The Israeli military has vowed to retaliate to a missile attack from Iran, which Iran said was a “rational and legitimate response” to previous Israeli fire.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to retaliate against Iran for its missile attack on Israel on Tuesday evening, which he called a “big mistake.”
He added that Iran would pay for the attack, in which the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said 180 missiles hit Israel causing air raid sirens to sound across the country.
“Whoever attacks us. We attack them,” Netanyahu said as he gathered his Security Cabinet for a late-night meeting.
He called the attack a “failure” and suggested that Iran could face the same fate as Gaza and Lebanon.
Iran’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations argued the strike was “legal, rational and legitimate” indicating it was in response to Israeli strikes on the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon.
US President Joe Biden said that the US had anticipated Iran’s “brazen” missile attack on Israel in a statement given to reporters at the White House.
Biden added that “intensive planning” had gone into anticipating and defending against the attack, adding that the US and Israel had worked together to defend Israel from the missile barrage which occurred on Tuesday evening.
He reiterated his support for Israel and said that the US was in “constant contact” with its Israeli counterparts.
Biden joins other figures around the world in condemning Iran’s actions. President of the European Council Charles Michel said that he condemned the attack by Iran, adding that the European Union stood ready “to support efforts to de-escalate and protect civilian lives.”
The UK’s prime minister Keir Starmer also had harsh words for Iran over the incident, saying he condemned the attack during a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, echoing the German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, who urged Iran against escalating the conflict further.
The IDF said the missiles led to air raid sirens sounding across Israel before concluding that very few citizens had been injured in the attack, with multiple missiles intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome defence system.