Israel hails ‘success’ in blocking Iran’s drone and missile strikes

The latest:

• Iran warns of further attacks if Israel retaliates.
• Netanyahu vows to achieve victory.
• Israel reports modest damage.
• G7 leaders expected to meet Sunday afternoon.
• Some airlines cancelling and rerouting flights in the region.

Top Iranian commanders warned Israel on Sunday that the country would face a bigger attack if it retaliates against overnight drone and missile strikes, adding that Washington has been told not to back any military action from its ally.

“Our response will be much larger than tonight’s military action if Israel retaliates against Iran,” armed forces chief of staff Maj.-Gen. Mohammad Bagheri told state TV, adding that Tehran warned Washington that any backing of Israeli retaliation would result in U.S. bases being targeted.

The commander of the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hossein Salami, also warned Tehran would retaliate against any Israeli attack on its interests, officials or citizens.

Israel reported modest damage and reopened its airspace after Iran launched an unprecedented direct attack on Israeli territory, while the United States said it would discuss a diplomatic response with major powers on Sunday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed his country would achieve victory after the military said it shot down almost all of the more than 300 drones and missiles launched by Iran in a sharp escalation of the Middle East conflict.

In all, Iran launched 170 drones, more than 30 cruise missiles and more than 120 ballistic missiles, according to Israel.

Retaliation attack

Tehran’s attacks late on Saturday, launched after a suspected Israeli airstrike on its embassy compound in Damascus on April 1 that killed officers of the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, raised the threat of a wider regional conflict.

Israel did not claim responsibility for the airstrike that killed Brig.Gen. Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a senior commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps’ overseas Quds Force, and six other officers as they attended a meeting in the Damascus embassy compound.

But Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Israel “must be punished and shall be” for an operation he said was equivalent to an attack on Iranian soil.

Up to this point, Iran had…