’s military said on Saturday that only radar systems were damaged in pre-dawn Israeli strikes on Tehran and other provinces and said it was prioritising a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon.

“Thanks to the timely performance of the country’s air defences, the attacks caused limited damage, and a few radar systems were damaged,” the armed forces general staff said in a statement read out on state television.

“A large number of missiles were intercepted, and enemy aircraft were prevented from entering the country’s airspace,” the statement said.

Israeli aircraft were reduced to firing a “small number of long-range missiles with very light warheads from a distance”, inside the US-patrolled airspace of neighbouring Iraq, it added. (AFP)

US President Joe Biden said that he hopes “this is the end” after Israeli warplanes struck military bases and missile sites in several Iranian provinces, in retaliation for a missile barrage earlier this month.

“It looks like they didn’t hit anything other than military targets. I hope that this is the end,” Biden told reporters.

The death toll in Israel’s pre-dawn strikes on military bases in Iran on Saturday has risen to four, the Iranian army said.

“Two more soldiers… have succumbed to their wounds and died,” the official IRNA news agency reported, citing an army statement. (AFP)

Israel attacks Iran live updates: Iran has no limits when it comes to defending its interests, its territorial integrity and its people, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Saturday, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.

He was speaking after Israel bombed military sites in Iran in the early hours of Saturday, a retaliation for an Iranian attack on Israel earlier this month.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: Lebanon’s Hezbollah warned Saturday of a “dangerous escalation” in the region, saying Washington bears “full responsibility” for the “treacherous” raids on Iran launched by its Israeli ally.

“Hezbollah strongly condemns the treacherous Zionist aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran and considers it a dangerous escalation at the level of the entire region,” Hezbollah said in a statement, adding that the United States “bears full responsibility for the massacres, tragedies and pain” caused by Israel.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: Israel attacked military targets in Iran with pre-dawn airstrikes Saturday in retaliation for the barrage of ballistic missiles the Islamic Republic fired on Israel earlier this month. The strikes marked the first time Israel’s military has openly attacked Iran.

Following the airstrikes, Iran’s Foreign Ministry said it had a right to self-defense, and “considers itself entitled and obligated to defend against foreign acts of aggression.”

Israel’s military said it targeted facilities that Iran used to make the missiles fired at Israel as well as surface-to-air missile sites. There was no immediate indication that oil or nuclear sites were hit — which would have marked a much more serious escalation — and Israel offered no immediate damage assessment.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: India has expressed concern over the tensions in the Middle East after Israel carried out attacks on Iran.

In a statement, the ministry of external affairs said,”We are deeply concerned by the evolving escalation in West Asia and its ramifications for peace and stability in the region and beyond. We reiterate our call to all concerned to exercise restraint and return to the path of dialogue and diplomacy.”

Israel attacks Iran live updates: Hezbollah said it fired rockets at five residential areas in northern Israel on Saturday, as the Israeli army said the Iran-backed group fired about 80 projectiles across the border, AFP reports.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: The Israeli army on Saturday said Hezbollah had fired around 80 projectiles targeting the country, just hours after Israel launched air strikes targeting military facilities in Iran.

“As of 15:00 (12:00 GMT), approximately 80 projectiles that were fired by the Hezbollah terrorist organisation have crossed from Lebanon into Israel today,” the army said in a statement.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah movement announced on Saturday that it had targeted an intelligence base in northern Israel, near the city of Safed, with rocket fire, marking over a month into its conflict with Israel.

In a statement, Hezbollah referred to “a rocket salvo” aimed at the Meishar base, which it described as Israel’s “intelligence headquarters for the northern region.”

Israel attacks Iran live updates: Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah movement announced on Saturday that it launched drones against an Israeli air base south of Tel Aviv, marking its first claimed attack on this facility.

Hezbollah, which has been in conflict with Israel since last month following a year of cross-border exchanges, regularly reports targeting Israeli military sites. However, this latest statement—confirming “an aerial attack with drones” on Tel Nof air base—is the first of its kind in a year.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: Egypt’s national carrier, EgyptAir, announced it had cancelled flights to Iraq’s capital, Baghdad, and the northern city of Erbil on Saturday, citing regional developments following Israeli airstrikes on military targets in neighboring Iran.

A Saturday flight to Jordan’s capital, Amman, was also cancelled. EgyptAir stated the suspension would continue until the situation stabilizes.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: Pakistan condemned Israeli strikes on military targets in Iran early Saturday, stating that Israel holds “full responsibility” for intensifying the Middle East conflict.

“Pakistan strongly condemns Israel’s strikes against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the foreign ministry said in a statement, calling the action a “dangerous escalation in an already volatile region.”

The ministry added that these strikes “undermine the path to regional peace and stability” and said that “Israel bears full responsibility for the current cycle of escalation and expansion of the conflict.”

Israel attacks Iran live updates: The last remaining Israelis in a popular surfing hotspot in Sri Lanka said they feel safe and plan to stay, despite a warning from Jerusalem to leave immediately due to a potential terrorist threat.

Israel’s national security council on Wednesday urged Israelis to leave tourist areas in the south of the Indian Ocean island, citing information about a terrorist threat targeting beaches and tourist zones.

While the agency did not detail the threat, it specified that the warning applied to the Arugam Bay area—a favorite spot for Israeli tourists—and other beaches in the south and west of Sri Lanka.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: A military source told Jordanian TV that no military planes were allowed to enter Jordanian airspace.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: Iran said on Saturday that an Israeli attack which targeted military sites killed two soldiers.

The Israeli military said its retaliatory air strikes hit Iran’s missile manufacturing facilities, missile installations and other systems in several regions. It warned Iran it would “pay a heavy price” if it responded.

Iran at first stated that “limited damage” had been caused but the armed forces later confirmed that two soldiers were killed in the strikes.

Israel attacks Iran live updates: An Israeli airstrike targeted some military sites in central and southern Syria, including the national capital Damascus, early on Saturday, Syrian state news agency SANA reported.

Syrian air defense forces intercepted missiles launched by Israel “from the direction of the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan Heights and the Lebanese territories” and shot down some of them.