Damn.
Well, this powder keg is going up it looks like.
Damn.
Well, hell.
The U.S. and U.K. had just announced sanctions against Iran earlier today. Also today, the U.S. just vetoed another resolution for Palestinian statehood at the U.N.
U.S. media also reports that the U.S. was pre-notified of an attack.
The AP has not reported the incident as a confirmed Israeli attack yet.
“Iran has fired air defense batteries as explosions were heard near a major air base near Isfahan, raising fears of a possible Israeli strike following Tehran’s unprecedented drone-and-missile assault on the country.”
~Max
The New York Times attributes the attack to Israel based on Israeli sources:
The Israeli military struck Iran early on Friday, according to two Israeli defense officials, in what appears to be Israel’s first military response to Iran’s attack on Israel five days earlier. Three Iranian officials confirmed that a strike had hit a military air base near the city of Isfahan, in central Iran, early on Friday, but did not say which country had mounted the attack. […] All the officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly.
~Max
According to CNN, Iran says that there wasn’t any significant damage. My guess is that Israel and Iran are lobbing softballs at each other that they know are going to be shot down. Not really intending to escalate or do serious damage but just trying to get in the last word.
Iran primarily attacked an Israeli Air Base, Nevatim Air Base. This response targets an Iranian Air Base, Isfahan Air Base. Not much info to go on. Lots of “no comment” and “nothing was damaged” rhetoric.
The War Zone (TWZ) has an updating article.
This feels like a precisely calibrated tit for Iran’s major tat. (I had the impression that Iran’s attack was broader than just the airbase, but maybe those were off-target weapons.)
Israel is obligated to retaliate, largely for internal political reasons. But it seems like “do not escalate” seems to be baked into the plan.
Saw a twitter post that Iraq has launched something toward a U.S. base in Syria.
Reuters is reporting this also.
Not aimed at @SuntanLotion Please note, Iraq and not Iran.
At least five rockets were launched from Iraq’s town of Zummar towards a U.S. military base in northeastern Syria on Sunday, two Iraqi security sources told Reuters.
There will probably be a need to differentiate “by Iraq” and “from Iraq”. Not necessarily the same thing.
The article seems pretty clear on that. The tweet might not have been.