Israel reportedly has decided on the targets that it could strike in Iran in retaliation for the barrage of missiles Tehran fired at the country on Oct. 1, with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowing that there will be “a precise and deadly response.”
The Times of Israel, citing Channel 12 news, reports that the Israeli Defense Forces have presented a list of potential targets to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Gallant as officials are conducting “sensitive coordination” with other countries in the Middle East.
“The targets are clear. Now it’s a matter of time,” one source reportedly told Israel’s Kan news.
Another source told Kan that “the targets could also change at the 11th hour,” according to The Times of Israel.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant during a press conference in Tel Aviv, Israel, in Oct. 2023. The two Israeli leaders reportedly have been presented targets to strike in Iran in response to Tehran’s Oct. 1 missile attack on Israel. (Reuters/Pool)
The newspaper quoted Gallant as saying Tuesday that he sees “eye-to-eye” with Netanyahu and military chief Herzi Halevi on “both the need and essence of the response” to Iran, which he described as being “precise and deadly.”
Following the attack by Tehran, in which the U.S. helped defend Israel against the more than 180 missiles fired at it, Netanyahu vowed to make Iran “pay,” prompting immediate speculation over what the counterattack would look like.
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Rockets fired from Iran are seen over Jerusalem from Hebron in the West Bank on Oct. 1. (Wisam Hashlamoun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
No casualties were reported in Israel, though one Palestinian was killed in the West Bank, and Biden has urged Netanyahu to issue nothing more than a “proportionate” counterstrike.
However, speculation has mounted over the type of attack Israel could hit Iran with, and security analysts have begun reviewing strike options that range from hitting military sites, infrastructure important to the Iranian regime like oil refineries and ports, to even an attack on Iran’s expanding nuclear program.
Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel, on Oct. 1. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)
Following Iran’s attack in April, during which it levied some 300 missiles and drones at Israel, Jerusalem responded to Western calls for restraint by hitting Iran’s air defenses and destroying part of an S-300 long-range air defense system.
Fox News’ Caitlin McFall contributed to this report.
