Israel strikes targets in Iran, reports say
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The news: Israel's military has struck targets near the Iranian city of Isfahan, days after Iran launched a retaliatory drone attack on its Israeli territory, multiple media outlets have reported.
The numbers: Oil and gold prices spiked following initial reports of the attack, with Brent crude briefly jumping above $90 a barrel before paring some of those gains.
The top gainers on the ASX200 by 3:02pm AEDT were gold companies including Genesis Minerals (3.01%), De Grey Mining (2.06%), Red 5 (1.74%) and Evolution Mining (1.88%).
The context: The scale of the attack and the weapons used were initially unclear.
The New York Times reported that three Iranian officials had confirmed that a strike had hit a military base near Isfahan, while Iranian news agencies reported that nuclear facilities in the area had not been hit.
Reuters also said an attack was confirmed, based on unnamed sources, adding that Iranian state media had reported that its forces had destroyed drones.
Meanwhile, American news outlets ABC and CBS said they'd been told by unnamed US officials that Israel had launched at least one missile at Iran.
Iran’s state-run news agency said the country had fired air defence batteries in several provinces and the Iranian Airports and Air Navigation Company had suspended flights in areas including Tehran, Isfahan and Shiraz airports.
On Wednesday, responding to pleas from Western countries for restraint in responding to attacks from Iran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "I want to make it clear — we will make our own decisions, and the State of Israel will do everything necessary to defend itself.”
On 13 April, Iran launched an unprecedented missile and drone attack on Israel, launching a barrage of over 300 projectiles including 170 drones, 30 cruise missiles and 120 ballistic missiles. The attack was Iran’s response to a suspected Israeli air strike on the Iranian consulate in Syria on 1 April, which killed a number of Iranian military personnel.
The sources: Reuters, ABC News, CBS, New York Times
