Map reveals shock reality of crisis after Iran attacked Israel
Israel has warned it will exact a “price” from Iran in due course after the Middle Eastern nation’s widely condemned attack.
World
Don't miss out on the headlines from World. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Israel has warned it will exact a “price” from Iran in due course after the Middle Eastern nation’s attack which has been condemned by world leaders.
“We will build a regional coalition and exact the price from Iran in the fashion and timing that is right for us,” Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz said on Sunday.
Earlier, as world leaders condemned Iran’s strike, attention quickly turned to the skies with many neighbouring countries slamming their airspaces shut.
After the attack, on Saturday night local time, Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon announced the temporary closure of their airspace. Along with Iran and Israel themselves, that left a large section of the Middle East – a key overflight region connecting East with West – as a no-go zone.
It also meant that Egypt and Saudi Arabia’s airspaces became bustling with all of the re-routed flights.
Earlier on Sunday, FlightRadar24 reported that based on official NOTAMs, (notice to airmen), Iran’s airspace was closed to VFR (visual flight rules) flights only, Israel’s was shut until 4am, Jordan’s until 8am and Iraq’s until 8.30am.
Lebanon’s would be closed until 7am, the Minister of Public Works and Transport Ali Hamie posted on X.
“Due to the developments in the region and our keenness on the safety and security of Lebanese airspace, the Ministry of Public Works announces that Lebanese airspace is closed to all incoming, outgoing, and overflying aircraft, temporarily and precautiously, starting from 1am today on Sunday, April 14, 2024, until 7am of the same day,” Mr Hamie said.
“Consequently, air navigation at Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport is completely closed during the mentioned period, with updates and reviews according to developments.”
Reports emerged on Sunday afternoon that Israel has now reopened its airspace again.
“With Israel airspace open again, three flights have taken off from Tel Aviv this morning,” FlightRadar24 said on X.
Flights that travelled over Iraq were flying either over Saudi Arabia and Egypt or over Tajikistan and Pakistan. However, Iraq has now reopened its airspace on Sunday hours after suspending all air traffic. Jordan and Lebanon also reopened their airspace on Sunday having earlier closed them.
Multiple flights bound for Tel Aviv and Amman had been diverted. Israel’s El Al has cancelled more than 20 flights, and two of the carrier’s flights, which were bound for Israel from Thailand diverted to Bangkok.
Countries including Russia and France had asked their citizens to avoid travelling to Iran and Israel.
The Iraqi civil aviation authority announced in a statement “the reopening of the airspace” and resumption of flights to and from airports across the country, saying there were no longer any “security risks to civilian aircraft”.
In Jordan, civil aviation commission chief Haitham Misto told the official Al Mamlaka channel: “The Jordanian airspace has been reopened and the situation has returned to normal.”
Samer Majali, CEO of flag carrier Royal Jordanian, said on Sunday that the airline’s flights “have resumed”, though some delays can be expected.
However, Austrian Airlines told AFP on Sunday it had suspended “all flights to Tel Aviv in Israel, Arbil in Iraq and Amman in Jordan with immediate effect” due to “recent developments in the Middle East”.
“There will be no flights to or from Tel Aviv, Arbil and Amman” until Monday, spokeswoman Sophie Matkovits said, adding that “the safety of personnel and passengers” was the company’s top priority.
It comes as Qantas temporarily rerouted flights from Perth to London. The airline says flights between the two cities will continue, but flight paths are being adjusted due to security threats in the Middle East.
The direct QF9 flight has been renamed QF209 and is expected to fly with a stopover in Singapore for the coming few days, while the return QF10 flight will continue to be a direct service.
Other flights to and from London remain unaffected.
The temporary change will extend the route’s 18-hour airtime to more than 21 hours, according to Qantas’ website.
“We’re temporarily adjusting the flight paths for our flights between Perth and London due to the situation in parts of the Middle East,” a Qantas spokeswoman said.
“We’ll reach out to customers directly if there’s any change to their booking.”
Global concern
Iran’s president Ebrahim Raisi warned Israel and its allies against any “reckless” actions on Sunday after Tehran’s drone and missile attack in retaliation for a deadly strike on its Damascus consulate.
“If the Zionist regime (Israel) or its supporters demonstrate reckless behaviour, they will receive a decisive and much stronger response,” Raisi said in a statement.
Earlier, Iran urged Israel not to retaliate militarily to an unprecedented attack overnight, which Tehran presented as a justified response to a strike that destroyed its consulate building in Damascus earlier this month.
“The matter can be deemed concluded,” Iran’s mission to the United Nations said in a post on X just a few hours after the start of the operation late Saturday.
“However, should the Israeli regime make another mistake, Iran’s response will be considerably more severe,” the Iranian mission warned.
Tehran also warned the United States, urging them to “stay away” from its conflict with Israel.
“Any threat by the terrorist government of America and the Zionist regime from any country will result in a reciprocal and proportionate response,” the Revolutionary Guards warned in a statement early Sunday.
“If necessary”, Tehran “will not hesitate to take defensive measures to protect its interests against any aggressive military action,” Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
“The next slap will be fiercer,” warned the new mural unveiled overnight in Tehran’s Palestine Square, where a few thousand people gathered during the night shouting “Death to Israel” and “Death to America”.
World leaders have heavily condemned Iran’s retaliatory strike on Israel, which prompted fears of a global conflict exploding in the early hours of the morning on Sunday.
About 9am (AEST), Israeli army radio reported that more than 100 drones were intercepted outside Israeli territory with assistance from US and UK militaries.
As of 10.20am, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Iran launched a “massive swarm of over 200 killer drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles”.
The IDF said its “Arrow” aerial defence system had intercepted the “vast majority” of missiles and drones launched by Iran, saying the attack was “foiled”.
Separate reports revealed the US had shot down an undisclosed amount of Iranian drone aircraft, with the UK military also in the region intercepting any airborne attacks within their range.
Sirens sounded throughout the night in Israel, with civilians in high risk zones told to stay near bomb shelters.
Israeli authorities confirmed a 10-year-old girl was severely injured by shrapnel from an interceptor missile launched in the Negev region in the nation’s south.
The girl suffered a head injury and was taken to hospital for further treatment.
Meanwhile, Iranian hacking group Handala claimed to have breached Israel’s radar systems. It also sent 500,000 threatening text messages to Israeli citizens.
The message stated: “People will pay for the crimes and foolishness of your leaders. There is no doubt that your leaders will regret these foolish ventures. Evacuate the cities; perhaps you will see less damage!
“Do not hesitate and do not sleep; the chance to escape is less than ten seconds, and perhaps your city will be chosen.”
Iran claims attack is justified self-defence
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said the attack is a direct response to what it described as “the aggressive act of the Zionist regime against the Iranian embassy in Damascus.”
In a statement released on Telegram today, the ministry said Iran’s military was “exercising the inherent right of self-defence stipulated in Article 5 of the United Nations Charter and in response to the repeated military aggressions of the Zionist regime and the martyrdom of the official military advisers of Iran who were working in this country [Syria] at the invitation of the Syrian government.”
“The Islamic Republic of Iran’s recourse to defensive measures in exercising the right to self-defence shows Iran’s responsible approach to regional and international peace and security at a time when the illegal and genocidal actions by the Zionist apartheid regime against the Palestinian nation and the regime’s repeated military aggression.”
Analysts say Iran could have wreaked more havoc on Israel if it wanted to, claiming the attack was a means to “save face” after the attack on their Damascus embassy.
Neighbouring nations are now on “maximum alert” following the worrying escalation.
The overall damage to Israel is yet to be determined, with the world now sitting on a knife’s edge and the region on the brink.
Israel has already vowed to respond, warning Iran in the days leading up to the attack that the IDF will carry out attacks on targets within its borders.
“We have determined a clear principle: Whoever harms us, we will harm them,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday night.
Demonstrators were seen waving Iran's flag and Palestinian flags as they gathered in front of the British Embassy in Tehran following news their government had launched an attack
Israel strikes position in east Lebanon, Hezbollah source says
A Hezbollah source said Israel struck one of the Iran-backed group’s buildings in Lebanon’s east, close to the Syrian border, on Sunday as tensions soared after Iran directly attacked Israel.
“The Israeli strike targeted an area... near Baalbek and targeted a two-storey building belonging to Hezbollah,” a source within the Lebanese group told AFP, adding there were no casualties.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that “an enemy air strike targeted a building” in the village of Nabi Sheet and “destroyed it”.
An AFP photographer at the site saw the concrete and steel wreckage of the building, levelled in the attack.
Earlier Sunday, Hezbollah said it had twice launched barrages of rockets towards the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, after it joined in the major Iranian drone and missile attack against Israel.
Leaders condemn Iran
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned Iran’s actions as a “serious escalation” and called on all sides to show restraint to avoid a devastating regional conflagration.
“I strongly condemn the serious escalation represented by the large-scale attack launched on Israel by the Islamic Republic of Iran,” he said in a statement.
“I am deeply alarmed about the very real danger of a devastating region-wide escalation. I urge all parties to exercise maximum restraint to avoid any action that could lead to major military confrontations on multiple fronts in the Middle East.”
Western nations have flocked to Israel’s side,
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock pledged her nation’s support and warned Iran’s actions could have been the spark that finally set the Middle East’s powder keg alight.
“We condemn the ongoing attack in the strongest possible terms, risking to plunge an entire region into chaos,” Baerbock wrote on X.
“Iran and its proxies must stop this immediately. In these hours, we stand firmly by Israel.”
Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers said, adding the attack was irresponsible considering the tension point in the region. He called on Iran to “calm” the situation.
“We’ve seen enough bloodshed in the Middle East already,” he said on ABC’s Insiders.
“We don’t want to see any more lives lost in that part of the world and it would be much better if the Iranians use their influence in the region to try and calm tensions rather than inflame them.
“We don’t want conflict in the Middle East to be broader and deeper than it already is.”
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said it was the moment “the whole world has feared”.
“Regional escalation of the current Middle East conflict is something that, quite frankly, the whole world has feared since the beginning of the conflict,” he told Sky News.
“Iran has been a malign actor in the region for a long, long time and we condemn the attacks.”
Meanwhile, The Saudi Foreign Ministry expressed concerns over the “potential severe repercussions” of the overt attack.
“The Ministry reaffirms the Kingdom’s position that stresses the need for the [UN] Security Council to take responsibility for maintaining international peace and security, especially in this highly sensitive region for global peace and security,” the Saudi ministry said.
US Republicans are now pushing for legislation “that supports our ally Israel” and to “hold Iran and its terrorist proxies accountable”.
“In light of Iran’s unjustified attack on Israel, the House will move from its previously announced legislative schedule next week to instead consider legislation that supports our ally Israel and holds Iran and its terrorist proxies accountable,” Majority Leader of the US House of Representatives Steve Scalise said.
US President Biden has doubled down on his “iron-clad” support for Israel and said in a statement that the Unites States had “helped Israel take down nearly all of the incoming drones and missiles”.
The US president later said he told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “that Israel demonstrated a remarkable capacity to defend against and defeat even unprecedented attacks – sending a clear message to its foes that they cannot effectively threaten the security of Israel”.
News outlet Axios said Biden had told Netanyahu that he would oppose an Israeli counter-attack against Iran and that he should “take the win”.
It comes as Iran summons the French, British and German ambassadors to Tehran over reactions to its missile and drone attack on Israel.
“The British, French and German ambassadors to Tehran were summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs following the irresponsible positions of certain officials of these countries regarding Iran’s response to the actions of the Zionist regime (Israel) against the nationals and interests of our country,” the official IRNA news agency said.
Fighting in Gaza meanwhile has ground on, with Israel’s military saying Saturday it had struck more than 30 Hamas targets across Gaza.
- With AFP
Originally published as Map reveals shock reality of crisis after Iran attacked Israel
Paranoid Iran leader ‘doesn’t trust anyone’
Iran’s leader is poleaxed by fear that Israeli spies have infiltrated those around him while Israel has reportedly targeted a Syrian air base used by Russia.
Aussie shares flat with all eyes on Israel
The sharemarket inched higher on Thursday as investors braced for Israel’s response to Iranian missile and terror attacks and the release of crucial US jobs data.