it’s the first time in history. Questions and answers on the war in the Middle East

Why did Iran attack Israel?

Iran fired drones and missiles at Israel after vowing retaliation for a deadly attack on its consulate in the Syrian capital Damascus. Israel has never claimed to have carried out the attack on the consulate, but it is widely believed that the raid can be attributed to the Jewish state. A few hours ago, to a direct question from a BBC journalist, the Israeli government spokesperson responded by detailing the raid and saying that “that was not a consulate but the military position of the Iranian forces attributable to Al Quds”.

This is a dangerous leap in quality in the conflict unleashed on October 7: It is the first time in history that Iran has directly attacked Israel. Previously, Israel and Iran had been engaged in a years-long shadow war that escalated significantly during the current war in Gaza, triggered by the Hamas terrorist group’s assault on several Israeli kibbutzim.