Tel Aviv, 18 March (H.S.): An elderly couple in their seventies lost their lives early Wednesday when an Iranian ballistic missile equipped with a cluster warhead struck a residential building in Ramat Gan, a suburb adjacent to Tel Aviv, amid escalating retaliatory exchanges in the ongoing Middle East conflict.
Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency responders arrived at the scene to find the victims unconscious amid heavy destruction, shattered glass, and rising smoke from their fourth-floor apartment; despite frantic efforts, paramedics pronounced them dead due to severe shrapnel injuries, as the pair had not reached a protected shelter in time.
Hebrew media identified the deceased as a married couple en route to a bomb shelter when the missile dispersed submunitions over central Israel, marking this as one of the deadliest direct hits in recent Iranian barrages.
A 25-year-old man in nearby Bnei Brak sustained mild shrapnel wounds to his hand and was evacuated to Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, while three others in Kafr Qasim received treatment for light injuries, bringing the total lightly wounded to at least four from this volley.
Firefighters battled blazes and rescued individuals from bomb shelters as sirens wailed across the city, with one emergency vehicle also damaged in Tel Aviv.
The assault inflicted significant damage on Savidor Train Station in Tel Aviv, where a large section of the platform was destroyed by missile debris or direct impact, prompting Israeli Railways to suspend operations temporarily.
This strike follows Iran's confirmation of fresh missile launches targeting central Israel, including a cluster warhead aimed at populated areas, in apparent reprisal for Israeli operations that killed senior security chief Ali Larijani and others.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
