Fear of escalation is intensifying. Iranian President Ebrahim Raïssi warned that “the slightest action” by Israel against “Iran's interests” would provoke “a severe response” from his country, according to a press release published this Tuesday by the presidency. Israel has promised “a response” to the massive and unprecedented attack launched by Iran on the night of Saturday to Sunday on Israeli territory.
“Now we firmly declare that the slightest action against the interests of Iran will certainly lead to a severe, extensive and painful response against all its perpetrators,” Ebrahim Raïssi said in a telephone interview with the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani late this Monday.
An action to “punish the aggressor”
The Iranian president indicated that his country had targeted this weekend, "by exercising its right to self-defense", the "centers" where the bombing, attributed to Israel, of an annex of the Iranian embassy was organized. Iran in Damascus, Syria, April 1. This unprecedented operation “was carried out successfully with the objective of punishing the aggressor,” he added. Ebrahim Raïssi also once again denounced “the blind support of certain Western countries for the Zionist regime”, which is “a cause of tension in the region”, according to the press release.
Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri warned Israeli authorities on Monday evening on state television that, in the event of a response, "they will have to expect a stronger, faster and more immediate blow" from on the part of Iran.
“They will not have a period of 12 days,” he said, referring to the time between the strike on Damascus and the attack on Israel. “In fact, the response they receive will not be measured in days or hours, but in seconds,” he added. Israel “should not repeat this strategic error with another error,” warned Ali Bagheri.