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Israel-Iran live updates: Israeli missile has struck Iran, US officials say - BBC News | Israel-Iran live updates: Israeli missile has struck Iran, US officials say - BBC News |
(32 minutes later) | |
A nuclear and chemical weapons expert has told the BBC the selection of Isfahan, Iran's second city, as a potential target was "very significant". | |
Hamish De Bretton Gordon, a former commander of UK and Nato nuclear forces, notes the city has many military bases around it - with one of them apparently being the target overnight. | |
"[The reported attack] was fairly near to where we believe Iran is building nuclear weapons, so I expect it was a nod to them," he tells BBC News. | |
De Bretton Gordon goes on to make the case the purpose of the strikes was a "very much a demonstration of capability and perhaps intent". | |
Iran fires 300 plus miles at Israel, they virtually all get shot down. Israel fires one, perhaps two missiles, at an Iranian target - which appears to have got through and caused damage." | |
He adds that Israel "vastly overmatches" Iran in conventional military power, so Tehran would prefer to use proxies for attacks and avoid going "toe to toe with Israel, where it knows it would get a real hammering". | |
On the Iranians downplaying the significance of the attack, De Bretton Gordon says they don't want to acknowledge that any Israeli missiles have got through their "very antiquated" air defence systems and hit targets. | |
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