Iran-Israel live updates: Israeli Air Force ready for Iran strike — media

Monday, April 15, 2024

1906 GMT — Israel’s Air Force has completed preparations for a possible attack on Iran, according to local media.

The Israeli public broadcaster KAN said Tel Aviv is planning a "limited response" that would allow Iran to contain it, to avoid an all-out war.

On the nature of the planned Israeli attack, KAN said the Israeli response could be assassinations inside Iran or a wide-scale cyberattack.

Latest updates 👇

1850 GMT — Those killed in Syria strike engaged in 'terrorism against Israel': army

Israel's army has said that those killed in a strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus had engaged in "terrorism against Israel", in the first official comment on the April 1 attack.

"To the best of my knowledge, those who were killed in Damascus were members of the Quds Force. These were people who engaged in terrorism against the State of Israel," military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said when asked at a briefing about the strike.

"Among these terrorist operatives, there were Hezbollah members and Iranian helpers. There was not a single diplomat there as far as I know. I don't know of any civilian who was killed in this attack," he said.

1823 GMT — Israel army chief tells soldiers Iran attack 'will be met with response'

Israel's army chief General Herzi Halevi, addressing troops at a military base hit in Iran's unprecedented strike, has said Israel will respond.

"This launch of so many (Iranian) missiles, cruise missiles, and UAVs into the territory of the State of Israel will be met with a response," Halevi said when he visited Nevatim base in the country's south, according to a statement issued by the army.

1814 GMT — Canada tells Israel that conflict with Iran must not spread to region

Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, speaking after Israel fended off Iranian drone and missile strikes, has said she had told her Israeli counterpart that the conflict must not spread to the region.

"We are clearly pushing for de-escalation and we need to make sure that the conflict doesn't extend to the region. So that is why I've been clear to my counterpart in Israel - please take the win, and make sure that we can work together to bring back peace in the region," she told reporters in Ottawa.

1750 GMT — Iran attack on Israel was 'spectacular' failure: US

Iran's massive aerial attack on Israel was a "spectacular and embarrassing failure", the White House has said, after US forces helped shoot down most of the missiles and drones fired by Tehran.

"We've seen reporting that the Iranians meant to fail, and this spectacular and embarrassing failure was all by design," National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told a briefing. "All of this is categorically false."

1639 GMT — Tehran will respond swiftly to Israeli attack: FM

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has vowed a "stronger" and "extensive" response to any Israeli attack.

Speaking during a phone conversation with his British counterpart David Cameron, Amir-Abdollahian said Tehran does not seek an escalation of tensions in the region, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

If Israel resorts to another military attack, the Iranian response will be "swifter, stronger and extensive," he added.

1604 GMT — Israel has no choice but to respond to Iran's attack, defence minister tells US counterpart

Israel has no choice but to respond to the weekend’s Iranian attack, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant has told his US counterpart Lloyd Austin.

The news was reported by the Israeli news portal Walla, without providing any further details.

Israel’s War Cabinet held a meeting on Monday to discuss Israel’s response to Iran’s drone and missile attack against Israel on Saturday.

1547 GMT — Belgium summons Iran envoy over attack on Israel

Belgium has joined other EU countries in summoning Iran's ambassador to complain about Tehran's drone and missile attack on Israel and urge restraint.

"The Iranian Ambassador has just been summoned. Belgium strongly condemns Iran's attack on Israel," Belgium's foreign minister Hadja Lahbib wrote on X.

"We call on all parties to exercise the greatest restraint. A regional escalation is to be avoided."

1544 GMT — Israel aims to hurt Iran, avoid all-out war, Channel 12 reports

Israel's war cabinet discussed a range of options at its meeting, with the intention of hurting Iran for its drone and missile attack on Israel but without causing an all-out war, Israel's Channel 12 news has reported.

In an unsourced report, the broadcaster said Israel's intention was to embark on action coordinated with the United States, which has said it would not join Israel in any direct attack on Iran.

1525 GMT — Iran's attack on Israel 'legitimate': Malaysia

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has said that Iran's unprecedented missile and drone attack on Israel two days ago was "legitimate".

The leader of Muslim-majority Malaysia urged Israel "not to take any further retaliation that will aggravate tensions in the Middle East".

"The launching of the drones by Iran is a legitimate act following the barbarous attack by the Israeli Zionist regime against the Iranian embassy in Damascus," Anwar said in a statement, referring to the deadly April 1 strike on Tehran's consulate in the Syrian capital that has been widely blamed on Israel.

1431 GMT — Czechs summon Iranian ambassador over Israel attack

The Czech Republic has summoned the Iranian ambassador following Iran's missile and drone attack on Israel, Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said.

"I have decided today to summon the Iranian ambassador. The Czech diplomacy made it clear to Iran that it has crossed all the lines by attacking Israel," Lipavsky said on X, formerly Twitter.

"The Iranian regime is endangering the security situation in the region," he added.

1430 GMT — US doesn't want 'escalation' with Iran but will defend Israel: Blinken

The United States does not want to see any escalation in hostilities with Iran, but will continue to defend Israel after it was attacked by Tehran, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said.

"We don't seek escalation, but we'll continue to support the defence of Israel and to protect our personnel in the region," Blinken said at the start of a meeting with Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Mohammed Ali Tamim.

1311 GMT — Tel Aviv may retaliate against Tehran: Finland

Finland's president has warned that based on recent statements, Tel Aviv is likely to carry out some kind of counterattack after Iran's attack on Israel over the weekend.

Alexander Stubb emphasised the critical importance of de-escalation "in the current tense situation in the Middle East" at a press conference in Helsinki after meeting with the Ministerial Committee on Foreign and Security Policy (TP-UTVA) earlier that morning.

The president however said that one positive aspect was that China, the US, the EU and others were making every effort to avoid such a retaliatory strike, according to the country’s national broadcaster Yle.

On Sunday, Stubb and Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo condemned the attack, calling on "all parties to show restraint."

"Finland and the EU are making efforts to influence all parties to refrain from actions that further undermine regional security. Finland will maintain active contact with the countries in the region," the press release stated.

1145 GMT — UK dismisses Iran assertion it gave warning before attacking Israel

Britain rejects an assertion by Iran that it provided advance notice before attacking Israel, a spokesperson for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said on Sunday that Iran gave neighbouring countries and Israel's ally the United States 72 hours' notice it would launch the strikes.

"I would reject that characterisation," Sunak's spokesperson told reporters. "And more broadly we condemn in the strongest possible terms their direct attack against Israel."

1115 GMT — Israel shot down Iranian salvo 'shoulder-to-shoulder' with US: official

Israel's repelling of a massive Iranian drone and missile salvo was fully coordinated with the Pentagon, which had a US operational liaison officer in the control room of the Arrow ballistic air defence system, a senior Israeli official has said.

The United States, along with Britain, France and Jordan, helped Israel intercept the bulk of the weekend barrage and potentially stave off escalation between the regional enemies.

At least half of the hundreds of pilotless one-way planes, cruise missiles and surface-to-surface missiles, which Israel said carried a total of 60 tonnes of explosives, were shot down by Israeli warplanes and aerial shields, according to local media.

Israeli officials said much of the work was done by their Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 high-altitude defence systems, which were developed jointly with the Pentagon and Boeing Co.

1103 GMT — Germany summons Iranian ambassador: official

Germany has summoned the Iranian ambassador, a day after Tehran summoned the German, French and British envoys over their countries' response to Iran's missile and drone attack on Israel.

"I can inform you that the Iranian ambassador has been summoned to the foreign ministry this morning and that the talks are currently taking place," a spokesperson for the ministry told a regular government press conference, without specifying what issue would be raised.

1039 GMT — Iran says seized Israel-linked ship broke maritime law

Iran has said that the Israel-linked ship it seized on the weekend had violated international maritime law and was undergoing "necessary investigations".

"The ship was directed into the territorial waters of Iran because it violated international maritime laws," foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said.

The ship's crew failed to "adequately respond to questions from Iranian authorities," he told a briefing.

0921 GMT — Russia slams call to condemn Iran air strikes

Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman slammed the call of the Israeli ambassador to Moscow to condemn Iran’s overnight missile and drone attack on Israel over the weekend.

“Simona (Halperin), remind me when Israel condemned at least one strike by the Kiev regime on Russian regions? Don't remember? Me too,” Maria Zakharova said in a statement on Telegram on Sunday.

Zakharova went on to express that she recalls regular statements by Israeli officials in support of Kiev's "actions" amid the Russia-Ukraine war, which entered its third year two months ago.

Earlier in the day, Halperin told the Russian state news agency RIA that Israel expected Moscow to condemn Iran's attack on Israel and hoped it would oppose Tehran’s attempts to “destabilise the region.”

Commenting on the attack, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Moscow is “extremely concerned” about another “dangerous escalation” in the Middle East. It called on all parties involved to exercise restraint and urged countries to resolve existing regional issues through political and diplomatic means.

0002 GMT — US military destroyed 80 drones, 6 missiles launched from Iran, Yemen, US Centcom says

US forces, supported by US European Command destroyers, on Saturday and Sunday destroyed more than 80 one-way attack drones and at least six ballistic missiles aimed at Israel from Iran and Yemen, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

This includes a ballistic missile on its launcher vehicle and seven UAVs destroyed on the ground prior to their launch in areas controlled by Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen, CENTCOM said in a post on X.

0000 GMT — US Speaker Johnson says will offer Israel aid bill in coming days

US House Speaker Mike Johnson said he aims to advance war-time aid to Israel this week following Iran's weekend attack, but did not clarify whether Ukraine funding would be part of the package.

American assistance for both nations has languished amid political bickering in Congress, with Johnson - an ally of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump - blocking an earlier $95 billion in aid sought by President Joe Biden for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan which had passed the Senate.

"The House Republicans and the Republican Party understand the necessity of standing with Israel. We're going to try again this week, and the details of that package are being put together right now," Johnson told Fox show "Sunday Morning Futures."

"We're looking at the options on all these supplemental issues."

2336 GMT — US calls on UN Security Council to condemn Iran's attacks

The US urged the UN Security Council to "unequivocally" condemn Iran's attacks on Israel while Russia and Iran slammed the "hypocritical behaviour" and "double standards" of Western countries.

"The Security Council has an obligation to not let Iran’s actions go unanswered," US Ambassador Robert Wood told the emergency session , which was convened at the request of Israel to discuss the situation in the Middle East following Iran's retaliatory response against Israel for its attack on its consular building in Damascus, Syria on April 1.

Noting that Iran has violated its international obligations, Wood said the US will explore additional measures to hold it accountable at the UN in the coming days.

"More immediately, the Security Council must unequivocally condemn Iran’s aggressive actions and call for Iran and its partners and proxies to cease their attacks," he said.

2210 GMT — At UN, Israel urges 'all possible sanctions' against Iran

Israel's UN envoy urged the Security Council to impose "all possible sanctions" against Iran after Tehran's unprecedented attack against Israel.

"Today the council must take action (and) condemn Iran for their terror," Ambassador Gilad Erdan told the body, calling on countries to "impose all possible sanctions on Iran before it's too late."

2200 GMT — Iran tells UN Israel attack was 'self-defence'

Iran's United Nations envoy told the Security Council that Tehran was exercising its "inherent right to self-defence" in its unprecedented attack on Israel.

"The Security Council... failed in its duty to maintain international peace and security" after Israel's apparent strike on an Iranian consulate in Damascus earlier this month, Amir Saeid Iravani said.

Therefore, Tehran "had no choice" but to respond, he said, adding that his country does "not seek escalation or war," but will respond to any "threat or aggression."

For our live updates from Sunday, April 14, click here.