Iran Announces Halt to Missile Attacks, Warns Israel Against Further Strikes

“More severe and crushing measures than before are on the way” if Israel continues its actions, the statement said.

By United with Israel Staff

Iran announced Monday that it is halting its missile operation against Israel while warning that far more severe attacks could follow if Israel continues striking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, signaling that Tehran views the confrontation as far from over.

The announcement was published by Iran’s state-affiliated Fars News Agency shortly after President Donald Trump publicly called for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Iran and declared that both sides were seeking to end the fighting.

In a series of Truth Social posts, Trump urged the two countries to halt military operations and focus on finalizing a broader agreement.

“Israel and Iran must immediately stop shooting,” Trump wrote.

Minutes later, he added: “Both sides, Israel and Iran, are looking to do an immediate CEASEFIRE! Final negotiations on ‘Peace’ are proceeding, subject to ignorance or stupidity getting in its way.”

According to the Fars statement, Iran’s armed forces had concluded the operation launched in response to what Tehran described as Israeli “aggression” in southern Lebanon and Beirut’s Dahiyeh district.

The statement claimed Iran had delivered a “painful response” to Israel in support of the Lebanese people and declared the end of the military operation.

At the same time, however, it warned that any continuation of Israeli military activity, including operations in southern Lebanon, could trigger a significantly stronger response.

“More severe and crushing measures than before are on the way” if Israel continues its actions, the statement said.

The announcement appeared to reinforce Iran’s effort to establish a direct connection between Israeli operations against Hezbollah and future Iranian attacks on Israel.

The latest escalation began Sunday after Israel struck Hezbollah command centers in Beirut’s Dahiyeh district following renewed rocket fire on northern Israel.

According to the IDF, Iran responded Sunday night by launching 11 ballistic missiles toward Israel. After Israel carried out retaliatory strikes inside Iran early Monday morning, Tehran launched additional missile barrages, bringing the total number of missiles fired since Sunday evening to more than 20.

Earlier Monday, an Iranian military source quoted by Tasnim News Agency said Tehran is prepared for a prolonged confrontation with Israel and is also prepared to target American interests throughout the region.

On the Israeli side, senior military officials said the IDF is preparing for at least several more days of fighting and is also planning for the possibility that the conflict could evolve into a prolonged campaign.

IDF spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said Iran had effectively shattered a two-month ceasefire by launching missiles at Israel.

“Last night, the Iranian terror regime violated the ceasefire after two months. It opened fire and launched missiles toward Israel,” Defrin said.

He said the Israeli Air Force responded with two major waves of strikes.

In the first wave, dozens of fighter jets targeted Iranian air defense systems. In the second, Israeli aircraft struck the petrochemical complex in Mahshahr, in southwestern Iran, which the military says produces materials and components essential to the regime’s missile program.

Defrin stressed that the IDF had spent the past two months preparing for exactly such a scenario.

“Since the ceasefire, the IDF has maintained maximum readiness and complete preparedness for a return to fighting in Iran,” he said. “We prepared for a range of scenarios, including the one that materialized with the missile fire toward Israel.”

The spokesman also rejected Iran’s attempt to justify its missile attacks as retaliation for Israeli operations against Hezbollah.

“The Iranian terror regime once again chose terrorism and is trying to create a reality of equations,” Defrin said. “It is linking its missile fire toward Israel to the strike we carried out in Dahiyeh yesterday, supposedly defending its proxy, the Hezbollah terrorist organization in Lebanon.”