Iran will retaliate if infrastructure is hit, Pezeshkian says

Explosions, missile strikes, and other military activity were reported across several Iranian cities on Saturday, according to eyewitness accounts sent to Iran International.

The capital Tehran saw a series of strikes overnight. A government building in the Tochal-Velenjak area was hit and destroyed at 1:10 a.m. Several heavy explosions were also heard in Hakimiyeh between midnight and 1 a.m.

Multiple blasts and bright flashes were then reported in Lavizan at 1:04 a.m. An explosion was reported on the Simon Bolivar street at 2 a.m., and at about 3 a.m. the satellite research center at Iran University of Science and Technology was hit, with the blast wave damaging nearby buildings.

Several explosions were also heard at 2:03 a.m. in Shahin Vila in Karaj, west of Tehran.

In central Iran, a heavy explosion was reported at 1:35 a.m. at an army artillery site in Isfahan.

Further west, a missile struck in Borujerd, a city in Lorestan province, at 4 a.m.

In the southwest, multiple missile launches were reported from Shadgan in Khuzestan province.

Later on Saturday, warplanes and an explosion were heard near Mount Derak in Shiraz, in southern Iran, while several warplanes were reported flying at low altitude over Hamedan in the west at 11:46 a.m.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held a phone call lasting more than an hour on regional tensions and peace efforts, the Pakistani prime minister’s office said on Saturday.

According to the statement, Pezeshkian told Sharif that trust was needed for talks and praised Islamabad’s role in efforts to promote peace.

Sharif briefed Pezeshkian on his diplomatic outreach to the United States and Persian Gulf states, said the statement.

Damage from overnight strikes into early Saturday affected buildings at the Iran University of Science and Technology, according to video shared with Iran International, showing impact across parts of the campus.

Iran remained under a nationwide internet blackout on Saturday, four weeks after authorities cut access to the global internet on February 28, internet monitoring group NetBlocks said.

NetBlocks said the disruption had reached 672 hours, with the blackout still in effect at the end of its fourth full week.

"After four full weeks, 672 hours, the blackout remains in effect, violating Iranians' right to communicate and stay informed," the internet monitoring group said.

More than 40 explosions were heard across Isfahan early on Saturday and parts of an artillery facility on Artesh Street were hit, according to eyewitness accounts sent to Iran International.

Widespread attacks and multiple explosions were reported across the city from about 1:30 a.m.

At least two fighter jets were heard at 1:40 a.m., followed by several heavy explosions in different areas, including the southwest of the city.

Targets in military areas in Farahabad were hit at about 2:10 a.m., with aircraft reported flying at low altitude.

In Shahreza, south of Isfahan, fighter jets were heard at about 6:30 a.m., followed by an explosion and black smoke rising near the Tharallah military base.