Iran says retaliation 'concluded,' warns Israel not to respond

Israel says Iran attack 'foiled' amid fears of wider conflict

By AFP

April 14, 2024 11:57 AM

File Photo

Iran on Sunday urged Israel not to retaliate militarily to an unprecedented attack overnight, which Tehran presented as a justified response to a strike that destroyed its consulate building in Damascus earlier this month.

"The matter can be deemed concluded," Iran's mission to the United Nations said in a post on X just a few hours after the start of the operation late Saturday.

"However, should the Israeli regime make another mistake, Iran's response will be considerably more severe," the Iranian mission warned.

No Iranian leaders have spoken out to justify the attack, which marked the first time Iran has launched a direct military assault on Israeli territory.

Late Saturday, Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps announced that they had launched "dozens of drones and missiles" towards military sites on Israeli territory.

"Iran's military action was in response to the Zionist regime's aggression against our diplomatic premises in Damascus," the Iranian mission to the UN said.

The attack, according to the mission, was "conducted on the strength of Article 51 of the UN Charter pertaining to legitimate defense".

However Israel's army said it had shot 99 percent of the drones and missiles with the help of the United States and other allies, declaring Iran's attack "foiled".

Experts have suggested that Saturday's slow-moving drone attack was calibrated to represent a show of power but also allow some wiggle room.

"It appears that Iran telegraphed its attack on Israel to demonstrate it can strike using different capabilities to complicate the (Israeli army's) ability to neutralise the assault but also to provide an off ramp to pause escalation," said Nishank Motwani, senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute in Washington.

- Attack 'telegraphed' -

Over the last two weeks, the Iranian authorities repeatedly vowed to "punish" Israel after the death of seven Guards including two generals of the Quds Force in an attack that levelled the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1.

Iran has blamed Israel for the attack.

In the days after the strike, Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel will be "slapped for that action".

Since a revolution in 1979 in Iran which toppled the US-backed Shah, Israel has been the sworn enemy of the Islamic Republic.

Iran has often called for the destruction of Israel, with support of the Palestinian cause one of the pillars of the Islamic revolution.

However Tehran had also refrained from a direct attack on Israel -- until Saturday.

Instead, it has backed members of the so-called "Axis of Resistance" against Israel, including Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah and Yemen's Huthi rebels, since the outbreak of war in Gaza between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas on October 7.

Hours before the strikes on Saturday, Iran seized an Israeli-linked container ship in the Gulf which Washington called "an act of piracy".

- 'Next slap will be fiercer' -

During the night, Tehran also warned the United States, urging them to "stay away" from its conflict with Israel.

"Any threat by the terrorist government of America and the Zionist regime from any country will result in a reciprocal and proportionate response," the Revolutionary Guards warned in a statement early Sunday.

"If necessary", Tehran "will not hesitate to take defensive measures to protect its interests against any aggressive military action," Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

"The next slap will be fiercer," warned the new mural unveiled overnight in Tehran's Palestine Square, where a few thousand people gathered during the night shouting "Death to Israel" and "Death to America".

Before Tehran launched its attack, Israel warned Iran that it would suffer "the consequences for choosing to escalate the situation any further".

Israel has not revealed what a potential response would look like.

An Israeli attack on Iran's territory, possibly targeting military or nuclear sites, could not be ruled out, according to experts.

As a precaution, Tehran's Mehrabad airport, which is mainly dedicated to domestic flights, will remain closed on Sunday until 12 pm (0830 GMT), according to the Mehr news agency.

Several international airlines have suspended flights over Iranian airspace.

Countries including Russia and France have also asked their citizens to avoid travelling to Iran and Israel.

Israel says Iran attack 'foiled' amid fears of wider conflict

Iran's unprecedented overnight attack on Israel has been "foiled", the Israeli military said Sunday, with hundreds of missiles and drones intercepted with the help of the United States and allies.

The attack which began late Saturday marks a major escalation of the long-running covert war between the regional foes, and comes against the backdrop of the ongoing war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Iran's proxies and allies also carried out coordinated attacks on Israeli positions as sirens sounded in many places and AFP correspondents heard blasts in the skies above Jerusalem early Sunday.

Iran had repeatedly threatened to retaliate against Israel for a deadly April 1 air strike on its Damascus consular building, and Washington had warned in recent days that the reprisals were imminent.

Late Saturday, the Israeli army said Iran had launched a "massive swarm of over 200 killer drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles".

The army said it had scrambled dozens of fighter jets to intercept "all aerial threats", and was working with the US and other allies to stop the launches.

People in Jerusalem sought cover, while some residents stockpiled water.

"As you can see it's empty, everybody is running home," said Eliyahu Barakat, a 49-year-old grocery shop owner in Jerusalem's Mamilla neighbourhood.

Early Sunday, the Israeli army said that 99 percent of the launches had been intercepted.

"The Iranian attack was foiled," military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in a televised statement.

US President Joe Biden reiterated Washington's "ironclad" support for Israel after an urgent meeting with his top security officials on the spiralling crisis.

- 'Stay away' -

Iran's Revolutionary Guards confirmed a drone and missile attack was launched against Israel in retaliation for the Damascus strike which killed seven Guards, two of them generals.

The Guards said ballistic missiles were fired almost an hour after the slower moving drones.

Hundreds of Iranians gathered in Tehran's Palestine Square waving Iranian and Palestinian flags in a show of support for the military action against Israel.

Iran's allies in the region joined the attack, with Yemen's Tehran-backed Huthi rebels also launching drones at Israel, according to security agency Ambrey.

Lebanon's Hezbollah movement announced it had fired rockets at Israeli positions in the annexed Golan Heights around the same time, as well as a second barrage hours later.

Tehran's official IRNA news agency said the attack had dealt "heavy blows" to an air base in the Negev desert, but the Israeli army said there had only been minor damage.

The Iranian mission to the United Nations warned Washington to keep out of Iran's conflict with Israel.

"It is a conflict between Iran and the rogue Israeli regime, from which the U.S. MUST STAY AWAY!" it said.

It added that it hoped Iran's action to punish the strike on its diplomatic mission would lead to no further escalation and "the matter can be deemed concluded".

But despite Tehran's warning not to get involved, US forces took part in shooting down drones aimed at Israel.

- 'Take the win' -

Biden said in a statement that the United States had "helped Israel take down nearly all of the incoming drones and missiles".

The US president later said he told Netanyahu during a phone call "that Israel demonstrated a remarkable capacity to defend against and defeat even unprecedented attacks -- sending a clear message to its foes that they cannot effectively threaten the security of Israel".

News outlet Axios said Biden had told Netanyahu that he would oppose an Israeli counterattack against Iran and that he should "take the win".

Before Tehran launched its attack on Saturday, the Israeli military warned Iran it would suffer the "consequences for choosing to escalate the situation any further".

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned Iran's "reckless" action and pledged his government would "continue to stand up for Israel's security".

France echoed the commitment to Israel, with Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne saying "Iran has reached a new level of destabilisation".

Egypt, which regularly acts as a mediator between Israel and the Palestinians, said it was in "direct contact with all sides to the conflict to try to contain the situation".

And regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia urged parties to exercise "restraint and spare the region and its peoples from the dangers of war".

China, meanwhile, characterised the attack as "the latest spillover of the Gaza conflict" and called for the implementation of a recent UN Security Council resolution demanding a ceasefire in the besieged Palestinian territory, saying more than six months of fighting "must end now".

The Security Council was to meet at around 2000 GMT Sunday to discuss the latest crisis at Israel's request, its current president Malta said.

Biden said he would also convene his fellow leaders of the G7 group of wealthy nations on Sunday to coordinate a "united diplomatic response" to Iran's "brazen" attack.

Earlier on Saturday, Iran's Revolutionary Guards seized an Israeli-linked container vessel in the Gulf earlier on Saturday, putting the whole region on alert.

Indian officials said there were 17 Indian citizens on board the Aries, while the Philippine government said that four of its nationals were also aboard.

The April 1 strike in Damascus, which killed 16 people, including two Iranian generals, had been widely blamed on Israel. Iran had repeatedly vowed to hit back, but had not specified how.

Shortly before the launches, Netanyahu said Israel was prepared for a "direct attack from Iran".

Israel has closed its airspace but reopened it at 0430 GMT, according to its airport authority. Schools nationwide did not open on Sunday.

Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon also announced they were temporarily closing their airspace.

- Gaza stalemate -

Fighting in Gaza meanwhile has ground on, with Israel's military saying Saturday it had struck more than 30 Hamas targets across Gaza.

The war began with the unprecedented October 7 attack by Hamas against Israel, resulting in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 33,686 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

Hamas said it had submitted its response to a truce plan presented by US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators at talks in Cairo this week.

Israel described the Hamas as a "rejection" of the latest proposal, with the Mossad spy agency saying the Palestinian group does not "want a humanitarian deal and the return of the hostages".

Hamas has said it was sticking to its previous demands, insisting on "a permanent ceasefire" and the "withdrawal of the (Israeli) occupation army from the entire Gaza Strip".

Mossad accused Hamas of "continuing to exploit the tension with Iran" and aiming for "a general escalation in the region".