Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog: “That was a big mistake”

Israel is outraged by the possibility of US sanctions against its own military. President Herzog warns the ally. More information on the news blog.

Media reported that Israel carried out the attack in response to Iran. However, there are no official confirmations. Here you can find an overview. You can follow all current developments on the blog here:

4:18 am: The US has acknowledged the destruction of a rocket launcher after reports of an attack near a military base in Syria. A coalition warplane shot down the rocket in self-defense, a US official said. There were no casualties on the American side. Iraq had earlier reported five rockets fired from the back of a delivery truck in the border town of Sumer, a US base in Syria. It was the first attack on U.S. forces in Iraq since early February, when pro-Iranian militias stopped attacking U.S. troops.

3:14 am: Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militant group in Iraq, says it is determined to resume attacks on US forces in the country. Hezbollah said the Iraqi prime minister's visit to Washington had brought little progress in talks on the withdrawal of US troops. “What happened recently is just the beginning,” the group explained, referring to multiple missile strikes from northern Iraq on a US military base in Syria.

2:34 am: According to Iraqi sources, at least five rockets were fired from the Iraqi city of Sumer at a US military base in northeastern Syria. A rocket launcher was parked on the back of a delivery truck in the Syrian border town, two Iraqi security forces and an army official told Reuters news agency.

A military official explains that the truck caught fire when unlaunched missiles exploded while American warplanes were in the air. “Until we investigate, we cannot confirm that the truck was bombed by US warplanes,” he said.

A security official stationed in Jumar said that a search operation has also been launched for the accused who escaped in another vehicle. The attack comes a day after a member of the Iraqi security forces was killed in an explosion at a military base in Iraq on Saturday.

1.45 am: Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah says it shot down an Israeli drone on a combat mission in Lebanon. The drone, which crashed in southern Lebanon, “carried out its attacks on our steadfast population,” the militants said in a statement.

0.46 am: Israeli Commander-in-Chief Herzei Halevi has approved plans to continue the Gaza war, according to the military. Halevi approved “further measures” on Sunday, military spokesman Daniel Hagari said. The Israeli Khan broadcaster announced that part of the plans included a military operation in the southern city of Rafah on the border with Egypt. Evacuation of civilians is expected soon.

Israel's allies have urgently warned against an attack on Rafah, as hundreds of thousands of Palestinian internally displaced people have gathered there. However, Israel believes an operation in Rafah is necessary to destroy the remaining battalions of the Islamist terror organization Hamas. If not, expect Hamas to regain strength.

An Israeli military spokesman addressed Hamas prisoners directly on Sunday. He said we will continue to fight till you return home. Relatives of hostages are in an unbearable situation and everything will be done to free their loved ones.

0.05 am: Israeli President Isaac Herzog has warned the US government against imposing sanctions on the Netzhak Yehuda Battalion for alleged human rights abuses in the West Bank. In an interview with “Bild” and other Axel Springer media outlets in Jerusalem, Herzog said of reports that US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken would announce such sanctions in the next few days: “That's a big mistake.”