The IDF struck military targets in western and central Iran early Monday after the Islamic Republic launched ballistic missile barrages at the Jewish state overnight.
Dozens of Israeli Air Force fighter jets, guided by military intelligence, carried out an ‘extensive’ series of strikes against Iranian air defence systems.
Tehran was rocked by a massive blast which shook the foreign ministry building in the centre of the city.
Meanwhile, the IDF revealed a petrochemical plant in Mahshahr, south western Iran, which produces “critical components for the development of ballistic missiles”, was pounded.
Israel hit back after 22 ballistic missiles were launched from Iran, in addition to two rockets fired by Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthis.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps revealed it targeted two military bases in Israel after the IDF blasted radar sites in three parts of Iran.
On Tuesday night, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu declared: “The regime of terror in Iran is weaker than ever, and the State of Israel is stronger than ever.”
He added: “We will continue to fight decisively against every threat of radical Islam.”
Earlier, the IDF said in a statement: “The IDF completed a large-scale strike on strategic defence systems belonging to the Iranian terror regime.
‘’Recently, defence systems were deployed across Iran to restore the regime’s capabilities degraded during Operation Roaring Lion.
"The strike led to the dismantling of these systems.”
Iran called off its attacks on Monday afternoon.
Israel had also decided to stop its strikes on Iran, Reuters reported.
However, Iran warned it would carry out “far more severe and crushing” missile attacks against Israel if the Jewish state continued military operations against Hezbollah, its Lebanese proxy.
Meanwhile, Israel Katz, Israel’s defence minister, insisted: “Any Iranian attempt to link Lebanon and Iran and attack Israel will be met with great force, as happened yesterday.”
He added: “The IDF will continue to operate in Lebanon against the terrorist organisation Hezbollah.”
Mr Netanyahu and US president Donald Trump spoke by telephone on Monday before Tehran announced that it would cease its attacks, according to reports.
Earlier, Mr Trump, in a post of Truth Social, said Israel and Iran must “immediately stop shooting”.
Iran had initially fired 11 missiles at Israel on Sunday night.
One target was the Ramat David Airbase near Haifa, northern Israel.
Early on Monday, Israel responded, attacking Tehran, Isfahan, Karaj, and Tabriz.
Iran then fired more ballistic missiles, and there were explosions over Jerusalem.
IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir and senior military commanders were directing the strikes on Iran from the Israeli Air Force command bunker.
“The IDF is alert and prepared to continue operating in all arenas against those who threaten the State of Israel,” a spokesperson said. “The IDF is at full readiness in both offence and defence.”
Air-raid sirens sounded repeatedly across northern Israel and Samaria on Sunday night and Monday morning as Iranian missiles targeted the country, from the north to the south, including Jerusalem.
According to the IDF, most of the projectiles were intercepted, and no casualties were reported.
A missile landed in the West Bank and damaged three homes, though no injuries were reported, according to initial assessments by emergency responders.
Iran launched additional volleys around 9.30am on Monday, triggering air-raid sirens in the country’s north, as well as in Tel Aviv, central Israel and the West Bank. There were no immediate reports of missile impacts of injuries in the aerial assaults.
The Home Front Command had issued advance warnings directly to mobile phones in affected areas before sirens sounded.
Residents across Israel were instructed to enter protected spaces after receiving alerts and remain there until further notice.
“The public is requested to act responsibly and follow the instructions—they save lives,” the IDF said.
Iran said it used high-tech ballistic missiles to “penetrate Israel’s multilayered air defences”.
The country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said they had targeted a petrochemical complex in Israel in retaliation for the attack at Mahshahr — and warned that Israel had started a “dangerous game”.
The Israeli military said it detected a missile launch from the Houthis in Yemen toward Israel early Monday.
Air defence systems intercepted the threat, and the Home Front Command later informed residents that they could leave protected spaces, the IDF said.
Israeli Ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, said of the 11 missiles launched by Iran on Sunday: “Each of these missiles can destroy an entire neighbourhood and kill hundreds.
“No self-respecting country in the world would tolerate such an attack, and neither will Israel.”
According to Leiter, Israel was targeting Iranian surface-to-surface missile launch sites as well as infrastructure facilities unrelated to the energy sector.
Leiter also warned Hezbollah against joining the fighting, noting that Lebanon has rejected Iranian influence and seeks freedom from the Iranian-backed terrorist organisation.
“If Hezbollah fires at Israel, its command centres in Dahiyeh will be hit hard,” he wrote. “Everyone is fed up with this insane Iranian regime.”
Leiter’s American counterpart, Mike Huckabee, wrote on Monday morning that the “mothership of Satan is in Tehran,” as embassy personnel were rushed to bomb shelters.
“Iran fired missiles at Israel last night & early today. The missile alerts sounded at 6 am in Jerusalem. They were intercepted, thank God!” the envoy wrote on X.
“Iran & its proxy agents of evil want to incinerate America & Israel,” added Huckabee.
In another post, the ambassador said he heard “loud booms overhead,” adding, “Hopefully it’s the interception. Another day we live under threat of the crazed Iranian regime.”
The latest escalation marked the first direct Iranian missile attack on Israel since a ceasefire took effect on April 8.
Israeli officials have said that the truce was effectively violated by continued Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks from Lebanon, which Jerusalem says were carried out at the direction of Tehran.
The flare-up followed reports of US efforts to prevent further military escalation between Israel and Iran, including a phone call from President Donald Trump urging Netanyahu not to respond to new Iranian missile attacks on Israel.
Nevertheless, an Israeli official said the Israeli attack on Iran had been coordinated with the United States. “We’re at the beginning of several days of fighting against Iran and its proxies across the Middle East,” the official told Channel 14 News.
In Israel, schools were closed nationwide on Monday, while public transportation was expected to operate at approximately 75 per cent capacity. Ben-Gurion International Airport remained open, with Israel Airports Authority’s live arrivals and departures boards active.
To get more Israel news, click here to sign up for our free Israel Briefing newsletter.