Iran says Israeli strikes on Iran kill four soldiers,

Israeli strikes on Iran, in retaliation for Iran’s missile attacks earlier this month, have killed four Iranian soldiers, Iran’s army said.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it targeted missile factories and other sites near Tehran and western Iran early on Saturday.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry said it has a responsibility to defend itself, but added that Iran “recognises its responsibilities towards regional peace and security,” a statement viewed as relatively conciliatory.

Israeli retaliation for an Iranian barrage of almost 200 ballistic missiles fired towards Israel on 1 October had been widely expected for weeks.

Tehran had said the attack was in retaliation for the killing of Hamas’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh on Iranian soil in July.

Many missiles were shot down by Israel and its allies but a small number struck central and southern Israel.