Newsman: Aerial attacks between Israel and Iran continued overnight into Monday for the fourth day of following Israel’s Friday attack. Israeli officials said, The Israeli operation hit at the heart of Iran’s nuclear program, striking key facilities and killing several nuclear scientists as well as high-ranking military leaders. The Israeli military said Monday it had achieved “full aerial operational control above Tehran.” The IDF said it is currently striking “surface-to-surface missile sites” in central Iran.
The Israel Defense Forces said in a Monday statement that it killed four senior Iranian intelligence officials in an airstrike in Tehran. Israeli Defense Forces spokesperson Brigadier General Effie Defrin said, that the Israeli military had destroyed one third of Iran’s surface-to-surface missile launchers, which Tehran has been using to fire ballistic missiles toward Israel.
The IDF also said the four officials were killed after an Israeli Air Force strike targeted a “structure in Tehran where several senior officials from Iranian intelligence” were located.
“In the strike, the Head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Intelligence Organization and his deputy, as well as the Head of the Quds Force Intelligence Department and his deputy, were all eliminated,” the IDF said.
An Israeli military official told ABC News that the country’s warplanes have been flying over Iran for 50 hours nonstop since the beginning of Israel’s strikes on the country on Friday.
The Israel Defense Forces are still searching for missile sites and other targets as strikes expand, the official said. They did not say how long attacks are expected to continue.
Among those targets hit so far are Iran’s Defense Ministry in Tehran, plus gas and oil sites near Bandar Abbas, which the official said were “dual-use” sites — meaning for both civilian and military use.
Before the operation started, Israel believed Iran had about 2,000 ballistic missiles, the official said. They did not say how many are believed to be remaining.
When asked if Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — the country’s supreme leader — is a target, the official refused to answer.
The death toll in Israel from Sunday night’s Iranian ballistic missile strikes rose to five people as of Monday morning, authorities said, as recovery efforts at impact sites continue.
At least 24 people have now been killed in Israel since the country launched its surprise attack on Iran on Friday, according to the latest figures released by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Monday.
On the other hand, At least 224 people have been killed in Iran by Israeli strikes, Netanyahu’s office said on Monday.
As aerial attacks between Israel and Iran continue, the Iranian Ministry of Health said the death toll from Israeli strikes has risen to at least 224 killed and 1,277 injured and hospitalized, according to spokesperson Hossein Kermanpour.
Following a spate of missile strikes from Iran into Israel on Monday morning, local time, Israeli Emergency Services said medical teams have confirmed three people were killed and over 70 others were injured. Two women and one man, all approximately 70 years old, were killed, officials said. A 30-year-old woman is in serious condition and five others are in moderate condition. The remaining injuries were mild, officials said.
Iran has launched more missiles at Israel early Monday morning, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
Warning sirens were activated in several areas of the country, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
The IDF said the Israeli Air Force was working to “intercept and strike where necessary to eliminate the threat.”
Israel Fire and Rescue Services said it has received multiple reports of impacts in the central and southern districts. “Teams are en route to the scene,” the agency said in a statement.
Israel is conducting renewed strikes on Iran overnight Monday, local time, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
IDF says it struck target over 1,400 miles into Iran
The IDF says it struck an Iranian refueling plane at the Mashhad airport in eastern Iran, which makes this, it says, the farthest strike into Iran since attacks began.
“At a distance of approximately 2,300 kilometers, the Air Force struck an Iranian refueling aircraft a short time ago at Mashhad Airport in eastern Iran,” the IDF statement says. “The Air Force is working to achieve air superiority throughout Iran. This is the farthest strike since the operation began.”
IDF says more missiles launched toward Israel; says ‘over 250’ targets in Iran struck
The IDF said during a briefing Sunday that it has struck “over 250 targets” in Iran since the beginning of strikes earlier this week. It says it is still actively conducting strikes in the country.
The IDF says missiles have been launched from Iran toward Israel and that “defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat.” It also warned citizens to “enter a protected space and remain there until further notice.”
The IDF spokesperson also confirmed it struck Yemen Saturday night, targeting a Houthi leader, but cannot confirm whether the strike was successful. There were also projectiles fired from Yemen overnight toward Israel, according to the spokesperson.
The spokesperson warned that “there will be further launches and impacts in the coming days” toward Israel and advised Israelis to pay attention to sirens and alerts.
IDF tried to kill Houthi chief of staff in Yemen, official says
An Israeli military official confirmed to ABC News that the Israel Defense Forces tried to kill the Houthi chief of staff in Yemen in an overnight airstrike.
The official said Israel is still waiting to see the outcome of the attack.
