Iran rains missiles on Israel, hits its Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv in retaliatory strikes

In a fresh escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, Iran late Friday (June 13) launched hundreds of ballistic missiles against Israel. More than 150 missiles were launched at Israel. Iranian missiles attacked a key IDF command post in Kirya, where most of the Israeli military and political leadership was located.

Tehran’s latest offensive against Israel marked the beginning of a retaliatory operation called True Promise III. The main target of the strike was the city of Tel Aviv, Iranian media reported. Iran claimed that it managed to hit the headquarters of the Israeli Ministry of Defense.

Explosions were heard in Tel Aviv on Friday night local time, as air raid sirens were sounded across Israel amid what the country’s military said was an Iranian missile attack. According to the Washington Post, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, promised “severe punishment” for the attacks. President Donald Trump urged Iran to “make a deal” with Israel “before it is too late.”


The bases of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in the north of the country were also under fire following the strikes. Despite the large number of missiles fired, only part of them reached Israeli territory. About 50 were intercepted by the Israeli Iron Dome systems.

At the same time, Iranian government resources claim that they managed to hit the headquarters of the Israeli Ministry of Defense. Israeli media partially confirmed the reports of impacts near the building. As reports of interceptions and impacts continue to surface, another wave of missile attacks is expected.

This comes in direct response to recent Israeli airstrikes that targeted key Iranian military and nuclear infrastructure, according to Iranian state media.

The Israeli military and the Iranian state media also claimed that the Israeli strikes killed four senior commanders, including Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami, Iranian military chief Mohammad Bagheri, and Air Force chief Brig. Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh.