Aging air defenses have left Iran vulnerable to an Israeli attack if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decides to ignore global pressure not to directly retaliate for the unprecedented drone and missile salvoes of Saturday night.
Setting aside the wider diplomatic and strategic costs that are likely to be the strongest deterrent to any counterstrike, experts say Israel would have little trouble hitting targets inside Iran, which has an obsolete air force and indigenous air defense systems based on aging Russian models.
Iran's weekend barrage demonstrated both the strength of its airborne armory and Israel's formidable defense systems, which ensured that the hundreds of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones launched against it caused only minimal damage.