Iranian FM: 'Strike' was more like 'toys our children play with'

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: NBC News
20 Apr 2024 13:41
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Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian criticises Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of negotiations following his failure to meet his military objectives in the genocidal war he launched against the Gaza Strip.

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian arrives for a meeting with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at United Nations headquarters, on April 18, 2024. (AP)

"What happened last night was not a strike," said Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in an interview with NBC News earlier on Friday, before adding, "They were more like toys that our children play with – not drones."

During the interview, which took place in New York where the FM is attending a UN Security Council session, Amir-Abdollahian explained "As long as there is no new adventurism by Israel against our interests, then we are not going to have any new reactions."

However, the FM stressed, that if Tel Aviv "takes decisive action against my country and this is proven to us, our response will be immediate and to the maximum, and will cause them to regret it."

Regarding the Iranian retaliation, Amir-Abdollahian said it was "a warning" noting that Tehran "could have hit Haifa and Tel Aviv...We could have also targeted all the economic ports of Israel."

However, the FM emphasized, "our red line was civilians...we only had a military purpose."

On October 7 and Gaza

Amir-Abdollahian reiterated what Iran previously stressed, which is that Tehran had no prior knowledge of Hamas' Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, stressing that Hamas stands as a liberation movement opposed to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land.

Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to the Iranian FM, is "unhinged" and has stalled all negotiations about the prisoner exchange by making excessive demands to compensate for the IOF's failure to meet its objectives in the ongoing genocidal war in Gaza.

Amir-Abdollahian explained that Tel Aviv's has "not been able to destroy Hamas or to arrest the leaders inside Gaza, has not been able to disarm Hamas, has not been able to destroy the weapons and equipment."

As a result, the Iranian FM noted, "Israel" had "to resort to killing women and children," adding "and now at the negotiating table, they are trying to get what they could not get on the ground."

Hamas is "ready to go ahead with the release of the prisoners within the format of a humanitarian political package encompassing everything," Amir-abdollahian said, before he added, "I think now is a good time, there is a good chance for this."

'What strike?' Iran's delegation says when asked about Isfahan attack

A video circulating on social media showed a reporter from Voice of America asking Amir-Abdollahian about his stance on the drone attack that targeted the Iranian city of Isfahan earlier on Friday and whether Iran would retaliate.

The video shows Amir-Abdollahian refraining from answering, but a member of his delegation said "What strike?" with a snort.

A reporter asked Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian as he was exiting the United Nations Security Council meeting about his opinion on the Israeli strike on #Isfahan, asking if #Tehran would retaliate, to which a member of the Iranian delegation accompanying the… pic.twitter.com/pvSZvy4dcY
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) April 19, 2024

Iran's Space Agency confirmed that several drones, of unspecified origin, were downed over Iranian airspace, noting that no missile attack on Iran occurred on Friday.

The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) said that short-range and medium-range Iranian air defence batteries repelled the attack.

Iran's Fars News Agency said that an army radar at an Isfahan military base was one of the possible targets, noting that only windows on several office buildings were damaged as a result of the attack.