Iran’s military chief said the nighttime attack “achieved all its objectives,” adding that US bases would be threatened if it supported Israeli retaliation.
Iran has warned Israel of a major attack on its territory if it retaliates against Tehran’s nightly drone and missile attacks, adding that the United States should not support Israeli military action.
“If the Zionist regime [Israel] Or if his supporters engage in reckless behavior, they will receive a decisive and much stronger response,” Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said in a statement on Sunday.
Raisi’s statement follows a similar warning from Iran’s military chief, Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, who told state television that Israel expects a “much larger” response “should it take retaliatory measures against Iran.”
Bagheri said the Iranian attack on Israel had “achieved all its objectives and, in our view, the operation has ended and we have no intention of continuing it.”
Earlier on Sunday, he warned the US that any support for Israeli retaliation would result in its bases being attacked by Iran.
The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Hossein Salami, also warned that Tehran would retaliate against any Israeli attack on its interests, officials or citizens.
“From now on, every time Israel attacks Iranian interests, we will attack from Iran.”
Meanwhile, Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations justified Tehran’s response to Israel’s “aggression” as a “legitimate defense” in line with the UN Charter.
“The matter can be considered closed. However, if the Israeli regime makes another mistake, Iran’s reaction will be much harsher,” it said in a statement.
It added that the US should “stay away” from the conflict as it is an issue between Iran and Israel.
Al Jazeera’s Dorsa Jabbari, reporting from Tehran, said the Iranian attacks were viewed by Iranian nationals as a “historic event in the country.”
“For over 40 years, Iran has been talking about going to war with Israel as one of its main opponents,” she said, adding that celebrations had taken place in several Iranian cities over the airstrikes.
“Significant response”
Tehran’s attacks late Saturday came after a suspected Israeli airstrike on the embassy compound in Damascus on April 1 killed IRGC members, raising the risk of a wider regional conflict.
On Sunday, Israel reported minor damage and reopened its airspace after the unprecedented direct attack.
The Israeli military said forces had shot down more than 99 percent of Iran’s drones and missiles and were discussing further options.
In a brief statement to X, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote: “We have intercepted. We blocked. Together we will win.”
Meanwhile, Israel’s defense chief Yoav Gallant warned in a televised statement that the confrontation with Iran is “not over yet.”
Israel’s Channel 12 television quoted an unnamed Israeli official as saying there would be a “significant response” to the attack.
Israel’s chief military spokesman, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, also called Iran’s actions “very serious” and said in a televised news conference that it was “pushing the region toward escalation.”
Despite the rhetoric, an Iranian analyst said the statements from Iran provide an opportunity for opposing parties to retreat from a major confrontation.
Farzan Sabet, a senior researcher at the Geneva-based Global Governance Center, said Israel had “a potential way out” by making a “largely symbolic and non-lethal or only mildly lethal response.”
But given Israel’s “historically low threat tolerance and practice of disproportionate responses,” further retaliation and escalations are to be expected, he said in an analysis published on X.