Iran scholar reacts to Israel’s retaliatory strike
Iran scholar Behnam Ben Taleblu on the significance of Israel’s strike against Iran and what this means for the ongoing conflict in the region
Iranian leadership is downplaying Israeli strikes against their country, despite previously vowing total war in the event of the "tiniest invasion."
During a Friday speech, President Ebrahim Raisi did not mention the Israeli missile strike launched against the Isfahan region of Iran earlier the same day.
Instead, Raisi focused on justifying Iran's own offensive attacks.
ISRAEL HITS IRAN WITH 'LIMITED' STRIKES DESPITE WHITE HOUSE'S REPORTED OPPOSITION
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi speaks during an Army Day parade at a military base in northern Tehran, Iran. Raisi warned that the "tiniest invasion" by Israel would bring a "massive and harsh" response, as the region braces for potential Israeli retaliation after Iran's attack over the weekend. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
"Operation True Promise led to authority, unity and cohesion in the country," Raisi said in his speech, according to translations from Iran International English. "Today, all political groups and factions believe that this response was necessary and a big honor for the country."
Operation True Promise is the code name for the Iranian drone missile and drone launch against Israel that took place last week.
Iran launched hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel on Saturday in response to an apparent strike on Iran’s embassy compound in Syria on April 1 that killed 12 people, including two Iranian generals. It was the first-ever direct Iranian military attack on Israel.
Motorists drive past a billboard depicting named Iranian ballistic missiles in service, with text in Arabic reading "the honest [person's] promise" and in Persian "Israel is weaker than a spider's web," in Valiasr Square in central Tehran, Iran. (ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)
Israel, with help from the U.S., the U.K., neighboring Jordan and other nations, successfully intercepted nearly every missile and drone that Iran launched. Israel boasted of a 99% success rate, through the use of its Iron Dome and David’s Sling systems.
Following the Iranian launch, Raisi said the attack was a limited one — and that if Iran was provoked to carry out a bigger attack, "nothing would remain from the Zionist regime," the official IRNA news agency reported.
The Iranian supreme leader's decision not to address Israel's retaliatory strike shows a drastic gap between this previous rhetoric and the country's disposition moving forward.
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Iranian soldiers march past President Ebrahim Raisi during a military parade as part of a ceremony marking the country's annual Army Day in Tehran. (ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)
Israel and Iran have waged a shadow war for decades, with the war coming to a head over the past few months as Iran has supported Hamas, which carried out the deadliest terror attack in Israel’s history on Oct. 7.
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