Only a few of more than 300 Iranian projectiles made it through the Israeli defenses, the IDF said
This weekend’s massive Iranian attack has left only cursory damage to one military base, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has claimed, releasing footage purporting to show the subsequent repair work.
Tehran launched a series of air strikes on Israel over the weekend, in retaliation for the bombing of an Iranian consular compound in Syria. While West Jerusalem has kept silent on the matter, Tehran has accused it of carrying out the extraterritorial assassination of several of its high-ranking military personnel in the embassy attack.
Of the roughly 170 drones, 30 cruise missiles and 120 ballistic missiles launched from Iran, only a few of the projectiles made it through the combined air defenses of Israel and its allies, IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in a press release on Sunday.
The ballistic missiles that made it through Israeli defenses struck and dealt “only minor damage to the infrastructure at the Nevatim base,” the IDF wrote on their website, posting footage purporting to show the resulting damage and repair work.
“The function of Nevatim base was not affected, the planes continued to take off and land and fulfill the defense and attack missions,” they wrote.
As many as nine missiles penetrated Israeli defenses, ABC News wrote, citing a senior US official. Five ballistic missiles hit the Nevatim Air Base and damaged a C-130 transport plane, a runway and empty storage facilities, the channel said, while four more missiles hit the Negev Air Base. No significant damage was done to the base, the official told ABC.
Iranian media, however, claim they have managed to hit and destroy “important military targets,” and published multiple videos purporting to show their missiles penetrating Israeli air defenses. Tehran is satisfied with the outcome and has no intention of continuing the operation, chief of staff of the Armed Forces, Major General Mohammad Bagheri said in the aftermath, warning that should Israel retaliate, “the next operation will be much more extensive.”
