The first day of the Passover holiday was marked by sustained Israeli operations across Iran alongside continued missile and drone activity directed toward Israel and US-linked targets across the region, as military, economic and diplomatic developments unfolded in parallel.
Shortly after midnight on April 3, missiles were launched from Iran toward central Israel, triggering air raid sirens across densely populated areas. Debris from interceptions was reported in Bnei Brak, Ramat Gan, Petah Tikva and Givat Shmuel, with emergency services confirming no direct casualties, though several people were injured while seeking shelter and others treated for shock.
Iranian-linked outlets published footage of ballistic missile launches described as part of an ongoing wave of attacks, alongside drone operations targeting Israel and a US base in Jordan. Iraqi Shiite militias said they had conducted 23 operations over a 24-hour period using drones and missiles against American positions in Iraq and the surrounding region.
Against this backdrop, Israeli air operations continued across Iran. Over the holiday period, around 20 strike sorties were carried out in western and central parts of the country, with more than 140 munitions deployed against over 50 targets tied to Iran’s ballistic missile infrastructure, including launch sites and storage facilities.
Strikes also targeted command and financial centres linked to Iran’s military apparatus. Among those killed was Jamshid Eshaqi, head of the regime’s Oil Headquarters, which channelled oil revenues into military activity and the financing of regional proxy groups. In a separate strike in western Iran, Mokarram Azimi, a commander of a ground-to-ground missile unit responsible for multiple launches toward Israel, was killed along with three battalion commanders overseeing missile operations.
Additional targets included an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps ground forces base and a mobile command headquarters, as well as central hubs used to fund armed forces and proxy activity across the region. The damage to these financial and military sites has been estimated at approximately $1 billion.
Reports from within Iran described strikes across multiple cities, including Tehran, Shiraz, Karaj, Tabriz and Bandar Abbas. An ammunition facility in Isfahan was hit, with secondary explosions continuing for hours, while other reported targets included an electronics site in Shiraz and a fuel depot at Bushehr airport.
One of the most significant strikes targeted the B1 bridge on the Karaj Northern Bypass west of Tehran. The bridge, which connects the capital to northern regions, was destroyed in a strike intended to sever supply routes used to transport missile components and drone parts to operational units. Its destruction prompted direct threats from Iranian officials and affiliated outlets, which published a list of major bridges across Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan as potential targets for retaliation.
Iranian officials also provided further detail on the scope of recent strikes. Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said that US and Israeli air operations in recent weeks had targeted multiple nuclear-related facilities, including the Bushehr nuclear power plant site, the yellowcake production facility in Ardakan, the heavy water plant in Khandab near Arak, and sites at Natanz and Fordow. He added that additional undeclared facilities had also been struck since late February.
In Lebanon, Israeli forces reported killing more than 40 Hezbollah militants over a 24-hour period in combined ground and air operations. A close-quarters engagement involving the Nahal reconnaissance unit resulted in the death of a militant who had wounded two soldiers, while Givati Brigade forces located and seized weapons including RPGs and machine guns, eliminating those in possession of them.
Hezbollah, for its part, released footage showing the continued use of “Fadi-5” rocket systems, including launchers previously targeted, as well as the deployment of a loitering munition identified as the Iranian-developed “Gholaleh” drone.
Elsewhere, an Iranian drone reportedly struck an oil refinery in Erbil, while the IRGC’s naval command claimed responsibility for attacks on data infrastructure in the Gulf, including an Amazon cloud computing facility in Bahrain, where local authorities confirmed a fire at a company site, and an Oracle data centre in Dubai.
Economic effects were also evident. Iraq’s oil export revenues fell by more than 70 per cent in March compared with February, according to an Iraqi official, following disruption to the regional oil industry.
Diplomatic and military positioning continued alongside the fighting. Austria confirmed it had denied US requests to use its airspace for operations against Iran, citing its neutrality, while a vote initially scheduled for today at the UN Security Council on securing shipping in the Strait of Hormuz was postponed until tomorrow. It aims to establish a multinational force to secure shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Gulf officials, including GCC Secretary General and Bahrain’s Foreign Minister, called for measures to guarantee freedom of navigation, describing Iranian actions as aggression.
Iranian officials, meanwhile, warned that the Strait of Hormuz could be closed long term to US and Israeli shipping, while military spokesmen issued threats regarding any potential ground operation, stating that direct conflict would inflict severe losses on American forces.
In Washington, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth asked General Randy George, the US Army’s chief of staff, to step down, cutting short a tenure that had been expected to run until 2027.
Following President Trump’s big speech on Wednesday night, in which he said US strategic objectives were nearing completion, attention has turned to Iran’s remaining long-range ballistic missile capabilities. Reports citing Israeli sources suggest that systems capable of reaching distances of around 4,000 kilometres, including missiles associated with the Khorramshahr family and capable of striking parts of Europe, remain in place.