Watch video: Iran launches massive missile attack on Israel in retaliation; air raid sirens, explosions rock cities

Iran launched a large-scale missile barrage on Israel late Friday, triggering air raid sirens and explosions across cities including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, in what is now the most intense escalation between the two countries in decades.

The assault, which Iran called “Severe Punishment”, came in retaliation for Israel’s unprecedented strikes on Iranian nuclear and military targets earlier the same day. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed revenge in a televised address, declaring, “The armed forces of the Islamic republic will inflict heavy blows upon this malevolent enemy... the consequences of the Israeli attack will bring it to ruin.”

Explosions heard, missiles intercepted

Israel’s military confirmed “dozens of missiles” had been launched and said many were intercepted mid-air. “The attack is ongoing,” the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said, adding that “the explosions you are hearing are from interceptions or fallen projectiles.” Authorities urged citizens to seek shelter.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed it targeted “dozens of military positions” inside Israel. Iran’s IRNA also said its forces shot down two Israeli fighter jets during a retaliatory air raid—claims that could not be independently verified.

Israeli airstrikes kill top Iranian commanders

Earlier Friday, Israel launched a massive assault using around 200 aircraft and pre-positioned explosive drones to strike nearly 100 targets, including Iran’s key enrichment sites at Natanz and Fordo, and a nuclear research centre in Isfahan.

The IDF said the strikes killed senior Iranian figures, including Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, Gen. Hossein Salami, and Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called it “a clear and present danger to Israel’s very survival,” adding that the mission had been “months in the making.”

Also read: PM Modi receives call from Netanyahu after Israel strikes Iran, urges restoration of peace

Global tensions spike

Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking at the UN, labelled Israel’s actions “state terrorism” and warned in a letter to the Security Council that “Israel will come to deeply regret this reckless aggression.” The IAEA confirmed damage to the Natanz facility and said it was monitoring for radiation leaks.

On the streets of Israel, fear gripped the population. Supermarkets were flooded, public spaces emptied, and the IDF began mobilising reservists, preparing for possible action from Iranian allies like Hezbollah.

US response and regional fallout

The US had cautioned Israel earlier in the week, worried the strikes might derail nuclear diplomacy, but was informed of the operation in advance. US forces were placed on high alert and some diplomats in Baghdad were evacuated. President Donald Trump warned Iran: “Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left.”

As missiles flew, Khamenei accused Israel of “striking residential centres” and vowed it would not “escape safely from this great crime.”

With the UN Security Council preparing an emergency session and calls for restraint coming from around the world, the shadow war between Israel and Iran has now exploded into open confrontation—one with the potential to drag the entire region into conflict.