Iran takes aim and aims, for now in words, at the military heart of Israel an upward game that risks plunging the Middle East into an uncontrollable spiral despite the rain of sanctions from the United States, Great Britain and the European Union which seeks to reduce the regime of the ayatollahs to more lenient advice.
«The location of the Zionist enemy's nuclear centers has been defined and we have at our disposal the necessary information on all targets. In response to any hypothetical action they might take, we will be ready to launch powerful missiles to destroy these targets”: the warning came from the general Ahmad Haqtalab, commander of the Pasdaran nuclear defense and security unit, together with the threat to “reconsider” Tehran's nuclear policy if “Israel threatens Iranian nuclear facilities”.
Later, at the UN Security Council, the Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian he got straight to the point: “In the event of further attacks by the Israeli regime, Iran would not hesitate even for a moment in a response that would make it regret its actions.” Bowls stopped for now therefore, but firing positions ready, waiting for the announced Israeli counterattack which, according to American sources, should not take place before the end of the Jewish Passover, which begins on April 22nd and ends on the 29th. And on which underground diplomacy and appeals for prudence intersect.
After the rumors according to which the White House would have given Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the green light to an operation in Rafah in exchange for not attacking Iran in retaliation for last weekend's attack and the related denials, the announcement of new sanctions against Tehran has certainly arrived. In the crosshairs are the deadly drones used against Israel and which Iran also supplies to Russia to attack Ukraine. More precisely, the USA and Great Britain, in a joint initiative, have identified 16 individuals and some companies that allow their production through components and engines that power the Shahed variants. Under examination, according to the spokesperson for the US National Security Council John Kirby, there are options for other sanctions as well. The European Council meeting in Brussels also focused on the production of drones.
“The idea is to target companies that produce drones and missiles,” the president said Charles Michel while a united stance also came from the G7 of Foreign Ministers in Capri. “We are in favor of the possibility of imposing sanctions on Iran for the attack on Israel,” the Foreign Minister said Antonio Tajani, specifying that the G7 “invites everyone to be cautious” and reiterating that “we are friends of Israel, we support it but we want a de-escalation in that area”. Again from Capri, British sources were keen to point out that the telephone line with Tehran « it must remain open, because we must continue to dialogue.”
The Islamic Republic, through the embassy in London, had sent a message to the G7 asking them not to adopt “non-constructive measures”. In a sort of calculated equidistance, the Turkish president intervened to reaffirm his skills as a great mediator Recep Tayyip Erdogan who from Ankara called for a lasting ceasefire in Gaza and a two-state solution underlining that if “Western countries can react with one voice against Iran's retaliation, the same actors must now say enough to Israel, with one voice.” His Foreign Minister will support him Hakan Fidan who from Doha, after a meeting with the head of the political office of Hamas Ismail Hanyehreiterated the organization's willingness to lay down its arms in the event that a Palestinian state is recognized within the 1967 borders. Exactly on the day The United Nations Security Council voted on a resolution proposed by Algeria on behalf of the Arab countries for the full admission of Palestine. An important count among the members of the most important body of the UN but which clashed with the veto of the United States. From the Glass Palace, once again, the general secretary Antonio Guterres warned of the risk of regional conflict and reiterated that the Israeli offensive in Gaza has created a “hellish landscape” in which, Hamas reported, 33,970 people have been killed so far.