By Abdel Raouf Arnaout and Mohamad Sio
JERUSALEM / ISTANBUL (AA) – The Israeli army acknowledged Thursday that Iran still retains the capability to launch missiles despite airstrikes on hundreds of sites inside the country.
“In the early hours of this morning, dozens of missiles and drones were launched from Iran toward Israel,” said military spokesperson Effie Defrin during a press briefing.
He noted that among the sites hit was Soroka Medical Center in the southern city of Beersheba.
Defrin accused Tehran of deliberately targeting the hospital “to inflict maximum civilian casualties.”
“We continue to systematically target Iran’s launch and strike capabilities while simultaneously enhancing the precision of our air defense systems to counter persistent threats to Israel,” he said.
Hostilities began on Friday when Israel launched airstrikes on several sites across Iran, including military and nuclear facilities, prompting Tehran to launch retaliatory strikes.
Israeli authorities said at least 24 people have been killed and hundreds injured since then in Iranian missile attacks.
Meanwhile, in Iran, 585 people have been killed and more than 1,300 wounded in the Israeli assault, according to Iranian media reports.