JERUSALEM - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel has "severely damaged Iran's ability to defend and manufacture the missiles" following an aerial attack on Iranian military targets early Saturday.

"The attack on Iran was precise and powerful, achieving all its objectives," Netanyahu said here at a memorial ceremony commemorating the victims of the Hamas attack on Oct 7 last year and the soldiers killed in the ongoing conflicts. 

He also thanked the United States "for the coordination and assistance."

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Tensions between Israel and Iran intensified following the outbreak of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on Oct 7, 2023. On that day, Hamas attacked the southern Israeli border, resulting in approximately 1,200 deaths and about 250 hostages taken.

Following the Hamas attack, Israel conducted a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, which has resulted in 42,924 deaths, according to figures published by the Gaza-based health authorities on Saturday.

Israel launched pre-dawn airstrikes on Iranian military targets on Saturday, in response to Teheran's Oct 1 missile attacks. Iran said the attack in early October was in retaliation for Israel's assassinations of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Teheran, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, and IRGC General Abbas Nilforoushan.

Iran's air defense headquarters claimed the Israeli attack on Saturday resulted in "limited damage."

READ MORE: Israel conducts pre-dawn airstrikes on Iranian targets in latest round of open confrontation

At the ceremony on Sunday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said not every goal can be achieved through military action.

"When we come to fulfill our moral and ethical duty to return the abductees held in Gaza to their homes, we will be required to make painful compromises," he noted.