Iran Responds—Day 2 of Israel/Iran War

Last night, we sat down for dinner with our girls here in Ashkelon. Already, we had received warnings on our phones similar to the ones we received at 3 AM: Homefront Command telling us to stay close to a safe room or bomb shelter. Suddenly, through our sliding door to our balcony, we saw flashes of light. We went out on the balcony to see the beginning salvo of 200 Iranian ballistic missiles throughout the night.

Iranian ballistic missiles are probably 50 times larger than the typical Hamas rocket. They can cause massive damage and loss of life. 

While the rockets we could see appeared close, they were an hour away by car in the greater Tel Aviv area. The greater Tel Aviv area is home to the largest concentration of Jewish people in the world, at 3.5 million. Surely, Iran was hoping for a mass casualty event.

Twice in the middle of the night, the sirens sounded in Ashkelon, where the four of us had to take shelter in our mamad—mamad is an acronym (MMD) for Merkhav Mugan Dirati. Literally, it means a “Residential Protected Space.” It’s different from a bomb shelter because it’s a normal room, but it is insulated with iron for protection. You recognize it because it has a massive iron door, and the window can be shut with metal shutters. They were initially created to withstand chemical attacks. Any new structure must have one in every apartment.  

We received word from friends in the Tel Aviv area who described the attacks as horrifying. Buildings were shaking. Looking at the carnage this morning, one would assume that scores of people would be dead. One entire apartment building was gutted. In Rishon L’tzion, drone footage shows the roofs of many apartments completely gone or destroyed. The building façade of one apartment is missing, revealing the insides of the apartments, with mangled cars in front.

Rishon L'tzion drone footage

The Israeli government sought to prepare us for the attack, explaining that this was far different than anything that the Jewish nation had ever experienced. People were to take extreme caution. That is why I drove to Tel Aviv to pick up my daughters.

Click screenshot to see larger images.

The Dust Settles

By morning, we were stunned to find out that there were only three casualties. In one apartment building, I have yet to find out what happened to the people inside, but we know they all survived. (UPDATE: A recent report just released says the residents were in a basement and are all safe.) None of the three casualties were in safe spaces or bomb shelters. One left too early and was hit by debris—we are supposed to stay for 10 minutes after the siren—and the other two were on their way to bomb shelters. Around 70 others were listed as injured. If those three people had only managed to get to a bomb shelter, there would have been no casualties. 

Massive Miscalculations

A report from the New York Times states that Iran’s leadership was convinced that Israel would not attack before tomorrow’s planned meetings with US diplomats. This miscalculation caught them completely off guard. Officials say Iran’s top military commanders ignored advice to seek shelter and avoid gathering in one place due to their hubris. An Israeli strike targeted an emergency meeting of Iran's military leaders early Friday morning. Some of Iran’s most powerful people were in that meeting. CNN writes, “Their deaths will send shockwaves through the nation’s military establishment and could seriously hamper the Islamic Republic’s ability to respond to Israel’s attacks. Here’s what you need to know about them.”

“According to private texts shared with The Times, Iranian officials angrily asked: ‘Where is our air defense?’ and ‘How can Israel come and attack anything it wants, kill our top commanders, and we are incapable of stopping it?’”—Times of Israel

Israeli Jets Flying Freely Over Tehran

Israel did not take a break even as it was being attacked. Last night, Israeli forces destroyed much of Iran’s defense systems over Tehran. The Times of Israel reported today: 

Israeli Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar said the overnight attacks were the first time Israeli fighter jets had flown over Tehran and had targeted Iran’s air defenses, enabling the military more freedom of aerial action above the Iranian capital. Zamir hailed the strikes, saying “the way to Tehran has been paved.”

“According to the plans, air force fighter jets will begin to carry out strikes on targets in Tehran,” the military added.

Last night, Israeli fighter Jets and drones flew freely over the Iranian capital for almost 3 hours without incident, according to the IDF spokesman, Brigadier General Effie Defrin. “Over 70 Israeli Air Force fighter jets participated in the overnight operation in Tehran to achieve aerial freedom of action over the Iranian capital.” —Times of Israel. The IDF Spokesman continued, “The dozens of aircraft are flying freely over Tehran, thanks to the opening blow that removed the threat of Iranian air defense systems.”

Iran Targets Civilians 

The IDF spokesman added, “Tehran is no longer immune. The capital is exposed to Israeli strikes.” Israel's defense minister, Israel Katz, blasted the Iranians for targeting civilians. He warned them that they are using their own people as human shields, as Israel could be forced to respond. “The Iranian dictator is turning the citizens of Iran into hostages and creating a reality in which they, especially the residents of Tehran, will pay a heavy price for the criminal attack on Israeli civilians,” said Katz in a meeting with top military brass today.

How You can Pray:

We know that there are spiritual forces at work behind what we can see with our eyes. Let’s continue to pray for God’s will to be done. 

•  Pray for the safety of the people of Israel.

•  Pray for the safety of the people of Iran and that Israel is able to complete its task with minimal civilian casualties. 

• Pray for the destruction of Iran’s nuclear site, which is destabilizing to world security.

•  Pray for the people of Iran to retake their country from the Ayatollahs. 

• Please don’t forget our living hostages in Gaza. Pray for their release.

• The two sides here are not Israel and Iran (see Joshua 5:13-15), Yeshua is the Commander of God’s spiritual army. Pray for his will to be accomplished. He is not on our side; we want to be on his. 

• Pray that somehow, God will use this to open up the eyes of Muslims all over the world, as well as the Jewish people, to the truth of Yeshua as Messiah.