What will Iran do if Israel responds to missile attack? Here's what we know

Israel was initially contemplating an attack on Iran's nuclear or oil facilities as retaliation for Tuesday's missile salvo, which involved nearly 200 ballistic missiles

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In an indirect message to the United States (US) via Qatar, Iran has issued a warning that any Israeli retaliation to its recent missile barrage would be met with an "unconventional response", including targeting Israeli infrastructure, according to an Iranian official who spoke to Al Jazeera.

The official disclosed on Thursday that Iran had sent a message to the US through Qatar, addressing rising regional tensions after Iran's missile strike on Israel on Tuesday. The message communicated that "the phase of unilateral self-restraint has ended" and emphasised that "individual self-restraint does not secure our (Iran's) national security requirements".

While Iran conveyed that it does not desire a regional war, the official underscored that Israel must be "deterred".

On Wednesday, Israel vowed retaliation after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched a two-wave ballistic missile attack, which Tehran claimed targeted military and security sites in Israel.

Israel was reportedly contemplating an attack on Iran's nuclear or oil facilities as retaliation for the missile salvo, which involved nearly 200 ballistic missiles.

The attack sent most of the country's populace into bomb shelters and resulted in considerable damage. However, despite the scale of Iran's attack, there was only one reported fatality — a Palestinian man in the West Bank.

Shortly after the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Iran had made "a big mistake" and would "pay the price". However, US President Joe Biden has reportedly said that the US opposes Israel launching strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities in retaliation for the country's recent ballistic missile attack.

Iran stated that Tuesday's attack was a response to Israeli operations in Gaza and Lebanon, as well as the killings of key figures from Hezbollah and Hamas. According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), about 200 missiles were fired, but most were intercepted.

Subsequently, the US reiterated its commitment to supporting Israel and said that it had the right to respond to Iran's attack, but with the condition that any retaliation must be "proportional".

Al Jazeera reported from Washington that Iran's message was likely a reaction to President Biden's statement affirming Israel's right to respond to the missile strike.

The agency's reporter explained that the message could either aim to deter Israeli action or serve as a warning: If Israel takes action, Iran's response is going to be "even bigger".

The Iranian official reiterated the need to curtail what he described as Israel's "unbridled madness" in the region.

This comes against the backdrop of Israel escalating its operations in southern Lebanon, sending ground troops in what it termed "limited" raids, while continuing to bombard Beirut and other areas, resulting in over 1,000 deaths and displacing more than one million people, according to Lebanese officials.

Meanwhile, Palestinian authorities have reported more than 41,000 deaths due to Israel's ongoing offensive in Gaza. For its part, Israel insists its Gaza campaign is focused on Hamas "targets and infrastructure".

The Iranian official reportedly stressed that Israel must be "deterred practically".

Tohid Asadi, an expert on Iranian affairs, told Al Jazeera that while Iran has no interest in triggering a full-fledged, all-out war scenario in West Asia (Middle East), Israel has repeatedly tested Iran in recent months.

Asadi described Iranian officials' statements as "double-edged", indicating that while they claim that they wish to avoid war, they are also unafraid of it. The implication is that further aggression would lead to "tough consequences".

Elijah Magnier, a military analyst, supported this view, stating that Iran has two choices: either wait for all its allies to be defeated and face an attack from Israel alone or "join the battle now".

Magnier reportedly noted that Iran will not tolerate another Israeli strike, even against military or security facilities, because Tehran believes that the two sides are now even, with each having attacked twice.