Tehran / Jerusalem — Explosions thundered across central Tehran as Israel announced a new wave of “large‑scale precision strikes” on key military and intelligence sites in the Iranian capital, in one of the boldest operations of the conflict so far.

Residents reported multiple blasts rocking districts near government complexes and Revolutionary Guard facilities, with fireballs lighting up the night sky and windows shattering kilometers away. Social media filled with footage of anti‑aircraft fire arcing over the city as air‑raid sirens wailed and traffic snarled in panicked attempts to flee central streets.

In Jerusalem, Israeli officials said the strikes targeted “the core architecture of Iran’s war machine,” including command bunkers, drone hubs and ballistic‑missile coordination centers allegedly used to direct recent attacks on Israel and US forces. They claimed “dozens of high‑value targets” were hit with stand‑off munitions and long‑range drones, insisting civilian areas were avoided.

Iranian state TV denounced the operation as a “cowardly assault on our capital,” vowing a “crushing answer that will make the enemy regret every bomb dropped.” Emergency scenes from Tehran hospitals showed bloodied civilians and uniformed personnel arriving side by side, as security forces sealed off large swaths of the city.

Analysts warn that by striking so deeply and visibly into Tehran itself, Israel has crossed a powerful psychological line — turning the capital into an open battlefield and pushing both countries closer to a stage of war where neither side will find it easy to back down.