Israel 'must be punished' for attack: Iran's Khamenei

Source: The West Australian

Israel 'must be punished' for attack: Iran's KhameneiStaff WritersReutersWed, 10 April 2024 3:05PM

Israel "must be punished and it shall be" for attacking the Iranian embassy compound in Syria, Iran's supreme leader says.

In a major escalation of Israel's war with regional adversaries, suspected Israeli warplanes bombed Iran's consulate in the Syrian capital on April 1 in a strike that Iran said killed seven military advisers.

"When they attack the consulate, it is as if they have attacked our soil," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a speech on Wednesday marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

"The evil regime made a mistake and must be punished and it shall be," he added.

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In an apparent response to Khamenei, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday that Israel would respond if Iran attacked Israel from its own soil.

"If Iran attacks from its own territory, Israel will respond and attack in Iran," Katz said in a post on social media platform X.

Iran backs groups have entered the fray across the region since Israel launched its invasion of Gaza following the October 7 attack on southern Israel by Hamas.

More than 33,300 Palestinians have been killed in six months of Israeli bombardment of Gaza.

Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel killed 1200 people, according to Israeli tallies.

The Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group has exchanged fire on a daily basis with Israel, while Iraqi groups have fired on US forces in Syria and Iraq and the Houthis of Yemen have targeted shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

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