Defense Minister Yoav Gallant: 'Israel has freedom to do what it wants'

Defense Minister Yoav Galant visited the Tel Nof airbase on Thursday and spoke with pilots there, Israeli media reported. The pilots were from the squadrons that participated in the defense operation against Iran by intercepting missiles and drones fired from the Islamic Republic on Saturday night.

Gallant praised the pilots for their action and thanked the base commander, Brigadier-General Ariel Dayan, and the Lieutenant-Colonel for leading the mission.

"Our ability to sit and make the right decisions, sometimes difficult, in the Air Force, especially when it comes to air force operations and things happening quickly, is rooted in the knowledge that we have the best people in the sky. This applies to every branch; it can be within the cockpit, flight to flight, and, in our perspective, day to day. It's a learning process because change happens at a very high rate here," he noted.

Gallant commends the air force

He continued, "We have the best people, who excel under pressure and perform admirably. And our missions are not going to shrink; they are only going to grow. The complex reality of being targeted from seven different fronts will challenge and accompany us. The extended ranges of 1500 km alter our perspective and affect our speed, responsiveness, and operations."

He concluded, "The State of Israel needs to know that it has freedom of action to do what it wants, courtesy of the Air Force's defensive capabilities. Your recent actions are highly commendable, speaking volumes about the entire force and those executing tasks, whether in the air or on the ground." 

The full Iranian attack consisted of over 300 threats, of which 100 were ballistic missiles launched from Iran. Another 30 cruise missiles were launched from the Islamic Republic, along with drones. There were also two rounds of rockets, around 40 total, fired on Israel from Lebanon.