READ HERE: Iran might strike Israel with up to 1,000 ballistic missiles if a planned Israeli retaliatory attack on the Islamic Republic results in high civilian casualties and widespread destruction, according to reports.

Four officials, including two from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), told The New York Times that Israel can expect a massive retaliation by Tehran if its long-expected strikes on the country inflict heavy damage to the country’s vital energy infrastructure.

This follows Iran’s retaliatory missile strikes on Israel on 1 October, which caused minimal damage to military sites and no civilian deaths, and followed the killing of Hassan Nasrallah and other Tehran-linked figures in the region, hiking tensions between the two countries.

In addition to a barrage of a thousand missiles, Iran might also target Gulf shipping, escalate attacks from Tehran’s regional proxy force, and possibly target regional energy facilities, likely to cause oil prices to skyrocket.