US air defenses operated from the US base in al-Tanf, as well as along the Jordanian border and in eastern Syria, where Washington maintains hundreds of troops in several air bases, one source says.

The leading Dutch paper De Telegraaf quoted the official Israeli report: "Almost all Iranian drones intercepted." A second story quoted Prime Minister Mark Rutte "Rutte 'forcefully' condemns Iran's attack on Israel."

The Islamic Republic's reliance on a triad of strategies – missile launches, the provocation of proxy terrorist groups, and an aggressive propaganda campaign – betray a regime more concerned with maintaining appearances than securing genuine victories.

Against the backdrop of Iran's Ukraine war involvement and partnership in the anti-US, anti-West axis, there lies an opnening for the US to restore its stature in the Middle East, strengthen the pro-Western front, and impact the global order.