Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said its missile strike on Israel was in defense of Iran’s interests and citizens, warning on X that the operation on Tuesday was “only a portion of our power.”
“This action was in defense of the interests and citizens of Iran. To let (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu know that Iran is not belligerent, but it stands firmly against any threat,” he wrote. “Do not enter into a conflict with Iran.”
In a message posted on X, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned in Hebrew that the “blows” against Israel would become “stronger and more painful.”
“With God’s help, the blows of the uprising front will become stronger and more painful on the worn and rotting body of the Zionist regime,” he said.
The barrage comes after Israel launched a ground operation across its northern border into Lebanon targeting the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. Israel killed Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah in an airstrike last Friday and decimated the leadership of the most powerful paramilitary force in the Middle East — ratcheting up fears of a new regional war.
