Iran says it will respond at 'maximum level' if Israel acts against its interests

NEW DELHI: Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said on Friday that Iran is prepared to react at an immediate and "maximum level" if Israel takes actions against its interests.

"If Israel wants to do another adventurism and acts against the interests of Iran, our next response will be immediate and will be at the maximum level," Amirabdollahian said in an interview with NBC News.

His remarks come in the wake of reports of an Israeli strike on Iran early Friday.

The Israeli military, earlier on Friday morning, launched an attack on Iran in response to an aerial assault on Israel over the past weekend. According to two Israeli and three Iranian officials, the strike seemed to be limited in scope. "The reaction from both Israel and Iran was muted," said the officials.

Officials from Iran reported that the strike targeted a military air base close to Isfahan, a city in central Iran. The attack was executed using small drones. "The drones may have been launched from within Iran," the officials said. They also mentioned that "Iran's radar systems had not detected any unidentified aircraft entering Iranian airspace."

The launching of drones from within Iran would showcase Israel's capability to conduct covert operations in Iranian land. Officials from Iran revealed that another set of small drones was intercepted in Tabriz, approximately 500 miles north of Isfahan.

During the retaliatory strike, Israeli warplanes launched missiles, as confirmed by a Western official and two Iranian officials. "It remains unclear if Iran's defenses were able to intercept the missiles or determine their landing location," the officials said.

Israel's military chose not to provide any comments on the situation. A senior US official disclosed that Israel had informed the United States using various communication channels just before the strike. All officials requested anonymity as they were not permitted to publicly address the issue.

Speaking to journalists during a gathering of foreign ministers from the Group of 7 in Italy, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized that the United States had "not engaged in any offensive activities" in Iran. However, he refrained from providing additional comments and refused to verify the Israeli strike, opting to mention "reported events."

Maj. Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi, the commander in chief of Iran's army, explained that the sounds of explosions in Isfahan on Friday morning were due to "our air defense firing at a suspicious object." He reassured that "no damage" was incurred. Iranian lawmaker Seyed Nezamedin Mousavi criticized the strike as "ridiculous," suggesting that it indicated Israel's acceptance of defeat and satisfaction with these ineffective actions.

World leaders, who had been urging Israel and Iran to de-escalate tensions, reiterated their plea for both countries to "avoid any taking any further action" that could set off a wider war in the Middle East. This call comes at a critical time when Israel is engaged in conflicts with Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon, both "allies of Iran".

(With inputs from agencies)