Huge flames lit the night sky over Tehran and nearby Karaj late last night after Israeli strikes targeted several Iranian fuel storage facilities, sending fireballs and thick plumes of smoke across the capital, according to the New York Times.
The Israeli military said it had struck multiple fuel storage and energy complexes in Tehran, describing the operation as a “significant strike” against infrastructure used by Iran’s armed forces.
The attacks mark the first known assault on Iran’s energy facilities since the United States and Israel began coordinated strikes on Iranian targets last weekend. Saturday’s attacks appear to signal a broadening of the campaign towards Iran’s energy infrastructure, the NYT report added.
Videos circulating on social media showed towering columns of fire rising above oil depots and illuminating the skyline. Residents reported powerful explosions that reverberated across Tehran and the neighbouring city of Karaj.
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps said it launched a missile strike on an oil refinery in Israel’s Haifa late on Saturday in retaliation for the assault on Iranian energy infrastructure.
In a statement carried by its official outlet Sepah News, the corps said the refinery had been targeted with Kheibarshekan missiles in response to the attacks on Iran’s own facilities.
Until this weekend, the US-Israeli bombing campaign had largely focused on Iranian leadership structures, security services, police stations and military capabilities.
Iran’s Ministry of Oil said several storage depots in Tehran and Alborz provinces were struck, reports Iran International.
State media reported that one of the targeted sites was a storage facility near Tehran’s main oil refinery in the southern Shahr Rey district.
The explosions on Saturday night followed an earlier Israeli attack on Mehrabad Airport, Tehran’s main domestic aviation hub.
FP/A
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