Israel-Hamas War Day 192: What's going on in the Middle East?

Europe's aviation regulator reaffirmed advice to airlines to use caution in Israeli and Iranian airspace though it said no civil overflights had been placed at risk during weekend tensions surrounding Iranian drone and missile strikes on Israel.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said it and the European Commission would "continue to closely monitor the situation to assess any potential safety risks for EU aircraft operators and be ready to act as appropriate."

EASA guidance that is already in place for airlines on Israel and Iran continues to apply, it said in an emailed note.

That included exercising caution and following all available aeronautical publications for Israel and neighboring airspace up to 100 nautical miles surrounding the country.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will at 2 p.m. on Monday reconvene his war cabinet, the forum empowered by other ministers to decide on any action in response to Iran's weekend drone and missile attack, a government source said.

The war cabinet, comprising Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, former defense minister Benny Gantz and several observers, previously met on Sunday night, the source said.

An attempted stabbing attack as thwarted at the Mangalim junction in the West Bank on Monday, Army Radio reported.

A suspect armed with a knife reportedly approached IDF soldiers at the junction with the weapon drawn. However, the suspect was arrested and no injuries were reported.

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates shared intelligence with the United States and Israel in order to help counter Iran's missile and drone attack early Sunday morning, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials.

Two days in advance, Iranian officials reportedly informed different Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, of their planned attack on Israel. This information was then passed to the US, WSJ reported.

This is a developing story.

Four IDF soldiers were injured by an unidentified explosion in operations just inside the Lebanese side of the western border with Israel related to securing the border.

The IDF is still reviewing what caused the explosion, but did not say anything about any active challenge or attack posed by Hezbollah.

In the absence of an active exchange with Hezbollah, the most likely candidates for an explosion would be a landmine or some other kind of more improvised boobytrap explosive.

Soldier is badly wounded, two moderately wounded

One of the soldiers is badly wounded, two are moderately wounded, and one is lightly wounded.

At a meeting of the war cabinet Saturday night after Iran launched its aerial attack on Israel, ministers Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot pressed Prime Minister Netanyahu to immediately counterattack, according to a report by Barak Ravid in Axios, citing three Israeli officials. 

The Prime Minister’s Office denied this report, calling it “precisely the opposite of reality.” 

Gantz and Eisenkot reportedly argued that the longer Israel waited to respond to the Iranian bombardment, the less international support it would have in doing so. They also claimed that an immediate counterattack, launched as Iranian drones were still on their way to Israel, would stave off another wave and end the exchange. 

According to the report, Netanyahu and other members of the war cabinet rejected an immediate counterattack, vying instead to wait to see how many casualties, and how much damage, the Iranian attack caused. 

As of Sunday night, one 7-year-old girl remains in critical condition, wounded by the attack. Light damage was done to the Nevatim Air Base, but it remains functional. Israel estimates that it intercepted 99% of Iran’s attacks.

Benjamin Netanyahu (credit: MENAHEM KAHANA/POOL VIA REUTERS)

Prime Minister wanted to wait for a call with Biden before striking

Netanyahu also reportedly wanted to wait until he spoke with US President Joe Biden before launching a counterstrike. 

“There were several options for a retaliation,” one official was quoted as saying, “but the call stopped it.” 

US forces, supported by US European Command destroyers, on Saturday and Sunday destroyed more than 80 one-way attack drones and at least six ballistic missiles aimed at Israel from Iran and Yemen, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Monday.

This includes a ballistic missile on its launcher vehicle and seven UAVs destroyed on the ground prior to their launch in areas controlled by Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, CENTCOM said in a post on X.

Iran launched an attack late on Saturday on Israeli territory with drones and missiles in retaliation for a suspected Israeli strike near its embassy compound in Syria on April 1 that killed top Revolutionary Guards commanders.

Only modest damage caused by the attack

The attack by more than 300 missiles and drones, mostly launched from inside Iran, caused only modest damage as most were shot down by Israel's Iron Dome defense system and with help from the United States, Britain, France and Jordan.

An anti-missile system operates after Iran launched drones and missiles towards Israel, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel April 14, 2024. (credit: REUTERS/AMIR COHEN)

"CENTCOM remains postured to support Israel’s defense against these dangerous actions by Iran. We will continue to work with all our regional partners to increase regional security," the US military said.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday issued a reminder that acts of reprisal involving the use of force are barred under international law after Iran's attack on Israel, while the US warned the Security Council it would work to hold Tehran accountable at the UN

Guterres, speaking to a meeting of the UN Security Council, told member states that the UN charter bars the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state as he condemned Iran's attack on Israel and warned against further escalation.

Iran launched a swarm of explosive drones and fired missiles on Saturday in its first-ever direct attack on Israeli territory, risking a major escalation.

The attack was in response to a suspected Israeli strike on Iran's embassy compound in Syria on April 1 that killed top Revolutionary Guards commanders and followed months of clashes between Israel and Iran's regional allies, triggered by the war in Gaza.

'On the brink' of regional war

"The Middle East is on the brink. The people of the region are confronting a real danger of a devastating full-scale conflict. Now is the time to defuse and de-escalate," Guterres told the meeting, which was called after Iran's attack.

An anti-missile system operates after Iran launched drones and missiles towards Israel, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel April 14, 2024. (credit: REUTERS/AMIR COHEN)

Deputy US Ambassador to the UN Robert Wood called on the 15-member body to unequivocally condemn Iran's attack, as he said the Security Council has an obligation to not let Iran's actions go unanswered.

"In the coming days, and in consultation with other member states, the United States will explore additional measures to hold Iran accountable here at the United Nations," he said, without specifying what action the US would take.

"Let me be clear: if Iran or its proxies take actions against the United States or further action against Israel, Iran will be held responsible," he said, adding that the US took note of Guterres' remarks and that Washington's actions have been defensive.

Iran's UN ambassador, Amir Saeid Iravani, said his country's action was necessary and proportionate, and he said that while Tehran does not seek an escalation or war in the region and has no intention of engaging in conflict with the US, it reaffirms its right to defend itself.

"If the US initiates military operations against Iran, its citizens, or its security and interests, Iran will use its inherent right to respond proportionately," he said.

Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, accused Iran of violating international law at the meeting and played a video on a tablet that he said showed Israel's interception of Iranian drones above Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound, one of Islam's holiest sites.

"Here, you can look at it," he gestured with the tablet and told the Iranian ambassador, who was also seated in the Security Council chamber.

Erdan called on the Security Council to condemn Iran, reimpose sanctions and designate Iran's Revolutionary Guards a terror organization.

Tehran, which had vowed retaliation for what it called an Israeli strike on its Damascus consulate on April 1 that killed seven of its officers, said its strike was punishment for "Israeli crimes". Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the consulate attack.

Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, requested the council hold the meeting in a letter on Saturday to the council's president.

"The Iranian attack is a serious threat to global peace and security and I expect the Council to use every means to take concrete action against Iran," Erdan wrote in a post on X.

Guterres on Sunday also called for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza after more than six months of fighting, the unconditional release of all hostages and the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza as it faces famine.

"Regional - and indeed global - peace and security are being undermined by the hour. Neither the region nor the world can afford more war," he said.

In a historic, first-ever direct attack between Iran and Israel, the Islamic Republic launched around 350 drones and missiles across the region on Saturday night, prompting sirens all across the country, disrupting and possibly altering the power balance in the Middle East.

The drones and missiles were shot down at a 99% rate. Drones and missiles were also launched from Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen. They included 170 drones, 120 ballistic missiles, and 30 missiles, containing over 60 tons of explosives.

Three Jordanians were killed, a seven-year-old girl from a Bedouin village near Arad was seriously wounded, while a few dozen others were treated for anxiety. Minor damage was sustained to infrastructure at the IDF Nevatim base in southern Israel during the attack as well, IDF Spokesman Daniel Hagari said.

There were two rounds of rockets, around 40 in total, fired on Israel from Lebanon, with Israel responding with counterattacks in close to real-time.

None of the drones or cruise missiles entered Israeli airspace, while Hagari noted that only a small number of ballistic missiles managed to penetrate.

Damage from the Iranian barrage near the Israel Air Force Nevetim air base, April 14, 2024 (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

Almost all interceptions have been by dozens of aircraft, the long-range Arrow missile systems, or the medium-range David’s Sling system. The Iron Dome, which defends well against Hamas and Hezbollah’s short-range rockets, is less relevant for drones and fancier long-range missiles.

The attack came after Iran accused Israel of killing top Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Mohammad Reza Zahedi on April 1. Zahedi has directed proxy attacks on Israel in Lebanon and Syria and was a top coordinator with Hezbollah.

Despite injuring civilians, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said it conducted the attack against military bases in “self-defense.”

On 14 April 2024, I.R.Iran's armed forces have carried out a series of military strikes on Israeli's military bases in response to, & in exercise of its inherent right of #self_defense as recognized under Article 51 of the Charter, against Israel's recurring military aggressions, pic.twitter.com/1zEWt9Slhd

— Foreign Ministry, Islamic Republic of Iran 🇮🇷 (@IRIMFA_EN) April 14, 2024

The IDF said the wide number of sirens was mostly not from rockets that entered Israeli territory but from pieces of rockets shot down outside of Israel, where the remains of the rockets’ landing spots were unpredictable.

Military sources hinted at an Israeli response of large proportions, including with the active backing of key allies, but did not give details about scope and timing. The IDF declined to publicly commit to any specific timeline for a counterstrike on Iran.

The US, UK, France, and Jordan helped shoot down Iranian projectiles, with the US shooting down over 70. Israeli aircraft started shooting down projectiles as of 12 a.m., but significant numbers of threats were shot down between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m.

Hezbollah said it fired dozens of Katyusha rockets from Lebanon towards the Golan Heights on Saturday night, setting off sirens in Snir.

On Sunday morning, about 30 rockets were fired again from Lebanon toward northern Israel. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for that barrage as well and said it was in response to Israeli strikes on towns in southern Lebanon earlier in the night. One of the rockets fell in Katzrin, heavily damaging property, but there were no physical injuries.

At 1:06 a.m., Iran’s Mission to the UN stated that the attack on Israel “can be deemed concluded. However, should the Israeli regime make another mistake, Iran’s response will be considerably more severe. It is a conflict between Iran and the rogue Israeli regime, from which the US must stay away!”

Conducted on the strength of Article 51 of the UN Charter pertaining to legitimate defense, Iran’s military action was in response to the Zionist regime’s aggression against our diplomatic premises in Damascus. The matter can be deemed concluded. However, should the Israeli…

— Permanent Mission of I.R.Iran to UN, NY (@Iran_UN) April 13, 2024

The security cabinet authorized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and war minister Benny Gantz to make decisions concerning further action against Iran early on Sunday morning, and the cabinet met again later that day.

Ofir Gendelman, the prime minister’s spokesperson to Arabic media, warned that Israel’s response will be “firm and clear,” in statements to Al-Arabiya on Saturday night.

The Israel Airports Authority closed Israeli airspace starting at 12:30 a.m., opening up later in the day.

The commander of the IDF’s Home Front Command, Rafi Milo, called on civilians to “continue to be cautious and listen to directives; they can change depending on the situation.

“We have been at war on several fronts for over six months,” he continued. “Throughout the war, we faced and rubbed shoulders with many challenges in a very wide variety of threats, we learned and improved – we arrive prepared and strong both in defense and attack.”

The Health Ministry ordered hospitals to be on alert and increase the staff at medical institutions, while vacations for medical staff were canceled.

Shortly after the attack began, Iraqi officials announced that Iraqi airspace was closed, followed by Lebanon and Jordan.

An unlikely alliance

Jordanian jets shot down dozens of Iranian drones, two regional security sources had told Reuters.

The British Ministry of Defence said its Royal Air Force jets in the Middle East “will intercept any airborne attacks within range of our existing missions, as required. In response to increased Iranian threats and the growing risk of escalation in the Middle East, the UK Government has been working with partners across the region to encourage de-escalation and prevent further attacks.”

Iraqi security sources told Arab media that several Iranian missiles fell near Yusufiya, south of Baghdad, on Saturday night. Long lines were reported at gas stations in Iran and Lebanon as residents rushed to prepare for an expected regional escalation.

Netanyahu, in a video message shortly before the attack, said that “in recent years, and even more so in recent weeks, Israel has been preparing for the possibility of a direct attack from Iran.”

He warned Tehran that “whoever harms us, we will harm them. We will protect ourselves from any threat and we will do so with steadfastness and determination.”

In a call between US President Joe Biden and Netanyahu, the president reaffirmed “America’s ironclad commitment to the security of Israel,” and that “Israel demonstrated a remarkable capacity to defend against and defeat even unprecedented attacks – sending a clear message to its foes that they cannot effectively threaten the security of Israel.”

Biden told Netanyahu that the US would not take part in any offensive operations against Iran, CNN reported on Sunday morning.

According to the report, Biden told Netanyahu that Israel should consider the success in intercepting the Iranian attack a “win.”

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin asked Gallant to notify the US of any potential response to the Iranian attack, a US official told CNN early Sunday.

Separately, Director of the Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) Moshe Patel on Monday said that nearly 40 years of investment in long-range missile defense had finally paid off to defend against Iran’s massive attack.

He said that “all of the defense systems proved themselves well. All of their actions were coordinated after significant preparation and development of the systems, simulations, and integration with actual battle units.”

“If someone thought the scenarios were imaginary” where Israel would need long-range missile defense, they finally saw the relevance.

Patel told how the program to defend against long-range missiles started in 1986 around when US president Ronald Reagan was enthralled with the idea of truly effective missile defense (for the US against the Soviet Union.)

After Iraq attacked Israel with long-range Scud missiles in 1991, the program got a boost, said Patel.

However, until Hezbollah rained down missiles on Israel in the Second Lebanon War in 2006, missile defense was still sort of the “forgotten stepchild” of the defense establishment with most IDF chiefs viewing it as a waste of limited resources that would be better used to develop more offensive weapons.

Eventually, Iron Dome, which provides short-range defense against high volumes of weaker Hamas and Hezbollah rockets, overtook the Arrow long-range missile defense as the “favored child” among the political class.

Still, the Arrow missile system continued and developed with versions II and III. Israel eventually developed David’s Sling for mid-tier defense, drones, and cruise missiles.

The Arrow and David’s Sling were the stars of Saturday night.

Meanwhile, the military announced late Monday that two reservist brigades would be called up soon for future operations in Gaza, as the Mossad had said that Hamas rejected a ceasefire hostage deal, and the IDF pressed on in the enclave.

The IDF did not specify the nature of those operations, but the military left a vacuum in the Khan Yunis part of southern Gaza when it withdrew from there last Saturday.

Also, the IDF has been expected to start moving toward an eventual operation against four remaining Hamas battalions in Rafah in deep southern Gaza.

Reuters contributed to this report.

The United States is not interested in a war with Iran, the White House said on Sunday, as it sought to de-escalate regional tensions in the aftermath of Iran’s first direct attack on the Jewish state, and prevent a harsh IDF response.

“We don’t want to see this escalate. We’re not looking for a wider war with Iran,” US National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby told NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday morning.

But, he stressed, the US “will continue to help Israel defend itself.”

“We made it very clear to all parties[,] including Iran, what we would do and how we would continue to defend Israel and also how seriously we would take any potential threat to our personnel and our facilities in the region,” Kirby stated.

He spoke as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held meetings with the war cabinet and the security cabinet to decide what Israel’s response should be, amid reports that US President Joe Biden had personally prevented Netanyahu from issuing orders for a direct attack.

Objects are seen in the sky above Jerusalem after Iran launched drones and missiles towards Israel, in Jerusalem April 14, 2024. (credit: RONEN ZVULUN/REUTERS)

President Isaac Herzog told Sky News on Sunday that Israel was considering all options, in a situation where Iran had effectively issued a “declaration of war.”

A US official, however, said that “Israel made clear to us, it was not seeking escalation.”

An official stressed to reporters that the US would not be involved in any potential Israeli response to the Iran attack. 
US officials who briefed reporters after the dramatic events of late Saturday night explained that this was the first time that Iran had directly attacked the Jewish state.

It came after four decades of shadow wars, including Israel’s battles over the last half-year with Iranian proxy group Hamas in the South, Hezbollah in the North, and the Houthis in Yemen.

"Incredible military achievement"

Israel defended itself against a barrage of over 300 ballistic and cruise missiles, and drones, launched at the Jewish state from Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen.

In an unprecedented move, Israel prevented 99% of the missiles from reaching their targets with the help of a coalition of armed forces that included the armies of the US, the United Kingdom, France, and Jordan.

US officials told reporters that the Biden administration had begun preparing 10 days ago for a coordinated response to such an attack, in light of Israel’s strike in Damascus that killed seven Iranian officials on April 1, including one senior IRGC official.

Biden had given instructions to the relevant US officials and bodies to defend Israel to “the maximum extent possible,” US officials said.

He was the first “American President to directly defend Israel. He followed and directed every detail of his response, starting nearly two weeks ago, as we began to receive indications that Iran was preparing for a large-scale attack” with the aim of causing “significant damage and deaths.”

Had the attack been “successful,” it could have caused “an uncontrollable escalation,” something which the US had attempted to avoid since October 7, the officials added.

In advance of the attack, US officials have been in constant contact with their Israeli counterparts, and other partners in the region, as well as with Iran with a series of direct communications through a Swiss channel and other relevant players. They also held conversations with Turkey, China, Iraq and India.

Israel’s Ambassador to the US Mike Herzog and the embassy’s defense attache visited the White House to walk through the response to the attack in advance, as CENTCOM Commander Michael Erik Kurilla was in Israel in the days leading up to it. On Saturday, Biden returned early from a trip to Delaware to be in the situation room at the White House, as events unfolded.

The official described the tense moments: “We knew there were over 100 ballistic missiles in the sky, with a short period of travel time to Israel and the result of the defense [efforts in the skies] was unclear.” Then, as the results came in, there was a “bit of a breath of relief.”

Simultaneously in Israel, Netanyahu sat with his war cabinet, the US officials described. Around 9 p.m. Saturday – about 3 a.m. Sunday morning in Israel – the two leaders spoke.

“The President reaffirmed our unwavering support for Israel’s defense. But again, the context for the call, I think keep in mind, [is] that both leaders had just gone through the 10 days of preparations and then the results which were just becoming known and we were feeling pretty good about where we were,” a US official said.

Biden assured Netanyahu that Israel “really came out far ahead in this exchange,” an official said, starting with the Damascus strike.

Iran then responded, and Israel “clearly demonstrated its military superiority in defeating this attack, particularly in coordination with others.”

Biden has been clear that the actions of Iran and its proxies against Israel end here.

The US has an “ironclad commitment” to Israel’s security and proved that this weekend, an official said.

They further stressed that “Iran intended to cause significant damage, and they failed in their mission to do so.”
In his public statements on US media channels, Kirby said that the US was remaining vigilant to potential threats from Iran, including to its own personnel and troops.

Biden, he said, is focused on using diplomacy to constrain the situation and is doing so “personally.”

Kirby told ABC’s This Week that everything Biden has done since the start of the Israel-Hamas on October 7 “has been to try to keep this from becoming a wider regional war.” Over the last few days, the US moved destroyers and fighter squadrons into the region to help Israel defend itself, he explained.

Kirby described to NBC the joint defensive operation against Iran as “an incredible military achievement by Israel, and quite frankly, the United States and other partners that helped Israel defend itself against more than 300 drones and missiles.”

He lauded Israeli “military superiority,” in particular.

The maneuver also demonstrated that Israel “has friends that it’s not standing alone, that it’s not isolated on the world stage," he added.