Video: Israel strikes Iran – West Jerusalem

Defense Minister Katz has claimed the attack is intended to “remove threats” to the Jewish state.

The IDF has launched a “preemptive strike” on Iran for national security reasons, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has announced, warning the population of an expected retaliatory attack.

In a statement cited by several local media outlets early on Saturday, Katz said that the attack sought “to remove threats against the State of Israel,” adding that authorities are imposing a nationwide state of emergency due to expected missile and drone strikes on the country’s population in the immediate future.

A senior defense official told Israeli Channel 13 that “this is a joint Israeli-American attack” which the sides had been planning “for months.” An unnamed US official later confirmed to the WSJ that the American military was participating in the attack.

RT footage from Tehran showed two large plumes of smoke rising over the buildings in the Iranian capital.

Israeli Channel 12 claimed that the strikes were aimed at “dozens of regime targets,” with unconfirmed media reports suggesting that one of the attacks had been launched at an Iranian presidential facility.

The Israeli Ministry of Transportation announced that the nation’s airspace had been closed for civilian flights, stressing that “the safety and security of passengers are the top priority.”

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