Israel, Iran exchange missiles after Tel Aviv strikes Lebanon

Iran and Israel exchanged direct attacks for the first time since the April ceasefire, with Iran striking Israel overnight and Israel launching a retaliatory wave of strikes on what it said were Iranian military targets. The Israeli military claims to have intercepted all the missiles and no casualties have been reported. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps called the barrage retaliation for Tel Aviv’s strikes on Lebanon, claiming the Israeli attacks violated ceasefire terms. Israel fired back by targeting western and central Iran.

Iran plans to keep this up for a week, saying yesterday was the “beginning of a full week of continuous strikes … until the enemy is deterred and ceases its crimes.”

The exchange of attacks came as Israel ignored US President Donald Trump’s instructions to refrain from retaliating. Trump pressed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to hold back from any further attacks, saying later, “Israel had its strike, and Iran had its strike. We don't need another one.” Trump also moved to assert himself and Washington as the final decisionmaker on how the conflict plays out, saying that Netanyahu “won’t have any choice” but to accept any resolution Washington closes with Tehran.

The renewed violence comes as Washington has yet to reach a peace agreement with Tehran, with the fate of frozen Iranian assets now under discussion. While Tehran has insisted that any agreement must see all US and international sanctions on Iran lifted and USD bns worth of Iranian assets unfrozen, Washington is reportedly considering using Iranian assets for reparations to Gulf countries “to repair damage inflicted by Iran,” Reuters reports.