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Israel and Iran have played down an apparent Israeli air strike near a major air base and nuclear site in central Iran, signalling the two bitter enemies are ready to prevent their latest eruption of violence from escalating into a full-blown region-wide war.
But the indecisive outcome of weeks of tensions – which included an alleged Israeli strike that killed two Iranian generals, an unprecedented Iranian missile barrage on Israel and the apparent Israeli strike early on Friday in the heart of Iran – did little to resolve deeper grievances between the foes and left the door open to further fighting.
“It appears we’re closer than ever to a broad regional war, despite the fact that the international community will most likely make a great effort to de-escalate tensions,” wrote Amos Harel, the military-affairs commentator for the Israeli daily Haaretz. Israel has long considered Iran to be its greatest enemy, citing the Islamic Republic’s calls for Israel’s destruction, its nuclear programme and its support for hostile proxies across the Middle East.
The tensions have risen since Hamas and Islamic Jihad, Iranian-backed Palestinian groups, attacked Israel on October 7, sparking a devastating Israeli offensive in Gaza that has continued for more than six months.
Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed proxy in Lebanon, immediately began striking Israeli targets, opening up tit-for-tat fighting along a second front, while Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, Syria and Yemen have also fired missiles and drones at Israel throughout the war.
While Israel and Iran have waged a shadow war for years, mostly in neighbouring Syria, they have largely avoided direct confrontations.
That changed after an April 1 air strike killed two Iranian generals at a diplomatic compound in the Syrian capital of Damascus. Although Israel did not comment, Tehran blamed Tel Aviv for the strike and vowed revenge.
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