With the end of the alert shortly after 8:30 pm, Iran’s retaliatory operation against Israel was concluded, with no one knowing whether there will be another.
“Now you can leave protected areas in all areas of the country. We ask the public to continue to follow the instructions of Home Front Command,” the Israeli military said in a statement.
Iran’s missile attack began at 7:50 am. A series of rockets approaching or exceeding 200 were fired from Iran into Israel, sending part of the population into shelters.
At the same time, social media was flooded with images of rockets falling on central Israel, many of them intercepted by the Iron Dome.
RAW MOVIES: Watch as Iranian missiles rain down on the Old City of Jerusalem, a holy site for Muslims, Christians and Jews.
This is the Iranian regime’s target: everyone. pic.twitter.com/rIqUZWN3zy
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 1, 2024
Some others clearly reached their destination causing huge explosions.
Emergency services were dispatched to several locations, but there were no reports of serious injuries as of 10pm, according to the BBC.
Palestinian media, however, reported that the rocket barrage killed one Palestinian in the West Bank.
Alarms sounded across Israel and explosions could be heard in Jerusalem and the Jordan River valley after Israelis huddled in bomb shelters. State television reporters lay on the floor during live broadcasts https://t.co/pkceCOB6P1 pic.twitter.com/rH1LFfXNBA
-Reuters (@Reuters) October 1, 2024
We have our plans
Israel will respond to the missile attack launched today by Iran, the spokesman for the Israeli Armed Forces (IDF) assured, clarifying that this will be done “at the right place and time”.
“This attack will have consequences. We have our plans and will act where and when we decide,” said IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari.
Two worlds: Psalms and celebrations
A Jewish prayer in an underground parking lot, sweets for children in a shelter, shouts of joy in a Palestinian neighborhood: in Jerusalem, the Iranian missile attack against Israel was faced very differently depending on where you were.
When the sirens sounded, hundreds of people who were at the central bus station, in the west of the city, fled to the underground parking lot, following the army’s instructions.
Some started to read psalms. Others looked at their cell phones as explosions could be heard clearly outside, while missiles were intercepted mid-air by anti-aircraft defenses.
A video has emerged showing missiles fired from Iran towards Tel Aviv. Iranian state TV confirmed that “dozens” of missiles were launched. Israel’s Iron Dome intercepted several missiles, while the home front command issued urgent warnings directing civilians to shelters in the affected areas… pic.twitter.com/uVvZI9jYog
– Khogendra Rupini (@KhogendraRupini) October 1, 2024
On the road, in the night sky, the trajectory of projectiles directed from east to west was clearly visible. Repeated explosions echoed throughout the holy city.
At the shelter in Musrara, a west Jerusalem suburb, residents called friends and relatives to give updates, to make sure everyone was safe. One man, who preferred not to be named, told an AFP reporter: “We can understand, but the children can’t.” To do this, he gave them sweets “so they don’t have bad memories”, as he explained.
The children were crying. Families arrived whenever the sirens sounded, some caught off guard: they had not heard of the imminent threat, despite repeated warnings from authorities and the media, more than an hour ago.
Changes in the environment and reactions in Silwan, a Palestinian neighborhood in East Jerusalem annexed by Israel in 1967.
“As soon as the Palestinians (in the neighborhood) heard the first sirens, they started whistling, then clapping and shouting Allahu Akbar (‘God is great’),” said one resident. Here, residents did not go to shelters, but to the streets or rooftops to watch the spectacle, he explained.
In response, #Israel will turn #Iran in ashes…
Iran’s civilians will pay the price. pic.twitter.com/7pBYVo7gyS
– Mr Sinha (@MrSinha_) October 1, 2024
In the west, as soon as the alarm ended, 17-year-old Alon returned to his small workshop. “It has been six months since I heard alarm sirens in Jerusalem,” he said, referring to the first Iranian attack on the night of April 13-14. “I’m not afraid,” he assured.
