Iran downplays claims of Israeli airstrike

• Published date: 19 April 2024
• Author: SETH J. FRANTZMAN
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

Reports at ABC News in the morning had claimed that Israel carried out strikes in Iran. It came five days after Iran launched 350 drones and missiles at Israel and two weeks after Iran accused Israel of a strike in Damascus

A strike targeted a site in Iran early Friday morning, two Israeli defense officials confirmed to The New York Times. There were reports of explosions in Isfahan.

Iranian media showed a video of what they claimed were quiet scenes around the country, trying to show that very little had actually happened.

What was reported in Iran?

According to Iran's Fars news, "This morning, some local sources reported that a sound similar to an explosion was heard in the west of Tabriz city. Investigations by Fars reporter show that there was no explosion in Tabriz, and the air defense fired upon seeing a suspicious object."

The same Iranian media said flights were returning to normal in Iran. "The nuclear facility in Isfahan is completely safe. The report of some foreign media about the incident in this facility is incorrect," Fars News noted.

It also noted that air defenses had been activated at a military base in Isfahan and that Iranian army radar had picked up several targets. "Windows of several office buildings have been broken." The reports also reference an incident at another site near Tabriz and at an air base.

Overall, the theme in Iranian media in the morning was to downplay the claims of airstrikes.

This enables the Iranian regime to save face and message that all is well at home. The reports in Iran enable the regime to make choices about what it will do going forward. On the one hand it allows Iran to portray its air defense as having protected the country.

This means that Iran can portray itself as defending against an attack successfully, the same way Israel, the US and others defended against the Iranian attack on April 13-14.

Iran's regime seeks to portray the country as secure and strong. In general, over the last years...