{"id":31552,"date":"2024-04-20T22:52:03","date_gmt":"2024-04-20T22:52:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/20\/israels-strike-on-iran-highlights-its-ability-to-evade-tehrans-air-defenses\/"},"modified":"2024-04-20T22:52:03","modified_gmt":"2024-04-20T22:52:03","slug":"israels-strike-on-iran-highlights-its-ability-to-evade-tehrans-air-defenses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/20\/israels-strike-on-iran-highlights-its-ability-to-evade-tehrans-air-defenses\/","title":{"rendered":"Israel\u2019s Strike on Iran Highlights Its Ability to Evade Tehran\u2019s Air Defenses"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align:center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1050\" height=\"550\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/04\/20\/multimedia\/20mideast-leadall-01-bljf\/20mideast-leadall-01-bljf-facebookJumbo.jpg?resize=1050,550&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Israel\u2019s Strike on Iran Highlights Its Ability to Evade Tehran\u2019s Air Defenses\" title=\"Israel\u2019s Strike on Iran Highlights Its Ability to Evade Tehran\u2019s Air Defenses\" \/><\/div><p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">An Israeli airstrike on Iran on Friday damaged an air defense system, according to Western and Iranian officials, in an attack calculated to deliver a message that Israel could bypass Iran\u2019s defensive systems undetected and paralyze them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The strike damaged a defensive battery near Natanz, a city in central Iran that is critical to the country\u2019s nuclear weapons program, according to two Western officials and two Iranian officials. The attack \u2014 and the revelation on Saturday of its target \u2014 was in retaliation for Iran\u2019s strike in Israel last week after Israel bombed its embassy compound in Damascus. But it used a fraction of the firepower Tehran deployed in launching hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The strike on Friday was the latest salvo in a series of tit-for-tat attacks between the two countries this month that have heightened fears of a broader regional conflict. But the relatively limited scope of Israel\u2019s strike and the muted response from Iranian officials seem to have eased tensions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Iran and Israel have conducted a yearslong <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/19\/world\/middleeast\/iran-israel-shadow-war-history.html\" title=\"\">shadow war<\/a>, but the conflict intensified on April 1, when Israeli warplanes killed seven Iranian officials, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/01\/world\/middleeast\/iran-commanders-killed-syria-israel.html\" title=\"\">including three senior commanders<\/a>, at an Iranian diplomatic compound in Syria, which Israel asserts was used as a military site. Iran responded last week by firing a barrage of drones and cruise and ballistic missiles at Israel, almost all of which were shot down by Israel and its allies. But the strikes nevertheless rattled Israelis.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">That attack was Iran\u2019s first-ever direct assault on Israeli soil, thrusting the countries\u2019 clandestine warfare \u2014 long fought by land, air, sea and cyberspace \u2014 into open view. The Israeli government vowed to respond, even as world leaders and Western allies, including the United States, rushed to de-escalate the situation, urging Israel not to respond in a way that could lead to a regional war.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Though Israel\u2019s leaders came close to ordering a more extensive attack on Iran, the Friday attack appeared calibrated to send a warning about Israel\u2019s military capabilities \u2014 but without further raising tensions as Israel continues to fight Hamas in Gaza.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The two Iranian officials who discussed the Israeli attack said that Israel had struck an S-300 antiaircraft system at a military base in the province of Isfahan. The officials\u2019 account was supported by <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/live\/2024\/04\/18\/world\/israel-iran-gaza-war-news#satellite-imagery-shows-that-a-precision-attack-damaged-an-air-defense-system-at-an-iranian-base\" title=\"\">satellite imagery analyzed by The New York Times<\/a>, which showed damage to the radar of an S-300 system at the Eighth Shekari Air Base in Isfahan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">It was unclear precisely what sort of weapon struck the S-300 system. Three Western and two Iranian officials confirmed on Friday that Israel had deployed aerial drones and at least one missile fired from a warplane. Previously, Iranian officials had said the attack on the military base had been conducted by small drones, most likely launched from inside Iranian territory.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Two Western officials said that a missile was fired from a warplane far from Israeli or Iranian airspace, and that the weapon included technology that enabled it to evade Iran\u2019s radar defenses. The two Iranian officials said the military had not detected anything entering the country\u2019s airspace on Friday, including drones, missiles or aircraft.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The efforts to ratchet down tensions between Israel and Iran played out as Israel\u2019s war against Hamas, now in its sixth month, continued on Saturday with reports of a deadly assault in southern Gaza.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Israeli airstrikes in Rafah on Saturday killed at least 10 civilians, including women and children, according to Palestinian state media, sending fear through an area where more than a million Palestinians have been displaced.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Palestinians have been bracing for weeks for an Israeli ground offensive on Rafah, the southernmost part of Gaza, where a majority of the strip\u2019s 2.2 million residents have fled after being forced from their homes. Israel\u2019s bombardments and ground invasion have killed more than 30,000 people, according to local officials.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The Israeli airstrikes on Saturday hit two homes, and missiles and artillery struck other areas of Rafah and the surrounding area, according to the Wafa News Agency. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the strike.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cIt was like an earthquake,\u201d Mohammad al-Masri, 31, said of the shaking from the strikes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The first strike hit just past midnight, and the second one soon after, said Mr. al-Masri, an accountant who was sheltering with his family in a tent in a large encampment in Rafah.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cWhen we hear these strikes, we don\u2019t know what to do,\u201d he said. \u201cEveryone is saying the same thing: \u2018Where can we go?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Israel\u2019s military plans to invade Rafah to \u201ccomplete the elimination of Hamas\u2019s battalions\u201d and destroy its tunnel networks. World leaders, including President Biden, have urged Israel not to invade the city because of the risks of heavy civilian casualties.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">About 500 miles away, Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, traveled to Turkey on Saturday to meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has strongly condemned Israel and its leaders since the war began in October.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Turkey was once Israel\u2019s closest friend in the Muslim world, but the relationship has grown increasingly turbulent since Israel\u2019s invasion of Gaza. Mr. Erdogan has backed the Palestinian cause, which has widespread public support in Turkey, defended Hamas since the Oct. 7 attack and strongly condemned Israel and its leaders.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On Saturday, Mr. Erdogan\u2019s office said the two leaders had discussed Israeli attacks against \u201cPalestinian land, primarily against Gaza; what is needed to be done for the humanitarian aid to reach Gaza adequately and without interruption.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">After the meeting, Mr. Erdogan told reporters he would use every opportunity to draw attention to the suffering in Gaza, and that he hoped Israel would eventually be held accountable.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cIsrael will certainly pay the price of the atrocities it has been inflicting on Palestinians one day,\u201d Mr. Erdogan told reporters.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Earlier on Saturday, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/live\/2024\/04\/20\/world\/israel-iran-gaza-war-news#iran-explosion-military-base\" title=\"\">one person was killed and eight were injured<\/a> in an explosion at a military base in Babylon Province, Iraq, that was used by an Iranian-backed armed group, Harakat al Nujaba, according to Iraq\u2019s military command.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">No one immediately claimed responsibility for the strike.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In a carefully worded statement, Iraq\u2019s military did not attribute the explosion to an air attack with a missile or a drone. Privately, however, military officials said it appeared that at least one projectile had hit inside the perimeter of the base. A video taken shortly after the blast and posted on social media showed damaged buildings and a large crater filled with rubble. A second video showed several parts of the base on fire.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The U.S. military, which has previously carried out strikes on Iranian-backed armed groups in Iraq, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CENTCOM\/status\/1781474064478966238\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">said in a statement<\/a> shortly after the attack that it had not participated in strikes on any locations in Iraq. The Israeli military declined to comment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-798hid etfikam0\">Liam Stack<!-- -->, <!-- -->Raja Abdulrahim<!-- --> and <!-- -->Alissa J. Rubin<!-- --> contributed reporting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/20\/world\/middleeast\/israel-strikes-iran.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An Israeli airstrike on Iran on Friday damaged an air defense system, according to Western and Iranian officials, in an attack calculated to deliver a message that Israel could bypass Iran\u2019s defensive systems undetected and paralyze them. The strike damaged a defensive battery near Natanz, a city in central Iran that is critical to the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":31553,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/04\/20\/multimedia\/20mideast-leadall-01-bljf\/20mideast-leadall-01-bljf-facebookJumbo.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[7306,721,25439,35503,5360,19606,5558,2335,31034],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31552"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31552"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31552\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31554,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31552\/revisions\/31554"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31553"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31552"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31552"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31552"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}