Iran fired a salvo of ballistic missiles at Israel on Tuesday in retaliation for Israel's campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Alarms sounded across Israel and explosions could be heard in Jerusalem and the Jordan River valley after Israelis piled into bomb shelters. Reporters on state television lay flat on the ground during live broadcasts.
Reuters journalists saw missiles intercepted in the airspace of neighboring Jordan. Israeli media reports said as many as 100 missiles had been launched.
Earlier, the military had announced that any ballistic missile strike from Iran was expected to be widespread and told the public to shelter in safe rooms in the event of an attack. Iran had vowed to retaliate following attacks that killed the top leadership of its Hezbollah allies in Lebanon.
Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel. /Amir Cohen/Reuters
The firing of missiles came after Israel said its troops had launched ground raids into Lebanon, though it described the forays as limited. The Israeli campaign in Lebanon is the biggest escalation of regional warfare since fighting erupted in Gaza a year ago.
In Washington, U.S. President Joe Biden said the United States was prepared to help Israel defend itself from Iranian missile attacks.
"We discussed how the United States is prepared to help Israel defend against these attacks, and protect American personnel in the region," Biden said on X after a meeting held with Vice President Kamala Harris and the White House national security team earlier in the day.
The Iranian missile launches came after Israeli ground troops launched raids into Lebanon and its warplanes bombed from the skies.
Subscribe to Storyboard: A weekly newsletter bringing you the best of CGTN every Friday