Iran wouldn’t have told everyone what they were going to do well in advance of when they didn’t if the attack was real rather than symbolic. From Larry Johnson at unz.com:
Iran Firing Ballistic Missiles
Most Western analysts were popping champagne corks today proclaiming Israel’s “massive” victory over Iran’s 14 April combined drone, cruise missile and ballistic missile attack on targets in Israel. I don’t know if they are really this blind to what happened or are willing participants in a psychological operation to persuade Israel that it had a victory and does not need to escalate. Regardless, let’s deal with the facts.
Iran told the United States and several neighboring countries exactly what it was going to do. We know this thanks to an article in the Financial Times published on April 12 — 36 hours before Iran launched.
Iran has signalled to allies and western nations that it will retaliate against a suspected Israeli air strike on its Damascus consulate in a “calibrated” manner to keep an all-out regional conflict at bay, according to officials briefed on the talks.
Tehran is unlikely to target Israeli diplomatic facilities in the region, said an official briefed on talks between Iran and Oman, the Gulf state that has often facilitated back-channel diplomacy between Tehran and Washington.
US intelligence on any impending attack appears to be detailed and specific, according to the officials briefed on the situation, giving Israel a window to prepare its defences. . . .
Even a direct attack in Israeli territory would probably be “calibrated” in a manner that would show a robust response, without triggering an Israeli retaliation that would lead to Iranian assets in Lebanon and Syria being decimated, the western official said, while warning that a miscalculation is possible.
Iran’s goal was to demonstrate it could hit Israel if it wanted to, but was providing advance warning to give the Israelis time to protect personnel in order to minimize casualties. Iran was not trying to cause mass casualties.
If they are so smart why do it in a (s)election year?
[Israel hitting back]
Now there is talk of limited response.
Brandon actually got something right with the urging of restraint.
Not because of humanitarian reasons but due to election season and those Muslim voters in the glorious peoples republic of Michigan.
That mighty CPUSA (D) coalition is really built on sand.
Now Iran knows where the air defenses are and hackers hack away at the Iron Dome root.
That secret intel base in Golan wasn’t so secret after all.
Like Pluto, I like stealthy and secretive things and he wasn’t evil, just misunderstood.