At around 7:30 PM local time, everyone’s phones immediately went off with an alert.
It said: “You must immediately enter a protected area and remain there until further notice.”
The message was sent by the Israeli Defense Forces’ Home Front Command and ended with the phrase “life-saving instructions.”
People began seeking shelter in safe rooms as rockets were launched from Iran towards Israel.
The sirens blaring across the country were heard by millions of people.
As the alarm sounded outside, we moved to the shelter in the BBC’s Jerusalem Bureau – a secure part of the building with no windows.
We could hear frequent explosions as rockets flew overhead and were intercepted by the Israeli defense system.
Videos taken here and elsewhere on social media showed streams of light as the rockets flew over Israel — and clouds of smoke as they were intercepted or detonated on impact.
“There are a lot of them,” a contact exclaimed in a video recorded in southern Israel, showing circles of light in the night sky.
At around 8 p.m., the IDF said its air defense system identified and intercepted the launches, and called on people to “remain in a protected area until further notice.”
It continued: “The explosions you hear are from interceptions and dropped projectiles.”
Concerns increased across Israel as reports emerged early in the evening that Iran was preparing an attack.
It came after Israeli forces invaded Lebanon in what the army calls a “limited, localized and targeted” ground operation against Hezbollah.
As rockets flew overhead, messages poured in from people from different parts of the country waiting in their safe rooms.
“There are a lot of alarms going off all the time, so we are in the safe room… But for now everything is fine,” a mother of two in southern Israel told me via voice note.
“Very, very scary. I still can’t believe this is our life… it was VERY close,” said a message from a journalist in Tel Aviv.
“Usually we stay on our floor and don’t go to the shelter, but this time… we realized we had to go down.”
“It was very loud,” lawyer Efrat Eldan Schechter said in a WhatsApp message from Ra’anana in central Israel, adding that she believes “this is not the end for tonight.”
“We have to see how it will develop. It is indeed very frightening… but we are strong and confident that our IDF will protect us. Iran just made a big mistake.”
About an hour after the first message, phones vibrated again with another warning from the Home Front Command, telling people to leave shelters and protected areas.
After the attacks, the IDF spokesman said there were some hits in central and southern Israel. There are reports of some minor injuries.
“At this stage we are not identifying any new launches from Iran. Stay responsible and listen to the instructions,” Daniel Hagari said in a televised address.
Israel says at least 180 rockets were fired, most of which were intercepted.
