ISRAEL reported an attack on Iran on Friday (19/4) morning. The following is a summary of the tensions that have increased between the two arch enemies since the war in Gaza broke out.
Hamas attack
On October 8, 2023, a day following Hamas militants carried out unprecedented attacks once morest Israel, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said Iran supports the legitimate defense of Palestine.
He accused Israel of endangering the security of countries in the region. In downtown Tehran, banners were raised to show solidarity with Palestine.
On October 28, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that 90% of Hamas’ military budget comes from Iran. “He funded, organized and directed it.”
Adding to Israeli-Iranian tensions since the Israel-Hamas war broke out in Gaza, Israel and the Iranian-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group exchange fire almost every day across the border.
Since November, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi group, which controls the capital Sanaa, has attacked ships in the Red Sea, in a show of solidarity with the Palestinians.
Also read: Iran Mourns 84 People Killed in Two Explosions
Death of the supreme commander
On December 25, Iran blamed Israel for the attack in Syria that killed Razi Moussavi of the Quds Force, the foreign operations arm of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
He is the most senior Quds Force commander to be killed outside Iran in almost four years.
A few weeks later in January, an attack in Damascus killed five members of the Revolutionary Guard.
Also read: Iranian guards vow to avenge Israel for the murder of its general
Iranian media later reported the victims included the group’s intelligence chief for Syria and his deputy.
Attack on the Iranian embassy
On April 1, an airstrike was blamed by Israel on Iran’s diplomatic mission in Damascus. This leveled the embassy’s consular building.
The attack killed seven Revolutionary Guards. Two of the victims had the rank of general.
Also read: Iran warns that Gaza war will escalate if ceasefire ends
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel would be slapped following the attack.
“The defeat of the Zionist regime in Gaza will continue and this regime will soon experience decline and dissolution,” said Khamenei.
Iran responded
Nearly two weeks later, Iran sent more than 300 missiles, drones and rockets to Israel.
The attack carried out on Saturday-Sunday night was the first direct attack carried out by Tehran once morest Israeli territory.
But the attack did little damage. This is because Israel and other countries intercept most of the projectiles.
Iran described the attack as an act of self-defense and said it would consider the matter closed unless Israel retaliated.
On Friday, Iranian state media reported an explosion in the central province of Isfahan. US media quoted officials as saying Israel had carried out a revenge attack once morest its arch enemy. (AFP/Z-2)
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