Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has enlisted Russian President Vladimir Putin to convey calming messages to Iran, indicating that Israel does not intend to attack it, Kan 11 News reported on Monday, citing diplomatic sources.
According to the report, the messages were recently delivered to Iran, including through phone conversations between Netanyahu and Putin, amid rising tensions between Jerusalem and Tehran.
The Prime Minister said on Monday, during a Knesset session, that Israel had conveyed a message to Iran stating that if Israel is attacked, “the consequences will be severe."
"[US President Donald] Trump and I will not allow Iran to restore its ballistic missile industry and nuclear program," Netanyahu said during the session.
He added, "We identify with the struggle of the Iranian people. We may be standing at a crucial moment. If we are attacked, the consequences for Iran will be very serious."
Kan 11 News noted that Israel is still concerned over an Iranian miscalculation that could lead Tehran to strike Israel out of concern that it might be attacked first. In recent days, the political and security leadership has held discussions on various security issues, including the Iranian matter.
On Sunday, Iranian television reported that the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has launched a military exercise involving missile launches and tests of air‑defense systems.
According to the report, the exercise is being conducted in several cities, including Tehran and Shiraz.
Two weeks ago, Barak Ravid of Axios reported that Israeli officials had warned the Trump administration that an IRGC missile exercise could be preparations for an attack on Israel.
A day earlier, Iran International reported that Western intelligence sources had identified “unusual aerial activity" by the IRGC’s Aerospace Force.
A day after publicly expressing his support for the ongoing anti-regime protests in Iran for the first time, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned the regime of “severe” consequences should it decide to attack Israel.
The prime minister addressed the Knesset plenum, which convened for the monthly “40 signatures” debate on Monday: “We identify with the struggle of the Iranian people and their aspiration for freedom and justice. It is quite possible that we are at a decisive moment – one in which the Iranian people will take their fate into their own hands. I made it clear regarding the military exercises Iran held a few days ago – prior to the visit [to the U.S. last week] – that if we are attacked, the consequences for Iran will be very severe.”
Responding to opposition leaders alleging a deterioration in the relations between them, Netanyahu stressed that he and U.S. President Donald Trump shared “a firm position” regarding the Iranian regime, “which pulls the strings of terror in the Middle East and beyond.”
“We will not allow them to rehabilitate their ballistic missile industry, and certainly will not permit them to renew the nuclear program that we severely damaged during Operation ‘Rising Lion.’ The shared position regarding Iran remains unchanged: zero enrichment capability, removal of all enriched uranium from Iran, and strict and continuous supervision of nuclear facilities,” he asserted.
He also reiterated, “Israel supports the U.S. move in Venezuela. This is a struggle of countries that support freedom and progress against violent states. In the Middle East, Israel is leading the fight against forces of barbarism and evil, and this is highly appreciated in the United States.”
During the same Knesset debate on Monday, Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz demanded that Netanyahu topple the Iranian regime, as the first high-ranking Israeli leader to do so.
Gantz emphasized that Israel “must not miss this opportunity,” telling Netanyahu, “If necessary – return to Washington now. You will have all the backing you need at home. We must not allow the dangerous regime in Tehran to defeat the Iranian people, the Middle East, and the world. It’s not certain that such an opportunity will come again.”
1 comment:
Something to remember - no matter what happens to Iran in the present, Persia part of the Ezekiel 38 coaltion that attacks Israel.
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