Tehran denies involvement in Hamas attacks
‘Crushing response’ vowed to any foolish move against Iran
Iran has rejected the accusations that Tehran was involved in the Palestinian surprise attack against Israel, adding that the large-scale operation was carried out "solely" by Palestine.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations said on Sunday that Tehran was not involved in the Saturday attacks launched by members of Hamas and other Gaza-based resistance fighters against Israel, which resulted in the death of at least 800 Israelis and the capture of dozens more until Monday.
“Iran unwaveringly stands in solidarity with Palestine; however, It is important to note that Iran is not involved in Palestine’s response as these actions are solely determined by the Palestinians themselves,” Iran’s UN mission said in a statement.
'Legitimate defense'
The mission also called the attack a wholly legitimate defense, saying the resolute measures taken by Palestine constitute “a completely legitimate response to seven decades of oppressive occupation and the numerous atrocities committed by the Israeli regime”.
Meanwhile, dismissing the threats against Iran, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani warned that any “foolish move” would draw Iran’s devastating response.
In the aftermath of the attack, senior US officials maintained that it was too early to determine whether Iran had any direct role in planning and supporting Hamas’ attack. “It is early” and a matter of direct interest to determine, one senior official said, CNN reported.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Sunday that he had “not yet seen evidence that Iran directed or was behind this particular attack, but there’s certainly a long relationship”.
However, US Republican Senator Lindsey Graham on X accused Tehran of being behind the attack, writing that “Iran should pay dearly for any escalation directed at Israel”.
The American lawmaker added that an attack by Hezbollah “would be devastating to Israeli defense systems”. “If such an attack occurs, Israel and the United States should go after the Iranian oil refineries and oil infrastructure — which is the lifeblood of the Iranian economy.”
Kanaani said accusations of Iran’s involvement come in the wake of Israel’s humiliating defeat and are meant to justify Washington’s and its Western allies’ support for the misadventures of the Tel Aviv regime.
He underscored that the hostile claims against Iran and the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement will not reduce the accountability of the UK and the US for the 75-year-old-long crimes that Israel has been perpetrating against Palestinians and other nations in the West Asia region.
He warned of attempts by Israel’s supporters, chief among them the US, to swap the oppressor and the oppressed through their propaganda war.
They are turning a blind eye to the crimes of the occupying regime while leveling accusations against the innocent people of Palestine, he said.
The Hamas assault on Saturday, the biggest in decades, coincided with US-backed moves to push Saudi Arabia towards normalizing ties with Israel in return for a defence deal between Washington and Riyadh.
Hamas fighters’ attack on Israeli towns on Saturday was the deadliest such incursion since Egypt and Syria’s attacks on Israel in the Yom Kippur War 50 years ago and has threatened to ignite another conflagration in the long-running conflict.
Israel stepped up its ferocious pounding of the besieged Gaza Strip as its troops struggled to clear out Hamas fighters more than two days after they burst across the fence from Gaza and overran Israeli bases.
Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin said he has ordered the Ford carrier strike group to sail to the Eastern Mediterranean to be ready to assist Israel.
Israeli warplanes bombed a densely populated neighborhood at the Jabalia refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
In Gaza, more than 73,000 are sheltering in schools, some of which have been designated emergency shelters.
The Health Ministry in the Palestinian enclave said the death toll in the Gaza Strip rose to 560 on Monday, as Israel pounded Hamas targets for the third consecutive day.
The ministry also urged the international community to exert pressure on Israel to resume electricity supply to the besieged strip as a power outage has left hospitals and medical facilities in a tight spot, amid a shortage of medicines and medical equipment.
Prisoner swap
Qatar is leading the talks to swap Hamas-held prisoners in exchange for the release of 36 Palestinian women and children from Israel’s prisons, a source told Reuters.
The negotiations, which Qatar has been conducting in coordination with the United States since Saturday night, are “moving positively” said the source, who has been briefed on the talks. But there are no signs of breakthroughs as both sides dig in.
A Hamas member said that the group is not open to negotiating a prisoner exchange with Israel during hostilities, AFP reported.
The military wing of the Hamas resistance movement said late Sunday that its fighters have managed to capture a new group of Israeli forces, as “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm” continues against the occupying regime.