Air‑raid sirens and distant explosions shattered Tehran’s night as Israel launched a new wave of long‑range strikes on Iranian targets, pushing the region into its most dangerous phase in decades. Shaky phone videos show orange fireballs on the horizon, anti‑aircraft tracers lancing the sky and panicked residents sheltering in underground garages.

While Iranian officials insist “most hostile missiles were intercepted,” Western intelligence sources say the IDF targeted command bunkers, drone hubs and air‑defense nodes ringing the capital — and is now pivoting its crosshairs toward Isfahan, home to critical nuclear infrastructure and major air bases. Analysts warn that a strike on Isfahan would mark a dramatic escalation, signaling a direct assault on the heart of Iran’s strategic program.

Washington is no longer just watching. U.S. Central Command has shifted to high alert, surging AWACS surveillance planes, missile‑defense batteries and naval assets to shield bases and Gulf allies from expected retaliation. Pentagon officials confirm multiple intercepts of Iranian drones and cruise missiles headed toward Israel and U.S. facilities, framing the moves as “defensive action to prevent a wider catastrophe.”

In Tehran, hard‑line factions are demanding immediate ballistic‑missile salvos on Israeli cities and U.S. targets, while more cautious voices fear a full‑scale war the country cannot control. Oil markets are spiking, airlines are diverting around Iranian airspace, and diplomats are warning that the conflict is one miscalculation away from igniting a regional conflagration that could redraw the map of the Middle East.