IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi on Monday night spoke at the Nevatim air force base in southern Israel, which Iran targeted and partially hit on Sunday, saying, “We are weighing our steps, and the firing of so many missiles, including cruise missiles, and drones at the State of Israel’s territory, will be responded to.”
Halevi added that he was uplifted by the massive defensive support umbrella provided by the US to help shoot down Iran’s swarms of aerial attacks.
In addition, he said that he knew that the pilots at the base were ready for any mission against Iran or other adversaries that he and the government would set down for them.
Regarding reports that the damage to Nevatim was more extensive than originally admitted by the IDF, the military doubled down on Monday, calling the reports incorrect.
Varying reports of damage to Israel Air Force base
The IDF did not give full specifics, The Jerusalem Post could not independently confirm the situation, and the military has sometimes in the past downplayed successes by Israeli adversaries in a somewhat exaggerated fashion, claiming national security concerns.
However, the IDF released video footage on Sunday, which it said showed aircraft operating at the base without problems. On Monday night, additional footage showing limited damage to a Nevatim storage facility was released, which would not impact flying operations per se.
IDF Chief Spokesman Daniel Hagari said that all of the damage was fixable within a mere period of days.
Hagari did not show footage of the one hit to one of the runways, which he said was a minor hit.