WorthyNews: Iran Drones Intercepted By Israel

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By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

JERUSALEM/TEHRAN (Worthy News) – The Israeli navy on Friday said it shot down three Iranian attack drones over the Red Sea on their way toward Israel, after more than 100 drones were launched from the Islamic Republic. The same model, Saar 6, carried out attacks against the Yemeni Houthis earlier this week, Israeli sources said.

Earlier Friday, Tehran launched more than 100 drones toward Israeli territory following Israel’s overnight missile strike on the country, in which Iranian sites were hit and top officials killed.

The Israel Defense Forces confirmed Friday that it not only struck Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility early on Friday morning, “but even destroyed multiple floors of its underground facility, including the main hall containing its largest amount of centrifuges for enriching uranium.”

Additionally, the military reportedly conducted a second round of airstrikes against the nuclear facility on Friday afternoon.

The IDF said Natanz is the largest uranium enrichment facility in Iran, adding that it is one of the few sites with capabilities to enrich to higher, weaponized levels of uranium, as opposed to some sites which can only enrich to lower levels.

Natanz has been “operating for years to achieve nuclear weapons and contains the necessary infrastructure for military-grade enrichment,” the military claimed.

In response, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Israel on Friday it faced a “bitter and painful” fate in response to the attack launched overnight against the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program.

ISRAEL ALERTS CITIZENS

His comments came after Israel alerted its citizens on Friday morning that Iran had launched more than 100 drones, which would take several hours to arrive, telling people nationwide to remain near bomb shelters.

Three hours later, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Home Front Command lifted its instruction to Israelis to remain near shelters without a single siren sounding in the country, after it worked to shoot them down outside Israeli territory, Israeli media reported.

The IDF said late Friday morning that it had “control over the situation,” though it did not yet confirm shooting all of the drones down. Restrictions remained in effect for schools and workplaces in addition to public gatherings or events.

However, Khamenei said Israel “opened its wicked and blood-stained hand to a crime in our beloved country, revealing its malicious nature more than ever by striking residential centers.”

Iran’s drone strikes came after Israel launched a deadly wave of attacks that authorities said killed the Iranian armed forces’ chief of staff, the head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, and top nuclear scientists.

“With this crime, the Zionist regime has set itself up for a bitter and painful fate, and it will definitely receive it,” Khamenei said in a statement carried by state media.

As tensions rose, Iranian vessels were not docking at Iran’s ports with “158 vessels recorded at anchor or low speed,” due to fears that the ports could be struck by the Israeli Air Force, according to Israeli artificial intelligence company Windward’s chief executive, Ami Daniel.

INTERNET RESTRICTIONS IMPOSED

At the same time, Iran’s Communications Ministry imposed “temporary restrictions” on internet access across the country following Israel’s airstrikes as part of Operation Rising Lion on Friday, Iranian state media IRNA confirmed.

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Spokesperson Brigadier-General Effie Defrin suggested Friday he wasn’t surprised about Iran’s apparent anxiety as the military “has significantly damaged” Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility.

He cautioned that Israel must prepare for a lengthy operation and that the attack plan is “gradual.”

The spokesman did not rule out that Israel would hit Iran’s Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP), an underground uranium enrichment facility located 20 miles (32 km) northeast of the Iranian city of Qom.

He said he “would not reveal in advance whether and when Israel might strike Fordow.”

U.S. President Donald J. Trump already warned Iran on Friday that “even more brutal force” can be expected unless it makes a nuclear deal preventing it from developing atomic weapons.

Israeli and U.S. officials fear Tehran is days away from producing a nuclear arsenal that Israel says threatens its existence and the world.

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