Israeli military on Saturday said it carried out a series of strikes on Iranian military targets across the country, escalating tensions in the region.
According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the strikes hit drone storage facilities and a weapons site in the area of Bandar Abbas, a strategic location in southwestern Iran.
F-14 Jets Destroyed
In another operation earlier the same day, the Israeli Air Force targeted and destroyed three Iranian F-14 fighter jets.
The IDF said the jets were parked at a military air base in central Iran, describing the location as the “heart of Iran.” The military also released black-and-white thermal video footage that appeared to show the jets being destroyed on the ground.
Iran’s fleet of F-14 Tomcats, originally purchased from the United States before the 1979 revolution, remains the only operational fleet of the aircraft in the world. The US retired its F-14s in 2006.
Air Defense Systems, Missile Infrastructure Hit Besides F-14 Jets
In addition to airstrikes on fighter jets and drone infrastructure, Israeli forces also struck radar detection systems and air defense batteries in western Iran. IDF spokesperson Ephraim Defrin said the attacks were “part of a broader effort to achieve aerial superiority throughout Iranian airspace.”
“This air superiority has enabled us to strike missile command centers, [drone] infrastructure, and to destroy military storage facilities and launch tunnels for rockets and missiles, as well as close the loop on launchers that had fired at Israeli territory,” Defrin said during a Saturday evening news conference.
Strikes To Delay Iran’s Nuclear Bomb Timeline: Israel
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar claimed the strikes have set back Iran’s nuclear ambitions significantly.
“What we did until now was already very significant. I believe we, according to the assessment we hear, we already delayed for at least two or three years the possibility for [Iran] to have [a] nuclear bomb,” Sa’ar said in an interview with Axel Springer media group, published Saturday.
He also emphasized the importance of recent Israeli operations that resulted in the deaths of several Iranian military officials since June 13.
“The fact that we killed a number of military officials is extremely important,” he said. “I don’t believe so much in diplomacy with Iran. All diplomatic efforts until now were not successful.”
US B-2 Bombers Relocated to Guam
Meanwhile, flight-tracking data reviewed by CNN showed multiple US B-2 stealth bombers taking off from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri on Friday night and heading west.
A U.S. defense official clarified that no formal order has been issued to launch any military operation involving the bombers. As of Saturday, the B-2s were flying over the Pacific Ocean and appeared to be en route to Guam, a key U.S. base in the Western Pacific.
President Donald Trump is reportedly still weighing military options regarding Iran.
Also Read: B-2 Bombers Deployed: Is US Preparing To Strike Iran’s Most Protected Nuclear Facility, Fordo?
