Iran, Israel exchange deadly strikes as conflict enters fourth day

Rudaw Net

11 hours ago

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The conflict between Israel and Iran entered its fourth day on Monday as Tehran launched another wave of missile attacks on Israeli territory. Many civilians have been killed in both countries.
The latest Iranian strikes have killed at least four in Israel, according to official figures. Israeli media have reported at least three more civilian deaths. The latest official death toll brings the total figure to at least 18, with nearly 400 injured since the start of the escalation on Friday.
In Iran, authorities reported 224 people killed and 1,277 injured, though the government has not specified how many of the casualties were civilians or military personnel. Human rights groups, including the Washington-based Human Rights Activists, said the Iranian government's figures are likely understated. The group reported more than 400 deaths, including 197 civilians.
The conflict escalated sharply after Israel launched a large-scale strike on Friday, killing several senior military commanders and key nuclear scientists. In response, Iran fired hundreds of missiles and drones at Israeli targets, escalating the conflict significantly.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Sunday confirmed the deaths of its intelligence chief Mohammad Kazemi, his deputy Hassan Mohaqiq, and another senior officer, Mohsen Bagheri. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had reported the death of Kazemi and Mohaqiq during an interview with Fox News earlier in the day.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday called for national unity amid the Israeli attacks, urging Iranians to 'set aside their differences' in the face of what he described as 'genocidal criminal aggression.' He also condemned the United States, accusing it of enabling Israel's strikes.
Mike Huckabee, American Ambassador to Israel, said on X that the US mission in the country remains closed.
He added that the building of an embassy branch was damaged by an Iranian attack.
'Some minor damage from concussions of Iranian missile hits near Embassy Branch in @TelAviv but no injuries to US personnel,' he said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters on Monday that Israel's ongoing aggression is a clear and unprecedented violation of international law.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Kats hinted on Monday that there will be more civilian casualties in Iran.
'The arrogant dictator from Tehran has become a cowardly murderer who fires targeted shots at the civilian home front in Israel to deter the IDF from continuing the attack that is collapsing its capabilities,' he said on X.
'The residents of Tehran will pay the price, and soon,' warned the minister.
Stakes high for Iraq
The stakes are high for Iraq, which hosts both US forces and powerful Iran-backed armed groups. Any retaliatory strike launched from its soil could provoke devastating responses which could undermine its sovereignty and threaten the country's fragile stability, as it is still recovering from decades of war.
In Erbil, a loud blast was heard early Monday following the downing of a suspected drone, reportedly intercepted by aerial defenses at the new US consulate compound. A similar incident took place in the early hours of Sunday.
An Iraqi politician and member of the ruling coalition warned on Sunday that Iraq is not well-equipped to confront potential Israeli or American strikes, citing limited military capabilities and economic vulnerabilities.
"The messages are clear, Iraq cannot stay distant from this battle," Abd al-Rahman al-Jazairi, a senior Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) official, told Rudaw on Sunday, explaining that "the first and main reason is that the relationship between Iran and Iraq is a strategic relationship built on ideological grounds.
"We are talking about geographical border connections and economic ties, and this leads to Iraq not being far from the signs of war or from the battlefield, considering that it is geographically adjacent to the Islamic Republic of Iran,' he added.
The border between the two countries is roughly 1600 kilometers, with the sound of rockets and drones having been heard over the skies of the Kurdistan Region and Iraq since early Friday morning.
He said that Iraq's current military capacity is insufficient to counter threats from either side, explaining that "if Iraq enters this battle, it will not be able to bear it, because we do not possess weapons resistant to Israeli and American aircraft, and our capabilities are limited.'
Jazairi also raised concerns about the lack of Iraqi control over its airspace and the potential for provocation.
PMF, a state-sanctioned paramilitary coalition with deep ties to Iran, although formally recognized as part of Iraq's armed forces in 2016, many of its factions remain closely tied to Iran. Some operate independently and have carried out attacks on US and Israeli targets in the region.