TEHRAN: Israel launched a daylight attack Saturday on Iran’s capital, with a cloud of smoke rising from the city’s downtown.
Israel Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed the attack and announced to declare a nationwide state of emergency.
Thick smoke rose from an explosion in central Tehran, witnesses said. Iranian state television confirmed the blast but provided no immediate details on casualties or damage. According to media reports Israeli’s missiles hit Tehran.
Air raid sirens sounded across Israel at the same time. The Israeli military said it issued a proactive alert to prepare the public for the possibility of missile fire toward Israeli territory.
Authorities did not immediately confirm whether the explosion in Tehran and the alerts in Israel were directly linked.
There was no immediate statement from Iranian officials on the cause of the blast.
The incident comes amid heightened tensions between Iran and the United States over Tehran’s nuclear programme.
