Iranian military base in Iraq ‘targeted by Israeli air strikes’
Photos have revealed the damage left after a “bombing” on an Iraqi military base housing pro-Iranian armed groups, as Israel launched a direct air strike against Iran’s military targets.
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Tensions in the Middle East remain high after several people were wounded in a “bombing” on an Iraqi military base housing pro-Iranian armed groups, after Israel launched a direct air strike against Iran’s military targets.
The explosion hit the Calso military base in Babylon province south of Baghdad, where Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces is stationed, according to an interior ministry source and a military official.
A ministry of interior official said the “aerial bombing” killed one person and wounded eight others, while the military source reported three Iraqi military personnel had been injured.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said Iran will respond at an immediate and “maximum level” if Israel acts against its interests.
“If Israel wants to do another adventurism and acts against the interests of Iran, our next response will be immediate and will be at the maximum level,” he told NBC News.
Shortly after the explosion, the US military confirmed its forces were not behind it.
“The United States has not conducted air strikes in Iraq today,” US Central Command (CENTCOM) posted on social media platform X, adding reports of US forces carrying out a strike were “not true.”
The Iraqi military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the explosion had occurred in “warehouses storing equipment”.
“A fire is still raging and the search for the injured is continuing,” the source said.
The explosion on the Iraqi military base comes amid spiralling regional tensions over the war between Israel and Iran-backed Palestinian militants Hamas.
On Friday, Israel targeted a military base near the city of Isfahan in central Iran, but it did not attack Iran’s nuclear facilities. The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed there was no damage.
Israeli officials made no public comment on Friday’s attack and Iranian officials have played down its significance.
Australia’s acting Foreign Minister Katy Gallagher said Israel’s strike on Iran may trigger more fighting, and called for both to “step back to avoid a further spiral of violence”.
“Australia remains extremely concerned about the potential for miscalculation and further escalation of conflict in the region,” she said.
“This is in no one’s interests.”
Retired general Israel Ziv, a former Israel Defence Force operations chief, told Channel 12 News that if the attack was carried out by Israel, it was not intended to cause major destruction, but to send a “very clear message to Iran,” showing the IDF’s ability to reach Iran’s sensitive sites.
The Pentagon said US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant after the strike, saying they discussed “maintaining stability in the Middle East”.
Despite reports the radar site was destroyed, satellite images published by CNN did not appear to show any extensive damage to Iran’s Isfahan air base.
Hamas political leader Imsail Haniyeh will also meet Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday.
Erdogan has sought but failed to establish a foothold as a mediator in the Palestinian conflict, and has been discreet about his meetings with the Hamas head.
“We will keep the agenda between us and Mr Haniyeh,” Erdogan said.
With Qatar saying it will reassess its role as a mediator between Hamas and Israel, Erdogan sent his Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to Doha this week in a new sign that he wants a role.
Israel had warned it would hit back after Iran fired missiles and drones at Israel almost a week ago, which in itself was a retaliation for a deadly strike on April 1 on Iran’s consulate building in Syria, widely blamed on Israel.
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ISRAELI MISSILE ‘COULD AVOID DETECTION’
According to The New York Times, two Western officials said a missile fired in an alleged Israeli strike on air defences of the Natanz nuclear site had technology that enabled the weapon to evade Iran’s radar defense systems.
Two Iranian officials also added Iran did not detect intrusions into its airspace including drones, missiles or aircraft.
ERDOGAN TO MEET HAMAS LEADER
Hamas political leader Imsail Haniyeh will meet Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday with Middle East tensions at a high after Israel's reported attack on Iran and Gaza bracing for a new Israeli offensive. "Haniyeh sees Erdogan as a man with a voice in Washington and in Europe," FRANCE 24's Jasper Mortimer said, adding that Erdogan who "likened Israel to Nazi Germany" has, however, "no chance of mediating between Hamas and Israel".
SIRENS HEARD IN TOWNS TO NORTH
Sirens were heard in several communities close to the northern border of Israel, according to Times of Israel, warning of a suspected incoming drone attack.
UN URGES BOTH SIDES TO STOP RETALIATING
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has urged both sides to cease retaliating after Israel carried out a military strike on Iran, a spokesman said in a statement on Friday local time.
“The Secretary-General reiterates that it is high time to stop the dangerous cycle of retaliation in the Middle East,” the statement read.
“The Secretary-General condemns any act of retaliation and appeals to the international community to work together to prevent any further development that could lead to devastating consequences for the entire region and beyond,” it continued.
Meanwhile, Russia says it has had contact with both Israel and its ally Iran.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says Russia “made it very clear” to Israel that Iran “does not want escalation”.
Jordan, which shares a border with Israel and played a role in repelling the Iranian missile and drone attacks last weekend, warned against the “danger of regional escalation”.
ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTS IN IRAN
It comes as an anti-Israel demonstration has been staged in Iran’s capital.
Hundreds of people gathered on the streets of Tehran, with protesters holding signs opposing Israel and carrying portraits of the country’s leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Israel’s “aggression” towards Iran is an escalation against the entire region, Sami Abu Zuhri, a senior Hamas official, has said.
“We call for expanding the scale of the engagement against the [Israeli] occupation in response to the war of genocide in Gaza and the escalation in the region,” Mr Abu Zuhri said.
Hamas leaders have often praised Iran for its financial and military support.
Israel issued the US a “last minute” warning before launching its strike on Iran, Italy has said.
On Friday, US officials confirmed they received advance warning of an Israeli attack.
Italy’s foreign minister Antonio Tajani addressed reporters in Capri saying the US was only “informed at the last minute”.
Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, declined to comment on the alleged Israeli warning but insisted they played no part in the strike.
ISRAELI STRIKE SEEN AS CHILD’S PLAY
Iran’s foreign minister played down the Israeli strike in response to an Iranian missile and drone attack as child’s play. He said Tehran will not respond unless Iranian “interests” were targeted.
“What happened… was no attack,” Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian tells NBC News.
“It was the flight of two or three quad-copters, which are at the level of toys that our children use in Iran.”
‘ALL FOR SHOW’: GAZANS SLAM ‘ATTACK’
Meanwhile, Gazans in the besieged southern city of Rafah said they believed Israel’s reported strike against Iran was little more than a show — and called for peace in the region.
“As everybody knows, this is all staged and agreed upon in advance from both sides,” resident Alaa Abu Taha said.
“If someone wants to strike, they don’t give prior warning or threaten before.”
Rafah resident Iyad Labbad told reporters “nothing will happen” after the reported strikes. “There will be no regional conflict. It’s just a show,” he said.
He said Iran struck “empty areas” in Israel, which had chosen to “retaliate by striking empty areas” in Iran.
“The war between Iran and Israel will halt soon,” he said. “This is all for nothing.”
‘SERIOUS DANGER’: AUSSIES WARNED TO LEAVE ISRAEL NOW
Australians in Israel have been urged to leave the country urgently as concerns mount about further escalation of conflict in the region following Israel’s retaliatory strike on Iran.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) updated its travel advice on Friday for Australians in Israel and the Palestinian territories, saying they should leave now if safe to do so.
“Military attacks may result in airspace closures, flight cancellations and diversions and other travel disruptions,” the advice read.
DFAT also warned Australians in Israel that Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport “may pause operations due to heightened security concerns at any time, and at short notice”.
Ian Parmeter from the Australian National University’s Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies at said such warnings from DFAT were rare, but were done when they believed Australians faced “serious danger”.
“It means that whatever has happened could result in an Iranian counter-strike against Israel, which could put all civilians in Israel at risk. It’s taking what you might call due care,” he said.
Conflicting reports emerged from Iran about Israel’s strike, with the FARS news site reporting an explosion northwest of the city of Isfahan, but the government claiming the explosions were the result of drones being shot down, and not missiles detonating.
Several drones “have been successfully shot down by the country’s air defence, there are no reports of a missile attack for now,” Iran’s space agency spokesman Hossein Dalirian said.
US officials told America’s ABC and CBS that Israeli missiles had hit an Iranian site but did not specify the location.
They could not confirm other reports of explosions in southern Syria and in Iraq, including in the capital Baghdad.
Senior Iranian officials issued a statement on Friday saying Iran had no immediate plans to retaliate against Israel saying the source of the attack had not been confirmed.
NO DAMAGE TO IRANIAN NUCLEAR SITES
There has been no damage to Iranian nuclear sites following explosions on Friday, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said.
“IAEA can confirm that there is no damage to Iran’s nuclear sites,” the Vienna-based agency said.
The agency called for “extreme restraint from everybody” and added that “nuclear facilities should never be a target in military conflicts”.
Iran’s Fars news agency reported “three explosions” were heard near Qahjavarestan, near Isfahan airport and the 8th Shekari army air base.
Israel had previously warned it would hit back after Iran fired hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel almost a week ago, in retaliation for a deadly strike — which Tehran blamed on its foe — that levelled Iran’s consular annex at its embassy in Syria.
WORLD REACTS TO ISRAEL’S STRIKE
American officials have confirmed they did receive warning from Israel before its strike, but neither endorsed nor condemned the attack, making it clear the choice was Israel’s alone.
Meanwhile, other world leaders are calling for “absolute restraint” to avert a worldwide war.
The G7 foreign ministers urged all parties to work together to prevent further escalation in the Middle East, issuing a statement at the end of their meeting in Capri on April 19.
Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he wants to see “calm heads prevail”.
“Significant escalation is not in anyone’s interest,” he said during questions after delivering an unrelated speech, adding: “What we want to see is calm heads prevail across the region.”
President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, also called for restraint, saying it is “absolutely necessary” that “all sides refrain from further action”.
AIRLINES DIVERT FLIGHTS
Airlines including Emirates and Lufthansa have diverted flights due to the escalating tension, with more cancellations expected.
Qantas had already announced it was amending the flight plan of its Perth to London service to avoid Iranian airspace.
Israel’s attack comes just days after Iran launched 300 drones and missiles at Israel.
‘ESCALATION COULD BE AVOIDED’: EXPERT
Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told the BBC it was unclear whether the Israeli strike was a case of “signalling and messaging” or whether the Middle East was “climbing up the escalatory ladder”.
“The Iranians appear to be ridiculing and trivialising the Israeli attack … as a series of drone strikes,” he said.
It was possible escalation could be avoided if each side considered they had “discharged the minimum obligations” to protect national pride, Mr Miller told the BBC.
While Iran had a nuclear program it was “still a fair way” from developing a nuclear weapon, Mr Parmeter said.
But a war with Israel would also give them “an incentive to go further,” he said.
US VETOES PALESTINE STATE UN MEMBERSHIP
Earlier, the United States vetoed a draft resolution that recommended to the 193-member UN General Assembly that the State of Palestine be granted full membership of the UN.
The vote in the 15-member security council was 12 in favour, the US opposed and two abstentions, the UK and Switzerland.
The US said an independent Palestinian state should be established through direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and not through UN action.
“We completely believe in the two-state solution and a state for the Palestinian people. We believe the best and the most sustainable way to do that is through direct negotiations between the parties,” the White House national security spokesman, John Kirby, said.
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