Iran's attack on Israel: 'A psychological barrier has been crossed' Iran on late Saturday mounted a retaliatory attack on Israel by launching hundreds of drones and missiles - most of which were intercepted by Israeli forces - marking the first time Iran has launched a direct military assault on Israel. "Without any doubt, a psychological barrier has been crossed. Iran has never attacked Israel in the past 45 years and so this was quite significant," said Ali Vaez, project director for Iran at the International Crisis group.