Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps announced on Telegram that it had launched a wave of missiles and drones targeting Israel in response to U.S.-Israeli airstrikes.
The statement comes as internet access in Iran dropped to just 4% of normal levels, according to monitoring group NetBlocks. The disruption follows a recent nationwide blackout imposed during a state crackdown on protests. Iranians also experienced days without internet during last June’s war with Israel and the United States.
Meanwhile, Bahrain’s state news agency reported that the service centre of the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Juffair, Manama, had been targeted in a missile attack. Several witnesses said they heard a loud explosion near the naval base.
Iranian state media IRNA confirmed that President Masoud Pezeshkian is safe, though reports remain unclear about all locations hit, according to NYT. Some outlets claimed that strikes targeted the gated compound housing Pezeshkian and Iran’s supreme leader.
Background
The scope of the coordinated strikes by the U.S. and Israel, which began early Saturday, appears far larger than the military operation ordered by President Donald Trump last June. Trump described the new campaign as «massive.»
U.S. officials said the initial wave involved dozens of airstrikes launched from bases across the Middle East and from one or more aircraft carriers. The military deployment, the largest since the 2003 Iraq War, includes two aircraft carriers, several naval destroyers, and more than 50 fighter planes.
In Iraq, four U.S. strikes hit areas southwest of Baghdad, according to the Sabereen news agency. The targeted zone has long been used by Kata’ib Hezbollah, a powerful militia allied with Iran.
The U.S. Department of Defense is calling these strikes «Operation Epic Fury.»
Attack on Qatar
Qatar’s Ministry of Defense said that it has «successfully thwarted a number of attacks» fom Iran targeting its territory, specifically U.S. military bases near Doha. UAE and Qatar closed their airspace.
Israel says it is targeting multiple military targets in Western Iran.
Russia’s response
Deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, sharply criticised Trump.
“The peacemaker once again showed his face,” Medvedev said. “All negotiations with Iran are a cover operation. No one doubted it. No one really wanted to negotiate anything.
“The question is who has more patience to wait for the inglorious end of their enemy. The USA is only 249 years old. The Persian Empire was founded more than 2,500 years ago. Let’s see in 100 years…”
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