Iran declares it must ‘punish’ Israel
Notes UN took no action over attack on compound
Tehran must retaliate for the deadly attack on its consular compound in Damascus last week because the United Nations Security Council failed to condemn the strike or take any action against Israel, Iran’s U.N. mission said in a statement posted Thursday on Twitter.
“Had the U.N. Security Council condemned the Zionist regime’s reprehensible act of aggression on our diplomatic premises in Damascus and subsequently brought to justice its perpetrators, the imperative for Iran to punish this rogue regime might have been obviated,” the statement said.
Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the April 1 attack that killed seven high-ranking Iranian military officers. Tensions between the nations have increased, and Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned Wednesday that “the evil regime made a mistake and must be punished and it shall be.”
The top U.S. commander for the Middle East reportedly arrived in Israel Thursday for meetings with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and other senior defense officials to discuss an anticipated military response from Iran, Haaretz.com reported. Gen. Erik Kurilla’s trip comes a day after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Gallant and “reiterated the United States’ support for Israel’s security and made clear that the U.S. will stand with Israel against any threats by Iran and its proxies,” the State Department said in a statement.
U.S. Central Command, in an email to USA TODAY, declined to confirm Kurilla’s trip: “We do not discuss flag officer travel for operational security.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, amid concern that Iran was preparing to strike, said Israel is prepared for military confrontations beyond Gaza: “Whoever harms us, we will harm them.”
The United States said on Thursday it had restricted its employees in Israel and their family members from personal travel outside the greater Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Be’er Sheva areas amid Iran’s threats.
Russia and Germany urge restraint across Middle East
Meanwhile, Russia and Germany on Thursday urged countries in the Middle East to show restraint and Israel said it was preparing to “meet all its security needs” in a region on edge over the Iranian threat.
The German airline Lufthansa, one of only two Western carriers flying to Tehran, extended a suspension of its flights to the Iranian capital, and Russia warned against travel to the Middle East.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called on her Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amirabdollahian, to urge “maximum restraint” to avoid further escalation.
Russia’s foreign ministry told citizens they should not travel to the Middle East, especially to Israel, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories.
“Right now it’s very important for everyone to maintain restraint so as not to lead to a complete destabilization of the situation in the region, which doesn’t exactly shine with stability and predictability,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said in a news briefing.
Thousands of ultra-orthodox Jews demonstrated Thursday near a Jerusalem enlistment office, protesting a recent court ruling that means “Haredim” men, characterized by their strict interpretation of religious sources, will be drafted for the first time since Israel was founded almost 80 years ago.
UNICEF humanitarian convoy in Gaza is hit by gunfire
A UNICEF convoy was hit by gunfire Wednesday as it tried to deliver aid to northern Gaza, the latest in a series of violent obstructions faced by aid workers in the enclave.
“The incident has been raised with relevant Israeli authorities,” UNICEF said in a statement. “Sadly, humanitarians continue to face risks in delivering lifesaving aid.”
The incident occurred nine days after a World Central Kitchen aid convoy was attacked by Israeli rockets, killing seven workers − and the same day Israel promised to greatly increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a USA TODAY request for comment on the incident.
UNICEF spokesperson Tess Ingram told Al Jazeera she was in one of the vehicles at a checkpoint. “We were waiting there when gunfire broke out,” Ingram said. “The gunfire came from the direction of the checkpoint toward civilians who then ran away from the checkpoint. And the gunfire hit us.”
She said three rounds hit the car where she was sitting. The mission had been authorized, and the Israeli authorities knew about the convoy, Ingram said. After the shooting, Israeli authorities continued to delay the convoy, and it was forced to return to Rafah.
“So those lifesaving supplies never made it to the children in northern Gaza,” Ingram said.
Israel pitches aid plan to Red Cross, other agencies
Israel’s Southern Command chief, Major General Yaron Finkelman, met with representatives of U.N. agencies, the Red Cross, IMC, USAID and the American Humanitarian Coordinator as part of “increasing coordination and cooperation on the issue of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip,” the Israeli military announced.
Earlier Wednesday, Gallant told reporters that Israel will open a new land crossing between the southern Israeli community of Zikim and the coastal northern Gaza town of As-siafa, which would make it easier to bring in humanitarian aid from overseas and from Jordan to the east.
“These breakthroughs have a direct impact on the flow of aid – we plan to flood Gaza with aid,” Gallant said. “It will also streamline security checks and strengthen our work with international partners.”
The U.S., other nations and humanitarian organizations have been clamoring for Israel to let more food, medicine and other necessities into Gaza, where the United Nations says half the population is facing “catastrophic” hunger.
Contributing: Reuters