Iran launches missiles at ‘Israel’ for first time since truce

Air raid sirens sounded in ‘Israel’ on Sunday as its military worked to intercept barrages of incoming Iranian missiles for the first time since an April ceasefire took hold in the Middle East war.

Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guards called the attack a "warning" after ‘Israel’ struck Beirut's southern suburbs earlier in the day, threatening wider strikes in the event of repeated aggression.

An April 8 ceasefire had halted major hostilities between Iran, ‘Israel’ and the United States, but efforts to turn the truce into a settlement have repeatedly stalled, and Sunday's launches were sure to further dampen hopes for a lasting peace, as the Middle East war reached its 100th day.

Tehran has insisted any deal to permanently end the war must also halt the parallel conflict in Lebanon, where ‘Israel’ is pursuing a campaign against the Iran-backed movement Hezbollah, and had warned that any new attacks on Beirut would trigger a "full-scale resumption" of hostilities.

On Sunday, ‘Israeli’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office announced that the army had "struck a militant command centre in Beirut's Dahiyeh district, in response to Hezbollah's fire towards Israeli territory".

The raid killed two people and wounded 20 more, Lebanon's health ministry said.

‘Israel’ had warned it would hit the area should Hezbollah attack northern ‘Israel’, and the group later confirmed having launched missiles and drones at a pair of ‘Israeli’ army barracks on Sunday morning.

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran's parliament speaker and its chief negotiator in talks with Washington, accused the US of having given a "green light" for the Beirut attack, saying US and ‘Israeli’ assets were now "legitimate targets".

Hours later, the ‘Israeli’ military reported at least three waves of incoming missiles, saying its air defences were "identifying and intercepting threats".

The head of Iran's military central command said ‘Israel’ had "crossed all red lines" with the Beirut strike, demanding it halt its campaign in Lebanon.

"Tonight's operation was a warning," the Revolutionary Guards said. "If such aggressions are repeated, the responses will be broader and will cover all US-Zionist targets in the region."

Shortly after the attack, Iran announced it was closing its airspace over the country's west, while neighbouring Iraq and nearby Syria followed suit.