Israel minister vows to ‘exact price’ from Iran over attack when time is right

Israeli minister Benny Gantz vowed on Sunday that the country would exact a price from Iran in response to its missile and drone attack when the time is right,

“We will build a regional coalition and exact the price from Iran in the fashion and timing that is right for us,” Gantz said before the Israeli war cabinet convened to discuss the country’s response to Iran’s attack.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Sunday that Tehran had informed the US that its attacks on Israel would be “limited” and for “self-defence”. His remarks came hours after the Western nations condemned Iran’s missile attack on Israel and called for de-escalation.

Iran launched over 300 missiles at Israel days after it warned the Jewish nation of retaliation over the April 1 attack on its embassy in Syria. Israel, however, claimed that it intercepted 99 per cent of the missiles launched by Iran which caused only minor damage to an air base.

Iran’s aggression was criticised by the Western nations, led by the US, who reassured Israel with their commitment to safeguard its territory while advocating for de-escalation.

Israel’s centrist war cabinet minister Benny Gantz resorted to a strong use of worlds saying the country would exact price from Iran for its missile and drone attack.

“We will build a regional coalition and exact the price from Iran in the fashion and timing that is right for us,” Gantz said before the country’s war cabinet convened to discuss Israel’s response to Iran’s attack.

Earlier, at a press conference, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abdollahian said that exercising the “right of legitimate defence” shows Iran’s responsible approach to regional and international peace and security. He said that at this point, Iran had no intention of continuing “defensive operations”, but cautioned Israel that the Islamic nation would not hesitate to protect its “legitimate interests against any new aggression”.

He said Israel’s neighbours had also been informed of its planned strikes 72 hours in advance.

Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations said in a statement that its military action was based on Article 51 of the United Nations Charter concerning legitimate defence in response to Israel’s alleged attack on their diplomatic premises in Damascus on April 1.

While Iran blamed Israel for the April 1 attack, Tel Aviv did not take responsibility for the airstrike.

Iran also warned the US against helping Israel. In a televised address, Iranian army chief of staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri told the US that its bases could also be attacked if it helped Israel retaliate.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said despite thwarting the attack, the military campaign was not over and “we must be prepared for every scenario”.

Israel is expected to launch a “significant response” to the Iranian aggression, an unnamed Israeli official told Channel 12 TV, even as US President Joe Biden cautioned Benjamin Netanyahu against retaliation.

Iran’s foreign ministry summoned on Sunday the ambassadors of the United Kingdom, France, and Germany to question what it referred to as their “irresponsible stance” regarding Tehran’s retaliatory strikes on Israel, the Iranian media reported.

Indian carrier Air India said on Sunday it was suspending all its flights headed to Tel Aviv in the wake of the looming threat of a heightened conflict in the region.

German airline group Lufthansa said on Sunday it was suspending flights to Amman, Beirut, Erbil and Tel Aviv at least until Monday following the latest turmoil in the Middle East.

The company had already said on Friday it was suspending flights to and from Tehran until April 18 and would not use Iranian airspace during that time.

Meanwhile, UAE-based Etihad Airways cancelled services to Tel Aviv and Amman on Sunday. Emirates Airlines also cancelled some of its flights and rerouted others due to temporary airspace closures in the region from the late evening of Saturday to Sunday morning.

Most stock markets in the Gulf ended lower on Sunday after Iran launched a retaliatory attack on Israel that raised the threat of a wider regional conflict.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark Tadawul All Share Index finished 0.3% lower, after falling about 2% during the session, with the country’s biggest lender Saudi National Bank tumbling 3.3%.