The Israel Defense Forces announced it had detected Iran had launched drones at Israel from within its borders on Saturday.
“Iran launched UAVs from within its territory toward Israel a short while ago,” the IDF said on social media late Saturday night local time. “The IDF is on high alert and is constantly monitoring the operational situation.”
Iranian leaders had vowed to avenge an Israeli airstrike that killed a senior military leader at an Iranian Consulate in Damascus, Syria, on April 1. Since then, U.S. and Israeli officials have warned publicly about a retaliatory attack. Israeli officials have warned that they would respond to an Iranian attack.
“Iran will bear the consequences for choosing to escalate the situation any further,” said Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, IDF spokesman.
The IDF did not specify the number of drones launched or whether it believes this will be one aspect of a larger Iranian attack. Axios reported hundreds of drones were launched and that the unmanned aerial vehicles will arrive overnight.
“We are aware of reports,” a Pentagon official told the Washington Examiner. “We do not have anything to provide at this time.”
President Joe Biden, who on Friday said he believed the Iranian response would happen “sooner than later,” returned early from a weekend getaway at his Delaware house on Saturday so he could consult with his national security team about the Middle East.
The White House said it believes the Iranian attack could span several hours, and officials have repeatedly reiterated their support for Israel.
“Iran has begun an airborne attack against Israel,” National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement. “President Biden is being regularly updated on the situation by his national security team and will meet with them this afternoon at the White House. His team is in constant communication with Israeli officials as well as other partners and allies. This attack is likely to unfold over a number of hours. President Biden has been clear: our support for Israel’s security is ironclad. The United States will stand with the people of Israel and support their defense against these threats from Iran.”
Earlier on Saturday, Biden was briefed on the situation by national security adviser Jake Sullivan and principal deputy national security adviser Jon Finer. Both of them will be among the national security officials briefing the president in the White House Situation Room on Saturday afternoon.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., CIA Director Bill Burns, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, homeland security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall, counselor to the president Steve Ricchetti, and National Security Council Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa Brett McGurk will attend the meeting in person. Vice President Kamala Harris and White House chief of staff Jeff Zients will attend virtually.
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The IDF’s indication that the drones were fired from within Iran is significant. Tehran has spent decades supporting and training various militia groups throughout the Middle East that often attack Israel to give Tehran plausible deniability.
All of Iran’s main proxies in the region have attacked Israel or U.S. interests in the region since Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attack in Israel that ignited the current conflict. Hamas, the terrorist group that has been in charge of Gaza for about a decade in a half, is one of Tehran’s proxies. Hezbollah, which is based in Lebanon, Israel’s neighbor to the north, has engaged in exchanges of rocket and drone fire since mid-October.