Iran missile attack causes $53M in damage in Israel: Media report

By Zein Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) - An Iranian missile attack on Israel has caused extensive damage worth around $53 million, according to Israeli media on Sunday.

The Oct. 1 attack has caused estimated damage between 150 to 200 million shekels ($40 to $53 million), said Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, citing property tax data.

“This was the largest damage caused by a single missile attack on Israel since the outbreak of the (Gaza) war on Oct. 7, 2023,” it added.

According to the newspaper, around 10 locations sustained damage in the Iranian missile attack, including several military bases. No injuries, however, were reported, except the death of a Palestinian near the West Bank city of Jericho after being hit by shrapnel from an interceptor missile.

Iran fired around 180 missiles at Israel on Oct. 1, which it said was in retaliation for the recent assassinations of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, and an Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander.

Israel has vowed a military response to the Iranian attack.

Regional tensions have escalated due to Israel’s brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has killed over 42,200 people, mostly women and children, following a Hamas attack last year.

The conflict spread to Lebanon with Israel launching deadly strikes across the country, which have killed more than 1,437 people and injured over 4,123 others since Sept. 23.

Despite international warnings that the Middle East region was on the brink of a regional war amid Israel’s relentless attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, Tel Aviv expanded the conflict by launching on Oct. 1 a ground incursion into southern Lebanon.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara