Tag: Iran

Israel drones target air base near Iran’s largest nuclear facility

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Drones sent by Israel struck an air base near Ifsahan, which has the country’s largest nuclear research centre, according to officials from Iran who spoke to the New York Times.

Officials in Tehran said that there were no damages from the strike and that nuclear facility was ‘completely secure’. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which confirmed Iran’s claim, urged that “nuclear facilities should never be a target in military conflicts,” according to a report from AFP, an international news agency.

#UPDATE There has been no damage to Iranian nuclear sites following explosions Friday in the centre of Iran that have been described as Israeli revenge attacks, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said.

“IAEA can confirm that there is no damage to Iran’s nuclear… pic.twitter.com/llDe5VSzeD

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) April 19, 2024

However, the risk of a further escalation pushed investors to safe haven bets like the US treasuries, Swiss Franc and the US dollar.

Reports of explosions near the Isfahan airport emerged just minutes after unnamed US officials told the Australian broadcaster ABC that Israel had fired missiles on one Iran site.

Meanwhile, gold prices crossed $2,400 an ounce. Brent Crude oil jumped back above $90 a barrel soon after the reports of explosions in Iran.

The Saturday attack from Iran was in response to the death of senior military officials from the country in an attack that targetted a diplomatic compound in Damascus, the capital of Syria.

Israel did not claim responsibility for the attack in Syria but the establishment in Tehran believes it as an act by its rival in Tel Aviv or on behalf of it. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said that Israel has the right to protect itself and that a retaliatory attack from Israeli forces was imminent.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

US Congress moving swiftly on bipartisan action to punish Iran after revenge attack on Israel

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Iran’s attack against Israel over the weekend has spurred a flurry of bipartisan legislative action in Congress, uniting lawmakers against the country even as the risk of a larger regional war looms.

Several measures introduced and passed in the House and Senate seek to both publicly condemn Iran and punish the Islamic Republic financially. Lawmakers have denounced Iran’s actions, which came in response to a suspected Israeli strike weeks earlier on an Iranian consular building in Syria that killed two Iranian generals.

“The world is on fire, and history will judge us for our action,” said Rep. Mike McCaul, R-Texas, chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee, during a news conference Tuesday.

The swift, bipartisan condemnation of Iran has put on sharp display the durability of American support for Israel, even amid growing partisan division over how the country is handling its more than six-month war with Hamas.

The House passed nearly a dozen bills by Wednesday that would, among other things, issue a slate of new sanctions and other financial restrictions against Iran and its leaders. Other legislation looks to prevent current Iranian officials sanctioned from evading those penalties and urge the European Union to “expeditiously” designate Iran’s Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization as the U.S. has already done.

On the other side of the Capitol, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday advanced five bills, including ones that targeted Iran for its human rights record and would require sanctions on ports and refineries that receive and process Iranian oil.

“Iran’s direct attack on Israel this week underscores the need to further cut off the Iranian regime’s key revenue streams,” Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire said in a statement. “I urge my colleagues in the Senate to support this bill — which has already passed the House — so that we can send it to President Biden’s desk immediately.”

A number of the bills had passed the House weeks before Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel in October but have been stalled in the Senate committee. An Israeli offensive in Gaza has since caused widespread devastation and killed over 33,000 people, according to local health officials. Israel’s conduct of the war has revealed the depth of unease among U.S. lawmakers as concerns over the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza have caused even some of President Joe Biden’s closest allies to threaten conditioning future aid to Israel.

Congressional Democrats have been reluctant to challenge Biden’s handling of the ongoing conflict and related regional tensions that have taken shape, mindful that criticism could further weaken Biden in his reelection campaign against former President Donald Trump.

But the attack on Saturday has proven to consolidate public support for the Biden administration’s quick response as it ordered U.S. forces to help Israel down “nearly all” the 300 drones and missiles that were headed its way.

It also comes as House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., released legislation Wednesday that would provide $95 billion in aid collectively to Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan. The aid package had been held up for months over Republican opposition to continuing wartime funding for Ukraine as it battles Russia. Iran’s attack on Israel added urgency to Johnson’s plans to bring the issue to the floor for a vote.

While the measures targeting Iran have received overwhelming support — with the series of House bills mostly passing with at least 300 votes — there has been a quiet but growing dissent among progressive Democratic lawmakers in both chambers, who warn that legislative efforts could risk further escalation in the Middle East.

“Following last weekend’s unprecedented response by Iran to Israel’s attack on its consulate, the Republican Majority is explicitly leveraging a series of bills to further escalate tensions in the Middle East,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said in a statement Tuesday. “This is a blatant attempt to distract from their own incompetence.”

The strike on Saturday marked the first time Iran has launched a direct military assault on Israel despite decades of enmity dating back to the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution. Israel has vowed to retaliate against Iran, risking further expanding the shadow war between the two foes into a direct conflict.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, condemned Iran’s attack in a statement but called on his colleagues to respond cautiously. He warned that further U.S. action against Iran could lead to a dangerous escalation that could drag America into a war in the Middle East.

“Cooler heads must now prevail to ensure peace in the region and security for Israel,” Sanders said.

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EU leaders back new Iran sanctions after attack on Israel

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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European Union leaders decided on Wednesday to step up sanctions against Iran after Tehran’s missile and drone attack on Israel left world powers scrambling to prevent a wider conflict in the Middle East.

The summit in Brussels is the first meeting of the EU’s 27 national leaders since Saturday’s attack, more than six months into the war between Israel and the Iran-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Israel has signalled it will retaliate but has not said how. EU leaders condemned the Iranian attack, reaffirmed their commitment to Israel’s security and called on all sides to prevent more tensions, including in Lebanon.

“We feel it’s very important to do everything to isolate Iran,” said summit chairman Charles Michel, adding the new sanctions against the Islamic Republic would target companies involved in the production of drones and missiles.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said it was important that Israel “does not respond with a massive attack of its own.”

Italy spoke separately ahead of G7 talks in favour of sanctions against arms suppliers linked to the attack against Israel, as well as those behind attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

Iran launched its assault in response to an April 1 strike on its embassy in Damascus which it blamed on Israel. Tel Aviv started its broader military offensive in Gaza after Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel on Oct. 7.

Israel and Ukraine 

EU foreign ministers are due to continue the sanctions work on Monday as the United States and its Western allies hope new steps against Iran will help limit any Israeli retaliation.

The EU already has multiple programmes that target Iran for human rights abuses, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and Tehran’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Germany, France and several EU states are looking at expanding a scheme that seeks to curb the supply of Iranian drones to Russia to include the provision of missiles and cover deliveries to Iranian proxies in the Middle East.

Belgium backed introducing sanctions against Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps but Scholz said that required further legal checks. The bloc’s top diplomat has said that could only happen if a national authority in the EU found that the group had been involved in terrorist activity.

Analysts say Iran is unlikely to face more severe economic punishment because of worries about boosting oil prices and angering top buyer China.

With the Middle East capturing much of the EU’s attention, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy appealed for more help in holding the line against Russia, which unleashed an invasion against its neighbour more than two years ago.

“Here in Ukraine, in our part of Europe, unfortunately, we do not have the level of defence that we all saw in the Middle East a few days ago,” Zelenskiy told the summit, after Israel and allies mostly shot down the incoming drones and missiles.

“It reflects our current key need – the need for air defence,” he said, according to an EU official, repeating his calls for speedier deliveries of the weapons and ammunition previously promised to Ukraine.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Israel will defend itself, Benjamin Netanyahu says, as West calls for restraint

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Israel will make its own decisions about how to defend itself, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday, as Western countries pleaded for restraint in responding to a volley of attacks from Iran.

The United States, European Union and G7 group of industrialised nations all announced plans to consider tighter sanctions on Iran, seen as aimed at mollifying Israel and persuading it to rein in its retaliation for the first ever direct Iranian strikes after decades of confrontation by proxy.

Iran attacked in retaliation for a suspected Israeli airstrike on its embassy compound in Damascus on April 1. Israel and its allies mostly shot down all missiles and drones and there were no deaths, but Israel says it must retaliate to preserve the credibility of its deterrents. Iran says it views the matter as closed but will retaliate again if Israel does.

Israel’s Air Force said late on Wednesday its fighter jets had struck the “terrorist infrastructure” of Iran-backed Hezbollah in eastern Lebanon, stoking concerns about a further escalation in clashes across Israel’s northern border.

Earlier, Netanyahu met the German and British foreign ministers, who both travelled to Israel as part of a coordinated push to keep confrontation between Israel and Iran from escalating into a regional conflict fueled by the Gaza war.

Netanyahu’s office said he thanked Annalena Baerbock and David Cameron for their support, while telling them: “I want to make it clear – we will make our own decisions, and the State of Israel will do everything necessary to defend itself.”

Earlier, Cameron said it was now apparent Israel planned to retaliate for the Iranian missile and drone strikes.

Baerbock said escalation “would serve no one, not Israel’s security, not the many dozens of hostages still in the hands of Hamas, not the suffering population of Gaza, not the many people in Iran who are themselves suffering under the regime…”

More than six months into the Gaza war between Israel and the Iran-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas that has seen flare-ups across the Middle East, diplomats are searching for a way to avert direct battle between Israel and Iran.

Jordan added to the calls for restraint, warning of a war that could be “devastating” for the region.

“The risks are enormous. That could drag the whole region into war, which would be devastating to us in the region and we’ll have very, very serious implications for the rest of the world including the U.S,” Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said. “The situation is too dangerous. The chances of regional explosion are real, and that has got to stop. We’ve got to make sure there’s no further escalation.”

Washington says it is planning to impose new sanctions targeting Iran’s missile and drone programme in coming days and expects its allies will follow suit.

EU leaders were due to discuss sanctions at summit in Brussels, as were G7 foreign ministers meeting in Italy.

‘Stop the war! Stop the war!’

Since Hamas fighters triggered the war in Gaza by attacking southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and capturing 253 hostages according to Israeli tallies, clashes have erupted between Israel and Iran-aligned groups based in Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iraq.

Inside Gaza, Israel has launched a massive air and ground assault, with nearly 34,000 people confirmed killed, according to Palestinian medics, and thousands of others feared dead, still lost among the ruins.

This month, Israel abruptly pulled most of its troops out of southern Gaza, site of most of the heaviest fighting since the start of the year.

Fighting in recent days has been focused in central Gaza, in the Nuseirat refugee camp north of Deir al-Balah, one of the few areas that Israeli troops have yet to storm. Israeli forces retreated from the camp late on Wednesday, residents and some Israeli media said.

At a hospital morgue in Deir al-Balah, members of the al-Nouri family bellowed in sorrow and anger over bodies in body bags, several the size of small children, in video obtained by Reuters. Authorities said 11 people had been killed in an Israeli strike on the family home on Tuesday.

“Oh people of the world, what is happening is wrong! Have mercy on us! Stop the war!… Children are dying in the streets!” a man cried inside the crowded hospital.

In the southern city of Rafah, an Israeli airstrike on a house killed seven Palestinians, including a woman and three children, medics said.

Elsewhere, Hamas media reported Israeli forces had withdrawn from Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza after a 36-hour raid there.

On Israel’s northern border with Lebanon, where cross-border battles between Israeli forces and the Iran-aligned Hezbollah movement pose an escalation risk, Hezbollah said it had launched missiles and drones at a military facility in northern Israel in retaliation for Israeli strikes that killed Hezbollah members.

Israel said 14 of its soldiers were hurt in the incident, six of them seriously.

Israel says it will discuss a pause to free hostages but will not stop fighting until Hamas is wiped out; Hamas says it will not release hostages without a truce leading to an end to the war.

Qatar, which has served as mediator, said negotiations were at a delicate phase. It later said it was re-evaluating its own role as mediator, citing concerns that its efforts were being undermined by those pursuing “narrow political interests”.

With the prospect of famine looming, the United States and Israel say access for aid has improved this month. But aid agencies say supplies of food and medicine are still too paltry to stave off disaster.

“Across Gaza, a man-made famine is tightening its grip,” Philippe Lazzarini, head of the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA told the 15-member UN Security Council. “In the north, infants and young children have begun to die of malnutrition and dehydration. Across the border, food and clean water wait.”

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge shut by protest over Gaza

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Pro-Palestinian protesters blocked traffic on San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, trapping commuters trying to get into the city during the Monday morning commute.

The California Highway Patrol closed traffic on the iconic span in both directions, as officers attempted to turn around vehicles trapped by the several dozen protesters carrying a banner that said “Stop the World for Gaza.”

After a standoff of more than three hours, officers started arresting demonstrators who refused to clear the bridge, according to a CHP spokesperson.

Another group of protesters in Oakland blocked the I-880 freeway, by chaining themselves to concrete-filled barrels. The action closed a heavily traveled access route from the Port of Oakland to the Bay Bridge, which connects the East Bay to San Francisco.

Local news channels showed CHP officers and police appearing to use saws to break apart the barrels as the standoff stretched on for hours.

The Bay Area protests were part of a coordinated worldwide Pro-Palestinian action called A15, designed to coincide with the US tax deadline of April 15. Protest coordinators said their goal is to “disrupt and block economic and logistical hubs and the flow of capital.”

In Chicago, several pro-Palestine demonstrators were arrested after blocking traffic to O’Hare International Airport. In New York, protesters disrupted traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

World united on how Israel should respond to Iran attack

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Several world leaders have urged Israel not to launch a retaliatory attack on Iran after the latter launched hundreds of drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles on the Israeli territory.

Iran’s attack on Israel on late Saturday (April 13) came less than two weeks after the April 1 Israeli air strike on its diplomatic compound in Syria’s capital city, Damascus, wherein several military advisors, including two top generals, were killed. Iran blamed Israel for the attack and noted that it was equivalent to striking its soil.

Around 300 explosive drones and cruise and ballistic missiles were fired from the Iranian side, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, spokesperson of the Israeli military, said. He added that 99% of them were intercepted by the Israeli forces with help from the US, the UK and other allies.

Here’s a look at what the global leaders have said:

United States: US President Joe Biden warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the US would not take part in a counter-offensive against Iran, White House officials said. They added that Biden urged Israel to consider its response “carefully.”

United Nations: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, while addressing a meeting of the UN Security Council on Sunday (April 14), warned member states not to escalate tensions with reprisals against Iran.

“The Middle East is on the brink. The people of the region are confronting the real danger of a devastating full-scale conflict. Now is the time to defuse and de-escalate,” Reuters quoted Guterres as saying.

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India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday noted that the priority for the BJP-led NDA government if elected for a third consecutive term, would be to secure the lives of fellow Indians in conflict zones, ANI reported.

“Clouds of uncertainty are hovering over the world today. Several regions are staring at a war-like situation and the world is tense and not at peace,” Prime Minister Modi said. He added that in such times, the priority for the government is to ensure the safety and security of our citizens.

“In times when the fear of war grips the world, it is all the more necessary for a strong and stable government, with a full majority, to be elected. We should have a government that makes the country economically stronger and more resilient in the face of global challenges,” he added.

ALSO READ | Iran’s direct attack shifts dynamics in Israel-Iran shadow war

European Union: Josep Borrell, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said there was a need to step on the brakes and reverse gear. Speaking to a Spanish radio station, Borrell said, “We are on the edge of the cliff and we have to move away from it… We have to step on the brakes and reverse gear.”

France: French President Emmanuel Macron has advised its ally Israel to focus on isolating Iran rather than escalating the situation further. “We are all worried about a possible escalation… The situation is very unstable today,” Macron told BFM TV and RMC radio.

Russia: Russia stated that it was worried about the rising tensions in the Middle East region after Iran’s mass drone and missile attack on Israel.

“We are extremely concerned about the escalation of tensions in the region,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

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Peskov further called out all countries in the region to exercise restraint and added that a further escalation is in “no one’s interests.”

Germany: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has warned Iran to avoid carrying out further attacks and urged Israel to contribute to de-escalation.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Watch | Israel intercepts hundreds of Iranian drones, downs missiles

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Israel has released a video showing its Air Force fighter jets neutralising hundreds of missiles and drones fired by Iran in its first-ever direct attack on Israel.

Iran’s overnight attack was in response to the April 1 air strike on its diplomatic compound in Damascus, Syria, where several military advisors, including two top generals, were killed. Blaming Israel for the attack, Iran noted that it was equivalent to a strike on its soil.

Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, spokesperson of the Israeli military, said that around 300 explosive drones and cruise and ballistic missiles were fired from the Iranian side. However, he added that 99% of them were intercepted by the country, supported by the US, the UK and other allies.

While sharing a video of the operation on social media site X, IDF wrote, “This is what a 99% interception rate looks like. Operational footage from the Aerial Defense System protecting the Israeli airspace”.

The air raid sirens went off in Jerusalem at around 1:45 am, which was followed by loud blasts after the Israeli air defence intercepted the missiles and drones over the city. However, the Iranian attacks had a limited impact as a military base in the south sustained minor damage, officials said, adding that a seven-year-old girl was critically injured after shrapnel fell on her.

This is what a 99% interception rate looks like. Operational footage from the Aerial Defense System protecting the Israeli airspace: pic.twitter.com/eAwcUPUDw2

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) April 14, 2024

Hagari said that the Iranian side fired 170 drones, over 30 cruise missiles and more than 120 ballistic missiles at Israel. Iron Dome, Israel’s anti-missile system which is touted to be one of the best around the world, intercepted most of the rockets fired from Iran. During the operation, it was helped by the US, the UK and others.

Israelis’ reality in the last hours: pic.twitter.com/VXeHM8WqJi

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) April 14, 2024

Officials in Israel said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s five-member war cabinet has favoured retaliation in a meeting on Sunday. However, the panel was divided over the timing and scale of any such response, Reuters reported.

Ahead of the meeting, centrist minister Benny Gantz said the country would build a regional coalition and “exact the price from Iran in the fashion and timing that is right for us”.

This was Iran’s first direct attack on Israeli territory since the escalation of the crisis in the Middle East following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 last year.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Iran’s direct attack shifts dynamics in Israel-Iran shadow war

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Iran’s unprecedented attack on Israel early Sunday marked a change in approach for Tehran, which had relied on proxies across the Middle East since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October. All eyes are now on whether Israel chooses to take further military action, while Washington seeks diplomatic measures instead to ease regional tensions.

Iran says the attack was in response to an airstrike widely blamed on Israel that destroyed what Iran says were consular offices in Syria and killed two generals with its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard earlier this month.

Israel said almost all the over 300 drones and missiles launched overnight by Iran were shot down by its anti-missile defense system, backed by the US and Britain. The sole reported casualty was a wounded girl in southern Israel, and a missile struck an Israeli airbase, causing light damage.

Still, the chief of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard called the operation successful.

Iran has managed to strike a balance between retaliating publicly for the strike in Damascus and avoiding provoking further Israeli military action at least initially, which could lead to a much wider conflict, said Mona Yacoubian, vice president of the Middle East and North Africa center at the US Institute of Peace.

“Both (Iran and Israel) are able at this point to claim victory and step down off the precipice, particularly since there were no Israeli civilians killed,” Yacoubian said.

The world was still waiting, however, for the result of an Israeli War Cabinet meeting on Sunday. Israeli hard-liners have pushed for a response, but others have suggested restraint, saying Israel should focus on strengthening budding ties with Arab partners.

“We will build a regional coalition and collect the price from Iran, in the way and at the time that suits us,” said Benny Gantz, a member of the War Cabinet.

Analysts say Iran sent a message that it would be willing to escalate and change its rules of engagement in its shadow war with Israel.

“It’s a warning shot, saying that if Israel breaks the rules, there are consequences,” said Magnus Ranstorp, strategic adviser at the Swedish Defense University.

Iran’s attack has further stoked fears of the war in Gaza causing regional havoc.

But Iran maintains that it does not seek all-out war across the region. Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that Iran has “no intention of continuing defensive operations” at this point unless it is attacked.

Iran stressed that it targeted Israeli facilities involved in the Damascus attack, not civilians or “economic areas.”

After Israel began its offensive in Gaza against Hamas, Iran-backed groups were involved militarily while Tehran sat on the sidelines. Lebanon’s Hezbollah group fired rockets into northern Israel. Yemen’s Houthi rebels attacked Western ships on the Red Sea. An umbrella group of Iran-backed Iraqi militias attacked US military positions in Iraq and Syria.

Now, Tehran is “willing to up the ante” without relying on proxies, said the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center, Maha Yahya.

Still, Iran only went so far.

“They gave enough warning that this was coming, and I think they knew that they (the drones and missiles) would be brought down before they reached Israeli territory,” Yahya said.

She also noted that the recent mounting pressure on Israel over its conduct in Gaza has now shifted to deescalating regional tensions instead.

Yacoubian says Washington has a critical role to play in avoiding further escalations.

Israel taking further military action does not seem popular among its allies including the United States, said Eldad Shavit, who heads the Israel-US Research Program at Israeli think tank the Institute for National Security Studies.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby told NBC that President Joe Biden does not want an escalation in the regional conflict or a “wider war” with Iran, and is “working on the diplomatic side of this personally.”

Urgent meetings of the G7 — the informal gathering of industrialized countries that includes the United States, United Kingdom, and France — and the UN Security Council were being held Sunday.

G7 meeting participants in a statement unanimously condemned Iran’s attack, saying “we stand ready to take further measures now and in response to further destabilizing initiatives.”

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow