Israel's “Days of Atonement” attacks against Iran will continue if the terror regime responds, the IDF warns

JERUSALEM – Following Israel's daring military airstrikes in Iran early Saturday, the Jewish state announced it was ready to continue going on the “offensive” against the world's worst state sponsor of terrorism, the Islamic Republic of Iran, if Tehran responded.

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said: “If the regime in Iran made the mistake of initiating a new round of escalation, we would be obliged to respond. Our message is clear: anyone who threatens the State of Israel and seeks to drag the region into a major escalation will pay a heavy price.”

He added: “We demonstrated today that we have both the ability and the determination to act decisively – and we stand ready – in offense and defense – to defend the State of Israel and the people of Israel.”

The US alerted itself in advance to Israel's attack on Iran; IDF SAYS MISSION COMPLETE

Iranian air defenses were reportedly operating when Israel began attacking Iranian targets in Tehran. (Received from Fox News)

Israel called its Saturday mission “Days of Atonement” in response to Iran’s October 1 launch of around 200 ballistic missiles into the Holy Land. Iran said it attacked Israel in retaliation for the IDF's elimination of Tehran-backed global Hezbollah terrorist Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut.

The Biden-Harris administration's pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to have paid off, with Jerusalem limiting its historic attack on Iran to purely military facilities. Israel has avoided taking out Iran's illegal nuclear weapons sites and its giant oil mining companies.

“Israel chose the least aggressive response against the Islamic Republic by carrying out precision strikes on military targets,” noted Lisa Daftari, Iran expert and editor-in-chief of The Foreign Desk.

Daftari told Fox News Digita: “This approach raises the question of whether the US has induced Israel to respond more cautiously, perhaps to prevent further escalation. One could argue that these attacks successfully restored deterrence, while one could also say that Israel missed an opportunity.” Many factors, including timing, target selection and attack intensity, were influenced by a US leak and our upcoming elections difficult. Despite this pressure, Israel appears ready to change its approach if the Islamic Republic decides to escalate further.”

Israeli Air Force planes flew to the attacks in Iran last night. (IDF Spokesperson Unit)

On Saturday, Defense Secretary Austin maintains a reinforced force posture to defend U.S. personnel, Israel and partners throughout the region in the face of threats from Iran and Iran-backed terrorist organizations, and is committed to preventing any actor from exploiting tensions or to expand the conflict in the region.”

A senior U.S. official said Friday that “Israel has conducted precision airstrikes against multiple military targets throughout Iran and outside populated areas.” The official added that the United States played no role in the mission and “the President and his national “The security team have of course been working with the Israelis over the last few weeks to encourage Israel to carry out the mission and to carry out a targeted and proportionate response.” A lower risk of civilian harm appears to have occurred this evening.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his phone call with President Biden earlier this month, which reportedly discussed Israel's response to Iran. (Israeli Prime Minister's Office)

Mardo Soghom, editor-in-chief of Iran International's English-language website, told Fox News Digital: “The regime and its media are downplaying the attack. They say it was ineffective and the air defense was wonderful. They claim that Israel's attack caused minimal damage.” Some of the regime's hardliners are openly calling for a counterattack. Iran's foreign ministry says it still reserves the right to respond.

ISRAEL begins retaliatory strikes against Iran after rocket fire against Israelis

He justified the State Department's response with cliched diplomatic language, noting that “no one witnessed the downing of the S-300 air defense system,” suggesting that Israel bypassed Iran's vaunted Russian missile defense apparatus.

An IDF pilot in her aircraft as part of the “Days of Repentance” mission against Iran. (IDF Spokesperson Unit)

“My analysis is that the US and Israel appear to have put Iran in a bind. The US has warned Iran not to react. So if Iran reacts, that could justify a reaction from the USA,” said Iran expert Soghom.

According to the regime-controlled media, four Iranian soldiers, including an officer, were killed in Israeli counterstrikes. It is unclear whether Tehran will up the ante and launch new missile attacks against the Jewish state.

Fox News Digital contacted an IDF spokesman about an Israeli news report that said Israel was preparing for retaliatory ballistic missile attacks by Iran. The IDF spokesman said: “It is nothing special. We are constantly preparing.”

Axios reported that Israel warned the Iranian regime about the attack. “The Israelis made it clear to the Iranians in advance what they would and would not attack in general,” a source told Axios. The IDF did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital about the report.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, along with the Defense Minister, the Chief of Staff, the head of the Mossad and the head of the Shin Bet, conducts a security assessment at the Air Force headquarters at Kirya Base in Tel Aviv. (Israeli Prime Minister's Office)

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Former Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid, leader of one of Israel's largest opposition parties, criticized the attack on X, saying it was a missed opportunity. A translation of his post said, among other things: “The decision not to attack strategic and economic targets in Iran was wrong. We could and should have demanded a much higher price from Iran.”

The Times of Israel reported that former defense minister and leader of Israel's Beytenu party, Avigdor Liberman, said Israel had failed to demand a “real price” from the Islamic Republic and criticized the government for its “showmanship.”