Jerusalem Under Attack: Iranian Drones Signal Escalating Middle East Tensions

Air raid sirens have been heard in Jerusalem, accompanied by a series of explosions in the skies. Iranian drones are reportedly arriving, but there is no immediate word from authorities on whether the explosions are an incoming attack or the sound of interceptions.

Iran launched dozens of drones and ballistic missiles toward Israel late Saturday, marking the first time Iran had ever launched a direct military assault on Israel. France swiftly condemned the attack, stating that Iran has crossed a new threshold with regard to its destabilizing activities and is risking a potential military escalation.

Photo Credit: PTI

Israel's military said over 100 drones had been fired but that its air defenses were prepared. It did not mention ballistic missiles, which are less easily shot down, but Iran said they were part of the attack. The U.S., with its large troop presence in the region, said it would provide unspecified support to Israel. "We are monitoring the threat," announced Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military's spokesman, in a nationwide television address.Iran had vowed revenge since an April 1 airstrike in Syria killed two Iranian generals inside an Iranian consular building. Iran accused Israel of being behind the attack, which Israel has not commented on. Israel and Iran have been on a collision course throughout Israel's six-month war against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. The war erupted after Hamas and Islamic Jihad, two militant groups backed by Iran, carried out a devastating cross-border attack on Oct. 7 that killed 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped 250 others.An Israeli offensive in Gaza has caused widespread devastation and killed over 33,000 people, according to local health officials. Almost immediately after the war erupted, Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militant group in Lebanon, began attacking Israel's northern border. The two sides have been involved in daily exchanges of fire, while Iranian-backed groups in Iraq, Syria and Yemen have launched rockets and missiles toward Israel.In a statement carried late Saturday by Iran's state-run IRNA news agency, the country's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard acknowledged launching "dozens of drones and missiles towards the occupied territories and positions of the Zionist regime." IRNA later quoted an anonymous official saying ballistic missiles were part of the attack.Israel has missile defense systems capable of targeting ballistic missiles. However, in a massive attack involving multiple drones and missiles, the likelihood of a strike making it through is higher. Iran has a vast arsenal of drones and missiles. Online videos shared by Iranian state television purported to show delta-wing-style drones resembling the Iranian Shahed-136s long used by Russia in its war on Ukraine.Israel has a multilayered air-defense network that includes systems capable of intercepting a variety of threats including long-range missiles, cruise missiles, drones and short-range rockets. Hagari, the army spokesman, said Israel was "prepared and ready" with defensive and offensive responses but cautioned that air defenses are not 100% effective and urged the public to heed safety instructions.The army ordered residents in the Golan Heights near the Syrian and Lebanese borders as well as the southern towns of Nevatim and Dimona and the Red Sea resort of Eilat "to stay near protective spaces until further notice." Dimona is home to Israel's main nuclear facility, and Nevatim has a major air base. The army's Home Front Command canceled school on Sunday and limited public gatherings to no more than 1,000 people. Israel closed its airspace and canceled all flights.In Washington, President Joe Biden cut short a weekend trip to his beach house in Delaware to return to the White House. He was set to convene a principals meeting of the National Security Council on Saturday to discuss the unfolding attack. "The United States will stand with the people of Israel and support their defense against these threats from Iran," said National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson.Gen. Erik Kurilla, head of the U.S. military's Central Command, was in Israel over the weekend consulting with Israeli defense officials about the Iranian threat. The Central Command oversees U.S. forces in the Middle East.Iran's mission to the United Nations issued a warning to both Israel and the U.S., stating that should Israel make another mistake, Iran's response will be considerably more severe.Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported heavy Israeli airstrikes and shelling on multiple locations in south Lebanon following Iran's launch of drones. The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah said it launched "dozens" of Katyusha rockets at an Israeli military site in the Golan Heights early Sunday.Early Saturday, commandos from Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard rappelled from a helicopter onto an Israeli-affiliated container ship near the Strait of Hormuz and seized the vessel. Irans state-run IRNA said a special forces unit of the Guards navy carried out the attack on the Portuguese-flagged MSC Aries, a container ship associated with London-based Zodiac Maritime.Zodiac Maritime is part of Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer's Zodiac Group. Zodiac declined to comment and referred questions to MSC. Geneva-based MSC acknowledged the seizure and said 25 crew members were on the ship.Watson urged Iran to release them and the vessel. IRNA said the Guard would take the vessel into Iranian territorial waters.A Middle East defense official provided video of the attack to The Associated Press in which Iranian commandos are seen rappelling onto a stack of containers on the vessel's deck. The video corresponded with known details of the MSC Aries. The commandos rappelled from what appeared to be a Soviet-era Mil Mi-17 helicopter used by both Guard forces and Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen for raiding ships.