Tehran, March 22 — Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) says the latest phase of its campaign has caused heavy casualties and damage across Israel and struck regional US military sites.
In a statement carried by state media Press TV, the IRGC described the action as the “latest phase of its ongoing retaliatory Operation True Promise 4,” calling it the operation’s 73rd wave. The Corps said the strikes were launched by the IRGC Aerospace Force using advanced missile and drone systems and framed the operation as a tribute to the air defence personnel it described as martyrs.
The IRGC claimed multiple hits on military and security targets in Israeli population centres including Arad, Dimona, Eilat, Be’er Sheva and Kiryat Gat, saying those strikes followed what it described as the collapse of Israeli air-defence systems. It additionally alleged attacks on US assets in the region, naming Ali al-Salem base in Kuwait and al-Minhad and al-Dhafra facilities in the United Arab Emirates.
Weapons cited by the IRGC included Fattah, Qadr and Emad missiles alongside various attack drones. The Corps’ initial field assessments, it said, indicated more than 200 people were killed or wounded in the early hours of the offensive. The statement also accused Israeli authorities of pressuring journalists and eyewitnesses to downplay or censor reporting on damage and casualties.
The IRGC praised Lebanon’s Hezbollah for opening a “tough and high-pressure battlefront” in central and northern areas and denounced Israeli settlers as “dire and forsaken,” blaming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet for compromising security near nuclear and military sites. The briefing concluded by asserting that “equations of war are rapidly changing,” and suggesting Israeli defence control was collapsing.
These claims came amid reports of a significant strike near the Dimona nuclear reactor. Israeli officials acknowledged nearly 50 people were injured in connection with that incident, while Press TV and IRGC statements pointed to the large deployment of ambulances and military helicopters as an indicator the toll could be higher. Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth reportedly described the events as the “most difficult night” for the home front since late February.
The IRGC framed the campaign as part of “unrelenting and decisive counterstrikes” by Iran’s armed forces in response to recent provocations. Coverage of the events has been carried on syndicated feeds; news outlets publishing those feeds note they report the material as received and do not independently verify all claims.
