Hot: Israel retaliates, Iran air defense responds

Iran has activated and launched fire from air defense batteries in several provinces across the country, according to Fars news agency. This comes as reports emerged that Israel had begun retaliatory airstrikes against Iran in central Iran.

Iran's Fars news agency said explosions were heard in the city center. It was not immediately clear what extent the Israeli strikes were and what type of weapon was used.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for Iran’s space agency was quoted as saying on Al Jazeera Arabic that “a number of small drones” had been shot down. He did not elaborate.

All flights to the cities of “Tehran, Isfahan and Shiraz, the western, northwestern and southwestern airports are suspended,” the Iranian public relations director of an airport company said in an interview with state-run Mehr TV.

The suspension is effective immediately but flights have not been canceled, the director said. “Passengers should check their flight information before departure,” he added.

Earlier, the US NPR station quoted a senior military official as saying that the Israeli army had launched missile attacks on Iran on April 19. In addition, there were reports of explosions in Iraq and Syria.

The strikes appeared to be a response Israel said it would carry out after Iran's attack on the night of April 13, when Tehran launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel.