Southern Israeli towns woke to widespread damage on Sunday after air defences failed to intercept two Iranian missiles ​overnight that injured scores of civilians in one of the worst attacks of the war so far ‌on Israeli soil.

As daylight broke, the scale of the damage in ​the desert town of Arad, where one of the strikes hit a ⁠multi-story apartment bloc, came into clearer view, with entire floors blown open by the blast.

Iran-Israel war updates on March 22, 2026

Uri Shacham, the chief of staff of Israel’s ambulance service, said at least eight buildings were damaged by the missile, ‌which left a crater not far from the apartment blocks.

Footage verified by Reuters showed flames engulfing the top floor of an apartment building ‌shortly after the strike. Search and rescue teams moved from floor to floor inside ‌the ⁠damaged buildings. Israeli military spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said both strikes had been ⁠carried out with conventional ballistic missiles. He declined to comment when asked about the initial findings of a military investigation into the failure to intercept the missiles.

Netanyahu says miracle no one killed

Most Israelis receive alerts ​on their mobile phone when launches from ‌Iran are identified. An air raid siren sounds and they then have a few minutes to go to safe rooms or public bomb shelters. “It is a miracle that no-one was killed,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday (March 22, 2026), standing in ‌thecrater at the impact site in Arad.

Pointing at the blown out walls ​of the apartment bloc and then at the enforced undamaged wall leading to a shelter below ground, Netanyahu urged Israelis not to be ⁠complacent. No one would have been hurt, he said, had all sought shelter in time.

In Arad, 31 people, including 18 children, were hospitalised, at least 9 of them in serious ‌condition, according to the hospital. Dozens more were lightly injured. Israel said Iran was targeting civilian population areas. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they targeted military and security-related sites in retaliation for Israeli strikes against Iranian sites.

Arad and Dimona, another city that was hit, are located close to Israel’s secretive nuclear reactor and several military bases, including Nevatim Air Base, one of the country’s largest.

In Dimona, 5 people were hospitalised, including a 12-year-old boy in ‌serious condition, the hospital said.

Since joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, Israel has come under ​daily missile fire from Iran. At least 20 civilians have been killed in Israel and the Palestinian territories, including one Israeli killed in an ⁠attack by Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah on Sunday (March 22, 2026).

At least 15 people were hospitalised on Sunday (March 22, 2026) in ⁠fresh

Iranian attacks, according to emergency services, including a cluster munition that struck in Tel Aviv.

Israeli and U.S. strikes have killed at least 1,300 people in ‌Iran so far, according to the Iranian government. The U.S.-based rights group HRANA, which tracks human rights violations in Iran, has recorded 3,320 people killed, including 1,406 civilians ​and 1,167 military personnel, with the remainder not yet determined. Reuters could not independently verify the data.

India is closely monitoring the evolving security situation in parts of West Asia following the recent escalation of tensions, with Indian Navy ships deployed in the region under Operation Sankalp placed on standby for possible humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) operations.

A senior defence official on Monday (March 2, 2025) confirmed that developments are being tracked closely and updates are being shared with the concerned departments for further direction.

“Under Operation Sankalp, two Indian Navy ships (a frigate and a destroyer) are already deployed in the Gulf of Aden and the Gulf of Oman. They have been deployed for anti-piracy operations and the safety of merchant vessels since 2019. If required, these ships could be utilised for HADR operations. The Navy has prior experience in such missions,” the official said.

The deployment under Operation Sankalp was initiated to safeguard Indian-flagged vessels and ensure maritime security in the region amid rising threats to commercial shipping.

The official also stated that INS Surat is currently in Bahrain as part of a regional maritime security engagement.

PM chairs CCS

On Monday (March 1, 2026), Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), the country’s highest decision-making body on security and strategic affairs. The meeting reviewed the conflict in West Asia and its implications for India.

The meeting was attended by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Top officials briefed the committee on the prevailing regional dynamics and assessed their impact on India’s strategic, economic and diaspora interests..

India has historically leveraged its naval presence in the region for evacuation and relief missions during crises, and officials indicated that contingency planning remains in place should the situation warrant further action.