Israel leaves the door open to an attack on Iran amid international calls to contain the conflict

Follow live the latest news on Iran's attack on Israel

Israel affirms that it will “respond with actions, not words” while Iran insists that it was limited to exercising its right to self-defense

April 15 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The Israeli authorities have left the door open to an attack against Iran in response to the launch of nearly 300 drones and ballistic missiles by Tehran against its territory on Saturday night, amid calls from the international community to contain the conflict in the Middle East in the face of the possible expansion of the hostilities unleashed more than six months ago in the Gaza Strip.

Late on Saturday, Iran launched an unprecedented attack against Israeli territory in what it described as a response to the recent bombing of its Consulate in the Syrian capital, Damascus, in which seven members of the Revolutionary Guard died. Tehran stated after this attack that it was an attack against its sovereignty, given that the legation is considered part of its territory, and promised that there would be a response.

This response materialized with the aforementioned launches, which would have been notified 72 hours in advance to the United States, as stated on Sunday by the Iranian Foreign Minister, Hosein Amirabdolahian, and was defined by the Iranian authorities as already completed, although the President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, warned that there would be an “even tougher” response if Israel responds to these attacks.

Thus, Raisi said that Iran “has taught the Zionist enemy a lesson” and limited the response to a “defensive measure” after the bombing of its Consulate. In addition, he criticized the inaction of the United Nations Security Council in the face of Israel's actions, including its offensive in Gaza and its bombings against Lebanon and Syria, where it has attacked targets of the Shiite militia party Hezbollah, the Syrian Army and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. .

Faced with this situation, the Government of Israel has held a meeting of its war cabinet to consider its possible response, although the Israeli Army already stated on Sunday that it will respond “with actions, not words” to the attacks, which it has done fear an expansion of the open conflict after the attacks carried out on October 7 by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas).

The Israeli Army stated after the attacks that its air defense systems and the intervention of its allies – including the United States, France and the United Kingdom – allowed it to shoot down 99 percent of the drones and missiles, with minor material damage. relevance in some parts of the country and without fatalities.

The limited impact of the attacks, which were nevertheless on a significant scale, would have been due in part to the fact that the Iranian response had been expected for nearly two weeks, which would have allowed the defense to be organized and the situation contained. In fact, the commander of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), Erik Kurilla, had traveled to Israel days before with the supposed objective of preparing the defensive strategy.

Some analysts have considered that this could be a sign that Iran wanted to respond to the attack against the Consulate in Damascus given the difficulty of justifying internally an inaction given the severity of the bombing, while avoiding a surprise or massive attack that would could spark an open conflict.

SENTENCES AND CONTAINMENT

The Iranian attacks have been followed by a wave of condemnation from its allies, mainly in the West, although they have also been accompanied by calls for restraint in the face of the risk of a large-scale war that could drag in allies from both countries. to the battlefield, with unpredictable consequences.

Israel's allies have formulated, in addition to condemnations, new messages of support for the country's security, although these statements have also been followed by calls for Israel to stop its actions and avoid an escalation in the region, which is already in a situation of great instability.

An example of the support of these countries for Israel was the aforementioned involvement of several of them in the work of intercepting drones and missiles, around which there are still doubts about the possible participation of Jordan, from where at least French troops operated in defensive tasks.

Once the attack was over, there have been messages to the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the rest of his Government – made up of far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties – to contain the situation, in the form of statements mainly from London and Paris. .

Thus, the United Kingdom Foreign Minister, David Cameron, has called on Israel to “not respond”, although he has recognized that the Israeli authorities have the “right” to carry out punitive actions in response to Tehran's actions. “I understand that there are people in Israel who want more, but it is time to think with the head, as well as with the heart. Be intelligent, as well as tough. The intelligent thing is to recognize that Iran's attack was a failure,” he said.

For his part, the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, has criticized the “unprecedented” attack against Israel and has advocated “avoiding an escalation”, while confirming that the French Armed Forces carried out interceptions of drones and missiles. “Israel must be convinced that it is not necessary to respond, but rather to isolate Iran and convince the countries of the region that it is a danger, increase sanctions, reinforce pressure on nuclear activities and find a path to peace in the region,” he argued.

Along these lines, official US sources cited by the television network have stated that the tenant of the White House, Joe Biden, has conveyed to Netanyahu that “it is necessary to think carefully and strategically about the risks of an escalation”, if He reiterated Washington's commitment to guaranteeing Israel's security.

“PAY THE PRICE”

For his part, the spokesman for the Israeli Army, Daniel Hagari, has assured that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) maintain “high preparation on all fronts”, while Benjamin Gantz, member of the Israeli war cabinet, has bet for “a regional coalition” to “make Iran pay the price, in the form and time that is appropriate.”

Gantz, who thus hinted that an Israeli response might not be immediate, asked to “remember” that “the tasks” of the offensive against Gaza have not been completed, “mainly the return of the hostages and the elimination of threats against the residents in the north and south,” referring to Hezbollah and the Palestinian militias, respectively.

In contrast, Israel's Minister of National Security, the far-right Itamar Ben Gvir, has called for a “crushing” counterattack against Iran and has argued that the only way to create deterrence is to “go crazy” and shelve “containment and proportionality”.

“The concepts of containment and proportionality ended on October 7,” he said, statements supported by the Minister of Finance, the also far-right Bezalel Smotrich, who has argued that Israel “will win” if its response “resonates throughout the Middle East to the next generations”.

For this reason, the international community is expectant about the type and scale of Israel's potential response, which will be determined by internal disputes within the government coalition, at a time when fears about the outbreak of a conflict large-scale attacks in the region are at their highest since the start of the Israeli offensive against Gaza following the Hamas attacks.