An Iranian military truck carries missiles during a military parade as part of a ceremony marking the country’s annual army day in Tehran on April 17, 2024. (Atta Kenare/AFP)
Published October 26, 2024
Israel struck military sites in Iran on Saturday, saying it was retaliating against Tehran’s massive missile attack on Israel on October 1, as the conflict escalated between the Middle East rivals.
Below is a look at both countries’ air forces and aerial defense systems:
Iran
The Iranian air force has 37,000 personnel but decades of international sanctions have largely cut off Iran from the latest high-tech military equipment, accThe Israeli army said it conducted “precise strikes on military targets in Iran” on Saturday.
Explosions were heard in Tehran from around 2:15 am, AFP journalists in the Iranian capital said.
Iranian state television said the blasts were caused by the “activation of the air defence system” in response to an Israeli attack.
The Israeli military said it simultaneously struck missile manufacturing facilities, surface-to-air missile arrays and other “aerial capabilities”.
It said later that the air attack had “concluded” its response to Iran’s October 1 missile attack, saying its warplanes had returned safely and the mission was “fulfilled”.
Iran’s air force confirmed strikes on military bases in Tehran, Khuzestan and Ilam provinces that “caused limited damage”.
The army said two soldiers were killed, while the country’s civil aviation authority announced the resumption of flights after a brief suspension.
The foreign ministry said Iran had the “right and the duty to defend itself”, citing the UN Charterording to the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London (IISS).
The air force has only a few dozen working strike aircraft, including Russian jets and aging US models acquired before the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The Islamic Republic has a squadron of nine F-4 and F-5 fighter jets, one squadron of Russian-made Sukhoi-24 jets, and some MiG-29s, F7 and F14 aircraft, IISS said.
Iran also has pilotless planes designed to fly into targets and explode. Analysts estimate its drone arsenal to be in the low thousands. Further, they say, Iran has more than 3,500 surface-to-surface missiles, some of which carry half-ton warheads. The number capable of reaching Israel may be lower, however.
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SOURCE: www.timesofisrael.com
RELATED: What we know about the Israeli strikes on Iran
Published October 26, 2024
Iran said Israeli air strikes targeting its military sites killed two soldiers on Saturday, after Israel said its warplanes carried out raids in retaliation for a missile barrage.
The Israeli army said it conducted “precise strikes on military targets in Iran” on Saturday.
Explosions were heard in Tehran from around 2:15 am, AFP journalists in the Iranian capital said.
Iranian state television said the blasts were caused by the “activation of the air defence system” in response to an Israeli attack.
The Israeli military said it simultaneously struck missile manufacturing facilities, surface-to-air missile arrays and other “aerial capabilities”.
It said later that the air attack had “concluded” its response to Iran’s October 1 missile attack, saying its warplanes had returned safely and the mission was “fulfilled”.
Iran’s air force confirmed strikes on military bases in Tehran, Khuzestan and Ilam provinces that “caused limited damage”.
The army said two soldiers were killed, while the country’s civil aviation authority announced the resumption of flights after a brief suspension.
The foreign ministry said Iran had the “right and the duty to defend itself”, citing the UN Charter
READ FULL ARTICLE
SOURCE: www.dailymail.co.uk
