Iran launched a massive late-night airstrike on Israel in retaliation for an attack on its consulate in Syria.
Israel was able to defend its air defense systems, including the Iron Dome, against the attack without causing serious damage, and began to consider retaliation.
The situation in the Middle East is at a critical juncture of escalation, and if it escalates into a fifth Middle East war through a vicious cycle of retaliation, the impact on global security and the economy will be significant. Iran's attack on the Israeli mainland is the first since Israel's founding in 1948.
Israel has already announced its intention to retaliate, but its allies, including the United States, are waiting in the wings.
Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said Iran fired more than 200 missiles and drones (unmanned aerial vehicles) at Israel between the night of Nov. 13 (local time) and the morning of Nov. 14.
"Iran fired dozens of surface-to-surface missiles from its territory into Israeli territory," Hagari said, explaining that "the vast majority of those missiles were intercepted by our air defense systems outside the Israeli border."
Israel said the damage was minor.
The Iranian strikes come 12 days after Israel bombed the Iranian consulate in the Syrian capital of Damascus on Jan. 1, killing a senior Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander.
This weekend's late-night raid was Iran's first full-scale attack on Israel's mainland.
It is the first full-scale attack on Israel since the 1979 revolution that led to the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Associated Press noted.
Iran's retaliation is in accordance with Islamic law's Qisas principle (an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth).
Iran labeled the attack "Operation Promise of Truth" to punish Israel for its crimes.
The so-called "Axis of Resistance," a group of anti-American and anti-Israeli proxies led by Iran, also joined in the airstrikes.
Lebanon's Hezbollah fired dozens of missiles at Israeli air defense positions in the Golan Heights in response to the Iranian strikes.
The Yemeni rebel group Houthis also fired several drones in the direction of Israel, according to British maritime security firm Ambray.
"Some of the missiles landed in the territory," Hagari said, adding, "At this point, we know that one girl was injured and that an Israeli military base in the south was hit and lightly damaged."
Israeli media outlet Ynet reported Israeli officials saying that their military has intercepted 99% of Iranian drones and missiles.
Israeli Prime Minister's Office spokesman Ophir Gendelman said the Iranian ballistic missile was aimed at holy sites in Jerusalem, but caused no damage.
"Israel's Iron Dome (air defense system) batteries intercepted these missiles and saved the Temple Mount and Al-Aqsa Mosque from Iran," Gendelman wrote on his X-tweet account.
NBC, ABC, and other U.S. media outlets reported that Iran may have fine-tuned its targets in anticipation of the aftermath, removing U.S. military installations and civilians in the Middle East from the list and focusing on Israeli military installations.
The Israeli military lifted evacuation orders for its citizens earlier in the day.
"It means that the Iranian attack has been called off," the Times of Israel explained.
Hagari said the number of objects fired from Iran totaled more than 200, including 10 cruise missiles intercepted by the Israeli Air Force outside the border and dozens of drones that were also intercepted outside the border.
Earlier in the day, the New York Times (NYT), citing Israeli officials, reported that Iran had launched 185 drones, 36 cruise missiles, and 110 surface-to-surface missiles.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called an emergency cabinet meeting to respond.
Israel warned that it would respond once Iran's air defenses were down.
"We have decided on a clear principle," Netanyahu said, adding that Israel would retaliate, "We will hurt anyone who hurts us."
An Israeli official told CNN in the United States that Israel's security cabinet had authorized the war cabinet to decide how to respond to the incident.
The war cabinet consists of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a hawk, Defense Minister Yoav Galand, and National Unity Party leader Benny Gantz, a moderate and political rival of Netanyahu.
An Israeli official told Israeli outlet Ynet that a decisive response would soon follow, emphasizing the need for a strong response to Iran's first attack on the Israeli mainland.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke with U.S. President Joe Biden after a war and security cabinet meeting to discuss the situation.
Biden conveyed to Netanyahu that he was opposed to any Israeli counterattack, Axios reported, citing a senior White House official.
The decision on whether and how much to retaliate against Iran will be made in coordination with Israel's allies and friends, including the United States.
NBC reported that Biden expressed concern that Netanyahu was trying to drag the United States into a Middle East war.
The NYT quoted an Israeli official as saying that Israel's response would be coordinated with its allies.
The United Nations Security Council (Security Council) is scheduled to hold an emergency meeting later in the day (Friday morning) to discuss Iran's attack on Israel.
The council will discuss Iran's unprecedented attack on Israel and rising tensions in the Middle East, among other issues.
On the same day that the UN Security Council convenes, President Biden will convene the leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) to coordinate a "unified diplomatic response" to Iran's attack on Israel.
If Israel retaliates against Iran, and Iran retaliates in kind, the consequences for global security and the economy will be severe.
In a worst-case scenario, a vicious cycle of retaliation could lead directly to an escalation of war in the Middle East.
Pro-Iranian militants in the Middle East, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen, could mobilize for an all-out war.
The war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas has dragged on for more than six months and has immediately raised tensions in the Middle East.
This has led to reports that the risk of a fifth Middle East war in 50 years has increased.
Global security is already at a critical point with two wars - Russia's invasion of Ukraine and Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza.
The Middle East is a major risk to the global economy, as it directly affects the price of oil.
Higher oil prices could spur inflation and affect the timing of U.S. interest rate cuts, which could have a chilling effect on the global economy.
Global concerns are particularly centered on the Strait of Hormuz, the "artery of oil" that Iran could attempt to control.
The Strait of Hormuz is an export route for Middle Eastern oil producers including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Iran has threatened the Strait in the past when trying to influence international affairs.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guards seized a Portuguese shipping container ship in the Strait of Hormuz the day before its attack on Israel, as a warning.
In a worst-case scenario, some fear a repeat of the 1973 "oil shock" could occur.
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