The Israeli air strikes on Iran on Saturday opened a new phase of the unfolding regional conflict between the two key players in West Asia. This is not the first time Israel has carried out an attack inside the Islamic Republic. It has targeted Iran’s nuclear programme and killed its nuclear scientist. Israeli fighter jets on Saturday attacked Iranian military targets and missile production facilities in retaliation for a major ballistic missile attack by Tehras.
Amid ongoing offensives against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Israeli military on Tuesday warned Iran that it would be hit “very, very hard” if it retaliated against Israel for its attacks on Tehras last week. Israeli military chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi said they would strike Iran “very, very hard” if it made the “mistake of launching another missile barrage at Israel”.
“If Iran makes the mistake and launches another barrage of missiles at Israel, we will once again know how to reach Iran, reach even with capabilities that we did not use this time”, he told the military personnel who took part in the weekend strike.