President Trump called Monday for Israel and Iran to lay down their weapons in his first public comments since the Middle Eastern enemies traded attacks overnight after both countries traded retaliatory strikes in what marked the biggest escalation since April’s cease-fire.
“Israel and Iran must immediately stop ‘shooting,’” Trump wrote in a brief post on Truth Social after Iran sent three waves of missiles toward the Jewish state, while Israeli forces targeted truck-based surface-to-air launchers deployed across the Islamic Republic.
There was no immediate word of any casualties.
The attacks by Iran against Israel were the first since the implementation of a cease-fire April 8. There was no indication that the US would restart military operations against Tehran as a result.
Iran launched a wave of attacks on Israel Monday morning – and Israel launched airstrikes on central and western Iran in response.
Explosions were heard in Isfahan, Karaj, Tabriz and Tehran and state media reported that an Israeli strike had hit a petrochemical factory in the city of Mahshahr in Khuzestan province.
Israeli forces struck a military center in Tabriz, but local officials said there were no casualties, according to IRNA.
Officials have also reported no casualties despite the explosions in Tehran.
Meanwhile, Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard boasted that attacks on Israel’s Tel-Nof and Nevatim air bases had begun as part of Operation Nasr.
“This operation was carried out in response to the child-killing Zionist regime’s missile aggression against several radar sites in three parts of the country,” the regime said.
The IRGC Intelligence Organization claimed the overnight operations were a “100 out of 100 success.” Foreign ministry officials say the strikes were carried out in self-defense, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency.
Israel said its strikes were in response to an Iranian missile attack. Tehran had warned on Sunday it would retaliate after Israel struck Beirut’s southern suburbs without warning. When Israel struck back, Iran fired again.
But Tehran has wildly blamed the US, as opposed to Israel, for the overnight escalation.
“No one believes that the Israeli regime would take any action without coordination with the United States,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei blasted.
“The United States bears responsibility for the Israeli regime’s aggression, and it will also be responsible for the consequences of any escalation in tensions.”
The retaliatory strikes are threatening to drag the wider Middle East region back to full-scale war — and Iraqi officials have closed the country’s airspace for 72 hours as a “precautionary measure.”
Damascus International Airport in Syria will remain closed until 11 p.m. local time Monday, but Israel’s airspace remains open.
With Post wires.
