Israel: Attack on Iran Enters the Next Phase

Jerusalem (ANTARA) – Israel’s Military Chief Eyal Zamir said on Thursday (5 March) that his forces are moving into the next phase of the conflict with Iran, during which they will intensify strikes on the foundations of Iran’s government and military. Zamir said that after the surprising opening strike that crippled Iran’s ballistic missile apparatus, the Israeli military is now shifting its focus. ‘We have further surprise steps that I will not disclose. We will pursue all our enemies and we will reach them,’ he said, according to Xinhua. Zamir added that the Israeli Air Force has carried out 2,500 strikes and dropped more than 6,000 munitions into Iranian territory. He believed this destroyed around 60 percent of Iran’s ballistic missile launchers and 80 percent of Iran’s air defence system. He added that Israel has now achieved near-total air superiority over Iran. Zamir also confirmed that the US-Israel joint operation launched on Saturday (28 February) was coordinated closely with senior US military leaders, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine and US Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Brad Cooper. He stressed that the aim of Israel’s attack on Iran is to disarm the government’s military capability and bring it to a point of strategic isolation and weaknesses they have never experienced before. On the northern front, Zamir said Israel is attacking ‘with force’ at the border and deep into Lebanon. He confirmed his troops have been ordered to advance and seize key positions in southern Lebanon. Separately, the Israeli military said it killed Zaid Ali Jumaa, commander overseeing Hizbollah’s fighting force, in an air raid in Beirut. Israel said Jumaa, who also served as head of artillery in southern Lebanon, was responsible for launching ‘thousands’ of rockets, missiles and drones at Israel. In response to the US-Israel joint attack on Saturday (28 February), Iran launched a large-scale attack on Israel and a number of US military bases across the Middle East.