Iranian missiles struck Israel in retaliation for deadly Israeli attacks on nuclear sites and military leaders.

The wail of air raid sirens and the rumble of explosions could be heard throughout Israel on Friday, and Associated Press journalists documented explosions as Iranian rockets hit Tel Aviv, the commercial hub of Israel. Paramedics said five people were wounded.

Hours earlier and again Friday evening, Israel launched strikes across Iran that targeted its nuclear program and military sites, killing several top military officers and raising the prospect of an all-out war between the two bitter Middle East adversaries. It appeared to be the most significant attack Iran has faced since its 1980s war with Iraq.

As the Iranian rockets descended on Israel, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed not to let Israel "escape safely from this great crime."

The strikes came amid simmering tensions over Iran's rapidly advancing nuclear program. For years, Israel had threatened such a strike and successive American administrations had sought to prevent it, fearing it would ignite a wider conflict across the Middle East and possibly be ineffective at destroying Iran's dispersed and hardened nuclear program.