Israel’s attack on Iran early Saturday morning destroyed air defense systems set up to protect several important oil and petrochemical refineries and large areas in southern Iran, according to three Iranian officials and three senior Israeli defense officials. Systems protecting major gas fields and major ports were destroyed. .
Officials said Israeli targets also included defense facilities at the vast Bandar Imam Khomeini petrochemical complex in Khuzestan province. Adjacent to Bandar Imam Khomeini Port, a major economic port. and Abadan Refinery. Iran’s oil ministry officials said air defense systems were also attacked at a gas field refinery in Ilam province called Tange Bijar.
Iranian and Israeli officials familiar with the attack spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the information.
Israel’s destruction of its air defense system has caused deep alarm in Iran, as the cycle of retaliation between Iran and Israel continues, leaving its vital energy and economic center vulnerable to future attacks. three Iranian officials said.
“Israel is sending us a clear message,” said Hamid Hosseini, an expert on the Iranian oil and gas industry and member of the Iran-Iraq Chamber of Commerce. “This could have very serious economic implications for Iran, and now that we understand the risks, we need to act wisely and avoid continuing tensions.”
The Iranian military announced that four members of its air defense force were killed in the Israeli attack. Iranian media said the number of casualties would likely rise.
Two of the soldiers were identified as being from Mahashahr city, the residential area closest to the Bandar Imam Khomeini petrochemical complex.
Two Israeli officials said the initial plan, drawn up shortly after Iran fired a series of ballistic missiles at Israel in early October, included attacks on targets related to Iran’s energy industry and nuclear projects. said.
But while Israel was planning, the United States feared that an attack on such a valuable facility could heighten Iran’s reaction, destabilize the global economy, and spark an all-out war. He urged the United States not to attack Iran’s energy, oil and nuclear facilities. A regional war that could involve the United States. In Saturday’s attack, Israel finally decided to attack air defenses around several energy facilities, but not the facilities themselves, Israeli officials said.
Iranian officials, including Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, have told regional Arab officials in the press and at diplomatic conferences that Iran’s energy infrastructure is a red line that cannot be crossed, and that Iran will respond strongly if attacked. He repeatedly said that he was deaf. Aragushi sent a letter to the United Nations on Saturday calling the Israeli attack “illegal and aggressive” and calling it “against Iran’s sovereignty and territorial integrity” and calling on Israel to condemn it.
The Iranian military issued a statement on Saturday saying the Israeli strikes targeted radar air defense systems in Khuzestan, Iram and Tehran, causing minor damage. The statement said repairs were underway and Iranian air defenses had succeeded in neutralizing most of the Israeli missiles and drones.
Three Israeli officials said the targets attacked on Saturday included command and control trailers as well as radar systems. According to Israeli assessments, the system was severely damaged and rendered inoperable. One of the officials said satellite images after the airstrike would show that Israel avoided nearby industrial parks and only hit air defense batteries at the Imam Khomeini petrochemical complex.
The Iranian military said in a statement that the Israeli jets had not entered Iranian airspace, adding that they had launched missiles and drones from Iraqi airspace. The military accused the United States of allowing the use of Iraqi airspace, and Iran’s mission to the United Nations accused the United States of “complicity in this crime.”
US officials said the US played no role in Israel’s attack on Iran.
Iran’s Supreme Council for National Security held an emergency meeting on Saturday, where military commanders briefed members on the scale of the damage and their targets, three Iranian officials said. The board discussed how Iran should respond, but no decisions have been made, it said.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei is the supreme commander and has the authority to order attacks on Israel. He is expected to make a public comment on Sunday’s attack.
In addition to attacking defense facilities around energy facilities, Iranian and Israeli officials said the Israeli attack effectively destroyed four S-300 air defense systems that Iran purchased from Russia. Israel disabled one plane in an attack on a military base in Isfahan province in April, and on Saturday it disabled three planes at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport and the Malad missile base on the outskirts of the capital.
“This looks like a potential prelude to a more effective attack on Iran’s infrastructure and even its nuclear facilities,” said Ali Baez, director of the International Crisis Group on Iran. “The Iranians do not have the ability to replace these systems in a timely manner, which makes the country even more vulnerable to future retaliation.”
In addition to air defense systems, three major missile manufacturing bases belonging to the Revolutionary Guards – Farag, Shaid Ghadiri and Abdel Fatt – were also attacked, Iranian and Israeli officials said. Military positions in Parchin and Parand were also attacked by drones, officials said.
Israeli officials said the attack reduced Iran’s missile-making capabilities, but Iranian officials disputed this, saying the damage was minor and the setback was short-lived.
The energy facilities whose defenses were attacked are critical to Iran’s economy, which has long struggled with U.S. sanctions, inflation and other problems. Khuzestan province in southern Iran is home to most of the country’s oil and gas fields. Bandar Imam Petrochemical Complex is Iran’s largest petrochemical complex, producing millions of tons of petroleum-based products annually for export. The Abadan refinery is Iran’s largest oil refinery located near the Persian Gulf, with a production capacity of 360,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
The Israeli attack, which targeted air defense systems near energy facilities, was similar to an attack in April that hit the radar system of an S-300 air defense system near Natanz, a city in central Iran that is critical to the country’s nuclear program. . The April attack was carried out in retaliation for Iran firing hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel, but the barrage itself was in retaliation for an Israeli airstrike on the Iranian embassy compound in Damascus. It was.
