"There is price to pay when you attack Israel, we are not interested in regional escalation": Israel envoy on military strikes in Iran

In an interview with ANI, Reuven Azar also said that Israel is always ready for a ceasefire and wants the Hamas to lay down the weapons and release the hostages.

"Israel attacked military targets in Iran in a very precise way. We have neutralized the air defence system of Iran and we have destroyed missile capabilities, missile factories and other air capabilities that the Iranians have. Iran is now completely exposed. We have shown very clearly that there is a price to pay when you attack the state of Israel... Iran knows now very well that if it continues attacking Israel, any target in Iran is reachable," he said.

"Probably Iran is not going to retaliate more, because if it does choose to retaliate again or counterattack Israel, the results will be much worse. So this is our clear message. If you stop attacking us, we will refrain from attacking you. We will continue defending ourselves, both against Hamas, Hezbollah, against any terrorists anywhere in the world, including inside Iran. But we are not interested in a regional escalation," he added.

Answering queries on the war with Hamas, he said Israel is ready to accommodate the exit of Hamas from Gaza.

"Israel is always ready for a ceasefire. We want the Hamas to lay down the weapons and release the hostages. We are ready to accommodate their exit from the Gaza Strip. We want to create a mechanism in the North by which the Security Council resolutions can be implemented... If we get those assurances then, no doubt, we can re-establish stability in the region," he said.

"We are very encouraged by the fact that India has supported our right for self-defence. When you look at what Israel is doing, it goes without saying it's beyond doubt that Israel is not trying to escalate the conflict at the time that Iran is trying to escalate. I think here the interests of India and Israel coincide," he added.

Reuven Azar said Israel's response has been "very responsible" and US has been supportive of its stance.

"Israel's response has been very responsible. We are enjoying full support of the American administration. The US not only has supported our counterattack, it has also supplied defence systems to Israel... We are seeing support from the American Congress for the actions that we are taking. We are seeing also countries in the Middle East that are not satisfied with the situation but not only that, they are not condemning Israel, they are not trying to prevent the Israeli action. This is very important. Iran got a very clear message today that the region, not only Israel but the world is not ready to accept the continuation of their aggression..."

At least 1,200 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas's attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7 last year. Local health authorities in Gaza say that 42,000 people have been killed in Israel's offensive.

Reuven Azar said Israel will react to any action against it.

"We stay confined to the targets that our cabinet has approved. That means that we will not allow any diversion from it. Whoever attacks us is going to be attacked by Israel. So Hezbollah can try to continue attacking Israel. We have shown that we have the capabilities to actually damage their aggression capabilities in a very, very significant way. We're going to continue doing that until we are able in the north to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and bring our residents back to their homes safely," he said.

Israel Consul General Kobbi Shoshani also said that his country has been standing against "the terror attacks from Iran and its proxies" and has "precisely targeted military bases" in Iran.

He also asserted that Israel can reach any place in the Middle East "in a very massive way".

In an interview with ANI, Kobbi Shoshani spoke about the conflict in the Middle East and said they have some conditions which include Hamas not having any military capability and there should be safety zone in Lebanon.

Kobbi Shoshani, who is Consul General of Israel to Midwest India, said the big challenge they are facing right now in the Israel-Hamas conflict is that of hostages.

"That bothers us very much... Some friends of Israel are negotiating with Hamas to find a solution. We are also looking forward to a solution. We have some conditions and one of them is that Hamas will not have any military capability... Secondly, in Lebanon, we want to create a safety zone where Hezbollah will leave the area and the army of Lebanon will be there," he said.

Referring to "Israeli response to Iran's attacks against Israel", Kobbi Shoshani said the result will be evident soon.

"We will see the result very soon. We'll see from the satellites, but the message is very, very clear. Israel can reach any place in the Middle East, whether it's far or not far in a very accurate, in a very massive way. This is a message, 'Don't mess with us'," he said.

He said Israeli forces only targeted military facilities and Tel Aviv is committed to bringing safety and peace in the Middle East.

"That is the difference between us and our enemies. We only targeted military bases, not civilians, as happened in recent years between Israel and Lebanon, between Israel and Gaza, and between Israel and Iran. We precisely targeted directly the military bases in Iran. It was quite an impressive operation... They were military targets, very precise and accurate operation. From our perspective, is over with Iran. I hope that they will not make a mistake to make a retaliation," he said.

"We are looking forward to what is going to be the reaction of Iran... For more than a year, we have been standing against the terror attacks from Iran and its proxies... It is coming from Gaza, Houthies, Yemen and other proxies. Israel is committed to bringing safety and peace to the Middle East," he added.

Israel Defence Force (IDF) spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said on Saturday that Israel had achieved its objectives after its military carried out "precise strikes" on military sites in Iran stating that those who threaten Israel will pay a heavy price.

Iranian state media, citing Iran's air defence force, said the attacks caused limited damage in some locations and the dimensions of the incident are under investigation.

Tasnim news outlet, citing informed sources, reported that "Iran reserves its right to respond to any form of aggression and there is no doubt that Israel will receive a proportional reaction to any action taken."

In a brief video statement release on Saturday, IDF spokesperson stated, "I can now confirm that we have concluded the Israeli response to Iran's attacks against Israel. We conducted targeted and precise strikes on military targets in Iran, thwarting immediate threats to the State of Israel. The IDF has fulfilled its mission."

Hagari cautioned that if Iran initiates another round of escalation, Israel will respond accordingly. "If the regime in Iran were to make the mistake of beginning a new round of escalation, we will be obligated to respond."

"Our message is clear: all those who threaten the state of Israel and seek to drag the region into wider escalation will pay a heavy price. "Today, we demonstrated that we have both the capability and resolve to act decisively, and we are prepared on offence and defence to defend the state of Israel and the people of Israel," he added.

Iran had fired a barrage of ballistic missiles at Israel earlier in the month in apparent retaliation to Israel's campaign against some of its allies.

Israel Foreign Ministry also released a statement on X on Saturday, confirming the attacks. "Our planes have safely returned home. The strike was conducted in response to the attacks by the Iranian regime against the State of Israel and its citizens in recent months."

It said the retaliatory strike has been completed and the mission was fulfilled. (ANI)