Israel carried out limited strikes against Iran early Friday in retaliation for Tehran’s barrage of missiles and drones toward Israel late Saturday.
Fox News Digital confirmed there was an explosion in Isfahan province, where Natanz is located, but it is not clear whether there was an explosion. Natanz is the site of one of Iran’s nuclear facilities, but state television reported that all facilities in the area are “completely secure.”
A leading military official told Fox that the attack was “limited.” Sources said the United States was not involved and that Israel had notified the United States in advance.
Pentagon officials have not confirmed the attack. The White House and National Security Council (NSC) have declined to comment on the developing situation.
Meanwhile, commercial planes began changing routes over western Iran without explanation early Friday morning, Reuters reported, as a semi-official news agency in the Islamic Republic claimed it heard “explosions” over the city of Isfahan. .
Iranian city Isfahan at night. (Getty Images)
The semi-official Fars news agency reported the sound of an explosion over Isfahan, near the international airport. There was no explanation for the explosion. However, Isfahan is home to the Iranian military’s main air base and sites related to its nuclear program.
Dubai-based airlines Emirates and flydubai began diverting flights to areas near western Iran at around 4:30 a.m. local time. They gave no explanation, but local warnings to airmen suggested the airspace may have been closed.
Iran later announced that it had suspended civil flight operations in Tehran and throughout its western and central regions. An online video was played in which a loudspeaker allegedly alerted customers to the incident at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport.
Iranian state television launched a scrolling on-screen alert acknowledging there was a “loud noise” near Isfahan, without immediately providing details.
Iran attacked Israel over the weekend in retaliation for Israel’s attack on the Iranian consulate earlier this month, killing more than a dozen people, including a top commander.
Israel’s advanced military technology on full display during Iranian attack
Anti-missile systems are activated after Iran launches a drone and missile toward Israel, seen from Ashkelon, Israel, April 14, 2024. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)
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The weekend attacks by Iran marked a significant escalation in violence. Despite decades of hostility between the two countries, Iran has never attacked Israel directly, relying instead on proxy forces in Iraq, Lebanon and elsewhere.
This is a developing story. Please check the latest information.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
