The Israel Air Force struck a dozen targets in Iran that were used to produce solid fuel for long-range ballistic missiles as part of its retaliatory military action against the Islamic Republic, severely harming Tehran’s ability to replenish its inventory, Israeli media reported on Saturday night.
The targets struck were sophisticated equipment that Iran could not produce on its own and had to be purchased from China, Walla reported. The targets were a critical component of Iran’s ballistic missile program, Walla cited three anonymous Israeli sources as saying.
Israeli sources also stated that four S-300 air defense batteries were attacked that were in strategic locations that protected nuclear and energy facilities in Tehran during the operation. A factory for the production of drones and a facility in the Parchin military complex were also attacked, the latter of which saw in the past research and development activities for nuclear weapons.
Additional reports of attacks
The Arabic independent online newspaper Elaph reported Israel targeted a secret ballistic missile factory in Iran, destroying a large number of heavy fuel mixers used to power Kheibar and Haj Qasem missiles – both of which were fired by Iran at Israel at the beginning of the month. The report also claimed that the S-300 air defense batteries that were attacked were Russian-made and destroyed radars that feed these systems and others in Syria and Iraq.
The report said that the ballistic missile factory was completely destroyed. One source told Elaph that it was the “backbone of Iran’s missile industry” and that Israel had “put it out of service,” also reporting that each heavy fuel mixer destroyed was estimated to be at least two million dollars and about twenty mixers of this type were destroyed.
While Walla reported that production to restore such equipment would reportedly take at least one year, informed sources on the Iranian missile industry told Elaph that it would take at least two years to return the destroyed factory to service.
Overall, more than 100 Israeli aircraft participated in the attack on Iranian targets, Ynet reported, stating that their mission was to hit the most advanced anti-aircraft systems of the Islamic Republic and develop air superiority there for any possible upcoming IAF operations – in such a way that Israeli fighter jets would be able to fly even at a relatively low altitude in the skies of Tehran itself in the future.
The Ynet report continued that estimates say it will still take many more days to assess the damage caused by the attacks.
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