tension skyrocketing – Time

Israel appears determined to respond to the drone and missile attack launched by Iran in retaliation for the Damascus raid on April 1. There will be a response, a Tel Aviv official said, but its extent has yet to be “determined”. “The confrontation between Israel and Iran is not over yet”, warned Yoav Gallant, Defense Minister of the Jewish State, who then invited the partners to “establish a strategic alliance” against the “serious threat coming from Iran”. . Benny Gantz, member of the war cabinet, warned that Israel will demand from Tehran “a price in the way and at the time that suits us” but also urged us not to forget the objectives of the war against Hamas, “first and foremost the return of the hostages and the elimination of the threat against the inhabitants of the north and south.” It will be the war cabinet, convened by Benjamin Netanyahu after the attack, that will establish the extent of the Israeli response. Tel Aviv must also take into account the American positions, which aim not to add further fuel to the fire also in light of the small amount of damage suffered and the substantial success of the defense systems, supported by the intervention of the allied forces, Washington and London above all . According to Axios, Joe Biden warned Netanyahu that the United States will not support any counteroffensive against the Islamic Republic and he managed, according to the New York Times, to convince the Israeli prime minister not to respond immediately. “We are not looking for an escalation, a broader war in the region,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby clarified.

For Tehran the issue ended with the massive wave of rockets and missiles launched between Saturday and Sunday but in the face of a counter-offensive it would be ready to strike with a “stronger response”, remarked the Iranian Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian , speaking with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan. Pasdaran commander Hossein Salami echoed this, threatening a “much harsher” reaction in the event of an immediate attack. As for the United States, Amir-Abdollahian underlined, “they were warned that our operation would be limited” and would not target “civilian targets” or “economic or populated areas”. Scientific raids which, as noted by the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Forces Mohammad Hossein Bagheri, had as their objective, among others, «the Nevatim air base, where F-35 planes were used to hit our consulate in Damascus ». Iran claims, in fact, to have acted in self-defense, urging Israel’s partners to stay out of the dispute. And faced with the support provided by Great Britain, France and Germany, he summoned their ambassadors to the Foreign Ministry. However, Tehran received the support of militant groups close to it: Hamas spoke of a “deserved” response, while the Houthis defined it as a “legitimate” attack.

Future scenarios in the Middle East will depend on the Israeli response and the attention of the international community is maximum. The Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, considered it “positive” that “Iran has spoken of the issue being concluded”, hoping for “prudence” on the part of Tel Aviv. London, with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Minister David Cameron, reiterated its condemnation of Iran. Russia expressed “maximum concern about another dangerous escalation”. An aggravation of the crisis that “we will do everything to avoid”, assured the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz. The issue was addressed at a G7 summit under the Italian Presidency, which condemned the Iranian attack but called for further escalation to be avoided, and the extraordinary meeting of European Foreign Ministers, convened by the High Commissioner, will also deal with it on Tuesday , Josep Borrell to help reduce “tension” and bring “security to the region”. An area where fear remains alive. Ibrahim Faltas, Vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land, told LaPresse about the terrible experience he lived during the attack by Iran. “Humanity worthy of the name should stop violence, hatred and revenge”, was his appeal.