IRIA News

Israel is the prime suspect behind the drone attacks on the military facilities in the central city of Isfahan in Iran on January 29, 2023, targeting a military industrial complex reported to be production hub for drones and missiles.

While there were no immediate claims of responsibility, the United States media reported that “Israel carried out a drone strike targeting a defense compound” in the Iranian city of Isfahan overnight using suicide drones. New York Times quoted senior U.S. intelligence officials claiming that drone attack on an Iranian military facility was the work of Mossad, Israel’s premier intelligence agency.

Israeli media also attributed the attack to Mossad. “From the nature of the attack, it can be estimated that Mossad is behind it” Haartez reported, adding that a similar attack in the Iranian city of Kermanshah last year was also attributed to Israeli spy agency.

Iran says drone attack targets defense facility

Without naming who was behind the attack, the Iranian authorities said that one of its military facilities in the central city of Isfahan was attacked by a drone strike. The Deputy Head of Security for Isfahan Mohammad Reza Jan-Nesari told a news agency, “An explosion has occurred in one of the military centers affiliated to the Ministry of Defense.” He added that the explosion left some damage, “but fortunately there were no casualties.”

Iran’s state-owned media outlet IRNA later claimed that the explosion was caused by small drones. “There was an unsuccessful attack by small drones against a defense ministry industrial complex and fortunately with predictions and air defense arrangements already in place, one of them (struck),” IRNA said in a report citing the country’s defense ministry.

The Iranian Ministry of Defense has so far downplayed the attacks as unsuccessful micro-drone attacks. “The air defense system of the complex was able to destroy two other drones. Fortunately, this unsuccessful attack killed no one and minor damage was sustained to the roof of the complex” the ministry said.

The plant is about 440 kilometers south of the capital Tehran. Iranian media video showed a flash of light at a complex that they described as an ammunition factory. Footage also showed emergency vehicles and fire trucks outside the complex.

Iranian official media claimed the attack was carried out using three armed drones. One drone was shot down “and the other two were caught in defense traps and blew up. It caused only minor damage to the roof of a workshop building.” However, one of the foreign journalists covering the Middle East reported that the attacks were “specific, surgical and successful”.

Media reports have suggested the attack was carried out by its archrival Israel, however, Israeli officials made no comments when asked if Israel had a connection to the latest incident. Israel has long said it could attack Iran if diplomacy fails to curb Tehran’s nuclear or missile programs but has a policy of withholding comment on specific incidents.

The Israeli military declined to comment on the strike, which would be the first attack under the tenure of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government. One Israeli media outlet reported that Mossad chief David Barnea left a cabinet meeting when the attack was reported and did not return.

The strike came just as U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken was beginning a visit to Israel following the trip of the director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), William J. Burns, to Israel last week.

Several Iranian nuclear sites are in Isfahan province, including Natanz, the centerpiece of Iran’s uranium enrichment program. Iran has accused Israel multiple times of sabotaging its military facilities. There have been a number of explosions and fires around Iranian military, nuclear and industrial facilities in recent years.

In July 2020, a fire broke out at the Iranian Natanz nuclear complex in Isfahan. Iran’s Supreme Nation Security Council, the authorities decided not to publicly announce the findings on what caused the fire due to security concerns.