Israel's defense minister warns 'Tehran will burn' if Iran continues firing missiles

Jerusalem: Defence Minister Israel Katz has warned Iran that “Tehran will burn” if it continues firing missiles at Israel, as tensions escalated between the two nations.

His comments came after Iran launched retaliatory strikes on Israel following Israel’s attack on Iran’s nuclear, missile, and military complex.

“The Iranian dictator is turning the citizens of Iran into hostages and creating a reality in which they, especially the residents of Tehran, will pay a heavy price for the criminal attack on Israeli civilians,” Katz said during a situation assessment with Israel Defence Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, Mossad director David Barnea, and other top military officials.

“If (Ali) Khamenei continues to fire missiles at the Israeli home front, Tehran will burn,” the Israeli defence minister asserted.

Israel has so far kept its attacks limited to Iranian nuclear and military installations and has targeted key officials attached to them.

The IDF said Iran has fired around 200 ballistic missiles at Israel in several barrages since last night. Most of the missiles were intercepted by air defences, it claimed.

According to the IDF:

Around 25% of the missiles, i.e., less than 50, were not intercepted “according to protocol,” allowing them to strike open areas without damaging critical infrastructure.

A small number of missiles made it through air defences and caused casualties and damage, including in residential areas in Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, and Rishon Lezion in central Israel.

Three Israelis are said to have been killed, and about 70 others wounded in the Iranian missile attacks.

The IDF stated that all its bases, including air bases, are operating normally with no harm to their functionality.

Several drones fired at Israel overnight, in addition to the 100 launched on Friday, were shot down by the Israeli Air Force and Navy.

Meanwhile, Zamir and Israeli Air Force chief Tomer Bar have said that “the way to Tehran has been paved,” stressing that Israeli jets can now freely operate in the Iranian capital.

“According to the plans, air force fighter jets will begin to carry out strikes on targets in Tehran,” the Israeli army said.

This statement follows the IDF’s claim last night that its jets struck air defence systems in Tehran, enabling more freedom of aerial action above the Islamic Republic’s capital.

“The strikes over the skies of Tehran have operational and national significance. We chose to act in the face of an existential threat to the security of our citizens, with professionalism, determination and precision,” Bar was quoted as saying on the IDF’s social media handle on X.

The IDF said dozens of Israeli Air Force fighter jets attacked dozens of targets in Tehran overnight, including surface-to-air missile infrastructure, as part of an effort to dismantle Iran’s air defence capabilities in the Tehran area.

“After a powerful day in which we attacked hundreds of targets, including dozens of anti-aircraft targets, we carried out a wave of precise attacks of operational and national significance over the skies of Tehran, which improves our air superiority and freedom of action in Iran,” Bar said.

“For the first time since the beginning of the war, dozens of Air Force fighter jets flew over the skies of Tehran, more than 1,500 kilometres from the territory of the State of Israel, and attacked defence systems in the Tehran area,” he emphasised.