Iran’s army says it has struck “deep inside the Zionist entity,” claiming a long‑range attack drone hit a target in Tel Aviv and a separate radar installation in northern Israel, in what it calls direct retaliation for joint US–Israeli strikes on Iranian soil.

Air‑raid sirens wailed across central and northern Israel overnight as residents filmed bright streaks in the sky and Iron Dome interceptors detonating above Tel Aviv. Local media and emergency services reported blast damage to several buildings and at least minor injuries from falling debris, but no confirmation that a drone achieved a clean hit on the city’s core.

The Israeli military insists most incoming drones and missiles were shot down, saying any impact on air‑defence radar “did not degrade operational capability.” Defence officials have not identified the “northern radar site” mentioned in Tehran’s statement, and Western analysts caution that, so far, Iran has provided no verifiable imagery to back its claim.

Online, the fog of war is thickening. Mislabelled clips and even AI‑generated images purporting to show Tel Aviv in flames have flooded social platforms, some already debunked by fact‑checkers as old footage from Gaza or entirely fabricated scenes.

Still, experts warn that even an attempted strike on a radar hub is a clear message: Iran is probing the seams of Israel’s layered air defences just as US and Israeli jets pound Iranian missile and drone infrastructure. Each new volley now carries not only explosive power, but the risk that one successful hit could tip this fast‑escalating conflict into a far wider regional war.