23 Wounded in Latest Iranian Missile Attacks on Israeli Civilians

Latest Developments

2 Missile Attacks: At least 23 people were injured, including three seriously, after an Iranian ballistic missile slammed into the northern Israeli city of Haifa on June 20, following one of the largest barrages in several days. The missile, which struck an area near Haifa’s iconic Sail Building and reportedly near the city’s al-Jarina Mosque, was part of a salvo of 25 missiles launched by the Islamic Republic at civilian population centers. No injuries were reported in the central and southern regions of Israel, which also came under attack, but one 51-year-old woman in Karmiel was pronounced dead by medics after suffering cardiac arrest while in a shelter.
Beer Sheva Hit Again: The mid-day ballistic missile attack on Israel followed a smaller attack earlier in the day in which a ballistic missile impacted the southern Israeli city of Beer Sheva, lightly wounding seven people but causing significant damage to several residential buildings. One day earlier, a ballistic missile fired by Iran struck Beer Sheva’s Soroka Medical Center, heavily damaging an evacuated facility in the hospital. The Islamic Republic has launched some 520 ballistic missiles at Israeli civilians since the start of Israel’s Operation Rising Lion on June 13, of which less than 5 percent have directly impacted Israel.
Nationwide Alert Sounded: In an unusual move, Israel’s Home Front Command issued nationwide incoming missile alerts for Israel before today’s attack. Israeli media reported that Iran had likely fired another cluster bomb after it was confirmed that the Islamic Republic used the munition in a June 19 attack. Cluster munitions break apart at an altitude of around seven kilometers and spread smaller munitions in a radius of around eight kilometers. One of the smaller cluster munitions reportedly used in today’s attack struck a daycare in Beer Sheva.

FDD Expert Response

“Israel has developed a multilayered defense system specifically for this kind of war, and it has proven critical in saving lives. Its effectiveness lies in its integration into a broader network designed to protect Israeli airspace from a range of aerial threats. This network, working in tandem with fighter jets that actively hunt down missile launch sites, has significantly reduced the number of incoming projectiles that the air defense system must intercept. With additional support from the United States and other partners, Israel has managed to limit casualties significantly throughout the conflict.” — Joe Truzman, Senior Research Analyst and Editor at FDD’s Long War Journal

“While Israelis are proud of their security services’ achievements during the conflict, there is also a concern that as the IDF backs the regime into a corner, the ayatollah may unleash increasingly lethal weapons. The use of Iranian cluster munitions to target a civilian hospital in Beer Sheva was a step up the escalation ladder, and Israelis are wary that the regime may be inclined to take additional steps.” — Enia Krivine, Senior Director of FDD’s Israel Program and National Security Network

“Not only has the Islamic Republic been largely targeting Israeli civilians, but it has now begun to escalate the scope of its murderous missile launches — using cluster munitions in a bid to cause as much carnage as possible in Israel’s population centers. As the conflict continues, Israel’s preemptive strikes on missile storage facilities and launchers are helping deplete Iran’s stock of missiles — estimated to have been between 2,000 and 3,000 before Operation Rising Lion — in addition to those the regime has already fired.” — Aaron Goren, Research Analyst and Editor