Israel strikes Iran in high-stakes retaliation

Israel launched direct strikes against Iran early Saturday, in a high-stakes retaliation to Tehran’s ballistic missile barrage earlier this month. Follow for live news updates.

• Israel launched direct strikes against Iran early Saturday, in a high-stakes retaliation to Tehran’s ballistic missile barrage earlier this month. Israel said it hit military targets, which did not include energy infrastructure, according to an Israeli military source. • Four members of Iran’s military were killed in the attack, according to state-run media, and Tehran said afterward that it is “entitled” to defend itself. But Iran appeared to downplay the strikes overall, reporting limited damage at military sites. • A senior US administration official said President Joe Biden encouraged Israel to design its attack against Iran in a way that would deter further escalation. World leaders have been urging the two sides to avoid a wider regional war. • Meanwhile, Gaza’s health ministry says Israeli forces have detained male staff members during a raid at Kamal Adwan Hospital in the north of the enclave, where the UN human rights chief says Israel is “subjecting an entire population to bombing, siege and risk of starvation.” Two more members of Iran’s army have died from injuries suffered during Israeli airstrikes earlier Saturday, according to state media, bringing the death toll to at least four. The additional service members died Saturday evening local time, according to Iran’s state-run IRNA news, which said all four of those killed worked for the military’s air defense.