The Iranian armed forces launched a fresh round of missile and drone strikes targeting what it called Israeli regime positions in the occupied Palestinian territories, marking the tenth wave of attacks since hostilities began. According to Iranian state media, the strikes were carried out from various regions across the country and triggered air raid sirens in multiple locations within the occupied territories. Initial reports indicated significant damage in some areas, though Israeli authorities had yet to release an official statement at the time of filing.

 Earlier on Tuesday, Iran reportedly used cruise missiles for the first time since the start of its military confrontation with Israel, targeting the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, located in central Israel. Local Iranian sources claimed the strike inflicted considerable damage on the research facility. The escalation comes amid rising tensions between the two arch-foes, following weeks of tit-for-tat attacks in the region. 

In a statement broadcast by Iran’s Press TV, Major General Seyyed Abdolrahim Mousavi, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, said the attacks so far had served as a “deterrent warning,” adding that a more forceful “punitive operation” would soon be carried out. “The operations carried out so far have been a warning for deterrence – the punitive operation will be executed soon,” Mousavi stated. Separately, Tehran also lashed out at the European Union, accusing the bloc of siding with Israel in the ongoing conflict.

The remarks came after EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas expressed concerns about Iran’s nuclear programme. Responding in a post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei accused Kallas of acting as an “apologist” for Israel. “How can you express concern over Iran’s peaceful programme that is under the most robust IAEA inspections and ignore the fact that the Israeli regime has a huge arsenal of nuclear weapons?” Baghaei asked.

 Reiterating Iran’s position, he said Tehran has never pursued nuclear weapons and continues to abide by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), of which it is a signatory. In contrast, Israel is not a signatory and is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons, although it has never confirmed this publicly. Baghaei added, “Iran has never sought nuclear weapons – unlike the aggressor that is the only barrier to a Middle East free from nuclear weapons, a goal Iran has advocated since 1974.”

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)