Reports of explosion in Iran – The night at a glance
Published: Friday, Apr 19th 2024, 05:20
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Iranian media have reported an explosion far inland amid dangerous tensions in the Middle East. According to the Fars news agency, the cause of the explosion on Friday night near the metropolis of Isfahan was still unknown. It occurred near the airport of the metropolis. As Fars reported on Telegram, a military base is also located there. According to state media, air defenses were activated in several provinces of the country and operations were suspended at several airports. The US broadcaster ABC News reported, citing a US government representative, that Israeli missiles had hit a target in Iran, which was not initially specified. The state news agency Irna also reported an explosion in the province of Isfahan on Friday night. According to the army, a missile alert was triggered shortly afterwards in northern Israel.
Important facilities of the Iranian arms industry are located in Isfahan. The country's largest nuclear research center is also located in the cultural city. On Sunday night, Iran attacked Israel with hundreds of drones, cruise missiles and rockets. The background to this was an attack, presumably led by Israel, on the Iranian embassy compound in the Syrian capital Damascus, in which two generals of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards were killed at the beginning of April. Israel had announced its intention to respond to the Iranian retaliatory attack.
Iran's foreign minister warns Israel
Iran's Foreign Minister Hussein Amirabdollahian warned Israel in no uncertain terms against military action against his country in the wake of recent events. "In the event that the Israeli regime again turns to adventurism and acts against Iran's interests, our next response will be immediate and at the highest level," he said on Thursday (local time) at the headquarters of the UN Security Council in New York in an interview on the US television channel CNN. Iran hopes that Israel will not repeat "the previous egregious mistake", Amirabdollahian said. He was referring to the airstrike on Iran's embassy compound in Damascus on April 1. Israel had also repelled the Iranian retaliatory attack with the help of partners in the region.
The attack was carried out as a "legitimate defense under international law", Amirabdollahian told the UN Security Council. It is to be feared that a major Israeli counter-attack could lead to a conflagration in the Middle East. It was therefore eagerly awaited how far the G7 foreign ministers meeting on the Italian Mediterranean island of Capri would go in their final declaration this Friday with criticism of Iran and the announcement of additional sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
On Thursday evening, Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) said on ZDF's "heute-journal" that the German government, together with the EU, had significantly tightened the tone towards the leadership in Tehran and had now "launched umpteen sanctions regimes" in response to the major Iranian attack on Israel with hundreds of missiles and drones. She rejected the criticism that sanctions were virtually useless and showed helplessness. On the contrary, they showed countries such as Iran and Russia that their goal of brutally breaking with the peaceful world order would not be tolerated.
USA and Israel discuss offensive in Rafah
According to the White House, high-ranking representatives of the US government have meanwhile outlined their concerns about a military offensive in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip during a meeting with representatives of the Israeli government. The Israeli side has declared its willingness to take these concerns into account. The White House announced on Thursday evening (local time) that the common goal was to defeat the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas in Rafah. The Israelis had also agreed to remain in contact with the US side on the issue. Further consultations are to take place soon.
The USA, as Israel's most important ally, and Germany have repeatedly warned the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against a large-scale offensive in Rafah. The city on the border with Egypt is currently overcrowded with hundreds of thousands of refugees. Before the major Iranian missile and drone attack on Israel at the weekend, Netanyahu had announced that a date had already been set for an offensive. However, Israel's Defense Minister Joav Galant contradicted this statement shortly afterwards.
US veto in Security Council against full UN membership for Palestine
A resolution for the full membership of a Palestinian state in the United Nations has meanwhile failed in the UN Security Council due to a veto by the USA. Twelve member states voted in favor of the resolution in New York on Thursday, with Switzerland and the UK abstaining. Due to the veto of the USA, which is a permanent member of the most powerful UN body, the adoption of the draft resolution failed. The US government is of the opinion that an agreement with Israel on a two-state solution is a prerequisite for the recognition of Palestine's full UN membership.
©Keystone/SDA
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