ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran launched a new wave of missiles toward Israel on Monday, according to Iranian state media, after Israel struck targets in Tehran, Isfahan, and Tabriz in a sharp escalation of tensions between the two rivals amid ongoing talks between the US and Iran to reach a permanent ceasefire.
The Israeli military said it had detected incoming missiles from Iran and activated its air defense systems.
"A short while ago, the IDF identified missiles launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel," the military said in a statement on Monday. "Defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat."
Iranian state television reported explosions in multiple cities following the Israeli strikes. "Several explosions heard in Tehran, Tabriz and Isfahan," state TV posted on Telegram.
This marks the first direct exchange of fire between Iran and Israel since a ceasefire was announced on April 8 following weeks of regional conflict that began on February 28, when the US and Israel launched a large-scale military campaign against Iran.
The Israeli military confirmed carrying out attacks inside Iran.
"The Israeli Air Force struck military targets belonging to the Iranian terror regime in western and central Iran," the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Telegram.
Iranian media also reported that the Karun Petrochemical Company in the southwestern city of Mahshahr in Khuzestan province was hit in an Israeli attack.
Ali Hossein Hayati, Khuzestan's deputy governor for security and law enforcement affairs, told Iranian media that "a few minutes ago, the Karun Petrochemical Company in Mahshahr was targeted in an air attack and struck by projectiles from the Zionist enemy; a portion of the facility has been damaged."
Following the Israeli attacks on Iran, missiles were also launched from to Israel, according to the Israeli military.
"The IDF has identified the launch of a missile from Yemen toward Israeli territory, aerial defense systems are operating to intercept the threat," the military said.
Yemen's Houthi rebels, who joined the regional conflict in support of Iran, have previously launched missiles and drones toward Israel.
The latest exchange came despite reports that US President Donald Trump had urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a phone call not to retaliate against Iran following its missile strikes on Israel late Sunday.
Tehran had launched around a dozen ballistic missiles after Israeli attacks on Beirut's southern suburbs, an area known as Dahieh and considered a Hezbollah stronghold.
The Israeli military said it had intercepted the earlier Iranian missiles but warned that additional launches had been detected.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said in a statement carried by Tasnim News Agency that its latest missile attack targeted the Ramat David Airbase, which it described as the source of recent Israeli operations against Lebanon.
Calling the strike a "warning," the IRGC said that if Israel continues its attacks on Lebanon, Tehran's response would be broader and would "encompass all American and Zionist targets in the region."
Separately, Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters accused Israel of violating the ceasefire and escalating attacks on Lebanon with US backing and international silence, alleging the use of prohibited weapons.
The military command said Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs had crossed "all red lines" and warned of "more crushing and regret-inducing blows" if the attacks continue or if Israel responds to Iran's actions.
