Israel Says All ‘Critical And Essential’ Pre-War Iran Targets Will Be Destroyed By Wednesday

Last Updated:March 31, 2026, 16:21 IST

Israel says it will finish striking critical and essential pre war targets in Iran by Wednesday, claims 60 to 70 percent hit, but Iran can still fire some ballistic missiles

The Israeli military has said it expects to complete strikes on all of its “critical and essential" pre-war targets in Iran by Wednesday, claiming that a major portion of Tehran’s most strategically important military infrastructure has already been degraded, as reported by the Jerusalem Post.

According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), these two categories represent the highest-priority targets identified before the war began and form part of a broader campaign that has so far hit around 60 to 70 per cent of Iran’s total pre-war target list.

What Israel Means by ‘Critical’ and ‘Essential’

The IDF said “critical" targets are those that posed an immediate threat to Israel or were central to the core objectives of the war.

These include facilities tied to Iran’s ballistic missile industry as well as what Israel described as the small number of remaining nuclear-related targets.

The second category, labelled “essential", includes broader parts of Iran’s military-industrial complex and infrastructure that may not directly threaten Israel in the immediate term, but are considered crucial for sustaining Iran’s long-term military and weapons capabilities.

Israeli officials cited examples such as satellite launch and anti-satellite platforms, along with related research and systems that support long-range strike capabilities and help Iran compete in strategic domains such as surveillance and targeting.

War Goals May Be Nearing Completion — But Missile Threat Remains

The statement suggests Israel believes it is nearing the fulfilment of its core military objectives in Iran, at least in terms of pre-identified strategic infrastructure.

When asked whether the war could effectively end at this point based on its stated military aims, Israeli military sources reportedly did not dismiss the possibility.

However, they also indicated that if the war continues, Israel can still target additional economic and operational assets that could further weaken Iran’s military and financial strength.

Iran Still Capable of Firing Missiles

Despite the scale of the campaign, Israel acknowledged that it had not succeeded in fully stopping Iran’s ballistic missile fire.

The IDF said it expects the Iranian regime to continue launching between 5 and 20 ballistic missiles over an extended period, indicating that while its strategic infrastructure may be under heavy strain, Tehran still retains enough capability to sustain intermittent attacks.

That assessment underscores the key reality of the war so far: while Israel may have inflicted major damage on Iran’s military backbone, it has not yet eliminated Tehran’s ability to retaliate.

As the conflict enters a more advanced phase, the question now is whether military objectives alone will determine the endpoint or whether both sides will continue expanding the battlefield even after the top targets are exhausted.

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