IDF Chief: ‘Turning Point’ Reached in Iran Campaign

Zamir said he had remained in close contact with US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine throughout the planning process and noted that he had just concluded another conversation with US CENTCOM Commander Gen. Michael Kurilla. 

“We view the coordination between our militaries as a major strategic asset for the State of Israel,” said Zamir. 

“We must not forget, the campaign is ongoing,” he continued. “We still have targets to strike and objectives to complete. We continue to increase the rate of our strikes in accordance with the operational plan, and we are prepared to continue for as long as necessary.” 

Earlier on Sunday, Israeli Air Force fighter jets crossed into Iranian territory to strike storage facilities located approximately 2,200 kilometers (1,360 miles) away in the Yazd region, which housed long-range surface-to-surface missiles known as “Khorramshahr.” 

“In broad daylight, we surprised the ‘Imam Hussein’ missile headquarters in central Iran, the furthest target we’ve struck to date,” said IAF Commander Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar. 

“We destroyed Khorramshahr missiles before they could be launched at Israel and struck tunnels used to store them,” he added. “We are continuing waves of strikes across Iran, disrupting the enemy’s ability to launch salvos into Israeli territory, degrading their firepower capabilities and operating decisively to defend the Israeli home front.” 

Also on Sunday, approximately 20 IAF fighter jets carried out intelligence-based strikes on military targets across Iran, deploying more than 30 munitions in the operation, according to the Israeli military. 

The IAF targeted missile storage and launch infrastructure intended to threaten Israel, as well as military satellite facilities and radar installations used for aerial intelligence gathering in the western provinces of Kermanshah and Hamedan. Additionally, a surface-to-air missile launcher was struck near Tehran. 

“The IDF continues its efforts to degrade the military capabilities of the Iranian regime and achieve aerial superiority over Iranian airspace in order to protect the State of Israel,” the military said in a statement. 

IDF Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin stated on Sunday that Iran’s nuclear program had sustained significant damage. 

“The impact is deep,” he said. “We continue to collect intelligence, together with our allies, to assess the extent.” 

Defrin also noted that the military is working to destroy Iran’s aerial defense capabilities, with IAF aircraft broadening the scope of strikes on the regime’s missile-launching infrastructure. 

On Saturday, IAF fighter jets struck a surface-to-surface missile engine production facility belonging to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the Shahroud region, approximately 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles) from Israeli territory. 

The target was selected for its planetary mixers and other critical machinery used in producing engines for missiles that have been launched by the Iranian regime toward Israel, according to the IDF. 

The strike was part of a broader effort to disrupt Iran’s surface-to-surface missile production capabilities, the military said.