Dozens of Israeli aircraft participated in Iran strikes Saturday
Dozens of Israeli Air Force aircraft, including fighter jets, refuelers and spy planes, participated in the strikes on Iran early Saturday, according to an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson.
The strikes landed some 1,600 kilometers (about 994 miles) from Israel, Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani told CNN.
He did not provide further details and would not confirm if Israeli jets entered Iranian airspace.
Iran army chief say Israeli jets flew through Iraq’s airspace for attack
Major-General Abdolrahim Mousavi, chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces, says Israeli fighter jets flew through Iraq’s airspace to launch the deadly attack on his country “in a blatant and illegal act”.
Israel’s air force “used airspace controlled by the US terrorist military in Iraq to launch long-range missiles from a distance of 100km [50 miles] from Iran’s borders,” Mousavi said in a statement.
“These missiles – equipped with lightweight warheads, one-fifth the size of Iranian ballistic missile warheads – were aimed at several border radar installations in Ilam, Khuzestan, and areas around Tehran.”
He said because of Iran’s air defence systems, “the damage was limited”. “A large number of missiles were intercepted and enemy aircraft were prevented from entering the country’s airspace.”
Iran’s UN mission accuses Israel of using Iraqi territory for strikes
Israeli warplanes attacked Iran from Iraqi airspace, Iran’s mission to the UN says, blaming the United States for what it called its complicity. “Iraqi airspace is under the occupation, command and control of the US military. Conclusion: The US complicity in this crime is certain,” it said in a post on X.
Earlier, Iran army chief of staff leveled the same allegation. There’s been no immediate response from the Iraqi or US governments.
1. The Zionist regime’s warplanes attacked several Iranian military and radar sites from Iraqi airspace, approximately 70 miles from Iran’s border.
2. Iraqi airspace is under the occupation, command and control of the U.S. military.
Conclusion: The U.S. complicity in this crime…
— I.R.IRAN Mission to UN, NY (@Iran_UN) October 26, 2024
Netanyahu: Israel chose its targets, not the Americans
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel chose the targets it attacked in Iran based on its “national interests”, not what was dictated by the United States.
Netanyahu’s office issued the statement in response to what it referred to as a “completely false” local television report that Israel avoided striking Iranian gas and oil facilities because of US pressure.
“Israel chose in advance the attack targets according to its national interests and not according to American dictates. So it was and so it will be,” his office said.
Israeli attack on Iran ‘political theatre’
Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) called the Israeli attacks on Iran face-saving “political theatre”.
“The highly orchestrated Israeli attacks on Iran – with targets pre-negotiated with Iran by the US – appear to have been nothing more than political theatre to allow Israel to save face while relying on Iran to act responsibly not to escalate this war further,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, DAWN’s executive director.
“The Biden administration’s claims of victory that its newest THAAD carrots to curb even greater Israeli belligerence really only begs the question of why the US needs to constantly curry favour with an unhinged, bellicose government,” she said in a statement.
Same was said about Iran's counter attacks. However, political theater or not, it's disguising the root cause and ongoing genocide in Gaza.
