Iran vs. Israel

[Skywalker]

Could Israel Use Conventionally-Armed Jericho Ballistic Missiles To Strike Iran?
If conventionally-armed Jericho ballistic missiles do indeed exist, they could be brought out of hiding to retaliate against Iran.
Thomas Newdick and Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Apr 16, 2024 6:45 PM EDT

13 minute read

Israeli launch of a Shavit-2 with the Ofek 13 satellite
Shavit-2 launches with the Ofek 13 satellite. Israel Ministry of Defense
Israel is preparing for some kind of retaliation against Iran for the large-scale drone and missile attack it launched over the weekend — and which Israeli and other air defenses were almost entirely successful in countering. At this point, we’re very much in uncharted waters, with this being the first overt Iranian strike directly against Israel and with Tehran now threatening to counter any new Israeli action with an immediate and powerful response of its own. Could Israel reach into its secretive ballistic missile arsenal to enact its counterstrike?


Let’s discuss that possibility.

Israel has a very large array of potential options it could execute in the coming hours and days against Iran. While taking the ‘win’ achieved by Israeli and allied air defenses would be the lowest-risk option and in effect doing nothing more, striking the highest-value targets related to Iran — specifically the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its proxies — outside of Iran itself would perhaps be the least volatile kinetic option. Going after Iranian military capabilities, such as its Navy which is more vulnerable to strikes, is another possibility, although one with greater risk. Striking production and storage facilities related to long-range Iranian weapons in Iran itself would be a more challenging operation and would break the threshold of attacking targets deep inside Iran. Finally, going after Iran’s nuclear program would be the boldest conventional option. Without using extremely high-risk tactics and a more sustained campaign, degrading the program may be possible, but largely eliminating it is not, at least without the help of the United States.

https://www.twz.com/news-features/could-...trike-iran