The Surge — 80+ Jets Over Tehran

Day 8 opens with the most aggressive air operation of the war. More than 80 IAF fighter jets — an unprecedented number — strike Iranian military infrastructure simultaneously across Tehran and central Iran. Smoke rises near Mehrabad airport. The operation dwarfs every prior daily sortie and reflects a deliberate IDF decision to overwhelm whatever remains of Iranian integrated air defence. Simultaneously, IDF special forces insert into Lebanon by helicopter, searching for the remains of Lt Col Ron Arad missing since 1986. Two wars, one morning.

Key facts

• •80+ IAF jets in a single sortie — record for the war
• •Smoke visible from Mehrabad airport direction
• •IDF commandos simultaneously raid Lebanon for Ron Arad remains
• •Operation unsuccessful on Arad; no Israeli casualties