Defense stocks are gaining at writing following reports that Iran has launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) made that announcement only hours after a senior White House official warned that Iran is preparing for such an attack.

Iran fired a salvo of ballistic missiles at Israel on Tuesday in retaliation for Israel's campaign against Tehran's Hezbollah allies in Lebanon. Alarms sounded across Israel and explosions could be heard in Jerusalem and the Jordan River valley after Israelis piled into bomb shelters.

U.S. aerospace and defense companies such as Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT), Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) and RTX (NYSE:RTX) rose on Tuesday as Iran attacked Israel with ballistic missiles. The attack had been anticipated throughout much of the day,

Israel has plunged Hezbollah into disarray and decapitated its leadership. How Iran will react is an open question.

Israel says it is operating in Lebanese border areas to dismantle infrastructure belonging to the militant group.

In April, RAF aircraft joined forces with the US and other allies to repel more than 300 missiles and drones fired from Iran into Israel. Healey’s statement suggested that RAF fighter jets had again on Tuesday helped to intercept incoming Iranian missiles.