The pressure on partners to sanction Tehran comes as Israel considers military retaliation for the Iranian attack over the weekend.
Israel launched a “diplomatic offensive” against Iran, calling for sanctions against the Islamic republic.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that he had contacted 32 countries asking them to impose sanctions against Tehran. The measure comes at a time when Israel is considering a military response to Iran’s attack on Israel.
Iran claims that its attacks on Saturday, using more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles, were in retaliation for Israel’s attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria. That attack killed seven people, including two commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force.
The Israeli military said it intercepted 99 percent of the aerial threats with help from the United States and other allies, and that the attack caused only minor damage, including to a military base in the south of the country.
Along with the military response to the missile and UAV fire, I am leading a diplomatic offensive against Iran.
This morning I sent letters to 32
countries and spoke to dozens of foreign ministers and senior figures around the world calling for sanctions to be…— ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) April 16, 2024
“Along with the military response to missile and UAV fire, I am leading a diplomatic offensive against Iran,” Katz said on X.
“This morning, I sent letters to 32 countries and spoke to dozens of foreign ministers and senior figures from around the world, calling for sanctions to be imposed on the Iranian missile project and for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to be declared a terrorist organization.” .
Katz did not specify which governments he asked to impose the sanctions. The IRGC is already blacklisted as a terrorist organization by the United States and is subject to EU sanctions.
“Iran must be stopped now – before it is too late,” Katz insisted.
Warning from Iran
Tensions are high as Israel mulls its reaction to Saturday’s attack.
International pressure calling for restraint is rife from Tel Aviv’s partners, amid fears that the war in Gaza threatens a further escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and military commanders promised retaliation, albeit in an indefinite manner.
Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said on Monday that “this launch of so many missiles, cruise missiles and drones on Israeli territory will have a response,” but did not give details.
In this context, Iran warned on Tuesday that it will respond quickly to any action against its interests.
“We categorically declare that the slightest action against Iranian interests will certainly meet with a severe, widespread and painful response against any perpetrator,” President Ebrahim Raisi told Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, according to the US News Agency. Iranian Students.
Qatar has sought to play the role of mediator in the war between Israel and Hamas over the past six months.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani told state TV late on Monday that Tehran’s response to any Israeli retaliation would be “a matter of seconds.”
Iran will not wait another 12 days to respond, he said, in a reference to the delay between the April 1 attack on Syrian diplomatic facilities and Iran’s attacks on Israel.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
