(AP) — Israel launched blistering attacks on the heart of Iran’s nuclear and military structure Friday, deploying warplanes and drones previously smuggled into the country to attack key facilities and kill top generals and scientists -- a barrage it said was necessary before its adversary got any closer to building an atomic weapon.
Iran retaliated by unleashing scores of ballistic missiles on Israel late Friday, with explosions flaring in the skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and shaking buildings below.
“Don’t think that they hit and it’s over. No. They started the work and started the war," Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a recorded message. "We will not allow them to escape safely from this great crime they committed.”
An Associated Press reporter saw smoke rising in Tel Aviv after an apparent missile strike. Israeli paramedics reported a handful of injuries in the Tel Aviv area.
Israel's ongoing airstrikes and intelligence operation and Iran's retaliation raised fears of all-out war between the countries and propelled the region, already on edge, into even greater upheaval.
Israel's military said about 200 aircraft were involved in the initial attack on about 100 targets. Its Mossad spy agency positioned explosive drones and precision weapons inside Iran ahead of time, and used them to target Iranian air defenses and missile launchers near Tehran, according to two security officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.
It was not possible to independently confirm the officials' claims.
Among the key sites Israel attacked was Iran's main nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz, where black smoke could be seen rising into the air. It also appeared to strike a second, smaller nuclear enrichment facility in Fordo, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) southest of Tehran, according to an Iranian news outlet close to the government that reported hearing explosions nearby.
Israel said it struck a nuclear research facility in Isfahan, too, and said it destroyed dozens of radar installations and surface-to-air missile launchers in western Iran. Iran confirmed the strike at Isfahan.
Israel military spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said the Natanz facility was “significantly damaged” and that the operation was “still in the beginning.”
The first wave of strikes had given Israel “significant freedom of movement” in Iran’s skies, clearing the way for further attacks, according to an Israeli military official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss details of the attack with the media.
The official said Israel is prepared for an operation that could last up to two weeks, but that there was no firm timeline.
Israel had long threatened such a strike, and successive American administrations had sought to prevent it, fearing it would ignite a wider conflict across the Middle East and possibly be ineffective at destroying Iran’s dispersed and hardened nuclear program.
But a confluence of developments triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack — plus the reelection of U.S. President Donald Trump — created the conditions that allowed Israel to finally follow through on its threats. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the U.S. was informed in advance of the attack.
On Thursday, Iran had been censured by the U.N.’s atomic watchdog for not complying with obligations meant to prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon.
Countries in the region condemned Israel's attack, while leaders around the globe called for immediate deescalation from both sides.
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Iran’s supreme leader vows revenge for Israeli attacks
In a recorded message to the nation broadcast as Iranian missiles flew toward Israel, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the military was prepared to counterattack.
“Don’t think that they (Israel) hit and it’s over. No. They started the work and started the war. We will not allow them to escape safely from this great crime they committed,” he said.
Air raid sirens sound across Israel amid Iranian missile attack
The rumble of explosions could be heard throughout Jerusalem, and Israeli TV stations showed plumes of smoke rising in Tel Aviv after an apparent missile strike. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
The army said dozens of missiles were launched.
The army has ordered residents across the country to move into bomb shelters.
Israel says Iran has launched missiles
The Israeli military’s Home Front Command has instructed people to move into shelters ahead of an expected Iranian missile attack.
The army says Iran has launched missiles, and the safety order applies to the entire country.
Israel’s Channel 13 TV says the missiles are expected to take about 10 minutes to arrive.
Iran reports explosions at another nuclear site
The Fordo nuclear enrichment facility is buried hundreds of meters underground.
Nour News, which is close to Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, reported on its Telegram channel that two explosions were heard from the area nearby.
Separately, Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported that a radar site near Tabriz was attacked, according to an official in the East Azerbaijan province.
Majid Farshi told IRNA that 11 military sites in East Azerbaijan province have been attacked, and that 18 people were killed, including one Red Crescent aid worker.
A new wave of attacks appears to have begun in Tehran
Civilian witnesses told The Associated Press they heard what sounded like loud explosions in neighborhoods in the capital’s east, west and center, while an AP journalist in the city’s north also heard a blast.
Air defense systems were heard going off Friday night in Tehran. There was no immediate acknowledgement from authorities.
Netanyahu says Israel informed US before attacking Iran
In a video statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel told the U.S. about its plans to attack Iran in advance. “They knew about the attack. What will they do now? I leave that to President Trump.”
US fighter jets take flight to protect personnel and installations in Middle East
American fighter jets are patrolling the sky in the Middle East to protect personnel and installations, according to a U.S. official. The official spoke Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing operations.
It comes at the same time as the Navy has directed the destroyer USS Thomas Hudner, which is capable of defending against ballistic missiles, to begin sailing from the western Mediterranean Sea toward the eastern Mediterranean. A second destroyer also has begun moving forward so it can be available if requested by the White House.
Trump calls Israeli strikes on Iran ‘excellent’ and says ‘more to come’
In an interview with ABC News, U.S. President Donald Trump called the Israeli strikes on Iran “excellent” and previewed more attacks.
“I think it’s been excellent. We gave them a chance and they didn’t take it,” Trump told ABC on Friday morning. “They got hit hard, very hard. They got hit about as hard as you’re going to get hit. And there’s more to come, a lot more.”
In a further post on the Truth Social platform, Trump added: “Two months ago I gave Iran a 60 day ultimatum to ‘make a deal.’”
“They should have done it! Today is day 61. I told them what to do, but they just couldn’t get there. Now they have, perhaps, a second chance!” he wrote Friday.
Netanyahu says Israel’s attack on Iran was months in the making
Netanyahu said he ordered an attack plan in November 2024, shortly after the elimination of Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah — one if Iran’s strongest proxies. That’s when Israel forecasted Iran would start rapidly advancing its nuclear program.
In a video statement circulated to journalists Friday evening, Netanyahu said the attack was supposed to happen in April but was postponed.
Israel told Trump administration of attacks ahead of time
Israel told the Trump administration that large-scale attacks were coming and expected Iranian retaliation would be severe, U.S. officials said, leading the United States to order the evacuations of some nonessential embassy staffers and authorize the voluntary departure of military dependents in the region.
The officials were speaking on condition of anonymity to describe private diplomatic discussions.
Special envoy Steve Witkoff still plans to go to Oman this weekend for talks on Tehran’s nuclear program, but it’s not clear if the Iranians would participate, officials said.