After a week of tense internal deliberation and international appeals for calm, Israel struck an air defense system in Iran on Friday, according to Western and Iranian officials. Israel’s airstrike was the latest in an exchange of attacks between the countries.
I spoke about Iran and Israel with my colleague Farnaz Fassihi, the U.N. bureau chief, who covers the shadow war between the countries.
What does this attack mean for the conflict between Iran and Israel?
I think it marks a new chapter in their yearslong adversarial relationship because, despite fighting each other covertly, and through proxies, and through shadow operations, it’s the first time in 45 years that they’ve attacked each other directly.