Iran stated that the attack was retaliation for the earlier airstrike on Syria, which it alleges was conducted by Israel, ending in the death of two high-ranking Iranian military officials.(Image: Iranian state TV)

What could be next for Iran and Israel after 'circle of fire' drone attack

Iran launched drones and missilesinto Israel late on Saturday night in retaliation for a strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus which killed two generals among others

by · The Mirror

There are fears of military escalation in the middle east after Iran attacked Israel over the weekend.

Iran fired more than 300 drones and missiles from inside its own country into areas such as Jerusalem. Iran claimed the attack was in retaliation following an airstrike last week which killed two Iranian generals in Syria, and left Iran accusing Israel of being behind the attack and promising revenge.

According to the IDF, F-35 Warplanes conducted a 7-hour-long wave of sorties intercepting and downing Iranian UAVs and missiles over Jordan, Syria and Israel. Warning sirens could be heard echoing around cities across the country after Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corp sent waves of deadly weapons that hit the country at around 2am local time.

Read more: World holds breath as Israel says it WILL respond to Iran but Biden warns US 'won't be dragged in'

Explosions lighting up the sky in Hebron, Palestinian Territories, during an Iranian attack on Israel( Image: AFPTV/AFP via Getty Images)

Now, world officials are closely monitoring to see if Israel will escalate military responses or whether diplomatic engagement will be enough to de-escalate the situation. Rescuers said one strike critically wounded a 10-year-old girl in a Bedouin Arab town in southern Israel, while Israeli army spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said another missile struck an army base, causing light damage but no injuries. Despite this, the head of Iran's Revolutionary Guard has deemed the operation a success.

Iran has justified the attack as retaliation for an airstrike, widely attributed to Israel, that targeted what Iran claims were consular offices in Syria, resulting in the deaths of two generals from its elite Revolutionary Guard earlier this month. Mona Yacoubian, vice president of the Middle East and North Africa center at the US institute of peace explained how Iran has skilfully navigated a response that is both public retribution for the Damascus strike and cautious enough to avoid triggering a full-scale military confrontation with Israel.

"Both (Iran and Israel) are able at this point to claim victory and step down off the precipice, particularly since there were no Israeli civilians killed," stated Yacoubian. The world has been watching for developments between the two counteis following an Israeli War Cabinet meeting last Sunday.

An anti-Iranian demonstration is held outside the Iranian Embassy in London on April 14( Image: AFP via Getty Images)

While some Israeli hard-liners are advocating for a robust response, others call for moderation, focusing instead on nurturing emerging relationships with Arab nations. "We will build a regional coalition and collect the price from Iran, in the way and at the time that suits us," declared Benny Gantz, a member of the War Cabinet.

Experts interpret Iran's actions as a clear signal of its readiness to intensify and alter the dynamics of its clandestine conflict with Israel. The assault by Iran has heightened concerns about the Gaza conflict potentially wreaking havoc across the region.

US President Joe Biden (C) in a meeting with his national security team in Washington, DC, after Iran launched a drone and missile attack on Israel. Iran's Revolutionary Guards confirmed early April 14, 2024 that a drone and missile attack was under way against Israel in retaliation( Image: WHITE HOUSE/AFP via Getty Images)

Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, in a statement on X, previously known as Twitter, asserted that Iran has "no intention of continuing defensive operations" at present, barring any aggression against it. Iran underscored that its strikes were aimed at Israeli establishments implicated in the Damascus incident, deliberately avoiding civilian targets or "economic areas."

After Israel initiated its Gaza offensive targeting Hamas, Iran's allies entered the fray militarily while its capital Tehran remained ostensibly uninvolved. Israeli army spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said there was “tight” cooperation with the US and other partners in the region as US jets shot down drones and UK warplanes were scrambled.

The strike has been widely condemned with France saying Iran "is risking a potential military escalation," Britain calling the attack "reckless" and Germany saying Iran and its proxies "must stop it immediately."

An Israeli Air Force fighter aircraft at an undisclosed airfield reportedly after a mission to intercept incoming airborne threats( Image: Israeli Army/AFP via Getty Image)

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has confirmed the RAF shot down "a number" of Iranian attack drones during the attack. The Prime Minister said the UK participated in an “international coordinated effort” to intercept more than 300 drones and missiles as “the RAF sent additional planes to the region."

"This was a dangerous and unnecessary escalation which I have condemned in the strongest terms", he said. "Thanks to an international coordinated effort, which the UK participated in, almost all of these missiles were intercepted, saving lives not just in Israel but in neighboring countries like Jordan as well."

Maha Yahya, the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center, now suggests that Tehran is ready to "willing to up the ante" directly, rather than through its proxies. Yahya observed, "They gave enough warning that this was coming, and I think they knew that they (the drones and missiles) would be brought down before they reached Israeli territory".

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Further military engagement by Israel does not appear to have wide support from its allies, including the United States, according to Eldad Shavit, head of the Israel-U. S. Research Program at the Institute for National Security Studies in Israel.

John Kirby, the White House national security spokesman, conveyed to NBC that President Joe Biden is keen to avoid an escalation or a "wider war" with Iran, focusing instead on "working on the diplomatic side of this personally."

Urgent meetings of the G7 the informal group of industrialised nations that counts the United States, United Kingdom, and France among its members along with the U. N. Security Council, took place on Sunday.

In a statement, participants of the G7 meeting unanimously condemned Iran's attack, declaring: "we stand ready to take further measures now and in response to further destabilizing initiatives."