Iran Declares ‘Mission Accomplished’ Following Retaliatory Strikes Against Israeli Military
Orinoco Tribune,April 14, 2024 —
Iranian authorities and officials hailed the success of Operation True Promise on 14 April, which saw hundreds of drones and missiles strike Israel early that day as a response to the Israeli attack on Iran’s consulate in Damascus at the start of the month.
The “combined operations carry a message of strength and power to the Islamic nation and a message of fear and humiliation to the enemies of humanity,” Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said in a statement on Sunday, adding that the “action was smart and calculated, and the Iranian drones and missiles [successfully] targeted Zionist military bases.”
Raisi added that the attack “came in the context of defending Iran’s sovereignty and national interests, punishing the enemies, and enhancing regional security.”
Several Iranian military officials confirmed on 14 April that the operation represented a fraction of Iran’s capabilities.
“We conducted a limited operation, which was commensurate with the aggressions of the Zionist entity, and could have been much broader in scope. Accurate and documented field reports on the strikes so far indicate that this operation was more successful than expected,” Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) chief Hossein Salami said.
He added that the drone and missile attacks were “innovative” and “managed to penetrate the layers of Zionist defense systems.”
“Any reckless response from the enemy will be met with a stronger and harsher response,” Salami said.
The Iranian army’s Chief of Staff, Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri, said on Sunday morning that “the mission has been accomplished and has obtained the desirable results.”
Several Israeli sites were struck in the Iranian attack. The Israeli army confirmed that their southern Nevatim air base was damaged. According to the Iranian chief of staff, the Israeli jets that attacked the consulate in Syria in early April took off from the Nevatim base.
Baqeri added that the operation “targeted the major Israeli intelligence centers in the Jabal al-Sheikh heights at the border between Syria and the occupied Palestinian territories that provided the intelligence for the Israeli airstrike on Iran’s diplomatic mission in Damascus.”
Brigadier General Ram Aminach, former financial advisor to the Israeli chief of staff, estimated that around $1 billion was spent to intercept Iranian projectiles throughout the hours-long attack.