Israel carries out limited strike against Iran, NBC News source says [Video]

Israel launched a limited direct military attack on Iranian soil early Friday morning, marking the latest escalation in a series of back-and-forth strikes between the two foes, a source familiar with the situation told NBC News.

Iranian state media outlets reported explosions in the central Iranian city of Isfahan, but officials in the country have said they were caused by air defenses shooting down drones, Reuters reported. Israel has not commented on the events.

The news comes days after Iran launched its first-ever direct attack on Israel in the form of more than 300 drones and missiles, which were mostly intercepted by Israeli air defenses and caused no deaths.

Tehran said the attack was retaliation for an Israeli strike on an Iranian diplomatic compound on April 1 that killed two senior Iranian generals, among others.