IRIA News

Iranian administration has become more vocal about its concerns regarding Israel’s attacks in Gaza as the conflict enters its second week. Iranian foreign minister has warned Israel of severe consequences if it plans to launch a ground offensive in Gaza. 

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian visited Iraq and Lebanon last week where he held meetings with his counterparts in Baghdad and Beirut. He discussed strategies to counter Israel’s ground attack on Gaza. 

While speaking at a press conference alongside his Lebanese counterpart in Beirut, Amirabdollahian urged Israel to stop attacking Gaza, warning that the war might expand to other parts of the Middle East. He warned that if Hezbollah joined the battle, that would make Israel suffer “a huge earthquake.”

“If the measures aimed at immediately stopping the Israeli attacks that are killing children in the Gaza Strip end in a deadlock, it is highly probable that many other fronts will be opened. This option is not ruled out and this is becoming increasingly more probable,” he said. “If the Zionist entity [Israel] decides to enter Gaza, the resistance leaders will turn it into a graveyard of the occupation soldiers,” he added. 

Amirabdollahian also traveled to Qatar where he met with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. The two discussed the Gaza crisis and “agreed to continue cooperation”, Hamas said in a statement.While in Lebanon, he met with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, as well as caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and the speaker of parliament. 

Iran has warned that if Israel’s “war crimes and genocide” are not halted immediately, “the situation could spiral out of control & ricochet far-reaching consequences,” Tehran’s mission to the United Nations in New York posted on X.

“If the Israeli apartheid’s war crimes & genocide are not halted immediately, the situation could spiral out of control & ricochet far-reaching consequences – the responsibility of which lies with the UN, the Security Council & the states steering the Council toward a dead end,” the post read.

Israel prepared for “next stage of war”

The development was reported as Israel has mobilized 300,000 reservists ahead of a major ground attackIn Gaza. Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu visited infantrymen outside the Gaza Strip, and a video showed him telling them: “You ready for the next stage? The next stage is coming.”

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Saturday that they were preparing to “expand the offensive” in Gaza, involving a “joint and coordinated attack from the air, sea and land,” adding that the IDF soldiers “are prepared to increase readiness for the next stages of the war, with an emphasis on a significant ground operation”.

עם הלוחמים שלנו בעוטף עזה, בקו החזית. כולנו מוכנים.

(צילום: אבי אוחיון, לע״מ) pic.twitter.com/TiGzHcWhPK

— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) October 14, 2023

Fears of regional escalation

Iran’s warning came as United Stated and its allies are making quick efforts to prevent the war between Israel and Hamas from engulfing the wider region. There are fears that Iran may get involved either directly or indirectly, such as through a militant group in Syria or by backing any Hezbollah decision to fully join the fighting.

Iran as well as many other countries have been urging Israel to stop airstrikes in Gaza and prevent escalation of war by launching a ground offensive. Since October 7 attack by Hamas, Israel has been carpet bombing Gaza resulting in thousands of deaths. More than 2,600 people have died and one million people, nearly half of Gaza’s total population, have been forced from their homes, as the Israeli military prepares for an expected ground invasion.

Israel has gone too far, says China 

While Western countries are reassuring their unwavering support for the State of Israel, several countries, including China, are opposing Israel for its attacks on civilians in Gaza. China’s foreign minister said Saturday that Israel has gone too far in responding to last week’s invasion by Hamas. 

While speaking to Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud on a phone call, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Israel’s actions have extended beyond self-defense.According to China’s state-owned media outlet, Beijing “is in intensive communication with all parties to push for a ceasefire and an end to the fighting, he said, adding that the pressing task is to ensure the safety of civilians, open humanitarian corridors for aid as soon as possible, and protect the basic needs of the people in Gaza.”

Wang Yi also held a phone call with the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken Saturday. The U.S. State Department stated that the two sides noted the importance of maintaining open channels of communication and responsibly managing relations amid the rising security crisis in the Middle East. The two top diplomats also called for an immediate cessation of violence and the release of all hostages.

Egypt calls Israel’s response “collective punishment”

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi also condemned Israel’s retaliatory strikes on Gaza. “The reaction went beyond the right to self-defense, turning into collective punishment for 2.3 million people in Gaza,” he said.

Egyptian president met U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Cairo to discuss diplomatic efforts to get humanitarian aid into Gaza through Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, the only way out. Egyptian Red Crescent said that al least eight planes laden with aid from Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Tunisia, and the World Health Organization (WHO) in Sinai’s Al Arish airport and a convoy of more than 100 trucks is awaiting permission to enter Gaza.