Israel has ‘right to protect itself ’ after Iran attack
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday his country will decide how to respond to Iran's unprecedented attack as world leaders called for restraint to
nd avoid escalation.
The Israeli military has vowed to respond to Iran’s missile and drone weekend attack, prompting a diplomatic flurry aiming to calm a region already on the edge due to the Israel-Hamas war raging in Gaza since October 7.
Washington and Brussels have pledged to ramp up sanctions against Iran, while British Foreign Secretary David Cameron and his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock became the first Western envoys to visit Israel after the attack.
Netanyahu told the visiting ministers that Israel “will reserve the right to protect itself,” his office said.
The pair offered “all kinds of suggestions and advice” during a meeting, Netanyahu said. “However, I would also like to clarify: we will make our decisions ourselves.”
For his part, Cameron said that “we’re very anxious to avoid escalation and to say to our friends in Israel: It’s a time to think with head as well as heart.”
Baerbock emphasised that “the region must not slide into a situation whose outcome is completely unpredictable.”
Tehran has vowed to hit back if its arch foe Israel responds to the Saturday attack, which itself was launched in retaliation to a deadly strike on Iran’s
Damascus consulate building earlier this month.
As Iran marked its annual Army Day, it showed off a range of its weapons yesterday, including attack drones and longer-range ballistic missiles, in a military parade in Tehran.
President Ebrahim Raisi has warned after the attack that “the slightest act of aggression” by Israel would lead to “a fierce and severe response”.
In the large-scale assault late Saturday, Iran and allied groups launched over 300 missiles and drones carrying a combined payload of 85 tonnes at Israel, according to the Israeli army.
Damage and casualties were limited as Israel’s air defences intercepted most of them with the help of US, British, French and Jordanian forces.
Israel’s military chief Herzi Halevi has vowed “a response” to Iran’s first ever direct attack, while military spokesman Daniel Hagari stressed that Iran would not get off “scotfree”. (AFP)
We’re very anxious to avoid escalation... It’s a time to think with head as well as heart