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Israeli missile hits Iran, with blasts heard in centre of country [Post Updated #645]

Was Iran's attack on Israel with drones and ballistic missiles the right act?

  • Yes - Iran has achieved its motive.

    Votes: 9 60.0%

  • No - Iran has created more problems for itself

    Votes: 6 40.0%
  • Total voters
    15
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/g7-says-tanker-attack-threatens-international-peace-stability-2021-08-06/

Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven wealthy economies said Iran was threatening international peace and security and that all available evidence showed it was behind an attack on the Mercer Street tanker last week.

"All available evidence clearly points to Iran. There is no justification for this attack," said the statement, issued by current G7 chair, Britain.

The vessel was a Liberian-flagged, Japanese-owned petroleum product tanker managed by Israeli-owned Zodiac Maritime.

Tehran has denied any involvement in the suspected drone attack in which two crew members - a Briton and a Romanian - were killed.

Nevertheless Britain, the United States and others have criticised Iran for the attack.

"Iran's behaviour, alongside its support to proxy forces and non-state armed actors, threatens international peace and security," the G7 statement said.

"We call on Iran to stop all activities inconsistent with relevant UN Security Council resolutions, and call on all parties to play a constructive role in fostering regional stability and peace."

The issue was being discussed at a behind-closed-doors meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Friday but the 15-member body is not expected to take any action.
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https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-denies-role-tanker-attack-says-seeks-gulf-security-2021-08-07/

Iran on Saturday rejected as psychological warfare accusations that it was behind a deadly attack on a tanker off Oman's coast, and said Tehran sought to enhance the security of the strategic Gulf waterway.

Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven wealthy economies said on Friday Iran was threatening international peace and security and that all available evidence showed it was behind the attack on the Mercer Street tanker last week.

"If we were to confront enemies...we would declare it openly, so the recent storytelling by the enemies is a psychological operation," state media quoted Abolfazl Shekarchi, Iran's senior armed forces spokesman, as saying.

The vessel was a Liberian-flagged, Japanese-owned petroleum product tanker managed by Israeli-owned Zodiac Maritime.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh rejected the G7 statement as "baseless", state media said.

"It is noteworthy that this incident was stage-set to occur days before the inauguration of Iran's new president," Khatibzadeh said. The suspected drone attack killed two crew members - a Briton and a Romanian - near the mouth of the Gulf, a key oil shipping route.

"Contrary to the strategy of the United States, Britain and the Zionist regime (Israel), which aim to create insecurity ...and Iranophobia, Iran's strategy is to strengthen security in the Persian Gulf," Shekarchi said.

The U.S. military said explosives experts from the Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier - which deployed to assist the Mercer Street - concluded the drone was produced in Iran.

But Shekarchi said: "The Americans say they recovered parts of Iranian drones from the water....but in which laboratory was this evidence identified as belonging to Iran?," the Iranian state news agency IRNA reported.

"Preparing forged evidence is not a difficult task as the Zionists excel at preparing forged documents," Shekarchi said, suggesting Israel may have been behind the attack.

Despite Iran's denials, Britain, the United States and others have criticised Tehran for the attack. Britain raised the issue at a closed-door meeting of the United Nations Security Council.

Iran's deputy U.N. Ambassador Zahra Ershadi rejected the accusations and warned against any retaliation: "Iran will not hesitate to defend itself and secure its national interests."
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https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/irans-mahan-air-says-its-has-foiled-cyber-attack-tv-2021-11-21/

A cyber attack against Iranian private airline Mahan Air has been foiled, Iranian state media reported on Sunday, adding that the airliner's flight schedule was not affected by the attack.

The carrier, blacklisted by Washington in 2011 over support it provided to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said in a statement that it had faced similar attacks in the past, adding that its "internal system" had been targeted.

"Our international and domestic flights are operating on schedule without any disruptions," Amirhossein Zolanvari, head of the airliner's public relation office told state TV.

Authorities have said that Iran is on high alert for online assaults, which Tehran has blamed in the past on its arch-foes United States and Israel. The United States and other Western powers meanwhile have accused Iran of trying to disrupt and break into their networks.

Iran has been targeted by a series of cyber attacks in the past such as one last month when the sale of heavily subsidised gasoline across the country was disrupted by apparent cyberattacks.

In July, the website of Iran's transport ministry was taken down by what state media said was a "cyber disruption" that caused delay in train services were delayed.

Mahan Air established in 1992 as Iran’s first private airline.
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Raisi says Iran will target heart of Israel if it acts against Iranian nation

DUBAI, April 18 (Reuters) - Iran's armed forces will target Israel's heart if it makes "the slightest move" against the Islamic Republic, President Ebrahim Raisi told a military parade on Monday, amid stalled talks between Tehran and world powers to revive a 2015 nuclear pact.

Israel, widely believed to have the Middle East's only atomic arsenal, says it will not be bound by any Iran nuclear deal and could eventually take unilateral action against Iranian nuclear sites.

"The Zionist regime (Israel), you should know that ... if you take the slightest move against our nation, our armed forces will target the heart of the Zionist regime" Raisi said in a televised speech at a military parade to mark the national Army Day.

Troops marched in front of the podium where Raisi stood with army officers. Helicopters flew overhead and parachutists dropped down over the parade area near the tomb of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic state.

The United States and Iran have been engaged in indirect talks for more than a year to rescue the pact. Washington left it in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on Tehran.

But the talks were suspended last month over the unresolved issue of whether the United States might remove the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps from the U.S. Foreign Terrorist Organization list, as demanded by Tehran.

Iran has reacted by breaching the deal's limits on its nuclear programme. Under the deal, Iran limited its nuclear efforts in return for relief from economic sanctions.

It has accused Israel of several attacks on facilities linked to the programme and killing Iranian nuclear scientists. Israel has neither denied nor confirmed the allegations.

Israel, which the Islamic Republic refuses to recognise, says it will not accept the Islamic Republic as "a nuclear threshold state".

Missiles, armoured personnel carriers, unmanned surveillance aircraft and small submarines were also part of the parade.

"Our strategy is defence and not offense,” Raisi said, adding that "Iran's army used the opportunity of sanctions very well to empower itself, and our military industries are now in the best shape".
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https://www.reuters.com/world/middl...israel-if-it-acts-against-iranian-2022-04-18/
 
Iran Executes 4 People "Cooperating" With Israeli Spy Agency Mossad: Report

Dubai:

Iran on Sunday executed four men convicted of cooperating with Israel's spy agency Mossad, Iranian state media reported.

The Islamic Republic has long accused arch-enemy Israel of carrying out covert operations on its soil. Tehran has recently accused Israeli and Western intelligence services of plotting a civil war in Iran, which is now gripped by some of the biggest anti-government protests since its 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Iranian state media reported on Wednesday that the country's Supreme Court had upheld the death sentence handed out to the four men "for the crime of cooperating with the intelligence services of the Zionist regime and for kidnapping".

Three other people were handed prison sentences of between five and 10 years after being convicted of crimes that included acting against national security, aiding in kidnapping, and possessing illegal weapons, the Mehr news agency said.

Tasnim news agency reported that the detainees had been arrested in June - before the current unrest sweeping the country - following cooperation between the Ministry of Intelligence and the Revolutionary Guards.

NDTV
 
Russian fighter jet promised by Vladimir Putin has purportedly been filmed arriving at the Iranian capital of Tehran as the two anti-Western states increase military cohesion. Footage published by the Iranian state media showed what appeared to be the Su-35 fighter aircraft flying into the Iranian Air Force Mehrabad air base in time for the country's Army Day, which its President used to issue further threats against its pro-Western enemy Israel.

Three of the Su-35s, a model which Russia has been using to bomb areas in Ukraine as part of its "special military operation", arrived in Tehran on Tuesday morning, according to local state media.

They were still painted in the colours used by the Egyptian Air Force, since they had been originally intended for Cairo but had been redirected after a weapons deal collapsed due to alleged US pressure.

In total, 24 Su-35S aircraft will be put into service with the Iranian Air Force. They will be held in an underground airbase that is currently under construction.

Russia and Iran have been increasingly engaged in a quid pro quo relationship to circumvent US-obligated global sanctions on the two nations, an agreement which has only strengthened since the war in Ukraine.

In exchange for thousands of Iranian Shahed-136 kamikaze drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which Russia have used to bomb civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, Putin has agreed to supply 24 SU-35 fighter jets as part of an an £8 billion ($10 billion) arms deal to last 20 years.


https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/worl...1&cvid=7dbf70425cd14c109134663f6559b00c&ei=16
 
Iran has successfully launched a 2,000km-range (1,243m) ballistic missile, according to the country's state media - two days after the chief of Israel's armed forces raised the prospect of "action" against Tehran over its nuclear programme.

With one of the biggest missile programmes in the Middle East, Iran says its weapons are capable of reaching bases in the region operated by Israel and the US.

SKY
 
The Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei told Muslim nations on Wednesday to halt exports of food and oil to Israel. Khamenei made the statement while addressing students ahead of the National Student Day where he applauded students who participated in the 1979 Iranian Revolution and asked the current batch of students to draw inspiration from them.

He also said that Palestinians will be the ultimate winners in the Israel-Hamas war. “The ultimate victory, which isn’t too far away, will belong to the Palestinians and Palestine.

“The people in Gaza have stirred the human conscience with their patience. Even in Western countries, in England, in France, & in states across the US, people come out in huge numbers and chant slogans against Israel and the US govt. Their reputation has been ruined in the world,” Khamenei said, referring to the pro-Palestine protests in several Western countries.

“The US was disgraced on November 4, 1979. This was the blow of the Iranian nation to America. During the fateful days of the Iranian nation’s revolutionary movement, the Shah’s police slaughtered students right in front of the University of Tehran. It was ten months after the victory of the Revolution, on November 4, 1979, when the students entered the US embassy, captured the embassy and revealed the secrets and confidential documents of that embassy,” Khamenei said.

Khamenei last month said that Iran kisses the hands of those who attacked Israel, referring to Hamas. It has on several occasions warned that continuous bombardment of Gaza will lead to Tehran joining the war. It has also warned the US against joining the war.

Iran’s top diplomat Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in Qatar’s capital Doha on Tuesday said that it was “natural” for Tehran-backed groups to attack Israel in light of its war on Hamas warning that the conflict will spill over in the absence of a ceasefire agreement.

“It is natural that the resistance groups and movements do not remain silent against all these crimes committed by Israel. They will not wait for anyone’s advice, therefore we need to use the last political opportunities to stop the war,” Amir-Abdollahian said.

Tehran-backed Houthi rebels from Yemen were the latest proxy outfit to join the war and claimed that it carried out three attacks on Israel. Both Iran and Qatar have been fierce supporters of the Palestinian cause and have open channels of communication with Hamas, the Islamist rulers of Gaza.

Source: News 18
 
Iran has used Hamas and done nothing to support them bar a few words of encouragement. Realpolitik at its best but it shows the Palestinians being let down by everyone.
 
Iran is a rogue nation. They are the root of the unrest in Middle East. If Israel is sincere, they should fight Iran. Palestinians are just pawns in this political war.
 
YousafTheBeast said:
Iran isn’t the one illegally occupying another state.
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Without iran, most of the headaches in middle east would have gotten resolved.
Palestine was going to get its rights without bloodshed with recognition of Israel by other Arab states.
 
Saanji said:
Without iran, most of the headaches in middle east would have gotten resolved.
Palestine was going to get its rights without bloodshed with recognition of Israel by other Arab states.
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That's wishful thinking. Israel has the most hardline right-wing government in its history led by Netanyahu who's never shown any inclination he's serious about creating a Palestinian state. He opposed the Oslo Accords which gave Palestinians limited self-rule and the Gaza disengagement.

Now for the first time, there's a far-right presence in Israel's governing coalition with two ministers named Ben-Gvir and Smotrich. Both are convicted felons with charges including anti-Arab racist incitement, and live on West Bank settlements !

Forget Iran, Netanyahu himself pursued a deliberate policy to strengthen Hamas at expense of the Palestinian Authority. From the Israeli newspaper Jerusalem Post, Netanyahu said this in a private 2019 Likud meeting:

The prime minister also said that, “whoever is against a Palestinian state should be for” transferring the funds to Gaza, because maintaining a separation between the PA in the West Bank and Hamas in Gaza helps prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.
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www.jpost.com

Netanyahu: Money to Hamas part of strategy to keep Palestinians divided

“Now that we are supervising, we know it’s going to humanitarian causes,” the source said, paraphrasing Netanyahu.
www.jpost.com www.jpost.com

And from Netanyahu's own mouth, he said to former Egypt leader Hosni Mubarak:

Mubarak asserted: “I know Netanyahu very well. He also knows me and knows that I have been always frank with him. Netanyahu does not want the two-state solution, he does not believe in the land-for-peace principle. He wants to separate Gaza from the West Bank.”

Mubarak revealed that Netanyahu asked for his approval in late 2010 to give the Palestinians in Gaza part of the land on the border strip of Sinai. Mubarak refused and warned the Israeli Prime Minister that if he pressed this idea it would lead to another war between Egypt and Israel.
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www.middleeastmonitor.com

Mubarak: ‘The Deal of the Century will lead to explosion in the region’

In an interview with a Kuwaiti newspaper, former Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, discussed the
www.middleeastmonitor.com www.middleeastmonitor.com
 
Saanji said:
Without iran, most of the headaches in middle east would have gotten resolved.
Palestine was going to get its rights without bloodshed with recognition of Israel by other Arab states.
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You’re absolutely wrong… blaming Iran when the West goes into Muslim countries and leave after killing millions of innocent civilians and destroying their infrastructure.

Most of the “headaches” in the Middle East are caused by US, UK, France and Israel.

You seem to be very assured that Israel would give rights to the Palestinians if recognised by Arab States. What has Israel done for you to be so convinced? Is it when they block ambulances after shooting down innocent civilians? Killing medics that are reviving those who have been shot? Controlling their water? Destroying their crops? Building illegal settlement on occupied land? I can go on and on and on…you cannot expect peace with Arab states if you’re going to ethnically cleanse the Palestinians.

Your response will be Hamas terrorists blah blah…is Hamas in the West Bank?

Israel is an Apartheid State, it’s naturally the aggressor, the Palestinians cannot be the attackers, they’re only trying to fight back.
 
YousafTheBeast said:
Iran isn’t the one illegally occupying another state.
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They sure are funding the elements that will never let the peace talks to begin.

Iran wants total destruction of Israel. Obviously that is not going to happen as they do not have the smarts, tech and money to even come remotely close to it. So they support elements like Hamas and Hezbollah to do their dirty job.

Iran has nothing to do with the conflict. But they will never let Israel be at peace.
 
Champ_Pal said:
They sure are funding the elements that will never let the peace talks to begin.

Iran wants total destruction of Israel. Obviously that is not going to happen as they do not have the smarts, tech and money to even come remotely close to it. So they support elements like Hamas and Hezbollah to do their dirty job.

Iran has nothing to do with the conflict. But they will never let Israel be at peace.
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You really should stick to Bollywood instead of thirsting over Muslims getting killed. Yogi will be proud but its embarrassing to read on here.

Iran has thousands of missiles, inc hypersonic. It has stated the missiles are already pointed at specific targets. In any attack on Iran, there will no longer be Israel either.
 
KingKhanWC said:
You really should stick to Bollywood instead of thirsting over Muslims getting killed. Yogi will be proud but its embarrassing to read on here.

Iran has thousands of missiles, inc hypersonic. It has stated the missiles are already pointed at specific targets. In any attack on Iran, there will no longer be Israel either.
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There you go. Involving UP Chief Minister in a topic related to Hamas and Israel.

Iran can do nothing to Israel and they know it. They will get their behind handed to them if they dare to get involved directly in a conflict. So they use poor Palestinians to serve their purpose.

If Iran indeed had the capability, they would have already gone to a war with Israel and destroyed it. They know their Aukat.
 
Champ_Pal said:
There you go. Involving UP Chief Minister in a topic related to Hamas and Israel.

Iran can do nothing to Israel and they know it. They will get their behind handed to them if they dare to get involved directly in a conflict. So they use poor Palestinians to serve their purpose.

If Iran indeed had the capability, they would have already gone to a war with Israel and destroyed it. They know their Aukat.
Click to expand...

Iran and Israel will both be destroyed. Ask Yogi to give you a map of Israel, its not very big.

Iran doesnt want its people killed and its nation destroyed, along with causing a world war. They simply want the Zionist scum to leave alone others lands and homes.
 
KingKhanWC said:
Iran and Israel will both be destroyed. Ask Yogi to give you a map of Israel, its not very big.

Iran doesnt want its people killed and its nation destroyed, along with causing a world war. They simply want the Zionist scum to leave alone others lands and homes.
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A rogue nation like Iran cares about not causing world war. Man, you are something else. May be North Korea and Qatar may come to its aid? :yk

Iran can only beat up innocent women like Masha Amini. Its funny you are hoping that a backward country like Iran can some how take down Israel :))
 
Champ_Pal said:
A rogue nation like Iran cares about not causing world war. Man, you are something else. May be North Korea and Qatar may come to its aid? :yk

Iran can only beat up innocent women like Masha Amini. Its funny you are hoping that a backward country like Iran can some how take down Israel :))
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Please dont confuse Persians/Iranians with Hindus , who have never had a global empire in history. :sachin
 
KingKhanWC said:
Please dont confuse Persians/Iranians with Hindus , who have never had a global empire in history. :sachin
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Persians and Iranians did not have crazy Khomenis 2,500 years ago.. They had noble men like Darius and Cyrus when Persian civilization was at its peak. Now we are witnessing its glorious rot.
 
Champ_Pal said:
They sure are funding the elements that will never let the peace talks to begin.

Iran wants total destruction of Israel. Obviously that is not going to happen as they do not have the smarts, tech and money to even come remotely close to it. So they support elements like Hamas and Hezbollah to do their dirty job.

Iran has nothing to do with the conflict. But they will never let Israel be at peace.
Click to expand...

No point debating with you on this topic.

Israel = Good

USA = Good

Iran = Bad

Palestine = Bad
 
Champ_Pal said:
Hamas = Bad
Hezbollah = Bad

Fixed it for you.
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Ah, Palestine = Hamas + Hezbollah … Sorted.

You probably think you’re on the right side of history when it comes to the Israel/Palestine issue, I’m sure you’d also support the apartheid in South Africa.
 
YousafTheBeast said:
Ah, Palestine = Hamas + Hezbollah … Sorted.

You probably think you’re on the right side of history when it comes to the Israel/Palestine issue, I’m sure you’d also support the apartheid in South Africa.
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How is Israel apartheid when Israeli Arabs have same rights as Jews in Israel? Also both Israelis and Arabs are same Semitic people. There is no racial discrimination.
 
Champ_Pal said:
How is Israel apartheid when Israeli Arabs have same rights as Jews in Israel? Also both Israelis and Arabs are same Semitic people. There is no racial discrimination.
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So, because Israeli Arabs have the same rights as Jews in Israel that means Palestinian Arabs can’t face oppression.

According to Rome Statute, the definition of Apartheid consists of 3 elements.

1) An Intent to maintain domination by one racial group over the other.

2) A context of systematic oppression by one racial group over the other.

3) Inhumane acts.

Can the people of Palestine leave Gaza?

What rights do Palestinian Arabs have in the West Bank?

Can the Palestinians apply for Israeli citizenship?
 
YousafTheBeast said:
So, because Israeli Arabs have the same rights as Jews in Israel that means Palestinian Arabs can’t face oppression.

According to Rome Statute, the definition of Apartheid consists of 3 elements.

1) An Intent to maintain domination by one racial group over the other.
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In Israel, everyone has equal rights under their law.
YousafTheBeast said:
2) A context of systematic oppression by one racial group over the other.
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They are all of same racial group. All of them are semites.
YousafTheBeast said:
3) Inhumane acts.
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I give you that. Inhumane acts are done by Hamas too. It will be a never ending debate.
YousafTheBeast said:
Can the people of Palestine leave Gaza?
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Why will Palestinians leave Gaza? It is their territory and they rule it. Not even Egypt, Jordan want Palestinians in their countries. They are scared of Hamas who are aligned with Muslim Brotherhood.
YousafTheBeast said:
What rights do Palestinian Arabs have in the West Bank?
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Palestinian Authority is the one governing West Bank. May be Hamas and Palestinian Authority can hold elections and let their people vote. There have been no elections since 2006.
YousafTheBeast said:
Can the Palestinians apply for Israeli citizenship?
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You cannot give citizenship to people who are suspect of Hamas supporters. Hamas wants total destruction of Israel. No country is stupid enough to do that. This is like saying can Pakistani Punjabi Muslim apply for Indian citizenship. Will be rejected of course.
 
An Israeli intelligence officer was executed Saturday in Iran, according to IRNA, Iran’s state news agency.

The alleged agent was accused of stealing secrets and giving them to Mossad, Israel’s intelligence agency, IRNA said.

“This person communicated with foreign services, specifically Mossad, collecting classified information, and with participation with associates, provided documents to foreign services, including the Mossad,” IRNA said.

The execution took place in Zahedan, the capital of the southeastern Iranian province of Sistan and Baluchistan.

It said the accused had handed classified information to a "Mossad officer" with the aim of "propaganda for groups and organizations opposed to the Islamic Republic." It did not say where the alleged handover had taken place.

It was not clear when the person was arrested, but IRNA said an appeal had been rejected.

The execution came a day after Baluch militants attacked a police station in the province, killing 11 security personnel and wounding several others.

A state funeral was held on Saturday for the men in the town of Rask, where the attack took place, according to state television. Two militants of the Jaish al-Adl group also were killed in the ensuing clashes.

The impoverished Sistan and Baluchestan province borders Afghanistan and Pakistan and has historically seen clashes between security forces and Sunni militants. The population of the province is predominantly Sunni Muslim, while most Iranians are Shiite.

In April 2022, Iranian intelligence officers arrested three people they said belonged to a group with connections to Mossad, although it is not clear whether the executed person was one of them.

Iran and Israel have long accused each other of spying. Israel views Iran as its greatest threat and repeatedly has threatened to take military action to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Iran denies it is seeking such weapons and has vowed a harsh response to any aggression.

Iran occasionally announces the detention of people it says are spying for foreign countries, including the United States and Israel.

In 2020, Iran executed a man convicted of leaking information to the U.S. and Israel about a prominent Islamic Revolutionary Guard general who was later killed by a U.S. drone strike in Iraq.

Iran does not recognize Israel and supports anti-Israeli armed groups across the region, including Hezbollah and Hamas.

Source: VOA

www.voanews.com

Iran Executes Mossad Agent, IRNA Says

The agent executed Saturday was not identified
www.voanews.com www.voanews.com
 
As Hamas shown Israel isn't all its cracked out to be. Iran encountered them and then betrayed them and bottled it this time, just talk but no balls. The Mullahs were more concerned about their privileges than any ideology.
 
Sayyed Reza Mousavi, a senior commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), was killed on Monday in an alleged Israeli airstrike in the vicinity of the Syrian capital of Damascus, Lebanese media out Al-Mayadeen and Reuters reported, citing two unnamed security sources.

Local media outlets reported that explosions were heard in the area of Set Zaynab in the Damascus countryside.

Footage shared on social media showed a cloud of smoke near the Damascus International Airport, a site targeted frequently due to its use by Iranian proxies in the region.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1739279613547672038

Source: The Jerusalem Post

m.jpost.com

Iran warns Israel will pay after top IRGC commander killed in Syria airstrike

Iranian state-owned media confirmed the death of IRGC commander Seyed Razi Mousavi, identified as "a senior advisor" in Syria.
m.jpost.com m.jpost.com
 
I think the war between Hamas and Israel is taking on a new dimension, extending from Lebanon to Iran. I am afraid that we may be heading towards World War 3 already.
 
FearlessRoar said:
Sayyed Reza Mousavi, a senior commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), was killed on Monday in an alleged Israeli airstrike in the vicinity of the Syrian capital of Damascus, Lebanese media out Al-Mayadeen and Reuters reported, citing two unnamed security sources.

Local media outlets reported that explosions were heard in the area of Set Zaynab in the Damascus countryside.

Footage shared on social media showed a cloud of smoke near the Damascus International Airport, a site targeted frequently due to its use by Iranian proxies in the region.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1739279613547672038

Source: The Jerusalem Post

m.jpost.com

Iran warns Israel will pay after top IRGC commander killed in Syria airstrike

Iranian state-owned media confirmed the death of IRGC commander Seyed Razi Mousavi, identified as "a senior advisor" in Syria.
m.jpost.com m.jpost.com
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Syria needs a good air defense system. Maybe Russia can help? Russia is buddy with Syria.
 
Iranian Guards vow revenge against Israel over general’s killing

The body of Moussavi, a commander in the Guards’ foreign operations arm the Quds Force, was taken to Iraq for funeral rites in holy sites a day ahead of his burial in Iran planned for Thursday.

IRGC spokesman Ramezan Sharif warned that “our response to Moussavi’s assassination will be a combination of direct action as well as [from] others led by the Axis of Resistance,” the local Mehr news agency reported.

Sharif charged that the Israeli killing of the general near Damascus “was likely due to its failures after the ‘Operation Al-Aqsa Flood’” — a reference to the October 7 surprise attack Hamas launched against Israel.

The Hamas attack resulted in the deaths of around 1,140 people in Israel, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on the latest official Israeli figures, and saw around 250 people taken hostage.

Israel retaliated with a relentless bombardment and ground invasion that have killed at least 21,110 people, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

‘List of crimes’
The Gaza crisis has reverberated across the Middle East, drawing in armed groups backed by Israel’s arch foe Iran in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen.Iran, which supports Hamas financially and militarily, has hailed the attacks as a “success” but denied any direct involvement.

President Ebrahim Raisi has said Iran sees it as “its duty to support the resistance groups” but insisted that they “are independent in their opinion, decision and action”.

Sharif claimed Moussavi’s killing was an Israeli attempt “to expand the war to other geographical areas”.

In Iraq, hundreds of mourners flocked today to attend memorial prayers for Moussavi, whose coffin was taken to the Imam Ali shrine in the city of Najaf.

“America is the enemy of God,” some of them chanted.

The pallbearers included members of the Hashed al-Shaabi, mainly pro-Iranian former paramilitary units that have been integrated into Iraq’s regular armed forces.

His remains were then taken to Karbala ahead of his repatriation to Iran.

Iran’s ambassador to Iraq, Mohammed al-Sadiq, told AFP that Moussavi’s death was the latest of the Israeli “enemy’s list of crimes”.

Source : Dawn News
 
Iran executes four accused of sabotage, links to Israel's Mossad

Iran executed on Friday four people, including a woman, whom it accused of being "saboteurs" with links to Israel's Mossad intelligence service, the Mizan news agency affiliated to the judiciary said.

The executions took to five the number of people put to death this month in a decades-long shadow war that has seen Iran accuse Israel of attacks on its nuclear effort, charges the latter has never confirmed or denied.

"Four members of a sabotage team associated with the Zionist regime ... were executed this morning following legal procedures," the news agency said, accusing them of "extensive" actions, guided by Mossad officers, targeting Iran's security.

Friday's executions in West Azerbaijan province followed Iran's mid-December execution of a fifth accused Mossad agent in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan.

The semi-official Tasnim news agency identified the four executed on Friday as Vafa Hanareh, Aram Omari, and Rahman Parhazo, along with the woman, named Nasim Namazi.

They were the principal convicts in a case that involved 10 offenders, it added, but it was not immediately clear if the rest would also face execution.

The official IRNA news agency posted a video clip nearly eight minutes in length, that showed the men confessing to their alleged co-operation with a Mossad officer in neighbouring Turkey, who used two names, Tony and Arash.

It said their mission entailed kidnappings, threatening and setting fire to vehicles and homes of unnamed targets and stealing their mobile phones.

Iranian intelligence put the group under close surveillance for at least four months, from around January 2022 until their arrest sometime that May, when they were "transferred from a neighbouring country" to Iran, the video clip showed.

"They were training us for bigger assignments," an unidentified young man in a blue striped shirt said in the clip.

At the time of the arrests, Iranian media said the 10, who were in video communication with Mossad officers, "set fire to cars and homes of people affiliated with the security apparatus and received cash for taking photos they sent to Mossad agents".

Iran has accused Israel of carrying out several attacks on facilities linked to its nuclear programme and of killing its nuclear scientists over the past years. Israel has neither denied nor confirmed the allegations.

In August, Iran accused Israel of being behind "one of the largest sabotage plots" targeting its defence industry and the production of missiles.

In July, its intelligence ministry said it had arrested a network of agents working for Israel before they were able to carry out sabotage in sensitive locations.

In January last year, Israel said it had broken up an Iranian spy ring that recruited Israeli women via the social media platform Facebook to photograph sensitive sites.

In April 2021, Tehran blamed an act of "nuclear terrorism" for a disruption of power at its Natanz uranium enrichment facility in the desert in the central province of Isfahan.

Source : Reuters
 
Iran cannot fight. If they could, they would have fought Israel and Saudis long time ago. This is why they resort to militia tactics. Pay stooges to fight proxy wars far away from their borders.
 
I think therfore I am said:
It's called chess. Your same logic can be applied to Israel
Click to expand...
Israel does not hate Iran and never attacked Iran or wants to destroy it or its interests. Its Iran that wants to destroy Israel.

Israel is the one playing chess cleverly. It is willing to make friends with anyone who is willing to shake their hand.
Iran has no friends in Middle East. No one likes it.
 
Champ_Pal said:
Israel does not hate Iran and never attacked Iran or wants to destroy it or its interests. Its Iran that wants to destroy Israel.

Israel is the one playing chess cleverly. It is willing to make friends with anyone who is willing to shake their hand.
Iran has no friends in Middle East. No one likes it.
Click to expand...
Iran is not the occupier Israel is.

It may have been playing cleverly, but has now cheque mated itself
 
Champ_Pal said:
Iran cannot fight. If they could, they would have fought Israel and Saudis long time ago. This is why they resort to militia tactics. Pay stooges to fight proxy wars far away from their borders.
Click to expand...
Equally how Israel can't fight any other nation other than helpless Palestinians without an army to defend themselves against the Occupier savages. If US backing is not there, we know exactly how war with any other major country will turn out for Israel. Colonizing days are in the past, this genocide has really jeopardized their future with many countries and among people around the globe. It's only the islamophobes who are holding on to the support of brutal genocide and atrocities of these Nazis. Even latest US polls among youth suggested 70% are in favour of Palestinian resistance against the occupation and a sovereign state for Palestine so things are shifting for better
 
At least 20 people have been killed at a cemetery in Iran where a ceremony was being held to mark the 2020 killing of Iran's top commander Qassem Soleimani, state media has reported.

The reports added there were two explosions at the site in the city of Kerman where the former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander is buried.

Hundreds of people had reportedly gathered at the site.

An Iranian official described the explosions as "terrorist attacks", according to state media.

It comes a day after Hamas's deputy leader Saleh Arouri died in an explosion in Beirut.

Source: Sky News
 
I think going forward this is how the developed economies will target enemies, using proxies, terrorists or supporting enemies of your enemy. Expecting more internal attacks inside Iran, going to get uglier.
 
FearlessRoar said:
At least 20 people have been killed at a cemetery in Iran where a ceremony was being held to mark the 2020 killing of Iran's top commander Qassem Soleimani, state media has reported.

The reports added there were two explosions at the site in the city of Kerman where the former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander is buried.

Hundreds of people had reportedly gathered at the site.

An Iranian official described the explosions as "terrorist attacks", according to state media.

It comes a day after Hamas's deputy leader Saleh Arouri died in an explosion in Beirut.

Source: Sky News
Click to expand...
103 Reported Killed in Iran in Blasts Near General’s Tomb

A pair of explosions on Wednesday at a commemoration for Iran’s former top military general Qassim Suleimani killed at least 103 people and wounded another 171, according to Iranian officials. The blasts sowed fear and grief in Iran and heightened tensions in the broader region even further a day after an explosion killed several Hamas officials in a suburb of Beirut, Lebanon.

Iranian officials told state media that a pair of bombs placed in bags along the road toward the cemetery in Kerman, Iran, had exploded as a procession of people was on its way there to commemorate the four-year anniversary of General Suleimani’s assassination by the United States. The officials said the bags appeared to have been detonated via remote control, leaving bodies in pieces on the ground.

Given the sheer scale of the blasts, which state media described as a terrorist attack, the death toll was likely to rise.

Videos and photos of the explosions’ aftermath on state media showed widespread carnage and chaos, with sirens blaring and the injured — among them children — collapsing to the ground. Bloodied, several of the wounded screamed, “God help us. Everyone is killed.”

Just before the explosions, videos showed a dense crowd of thousands walking along a road lined with food and drink stalls and flags as a prayer from the Quran played from speakers. Then a huge blast rocked the area. The air filled with screams, and people scattered in all directions, videos showed.

“Unfortunately many of the injured people are in critical condition,” said Babak Yektaparast, the spokesman for the country’s emergency relief operations. He said all medical facilities in the province of Kerman were on standby to treat patients and emergency airplanes were being deployed for medical evacuations to hospitals in Tehran.

The head of Iran’s judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, said all the country’s intelligence, security and military organs were being enlisted to determine who was behind the explosions.

Iran’s interior minister, Ahmad Vahidi, told state television that most of the casualties were from the second explosion, which followed minutes after the first, as crowds had gathered to help the injured. He said the situation in the city of Kerman was now under the control of security and military.

“We will God willingly deliver a big slap to those responsible for this terrorist attack,” said Mr. Vahidi. “They are mistaken to think our resolve will be broken by such cowardly attacks.”

The explosions came four years after an American drone strike assassinated General Suleimani, the longtime commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps’ powerful Quds Force, at Baghdad airport.

General Suleimani had been hailed in Iran and in parts of the wider region as a hero for building and arming a Tehran-led network of regional proxy militias that countered the United States and Israel across the Middle East, and he continues to enjoy near-mythic status among pro-government Iranians. His funeral in 2020 drew more than a million mourners, according to official estimates. Every year, on the anniversary of his assassination, some Iranians hold processions and ceremonies in his honor.

By cultivating close personal ties with the leaders of partners across the region, the Arabic-speaking General Suleimani became the face of Iran’s Shiite axis of influence, which reshaped Middle East geopolitics for years to come. The Syrian and Iraqi militias he helped establish also played a critical role in defeating the Islamic State, the extremist group that overran large swathes of Syria and Iraq in the mid-2010s.

The regional allies General Suleimani armed and funded also included Hamas, the military and political group that controls Gaza, as well as Hezbollah, the armed political party that dominates much of Lebanon. Hezbollah has been clashing with Israeli forces on Lebanon’s southern border even as Hamas battles Israel in Gaza.

The identities of those who died in Iran on Wednesday were not yet known.

Some Iranians on social media were blaming the government and local security officials for failing to secure such a high-profile event. During the funeral ceremony for General Suleimani in 2020, a stampede along the same road as Wednesday’s explosions killed 60 people.

Source: New York Times

www.nytimes.com

Bombing in Iran Kills Over 100, Sowing Confusion and Speculation (Published 2024)

No one claimed responsibility for the bombing at a memorial for Qassim Suleimani, the top commander killed by a U.S. drone strike four years ago.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
 
Vladimir Putin says Iran blasts 'shocking in cruelty and cynicism'

"The killing of peaceful people visiting the cemetery is shocking in its cruelty and cynicism," Putin said in a letter to Iran's president Ebrahim Raisi and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The European Union demanded on Wednesday that the perpetrators of twin blasts that killed at least 103 people in a crowd gathered to mark the killing of general Qasem Soleimani be brought to justice.

"The EU condemns in the strongest terms today's bombing in the city of Kerman in Iran. The EU expresses its solidarity with the Iranian people. This act of terror has exacted a shocking toll of civilian deaths and injuries," an EU foreign affairs spokesperson said in a statement.

"Our thoughts now are with the victims and their families. Perpetrators must be held accountable"

Source : AFP
 
Pakistan condemns ‘dastardly’ terrorist attack in Iran

Pakistan on Wednesday strongly condemned a dastardly terrorist attack that took place in the martyrs’ cemetery of the provincial capital of Kerman in Iran, resulting in large number of deaths and injuries.

Two explosions killed more than 100 people and wounded scores at a ceremony in Iran to commemorate top commander Qassem Soleimani who was killed by a US drone in 2020.

Iranian state television reported a first and then a second blast during a crowded anniversary event at the cemetery where Soleimani is buried in the southeastern city of Kerman.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed a "harsh response" after the blasts. "The evil and criminal enemies of the Iranian nation once again created a disaster and martyred a large number of dear people in Kerman," said Khamenei in a statement.

"This disaster will have a harsh response, God willing."

“Pakistan stands in full solidarity with the government and brotherly people of Iran in this hour of grief and tragedy,” Foreign Office Spokesperson said in a press statement.


Pakistan believed that terrorism was a menace and threat to regional and global peace and security that needed to be confronted through bilateral and regional cooperation, it was added.

“We extend heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and pray for the swift recovery of the injured,” the spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar also expressed his deep grief over the huge loss of lives in the terrorist attacks.

Source : The Express Tribune
 
karthikc said:
What check mated? They have the financial and technological resources to overcome proxy attacks
Click to expand...
This is going to escalate into more than proxy attacks.

Israel has just created the next few generations of "terrorists" "freedom fighters" with their barbaric indiscriminate killings. A sizeable Israeli public minority which is fast growing, despise Nethanyahu.

Financial and technological resources did not allow the US to defeat the Taliban. They had to leave Afghanistan and were negotiating with them for years.

The IDF casualties are mounting a little research will show it is not going to plan.
 
FearlessRoar said:
103 Reported Killed in Iran in Blasts Near General’s Tomb

A pair of explosions on Wednesday at a commemoration for Iran’s former top military general Qassim Suleimani killed at least 103 people and wounded another 171, according to Iranian officials. The blasts sowed fear and grief in Iran and heightened tensions in the broader region even further a day after an explosion killed several Hamas officials in a suburb of Beirut, Lebanon.

Iranian officials told state media that a pair of bombs placed in bags along the road toward the cemetery in Kerman, Iran, had exploded as a procession of people was on its way there to commemorate the four-year anniversary of General Suleimani’s assassination by the United States. The officials said the bags appeared to have been detonated via remote control, leaving bodies in pieces on the ground.

Given the sheer scale of the blasts, which state media described as a terrorist attack, the death toll was likely to rise.

Videos and photos of the explosions’ aftermath on state media showed widespread carnage and chaos, with sirens blaring and the injured — among them children — collapsing to the ground. Bloodied, several of the wounded screamed, “God help us. Everyone is killed.”

Just before the explosions, videos showed a dense crowd of thousands walking along a road lined with food and drink stalls and flags as a prayer from the Quran played from speakers. Then a huge blast rocked the area. The air filled with screams, and people scattered in all directions, videos showed.

“Unfortunately many of the injured people are in critical condition,” said Babak Yektaparast, the spokesman for the country’s emergency relief operations. He said all medical facilities in the province of Kerman were on standby to treat patients and emergency airplanes were being deployed for medical evacuations to hospitals in Tehran.

The head of Iran’s judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, said all the country’s intelligence, security and military organs were being enlisted to determine who was behind the explosions.

Iran’s interior minister, Ahmad Vahidi, told state television that most of the casualties were from the second explosion, which followed minutes after the first, as crowds had gathered to help the injured. He said the situation in the city of Kerman was now under the control of security and military.

“We will God willingly deliver a big slap to those responsible for this terrorist attack,” said Mr. Vahidi. “They are mistaken to think our resolve will be broken by such cowardly attacks.”

The explosions came four years after an American drone strike assassinated General Suleimani, the longtime commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps’ powerful Quds Force, at Baghdad airport.

General Suleimani had been hailed in Iran and in parts of the wider region as a hero for building and arming a Tehran-led network of regional proxy militias that countered the United States and Israel across the Middle East, and he continues to enjoy near-mythic status among pro-government Iranians. His funeral in 2020 drew more than a million mourners, according to official estimates. Every year, on the anniversary of his assassination, some Iranians hold processions and ceremonies in his honor.

By cultivating close personal ties with the leaders of partners across the region, the Arabic-speaking General Suleimani became the face of Iran’s Shiite axis of influence, which reshaped Middle East geopolitics for years to come. The Syrian and Iraqi militias he helped establish also played a critical role in defeating the Islamic State, the extremist group that overran large swathes of Syria and Iraq in the mid-2010s.

The regional allies General Suleimani armed and funded also included Hamas, the military and political group that controls Gaza, as well as Hezbollah, the armed political party that dominates much of Lebanon. Hezbollah has been clashing with Israeli forces on Lebanon’s southern border even as Hamas battles Israel in Gaza.

The identities of those who died in Iran on Wednesday were not yet known.

Some Iranians on social media were blaming the government and local security officials for failing to secure such a high-profile event. During the funeral ceremony for General Suleimani in 2020, a stampede along the same road as Wednesday’s explosions killed 60 people.

Source: New York Times

www.nytimes.com

Bombing in Iran Kills Over 100, Sowing Confusion and Speculation (Published 2024)

No one claimed responsibility for the bombing at a memorial for Qassim Suleimani, the top commander killed by a U.S. drone strike four years ago.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
Click to expand...
Islamic State claimed responsibility on Thursday for two explosions that killed nearly 100 people and wounded scores at a ceremony in Iran to commemorate commander Qassem Soleimani, who was killed by a U.S. drone in 2020.

The group posted a statement on its affiliate Telegram channels.

Source: Reuters

 
Iran holds day of mourning for 84 killed in twin blasts

Iran observed a day of mourning Thursday for the at least 84 people killed when twin blasts ripped through a crowd commemorating the slain Revolutionary Guards general Qasem Soleimani.

The death toll was revised down from around 100 the day after what Iranian authorities labelled a "terrorist attack" that also left hundreds wounded near Soleimani's tomb in the southern city of Kerman.

No one claimed responsibility for the explosions in Iran, which has suffered deadly attacks in the past from jihadists and other militants as well as targeted killings of officials and nuclear scientists blamed on arch foe Israel.

The blasts ripped through crowds who had come to honour Soleimani, four years after a US drone strike in Baghdad killed the veteran senior commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Wednesday blamed "evil and criminal enemies" of the Islamic republic, without naming them, and vowed a "harsh response".

Regional tensions have surged amid the Gaza war sparked when Palestinian militant group Hamas launched their deadly October 7 attack on Israel, which Tehran welcomed while denying any involvement.

President Ebrahim Raisi's political deputy, Mohammad Jamshidi, charged on social media platform X that "the responsibility for this crime lies with the US and Zionist (Israeli) regimes, and terrorism is just a tool".

The United States rejected any suggestion that it or its ally Israel were behind the deadly blasts, while Israel declined to comment.

"The United States was not involved in any way, and any suggestion to the contrary is ridiculous," said State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.

"We have no reason to believe that Israel was involved in this explosion," he added, expressing sympathies to the victims of the "horrific" explosions and their families.

Soleimani, who headed the Guards' foreign operations arm the Quds Force, was also a staunch enemy of the Sunni extremist Islamic State group which has carried out attacks in majority-Shia Iran.

Regional tensions have surged amid the Gaza war, drawing in Iran-backed armed groups in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen.

Hamas fighters infiltrated Israel on October 7, killing around 1,140 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

In response, Israel launched a relentless offensive that has reduced vast swathes of Gaza to rubble and claimed over 22,300 lives, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.

Iranian authorities called for mass protests over the Kerman blasts after weekly prayers on Friday, the day when local officials also said the victims' funerals will be held.

Revising down the death toll, Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi cited forensic data and said "the number of martyrs... has been announced as 84 so far," official news agency IRNA reported.

Iran's emergency services chief Jafar Miadfar pointed to difficulties identifying dismembered bodies and said some victims were mistakenly counted "several times".

Source :The Express Tribune
 
DeadlyVenom said:
'Islamic' state attacks everyone but Israel...hmmmmm.......
Click to expand...

Yeah.

ISIS have attacked inside many Muslim countries. But, they barely say anything about Israel.

It makes me wonder. Who really controls ISIS? Who gets benefited from ISIS? Is it a CIA/Mossad project?
 

Iran leaders vow revenge at funeral for bomb attack victims - state media​

Iran's president and the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp on Friday vowed revenge at the funeral for the victims of twin Islamic State bombings two days earlier.

Nearly 100 people were killed at a memorial in the city of Kerman on Wednesday for top commander Qassem Soleimani, who was assassinated in Iraq in 2020 by a US drone.

Islamic State said on Thursday that two of its members had detonated explosive belts in the crowd that had gathered at the cemetery in the southeastern city.

"We will find you wherever you are," IRGC commander Major-General Hossein Salami said at the funeral, referring to Islamic State.

In a televised speech, President Ebrahim Raisi said: "Our enemies can see Iran's power and the whole world knows its strength and capabilities. Our forces will decide on the place and time to take action".

State TV showed a dense crowd at the Imam Ali religious centre in Kerman where families wept over rows of coffins wrapped in the Iranian flag.

Mourners shouted "revenge, revenge", "Death to America" and "Death to Israel".

Tehran often accuses Israel and the United States of backing anti-Iran militant groups that have carried out attacks in the past.

Wednesday's blasts, the bloodiest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, came as Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza nears the three-month mark.

In 2022, Islamic State claimed responsibility for a deadly attack on a Shi'ite shrine in Iran that killed 15 people, while earlier attacks claimed by Islamic State include twin bombings in 2017 that targeted Iran's parliament and the tomb of the Islamic Republic's founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

Source : Reuters
 

Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, Iran … how far could war in the Middle East spread?​


Mohammad Atout, a Palestinian resident of the Burj al-Barajneh refugee camp in Beirut, was eating with his children on Tuesday evening when the news broke across the Lebanese capital that Saleh al-Arouri, deputy head of Hamas’s political bureau, had been assassinated.

“Someone told me there had been an attack [in Beirut]. Moments later the television said it was Arouri. Then people came out in the streets. It hit them very hard. He was an important leader for us.”

In the coffee shop he owns, which opens on to a street decorated with Palestinian banners, his customers have been watching Al Jazeera footage of the war in Gaza.

“We never thought that the Israelis would dare to do this in Beirut,” Atout says. He believes the reason for Arouri’s killing was Israel’s failure to find and kill Hamas’s leaders inside Gaza, including the head of the movement, Yahya Sinwar.

He suggests Arouri, whose office was struck by missiles, was low‑hanging fruit – his assassination a cover for Israel’s slow progress in meeting its declared war aims.

“This step came out of anger over their lack of progress. They are trying to show they are achieving something,” he says – although he remains unconvinced that the growing escalation will lead to all-out war between Hezbollah and Israel.

A TV screen on a wll showing Hassan Nasrallah giving an address, , wirth people watching the broadcast silhouetted in front of the screen
Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, giving a televised address after the strike on Lebanon. He has called the attack a ‘violation’. Photograph: Mohamed Azakir/Reuters
That is the question that has dominated debate in Lebanon and the wider region in the days since Arouri’s killing, even as a tenuous normality has returned to Beirut’s sprawling southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, in wake of the attack. While streets that emptied in the immediate aftermath of the strike have become busy again, anxiety lingers. The mood was summed up by Lebanon’s outgoing prime minister, Najib Mikati, who on Friday talked of “the danger of attempts to drag Lebanon into a regional war … with serious consequences, particularly for Lebanon and neighbouring countries”.

On Saturday morning, as Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets into northern Israel, saying the barrage was only its first response to Arouri’s killing, Mikati’s warning took on an added resonance. The cross-border exchanges have highlighted the fact that, three months on, Israel’s war against Hamas is starting to bleed ever wider across the region.

Since 8 October, limited exchanges across the border – including airstrikes and drone attacks – have become a daily occurrence between Israel and Hezbollah, as well as other factions in Lebanon, inflicting casualties on both sides. Iran-backed groups in Iraq have stepped up attacks on US military bases, while Yemen’s Houthis – who, like Hamas and Hezbollah, have long enjoyed Iranian support – have launched long-range drones and threatened commercial shipping around key routes in the Red Sea. Last week, Islamic State claimed responsibility for two blasts which ripped through a crowd in southern Iran, killing at least 84 people, while a US airstrike in Baghdad killed the commander of an Iranian-backed Shia militia.

But it has been in Lebanon, above all, where the situation has become most dangerous, undermining a fragile understanding between Hezbollah and Israel that has persisted since the hugely destructive second Lebanon war in 2006.

Last week, as Hezbollah’s general secretary, Hassan Nasrallah, made two nationally televised addresses in the wake of Arouri’s assassination, he referred specifically, and not for the first time, to the “rules” that have mitigated the sometimes performative violence between the two sides. Amid the threats and rhetoric, those rules have long defined how far either side has been prepared to go, either in targeting or retaliation, while remaining short of all-out war.

And across the region, in areas where the Gaza conflict has spilled over, Israel’s war with Hamas has served to energise already existing tensions.

In Lebanon, the issue has been the failure on both sides to implement the UN-mandated truce that ended the 2006 war and was supposed to bring a withdrawal of Hezbollah fighters from the border.

What is clear is that Arouri’s assassination has pushed that mutual “equilibrium of deterrence”, to use Nasrallah’s framing, to the very brink, following the first Israeli strike on Lebanon’s capital since 2006.

Source : The Guardian
 
Iran's Guards attack Israel's 'espionage centers' in Iraq, state media says

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they have attacked the "espionage headquarters" of Israel in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, state media reported late on Monday, while the elite force also struck in Syria against the Islamic State.

"Ballistic missiles were used to destroy espionage centers and gatherings of anti-Iranian terrorist groups in the region late tonight,” Iran’s Guards said in a statement, naming Israel's Mossad spy agency.

The Guards said they launched missile attacks against espionage centers and "gatherings of anti-Iranian terrorist groups" near Iraq's northern city of Erbil, while targeting the "perpetrators of terrorist operations in the Islamic Republic, particularly the Islamic State".

Explosions were heard in an area some 40 kilometers (25 miles) northeast of Erbil in the Kurdistan region, three security sources said, in an area near the U.S. consulate as well as civilian residences.

No U.S. facilities were impacted by the missiles strikes, two U.S. officials told Reuters.

Reuters could not independently verify any of the reports. Israeli government officials were not reachable for immediate comment.

Iraqi security sources said one rocket had fallen on the house of a senior Kurdish intelligence official and another on a Kurdish intelligence center. Three had crashed into a prominent Kurdish businessman's home, the sources said, killing him.

Four dead and several wounded civilians had been brought to a local hospital after the explosions, two medical sources said.

Air traffic at Erbil airport was halted, the security sources said.

Iran has in the past sometimes carried out strikes in Iraq's northern Kurdistan region, saying the area is used as a staging ground for Iranian separatist groups as well as agents of its arch-foe Israel.

Baghdad has tried to address Iranian concerns over separatist groups in the mountainous border region, moving to relocate some members as part of a security agreement reached with Tehran in 2023.

Earlier this month, Islamic State claimed responsibility for two explosions in Iran's southeastern Kerman city that killed nearly 100 people and wounded scores at a memorial for top commander Qassem Soleimani.



Source: Reuters
 
USA "condemned" Iranian missile attack in Erbil.

As per America, America and Israel can do missile attacks in other countries but Iran cannot.

Comical logic.
 
sweep_shot said:
USA "condemned" Iranian missile attack in Erbil.

As per America, America and Israel can do missile attacks in other countries but Iran cannot.

Comical logic.
Click to expand...
They learnt it from the best empires of the last which you love are they comical too?
 
sweep_shot said:
USA "condemned" Iranian missile attack in Erbil.

As per America, America and Israel can do missile attacks in other countries but Iran cannot.

Comical logic.
Click to expand...
Sure Iran can attack in other countries too. But Iran also has to realize that there will be consequences. They should not cry about US atrocities when US gives it back with double the force.
 

IRGC members killed in air strike on Damascus building: Iranian state media​


A residential building in Syria’s capital, Damascus, according to Iranian state media. Syrian state media SANA said the attack on Saturday took place in the Mazzeh neighbourhood. It said “Israeli aggression” targeted the building.

A well-informed source told Al Jazeera the target was an IRGC intelligence unit, adding that a senior IRGC intelligence official in Syria and his assistants were in the building. Iranian state media said a number of IRGC members were killed in the attack but it did not give additional details.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor that relies on a network of sources on the ground, said the attack killed five people in a building where “Iran-aligned leaders” were meeting.

“An Israeli missile strike targeted a four-storey building, killing five people … and destroying the whole building where Iran-aligned leaders were meeting,” said the Syrian Observatory.

There was no immediate comment from Israel.

Widening tensions​

Saturday’s strike comes amid widening tensions in the region and the Israeli offensive on Gaza that has killed nearly 25,000 people. Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on Iran-linked targets inside government-controlled parts of war-torn Syria in recent years.

Last month, an Israeli air attack on a suburb of Damascus killed Iranian general Sayyed Razi Mousavi, a longtime IRGC adviser in Syria. Israel rarely acknowledges its actions in Syria, but it has said that it targets bases of Iran-allied groups, such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces.

Over the past weeks, rockets have been fired from Syria into northern Israel and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, adding to tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border and attacks on ships in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi rebels.

Iran on Monday struck Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, with ballistic missiles in what it said was an attack on an Israeli spy headquarters, a claim denied by Iraqi and Iraqi Kurdish officials. At least four people were killed in the attack.

Source : Al Jazeera
 

Israel prepared to handle any Iran scenario, defence chief says​


Israel's defence minister said on Sunday that the country was ready to handle any scenario after Iran threatened to retaliate for the killing of Iranian generals on April 1.

An Iranian official said on Sunday that Israeli embassies were not safe, and a semi-official news agency published a graphic showing weapons that it said would be capable of striking Israel.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant's office made the statement about preparedness after he held an "operational situation assessment" with senior military officers.

"Upon completing the assessment, Minister Gallant emphasized that the defense establishment has completed preparations for responses in the event of any scenario that may develop vis-à-vis Iran," his office said.

Iran has threatened to respond to a suspected Israeli strike in Damascus that killed seven Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps members, among them a senior commander.

A senior adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader, Yahya Rahim Safavi, said on Sunday that none of Israel's embassies were safe anymore and that Tehran viewed confrontation with Israel as a "legitimate and legal right."

Iran's semi-official ISNA news agency published a graphic on Sunday that it said showcased nine different types of Iranian missiles it says are capable of hitting Israel.

Israel has not confirmed it was behind the strike on Damascus. Its leaders have said in more general terms that they are operating against Iran, which backs militant groups Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, both of which have been in combat with Israel for the past six months.

The United States is also on high alert and preparing for a possible attack by Iran targeting Israeli or American assets in the region.

Israel, Argentine and U.S. authorities have blamed Iran for being behind the 1994 deadly bombing of a Jewish centre in Argentina's capital, which killed 85 people and for which Tehran denied any involvement.

 
It is evident from this that Israel is intimidated by Iran's expected retaliation and it is not allowing Israel to remain calm.
 
FearlessRoar said:
It is evident from this that Israel is intimidated by Iran's expected retaliation and it is not allowing Israel to remain calm.
Click to expand...
Iran is all talk. The Palestinians have been beaten to pulp and nothing from them or Hezbollah. They like the Arabs are just cowards.
 
KingKhanWC said:
Israel as usual are looking for the US to do their dirty work for them. They don't have the capability to take out Iran's nuclear weapons programme. Iran has over 80 different locations including underground bunkers which all analysts believe would be impossible to take out. Netanyahoo didn't comment on this at the AIPAC conference for this very reason.

The US this time are thinking very carefully about get inovlved in this war. They know the outcome for them could be a total disaster when their economy is in tatters. Any attack on Iran could lead to oil prices reaching $200 a barrel if not more. This could potentially send the US into a deep depression which they can't afford.

I think Israel will do something very sinister trying to force the US into a war. Let's hope it doesn't happen because the whole world will suffer the outcome of this.

As for WW3 its a possibility.
Click to expand...

12 years on , this still applies .
 

Iranian official says Israeli embassies are no longer safe​


A senior Iranian official said on Sunday that none of Israel's embassies were safe anymore, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.

The official, an adviser to Supreme Leader Yahya Rahim Safavi, was speaking following a suspected Israeli strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1 for which Tehran has vowed retaliation.

 
While Iran does more than other Islamic nations but seems more like lip service nowadays after getting whopped from everyone and losing innocent lives.
 
US restricts travel for employees in Israel amid fears of Iran attack

The United States has restricted travel for its employees in Israel amid fears of an attack by Iran.

The US embassy said staff had been told not to travel outside the greater Jerusalem, Tel Aviv or Beersheba areas "out of an abundance of caution".

Iran has vowed to retaliate, blaming Israel for a strike on its consulate in Syria 11 days ago, killing 13 people.

UK Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron has phoned his Iranian counterpart to urge against further escalation.

Israel has not claimed responsibility for the consulate attack but is widely considered to have been behind it.

Iran backs Hamas, the armed Palestinian group fighting Israel in Gaza, as well as various proxy groups throughout the region, including some - such as Hezbollah in Lebanon - that frequently carry out strikes against the Israelis.

Those killed in the consulate attack included a senior commander of Iran's elite Quds Force in Syria and Lebanon, as well as other military figures.

The attack came at a time of continuing diplomatic efforts to prevent the war in Gaza spreading across the region.

Speaking on Wednesday, US President Joe Biden warned Iran was threatening to launch a "significant attack" and vowed to offer "ironclad" support to Israel.

The commander responsible for US operations in the Middle East, Erik Kurilla, has travelled to Israel for talks with officials on security threats.

The Pentagon said the visit had been scheduled previously but had been brought forward "due to recent developments."

Following a call with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Lord Cameron said he had "made clear... that Iran must not draw the Middle East into a wider conflict".

"I am deeply concerned about the potential for miscalculation leading to further violence," he said.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has spoken to the foreign ministers of China, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey to argue that further escalation is not in anyone's interest.

It is not clear what form any reprisal attack would take nor whether it would come directly from Iran or via one of its proxies.

On Sunday an Iranian official warned Israel's embassies were "no longer safe", suggesting a consulate building could be a possible target.

Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant has told his US counterpart that "any direct Iranian attack" on Israeli territory would "require an appropriate Israeli response against Iran".

Asked about the travel restrictions on Thursday, state department spokesperson Matthew Miller said he would not disclose the "specific assessments" behind them, but added: "Clearly we are monitoring the threat environment in the Middle East and specifically in Israel."

The UK Foreign Office has also updated its travel advice for Israel to state that the country's government has raised the "possibility of an attack on Israeli territory from Iran, and that such an attack could trigger wider escalation".

Since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October, the Foreign Office has warned against travel to large parts of Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

German airline Lufthansa has extended a suspension of flights to the Iranian capital Tehran until Saturday.

The October attack saw gunmen kill 1,200 people and take more than 250 hostage after crossing into Israel from Gaza.

Israel says that of 130 hostages still in Gaza, at least 34 are dead.

More than 33,000 Gazans, the majority of them civilians, have been killed during Israel's subsequent offensive in Gaza, the Hamas-run health ministry says.

BBC
 
Poll added guys.

As far as I think, Iran is the only nation currently showing some resistance against Israel and supporting countries of Israel. Not suggesting a direct 1 on 1 attack on Israel by they should definitely wait for the right time to respond and it should not take that long because this war is going far too long.
 
BouncerGuy said:
Poll added guys.

As far as I think, Iran is the only nation currently showing some resistance against Israel and supporting countries of Israel. Not suggesting a direct 1 on 1 attack on Israel by they should definitely wait for the right time to respond and it should not take that long because this war is going far too long.
Click to expand...

Because Iran has nothing to lose; they are already under international sanctions, they don't care about their own citizens, and there is no law. Other Muslim countries will suffer if they get dragged into the war, and they know that it will be difficult to manage inflation. That's why they kept calm.
 

Blinken asks China to use its influence to dissuade Iran from striking Israel​


US Secretary of State Antony Blinken asked Beijing to use its influence to dissuade Iran from striking Israel, during a call with his Chinese counterpart, according to the US State Department.

Concerns regarding possible retaliation by Tehran have increased following an April 1 airstrike on an Iranian consulate building in the Syrian capital of Damascus, which killed several Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commanders, including two generals.

Wang Yi, China’s top diplomat, urged the US to take “a constructive role” in the Middle East during the call with Blinken, according to the US statement.

A Chinese statement after the call says Wang also “expressed China’s strong condemnation of the attack” while emphasizing the “inviolable” right to security of diplomatic institutions and the need to respect the sovereignty of Iran and Syria.

Israel has not taken responsibility for the strike, but has cited intelligence that the buildings targeted were military sites used by the IRGC, a US-designated terror group.

“China will continue to play a constructive role in the resolution of the Middle East issue… and contribute to cooling down the situation,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning adds.

“The United States side in particular should play a constructive role.”

The United States has repeatedly made public appeals for China to do more to address the crisis, including through pressure on Iran, which supports Hamas.

www.timesofisrael.com

Blinken asks China to use its influence to dissuade Iran from striking Israel

* * *
www.timesofisrael.com www.timesofisrael.com
 

Argentina court blames Iran for deadly 1994 bombing of Jewish center​


A new ruling by Argentina's highest criminal court has blamed Iran for the fatal 1994 attack against the AMIA Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, declaring it a "crime against humanity" in a decision that paves the way for victims to seek justice, according to court documents released late on Thursday.

The judges ruled that the bombing of the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) - the deadliest of its kind in the country's history that killed 85 people and left hundreds injured - was carried out by armed group Hezbollah and responded "to a political and strategic design" by Iran.

Representatives from Argentina's Jewish community said the court ruling was "historic" and "unique" because it opened the door for the victims' relatives to bring lawsuits against the Islamic Republic.

President Javier Milei celebrated the ruling, saying this was a "significant step" that put an end to decades of "delays and cover ups," in an official statement.

Argentina's judiciary has long maintained Iran was behind the attack, but joint investigations and Interpol arrest warrants have led nowhere. Iran has refused to turn over citizens convicted in Argentina. Tehran has denied involvement.

Prosecutors in the report charged top Iranian officials and Hezbollah members with ordering the bombing as well as an attack in 1992 against the Israeli embassy in Argentina, which killed 22 people.

"The significance of these grave human rights violations for the international community as a whole invokes a state's duty to provide judicial protection," wrote Judge Mahiques who argued for legal reform.

In 2013, Argentina and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding that sought to create a truth commission to investigate the attack, but the agreement never came into force and gave rise to a case against then President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, for an alleged cover-up operation.

Judge Mahiques highlighted the figure of former prosecutor Alberto Nisman, who was investigating the attack and was found dead at his home in January 2015 after fiercely criticizing Fernández de Kirchner for concealing Iran's alleged responsibility in the attack.

"(Nisman) was very clear that all these circumstances were at the origin of the attack on the AMIA, which, taken to its ultimate consequences, could have had palpable results before this ruling," Mahiques told local radio on Friday.

 
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