Iran launches barrage of strikes toward Israel

John Bolton, the former US national security adviser and ambassador to the UN, said “passivity at this point for Israel would be a big mistake,” warning of more attacks. 

“This is not time to play academic games and message and signal. This is a question of power,” Bolton told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer. "If they came from a different location containing nuclear warheads, Israel might not be so lucky.”

A known Iran policy hawk, Bolton served in senior national security positions during the Trump and Bush administrations. A neoconservative, Bolton has in the past advocated war with Iran and a pre-emptive strike on North Korea.

In 2022, he was the target of an alleged assassination attempt orchestrated by a member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. 

He has warned against underestimating Iran’s nuclear program, which Tehran has said is for peaceful purposes only.

“I think we have enough experience with faulty intelligence by now, not to be so sure, not to know how much of Iran’s uranium enrichment program is really being conducted under a mountain in North Korea,” Bolton said.

If Tehran sent “a wire transfer to Pyongyang,” it would give the North Koreans “enough time to put a couple of warheads on an airplane and fly them to Tehran. (But) if you take away their nuclear capability, that would be a dramatic hit to the regime, maybe enough to topple it.”

More than 55 rockets have been fired from Lebanon to Israel over the past hour, according to the Israeli military's spokesperson.

This comes after about 40 rockets were fired at Israel from southern Lebanon on Friday, according to the Israel Defense Forces. Hezbollah militants said they had fired the rockets at Israeli artillery positions in response to recent Israeli attacks and in support of Palestinian people in Gaza.

Remember: Since the start of the Hamas-Israel war on October 7, Israel's flare-up with Hezbollah has intensified on Lebanon’s southern border with Israel.

Hezbollah — a Lebanese armed group backed by Iran — has its main area of operations there. Hezbollah has frequently fired missiles into Israel since October 7 and Israel has responded with its own fire, including airstrikes. Israel has ordered the evacuation of communities along the Lebanese border.

The wave of strikes launched from Iran towards Israel appears to have subsided, two US officials said. The attacks lasted approximately five hours.

Early Sunday morning in Israel, the country’s Home Front Command canceled its request for citizens to remain near shelters, an indication that the Israeli military believes the immediate threat of incoming attack has passed.

The US, along with Israel, monitored the barrage of drone and missile attacks that began Saturday night and continued into early Sunday morning. The number of launches appeared to fall during Sunday's early hours, the officials said.

However, even as the number of Iranian drone and missile launches has fallen, Iranian proxy Hezbollah in Lebanon fired a barrage of rockets at northern Israel early Sunday morning.

There have been no reports of injuries suffered directly through Iranian strikes, according to Israel’s emergency service.

However, the Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency service said it was called to treat a total of 31 people who suffered minor injuries while making their way to shelters and who suffered panic attacks during the drone and missile attacks.

Earlier, MDA said it had taken a 7-year-old girl to hospital who had suffered a severe head injury due to shrapnel from an interceptor missile that was launched to intercept an Iranian projectile. 

Sirens have sounded in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights as around 25 projectiles were fired from Lebanon, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

The IDF said sirens sounded in the settlements of Ortal and Sha'al early Sunday. That came after Iran attacked Israel with drones, cruise and ballistic missiles.

It did not specify the type of projectiles fired, or whether they were intercepted.

Earlier Sunday, a barrage of at least 10 rockets was fired from Lebanon towards Israel, an Israeli military spokesperson told CNN.

Sirens sounded in the Upper Galilee region of northern Israel due to the rocket fire, the IDF said in a statement.

On Friday, around 40 rockets were fired at Israel from southern Lebanon, according to the IDF. Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah militants said they had fired the rockets at Israeli artillery positions in response to recent Israeli attacks and in support of Palestinian people in Gaza.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday that the country stands with Israel following Iran's attack, which he said demonstrates "the Iranian regime’s disregard for peace and stability in the region."

"We support Israel’s right to defend itself and its people from these attacks," Trudeau added.

Trudeau also said he is "receiving regular updates" from national security and defense officials, and remains "in contact with allies" as Canada continues to monitor the situation "closely."

US President Joe Biden spoke by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to the White House. A readout will follow.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has asked his Israeli counterpart, Minister Yoav Gallant, to notify the US ahead of any potential response to the Iranian attack, according to a US official.

The two spoke on Saturday evening, hours after Iran had launched its massive barrage of drones and missiles at Israel.

According to an Israeli readout of the call, Gallant briefed Austin about Israel’s defense operations so far and stressed that Israel is ready for any further attacks.

The Israeli security cabinet has authorized the three-man war cabinet to decide on Israel’s response to the Iranian attack following a late-night meeting Saturday, an Israeli official told CNN.

The authorization comes after Israel faced more than 200 "threats," according to the Israel Defense Forces.

The war cabinet comprises of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant and Benny Gantz.