In a rare moment, Israel is confirming at least nine people killed and over 40 injured after an Iranian ballistic missile slammed into a residential area west of Jerusalem on Sunday afternoon.
The missile impact was in Beit Shemesh, near Jerusalem, and according to Israeli media destroyed a synagogue and even caused damage to a bomb shelter beneath surrounding homes. There’s a likelihood that the death toll throughout the country will climb given Tehran’s ongoing massive retaliation.
“The Magen David Adom ambulance service said it declared the deaths of eight victims at the scene and took 28 others to hospitals, two in serious condition,” Times of Israel reports. “The death of the ninth victim was declared a short time later.”
The military says it is investigating how the projectile slipped pass Israel’s high tech anti-air defense systems. However, it’s also clear from the June war that there are significant gaps, and that many of Iran’s missiles have indeed been making it through.
Israel’s military censors are likely preventing the true extent of devastation across the country from getting out – as was the case during the June war.
It was reportedly a massive warhead, powerful enough to penetrate a bunker, which resulted in the mass casualties:
The Home Front Command was also investigating the circumstances, including the integrity of the shelter, which directly sustained the impact of the estimated 500-kilogram warhead on the Iranian ballistic missile.
Some unverified reports are saying it was an Iranian hypersonic missile that evaded Israel’s defenses and slammed into the area.