Informed sources denied to Al Arabiya on Monday Saudi Arabia’s participation in intercepting Iranian drones during its attack on Israel on Saturday.
Israeli news websites had published statements attributed to an official Saudi website stating that the Kingdom participated in the recent defense coalition that confronted the Iranian attacks.
“There is no official website that published a statement about Saudi participation in intercepting attacks against Israel,” the sources told Al Arabiya.
Iran launched drones and missiles toward Israel on Saturday evening into Sunday morning and described the attack as a response to several crimes, including the strike on its consulate in Damascus on April 1.
Tehran indicated that the attack targeted military targets, while the Israeli army announced that it intercepted 99 percent of the Iranian missiles, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Monday.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE shared intelligence, including radar tracking information, with the US and Israel before Iran’s drone strike on Israel.
According to the WSJ, Israel was able to intercept almost all of the drones due to the involvement of Arab countries, who passed along intelligence about the attack before it took place, opened their airspace to warplanes, shared radar tracking information and in some cases, supplied their own forces to help.
After a wary initial response, the UAE and Saudi Arabia privately shared intelligence, while Jordan said it would allow the US and other countries' warplanes to use its airspace, as well as use its aircraft to assist in intercepting Iranian missiles and drones
Iran's assault was designed to saturate Israeli and U.S. air defenses with drones and cruise missiles and clear the way for Iran's ballistic missiles, two U.S. officials told CBS News national security correspondent David Martin. It took several hours for the drones and missiles to travel toward Israel, and alerts began to sound across the country at about 2 a.m. local time on Sunday (7p.m. Eastern on Saturday).
Four missiles hit Israel's Nevatim Air Base, where Israeli F-35s are based, the U.S. officials said, adding this base was likely Iran's primary target, as it was believed to have been an Israeli F-35 that carried out a deadly strike on an Iranian consulate in Syria's capital on April 1.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Sunday that Tehran had informed the US and neighboring countries about its retaliatory strike on Israel, giving a 72-hour warning.
“We announced ... to the White House in a message that our operations will be limited, minimal and will be aimed at punishing the Israeli regime,” said Hossein Amir-Abdollahian during a briefing to foreign diplomats regarding Tehran’s drone and missile assault on Israel.
Iran, on the other hand, hailed the operation as successful, saying it had inflicted “heavy blows” to Israel.
“The size of the attack, and the manner in which drones and missiles were fired in tandem, suggests Iran did intend to pressure Israel’s air defense system,” Eurasia group analyst Gregory Brew told Al Arabiya English.
But Iran’s signaling of the attack beforehand allowed Israel and its allies sufficient time to prepare defenses, rendering the assault largely ineffective, Brew added.
“This would suggest Iran intended this attack to be largely symbolic and designed to restore deterrence, rather than actually inflicting damage on Israel. The telegraphing also emphasizes how Iran hopes to avoid escalation with both Israel and the US in the short-term,” he said.
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