Following Israel’s coordinated airstrikes on Iran, which killed several high-ranking Iranian military officials and sparked fears of a wider regional war, world leaders expressed deep concern on Friday over the rapidly escalating Middle East conflict, according to PUNCH News.
Among those confirmed dead in the early-morning assault were Hossein Salami, Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and General Mohammad Bagheri, Iran’s Chief of Defence Staff, both of whom are regarded as important architects of Iran’s military posture in the region.
Tensions between the two bitter enemies have skyrocketed as a result of the strikes, which are said to have targeted many key sites in Tehran and other regions of the nation. These airstrikes are among Israel’s most direct and destructive on Iranian territory in recent memory.
Iran responded quickly and vehemently, firing hundreds of ballistic missiles at targets within Israel on Friday afternoon. Although several of the incoming projectiles were intercepted by Israel’s sophisticated missile defence systems, Israeli authorities said that at least seven people were hurt and that numerous locations in central and southern Israel were damaged. The global community has responded immediately to the exchange.
Iran’s nuclear aspirations and its backing of extremist organisations around the region have been the main causes of the decades-long simmering tensions between Israel and Iran. However, the direct attacks on each other’s most important military installations on Friday represent a dramatic escalation.
Iran’s state television broadcast depressing footage of the commanders’ burial while promising “severe revenge” on Israel. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, called the attacks “an act of war”, escalating concerns about a protracted conflict.
Given the conflict’s proximity to vital energy routes, analysts caution that the scenario may attract other regional forces, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, and might have an impact on the world’s oil markets.
With diplomatic channels mostly silent and military mobilisations on both sides continuing as of Friday night, the world is watching with apprehension as the possibility of a wider Middle East conflict looms.
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