Israel war live coverage: Israel’s war cabinet said to be in favour of hitting back at Iran
Israel’s war cabinet has met to decide on how the country should respond after Iran’s attack as the UN and US urged leaders against a deeper conflict in the region. Follow updates.
A meeting with Israel’s war cabinet has ended with no decision on how the country should proceed after Iran fired hundreds of missiles and drones.
The United States has made it clear it does not want to see an escalation of the crisis in the Middle East, a top White House official said, after Israel repelled a massive missile and drone attack from Iran.
“We don’t want to see this escalate,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on NBC’s Meet the Press. “We’re not looking for a wider war with Iran.”
However, according to the Israel Hayom daily newspaper, an Israeli official said that “there will be a response,” while NBC quoted an official source in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office saying that while a decision has yet to be made, “the IDF will need to present options” and that “it is clear that Israel will respond.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is currently convening the War Cabinet at the Kirya in Tel Aviv. pic.twitter.com/VUObde4h7o
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) April 14, 2024
Israeli officials cited by Reuters also said that while the war cabinet favors a retaliation against Iran, they’re divided over the timing and scale of any such response.
Iran launched its first-ever direct assault on Israeli territory late Saturday in retaliation for a deadly strike by Israeli on Tehran’s consulate in Damascus on April 1.
Iran’s retaliation marked a major escalation of the long-running covert war between the regional foes.
US President Joe Biden has reaffirmed Washington’s “iron-clad” support for Israel, while appearing to guide its staunch ally away from a military response.
News outlet Axios said the US president had told Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu he would oppose an Israeli counter-attack against Iran and that the prime minister should “take the win”.
Mr Kirby added in the interview that the United States is “staying vigilant” to any Iranian threats to American troops.
“We made it very clear to all parties, including Iran, what we would do … and also how seriously we would take any potential threats to our personnel,” he said.
Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles towards Israel, injuring 12 people, the Israeli army said.
But almost all were intercepted before they reached Israeli territory, the army said, with help from the United States, Jordan, Britain and other allies.
Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi has warned Israel and its allies against any “reckless” actions after Tehran’s drone and missile attack.
“If the Zionist regime (Israel) or its supporters demonstrate reckless behaviour, they will receive a decisive and much stronger response,” Raisi said in a statement.
After numerous countries condemned the attack, Tehran’s foreign ministry summoned the French, British, and German ambassadors “following the irresponsible positions of certain officials of these countries regarding Iran’s response”, a statement said.
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said that at least 33,729 people have been killed in the territory during more than six months of war between Israel and Palestinian militants.
The toll includes at least 43 deaths over the past 24 hours, a ministry statement said, adding that 76,371 people have been wounded in the Gaza Strip since the war began when Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7.
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MIDDLE EAST, WORLD CANNOT ‘AFFORD MORE WAR’
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned the international community against deeper descent into conflict, addressing the Security Council during a meeting over Iran’s weekend attack on Israel.
“Neither the region nor the world can afford more war,” Mr Guterres said.
“The Middle East is on the brink,” he told the Security Council.
“The people of the region are confronting a real danger of a devastating full-scale conflict. Now is the time to defuse and de-escalate,” he added, calling for “maximum restraint.”
IRAN TELLS UN ISRAEL ATTACK ‘SELF-DEFENCE’
Iran’s UN envoy Amir Saeid Iravani has insisted the Islamic republic was exercising its “inherent right to self-defense.”
“In response to the Israeli regime’s recurring military aggression, particularly its armed attack on April 1 2024 against Iranian diplomatic premises” and in line with the second article of the UN charter, the Iranian military “carried out a series of military strikes on Israeli military objectives” using missiles and drones.
The operation, he said, “was entirely in the exercise of Iran’s inherent right to self-defence”.
He then highlighted the US, UK and France as having chosen “to turn a blind eye to reality and overlook the root causes contributing to the current situation”.
“In hypocritical behaviour, these three countries falsely blamed and accused Iran without considering their own failures: to uphold the international commitment to peace and security in the region,” he said.
“They made unsuccessful attempts to use lies, manipulate the narrative, spread disinformation and engage in a destructive blame game.
“For over six months now, these countries, especially the United States, have shielded Israel from any responsibility for the Gaza massacre.
“While they have denied Iran the inherent right to self-defence against the Israeli armed attack on our diplomatic premises, at the same time, they shamefully justified a massacre and genocide against the defenceless Palestinian people”.
ISRAEL URGES ‘ALL POSSIBLE SANCTIONS’ AGAINST IRAN
Meanwhile, Israel’s UN envoy has urged the UN Security Council to impose “all possible sanctions” against Iran after the Islamic republic’s unprecedented attack against Israel.
“Today the council must take action (and) condemn Iran for their terror,” Ambassador Gilad Erdan told the body, calling on countries to “impose all possible sanctions on Iran before it’s too late.”
FRANCE SUMMONS IRAN AMBASSADOR
France will summon Iran’s ambassador over the Islamic Republic’s strikes on Israel, vowing a firm approach, the French foreign minister said.
“I have asked the foreign ministry to summon the ambassador of Iran tomorrow to express... a message of firmness,” the minister, Stephane Sejourne, said on television channel France 2, adding that it was “the Iranians who attacked Israel”.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin separately asked authorities to post police outside synagogues and faith schools ahead of the Jewish feast of Passover from April 22 to 30.
He asked prefects to ensure a “static and visible” police presence outside places of worship and “the most sensitive and symbolic” buildings as well outside faith schools from Monday at times when pupils were entering or leaving.
An official text announcing the request cited a “very high level of terrorist threat” and a “high level of anti-Semitic acts” as well as the strikes on Israel.
IRAN STRIKE ‘ACHIEVED ALL ITS OBJECTIVES’
The Iranian army says its drone and missile attack on Israel, retaliation for a deadly strike on Iran’s Damascus consulate, has “achieved all its objectives”.
“Operation Honest Promise … was completed successfully from last night to this morning and achieved all its objectives”, Mohammad Bagheri, the Iranian armed forces’ chief of staff, told state TV.
Iran has said it had attacked Israel in “self-defence” following the April 1 strike on its diplomatic mission in Damascus, which was widely blamed on Israel.
Among the main targets were an intelligence centre and an air base in the Negev desert, which Tehran says was used by Israel to strike Iran’s consulate in Damascus on April 1.
The Damascus strike levelled the five-storey consular annexe of the Iranian embassy in the Syrian capital and killed seven Revolutionary Guards, two of them generals.
“We see this operation as complete, and this operation has ended in our opinion,” Bagheri said.
“There is no intention to continue this operation,” he said, calling on Israel to avoid taking further action against Iran which according to Bagheri would result in a “much bigger” response.
The army chief also warned the United States against aiding any Israeli action against Iran.
“We sent a message to America through the Swiss embassy that if it cooperates with Israel in their next potential actions, their bases will not be secure,” he added.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps chief, Hossein Salami, hailed what he called “a limited operation” that targeted Israeli “capabilities that were used to attack our embassy”.
Salami added it was “more successful than expected”.
He reiterated warnings of a “counter-attack” if Israel targeted Iranian interests or individuals.
US HELPED TAKE DOWN ‘NEARLY ALL’ IRAN DRONES FIRED AT ISRAEL
President Joe Biden said that US forces helped take down “nearly all” the drones and missiles fired by Iran at Israel, adding that he had reaffirmed his “iron-clad” support to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Mr Biden added in a statement that he would convene his fellow leaders of the G7 group of wealthy nations on Sunday local time to co-ordinate a “united diplomatic response” to Iran’s “brazen” attack.
“Iran – and its proxies operating out of Yemen, Syria and Iraq – launched an unprecedented air attack against military facilities in Israel. I condemn these attacks in the strongest possible terms,” Mr Biden said.
He said he had ordered US military aircraft and ballistic missile defence destroyers to the Middle East in recent days as the likely Iranian threat to the key US ally became clear.
“Thanks to these deployments and the extraordinary skill of our service members, we helped Israel take down nearly all of the incoming drones and missiles,” Mr Biden said.
Mr Biden added that he had spoken to Netanyahu to “reaffirm America’s iron-clad commitment” to Israel’s security.
“I told him that Israel demonstrated a remarkable capacity to defend against and defeat even unprecedented attacks – sending a clear message to its foes that they cannot effectively threaten the security of Israel,” he said.
No US forces or facilities had come under attack from Iran, he said.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed RAF pilots shot down “a number of” Iranian attack drones while intercepting the attack on Israel.
He called for “calm heads” and paid tribute to the bravery and professionalism of the pilots “flying into the face of danger to protect civilians”.
It came after Israel levelled a building in east Lebanon and vowed a response to Iran’s 300 missile.
Mr Sunak said he chaired an urgent meeting with Cabinet ministers to “agree a plan of action” over Iran’s attack on Israel.
ISRAEL VOWS ‘SIGNIFICANT RESPONSE’ TO IRAN ATTACK
Israel has shot down most of the Iranian drones and missiles before they reached the country’s borders, the Israeli Defence Forces confirmed on Sunday.
IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari confirmed a ‘limited number’ of missiles fell inside the country’s territory.
“The regime in Iran sent a massive swarm of over 200 killer drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles,” Hagari said, adding that “so far, we’ve intercepted the vast majority of incoming missiles”.
Israel has vowed a “significant response” to Iran’s massive drone and ballistic missile attack, and urged Israelis not to go to bed “due to what was coming Tehran’s way.”
As the Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s War Cabinet meeting was under way, an unnamed senior Israeli official told Channel 12 Israel was planning an unprecedented response to the attack.
US, British and Jordanian forces have shot down drones launched at Israel by Iran in retaliation for a deadly strike on its consulate in Syria.
The massive attack involving more than 200 explosive-laden drones and missiles brings the two countries to the brink of war.
A young girl was injured in the attack, the IDF confirmed, while an Israeli military base suffered minor damage.
#Iran's missiles hit occupied Palestine pic.twitter.com/OPc7ZG81VT
— Mehr News Agency (@MehrnewsCom) April 13, 2024
🚨Sirens sounding across Israel🚨 pic.twitter.com/BuDasagr10
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) April 13, 2024
IRAN CONFIRMS DRONE AND MISSILE STRIKE
Thousands of Iranians took to the streets in support of the unprecedented drone and missile attack against Israel.
Demonstrators in Tehran’s Palestine Square chanted “death to Israel!” and “death to America!” shortly after the Revolutionary Guards announced the launch of Operation Honest Promise.
A mural saying “the next slap is fiercer” was unveiled in the square where a huge banner has hung for days calling, in Hebrew, for Israelis to “take shelter”.
Tehran has since vowed to avenge the strike which was widely blamed on Israel. Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei pledged that the “evil (Israeli) regime will be punished”.
The malicious Zionist regime will be punished pic.twitter.com/2miQi2JoiI
— Khamenei.ir (@khamenei_ir) April 13, 2024
ISRAEL ‘PUNISHED FROM FOUR DIRECTIONS’
Iranian media described the attack on Israel as “complex” as it also involved Iranian allies in Yemen, Lebanon and Iraq.
“This attack did not come from Iran only, and this regime (Israel) is being punished from four directions,” the Tasnim news agency said.
Iran’s allies in the region joined the attack with Yemen’s Huthi rebels also launching drones at Israel, according to security agency Ambrey, and Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement announcing rocket fire at Israeli positions in the annexed Golan Heights.
The official IRNA news agency said the attack had dealt “heavy blows” to an air base in the Negev desert, but the Israeli army said there had only been minor damage.
Red Alerts for the City of Be'er Sheva and several other Locations in Northern and Southern Israel. pic.twitter.com/7G6GNickTz
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) April 13, 2024
Several more Iranian Ballistic Missiles spotted over the Southern Iraqi City of Al Diwaniyah heading in the direction of Israel. pic.twitter.com/TPUrZiO0et
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) April 13, 2024
US VOWS TO STAND WITH ISRAEL
US President Joe Biden promised “iron-clad” support for Israel against attacks by Iran with American forces shooting down Iranian drones amid a spiralling crisis in the Middle East.
“I just met with my national security team for an update on Iran’s attacks against Israel. Our commitment to Israel’s security against threats from Iran and its proxies is iron-clad,” Biden said on X.
He had an emergency meeting at the White House after cutting short his weekend at the beach at Rehoboth in Delaware returning in his Marine One helicopter, which lifted off at 3.36pm local time.
Joining the US President were Marc Gustafson, the senior director for the White House situation room, which is where Mr Biden held the emergency meeting.
UN, EU CONDEMN ATTACK
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned Iran’s drone attacks targeting Israel on Saturday as a “serious escalation” and called on all sides to show restraint to avoid a devastating regional conflagration.
“I strongly condemn the serious escalation represented by the large-scale attack launched on Israel by the Islamic Republic of Iran,” he said in a statement.
“I am deeply alarmed about the very real danger of a devastating region-wide escalation. I urge all parties to exercise maximum restraint to avoid any action that could lead to major military confrontations on multiple fronts in the Middle East.”
The European Union’s foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell condemned Iran’s strikes on Israel Saturday as an “unprecedented escalation”.
“The EU strongly condemns the unacceptable Iranian attack against Israel,” he wrote on the platform X.
“This is an unprecedented escalation and a grave threat to regional security.”
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also said: “I condemn in the strongest terms the Iranian regime’s reckless attack against Israel.
Iran has once again demonstrated that it is intent on sowing chaos in it's own back yard.
The UK will continue to stand up for Israel’s security and that of all our regional partners, including Jordan and Iraq.
Alongside our allies, we are urgently working to stabilise the situation and prevent further escalation. No one wants to see more bloodshed.”
AUSTRALIA CONDEMNS IRAN’S ATTACK
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said the Australian government “condemns” the attacks by Iran on Israel. Mr Conroy told Sky News Australia that it is very important to provide “international pressure” to ensure escalation does not occur.
AUSTRALIAN ISRAELIS CALL FOR UNITY
Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin said: “Iran wants to detonate the Middle East in the hope it emerges strongest from the ruins. It trained 300 Hamas terrorists in the month before October 7 and approved the attack. It owns Hezbollah which has been bombing Israeli towns in the north since October. It owns the Houthis who have disrupted global trade and shipping through piracy and terror. And now it has deployed hundreds of suicide drones and cruise missiles to strike the heart of Israel.
“This is the hour for unity and resolve and we expect our government to join the US, UK and the civilised world in standing with Israel against the abomination that is the Iranian regime.”
AIRLINES AVOID IRANIAN AIRSPACE
Australian airline Qantas said on Saturday it would redirect its long-haul flights between Perth and London to avoid Iran’s airspace amid soaring Middle East tensions.
A Qantas spokesman told AFP the airline would temporarily adjust the flight paths due to “the situation in parts of the Middle East”.
“We’ll reach out to customers directly if there’s any change to their booking,” the spokesman said.
The Perth-London flight, which is usually a non-stop 17-and-a-half hour journey, will now stop in Singapore to refuel, allowing it to carry a full load of passengers on an alternate route.
The return service — London to Perth — will continue to fly non-stop on a readjusted path due to prevailing winds.
All other flights are not affected.
German airline Lufthansa said Friday its planes would no longer use Iranian airspace as it extended a suspension on flights to and from Tehran amid soaring Middle East tensions.
“Due to the current situation, Lufthansa is suspending its flights to and from Tehran up to and including Thursday, 18 April,” a company spokesman said Friday.
“The airline is also no longer using Iranian airspace.” Its subsidiary Austrian Airlines followed suit.
The flights to the Iranian capital have been suspended since April 6. Lufthansa did not outline the immediate reasons for the suspension. In a statement, Austrian Airlines cited “the current situation in the Middle East”.
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