Iran launched missiles at Israel on Sunday evening for the first time in two months in response to Israeli attacks on the suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut, raising fears of another major escalation in the war.
Iranian state media reported that Iran's armed forces had fired several waves of missiles at Israel. The Israeli military said all of the rockets in the first waves were intercepted.
Iran's armed forces said the attacks on Israel targeted military installations.
The Ramat David airbase, located south-east of the city of Haifa, was attacked with ballistic missiles, according to a statement by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) published by the Iranian news agency Tasnim.
According to the Israeli TV channel N12, rocket debris struck northern Israel, including near the city of Tiberias. A 79-year-old woman suffered head injuries as she rushed to a shelter.
Israel's civil defence authorities said classes in all schools across Israel were cancelled for Monday. Media reported that the international airport near Tel Aviv remained open for the time being.
Iran's central military command confirmed the missile attacks. In a statement broadcast by state radio, the armed forces justified the attack by citing "repeated violations" of the ceasefire in Lebanon by the Israeli military.
Israel launched attacks on the Beirut suburbs earlier on Sunday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz said the military had targeted "terrorist" headquarters after the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia fired at Israel.
Hezbollah is Iran's most important non-state ally. Tehran had previously warned that further Israeli attacks on the greater Beirut area would be viewed as a new escalation.
In response to the escalation, Iran closed its airspace in the west of the country until further notice. Iraq and Syria also temporarily closed their entire airspace.
Reports that the Gulf states had closed their airspace were initially not confirmed.
The Iranian Red Crescent Society put its staff on high alert out of concern over Israeli counter-attacks.
The attacks raise fears of a new escalation in the war launched by the United States and Israel at the end of February.
Israel had recently scaled back its attacks on Lebanon, after an official ceasefire came into effect in mid-April. US President Donald Trump had also announced a halt to Israeli attacks in the Beirut area, as well as an end to attacks by the Lebanese Hezbollah militia on Israel.
However, Israel had threatened to attack the Beirut area again if Hezbollah fired on Israel and had urged the residents of the suburbs to evacuate.
Iran: Attacks are a 'warning'
Iran's elite IRGC force justified the attacks by citing Israel's attacks in Lebanon. The ceasefire in the Iran war at the beginning of April had been negotiated on the premise that the conflict must be halted on all fronts, it said in a statement.
"But as always, the US and the Zionist regime did not honour their commitments. They continued both their attacks and crimes in Lebanon and their repeated incursions into Iranian coastal areas," the statement continued.
The Revolutionary Guards described Sunday's attacks as a "warning." Should the war break out in full force again, "the responses will be more comprehensive and will include all US-Zionist targets in the region," they added.
Prolonged negotiations ongoing
Iran last fired missiles at Israel during the night of April 7-8. The next day, the US and Iran agreed to an initial two-week ceasefire, which was subsequently extended.
However, negotiations between Washington and Tehran on a permanent end to the war have so far failed to reach an agreement.
According to media reports, Trump wants to persuade Netanyahu to refrain from launching retaliatory strikes against Iran, likely hoping the attacks will not jeopardize his chances at concluding a framework agreement with Tehran to end the war.
A correspondent for the news portal Axios wrote on X that Trump was planning to speak to the Israeli prime minister by phone.
The Israeli broadcaster Kan also reported that Trump was pushing for Israel not to respond to the attacks. "Israel has responded enough," Trump reportedly told a correspondent from the broadcaster.
"What I would suggest to Iran: You've shot your missiles, that's enough. Get back to the table and make a deal," Trump said, according to the US broadcaster Fox News.
There has been no public statement from the White House yet, however.
"President Trump indicated in our conversation that negotiations with Iran were progressing toward a possible agreement as early as Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday of this coming week," Trey Yingst of Fox News was quoted as saying.
Israeli military prepared for all scenarios
The Israeli military is prepared for all scenarios following the attacks, spokesman Effie Defrin said in a video address.
He said Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir was holding consultations and approving plans "for the continuation of operations," adding that Iran "made a grave mistake" with the latest attacks.
Defrin also said the attacks on Hezbollah would continue throughout Lebanon, and that Israel is prepared for new missile attacks from Iran.
Jordan reports airspace violations
Several missiles entered Jordan's airspace during Iran's attacks on Israel, a spokesman for the Jordanian government said.
The Jordanian armed forces were monitoring the situation closely, he said. "Jordan will not allow its territory or its skies to be turned into a battlefield for anyone."
A Jordanian television station broadcast footage of a large piece of debris from a missile that crashed near the northern city of Irbid. Several missiles were spotted in the sky over Jordan on their way to Israel.
Due to its geographical location between Iran and Israel, Jordan has repeatedly found itself in the line of fire in the conflict between the two arch-enemies.
