Transcript of WATCH: Explosions heard in Tehran as Israel conducts strikes on Iran | Middle East conflict

Well, these are the sounds of explosions heard in the early hours in Tehran. These were the first pictures that came into us at around 3:00 AM, and it's reported that three waves of strikes took place. Well, several waves of explosions were heard across Iran's capital, concluding at around four o'clock in the morning UK time. The IDF says missile manufacturing facilities were struck, which they believe produced the missiles that Iran had been firing at Israel for the last year. What you're seeing and hearing now are apparent interceptions by defense systems in Tehran. Iran Iran says those defenses successfully tracked and countered the strikes. Well, Iran's military said this morning that Israeli strikes on the country targeted military bases in Elam, Khuzistan, and Tehran provinces, causing what they USA was limited damage. We've had confirmation from IDF Spokesman Daniel Hagari, who says, Those who threaten Israel will pay a heavy price.

I can now confirm that we have concluded the Israeli response to Iran's attack against Israel. We conducted targeted and precise strikes on military targets in Iran, thwarting immediate threats to the state of Israel. The Israel Defense Forces has fulfilled its mission. If the regime in Iran were to make the mistake of beginning a new round of escalation, we will be obligated to respond. Our message is clear. All those who threaten the state of Israel and seek to drag the region into wider escalation will pay a heavy price. We demonstrated today that we have both the capability and the resolve to act decisively, and we are prepared on offense and defense to defend the state of Israel and the people of Israel.

Well, Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, was pictured along with defense minister Yohav Galant and other military officials that are meeting in the Israeli Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv during the strike on Iran. The Israeli Government Press Office also released this photograph shortly after those air strikes were launched. And these are the latest pictures of the skyline in Tehran. Iran's military says that damage was limited. Well, let's cross live now to Jerusalem. Sky's Adam Parsons is there for us this morning. Hello to you, Adam. So Israel had been threatening retaliatory action against Iran for some weeks. That's now happened. How significant a moment do you think this is?

I think it's a very significant moment in the crucial relationship between Israel and Iran, because remember, Iran has launched two barrages of ballistic missiles at Israel over the past year or so. And in return, remember, Israel has launched an airstrike at Iran's consulate in Syria and carried out an assassination in Tehran. So you would say up to this point, there's been significant provocations on both sides. Israel has also, of course, launched a big ground offensive over the past month into Southern Lebanon against Hezbollah, a group backed by Iran, and has been relentlessly attacking Hamas in Gaza, also backed by Iran. In Gaza, more than 40,000 people are believed have died. And Iran has a series of proxies in this region, not just Hezbelar and Hamas, but also the Houthis in Yemen, Islamic Jihad, and a series of others who Israel have consistently said, in peril, it's safety. But this is something different. This is the biggest attack on Iran for decades, probably since the Iran-Irak war. It's been condemned by Saudi Arabia as being a violation of sovereignty, but it has been supported by the US and by the UK as showing Israel's right to defense.

A few fundamental facts about it. Crucially, what Israel did was to attack military sites. It didn't go after nuclear facilities, didn't go after oil fields, didn't go after those really high-profile individuals. It did, well, frankly, it did what the United States wanted it to do, which was to go after military sites. We understand These are predominantly missile storage facilities, air defense systems, and also command centers for the Revolutionary Guard. So they haven't gone to that highest level of provocation to go after nuclear facilities and oil fields. But make no mistake, this is going to be portrayed in Iran as an act of war. Although already I understand that the Iranians are putting this out and saying that there has been very limited damage and that what they see this as a sign of fear on behalf of Israel. The Israelis and the Iranians will both now have to sit down and think what happens next. That is a crucial question for this region. Israel has said that if there is a response from Iran, then Israel itself holds the right to respond further. And that is a line that I think Israel is using in a number of places.

I think up in the north of this country, they seem to believe that the ground offensive against Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon is going well. I understand that when they do withdraw troops, it is going to be on the understanding that if Hezbollah then forms some reprise of its own, then Israel will come back even harder. That is probably the message that they are sending to Iran here, is that if you respond, then we may come back at you. The problem is that the regime will feel under pressure, clearly, to do something about this, to not just sit back and accept this series of missiles landing on its territory. This, of course, comes against the context not just of those offensives in Gaza and in Southern Lebanon, but in the US presidential election, which is just round the corner. In Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu will be looking to see what What Donald Trump would offer him, what Kamala Harris would offer him in terms of support. In the wider world, well, clearly, we know that America will continue to back Israel. Question will be, what will be Russia's view in terms of rolling in behind Iran? What will be the attitude of the Saudis, the Jordanians, and so many others.

This is a precipitous moment. It is a question of who blinks now? How does Iran respond? If it does, how quickly, how firmly would Israel respond after that? This could be a point where Iran tempers itself, where this dies down, or we could look back and see this as a tipping point where conflicts are in and around Israel turned into something more wide, more all-encompassing. I think this whole region and the whole area is very, very nervous at the moment.