Iran’s threats of retaliation against Israel, following a deadly strike against the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria, are raising tension in the Middle East. In this context, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Stéphane Séjourné, “recommends that the French absolutely refrain from visiting in the coming days” in Iran, Israel, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories, his entourage told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
As a concrete sign of the deterioration of the situation in the region, he also requested the “return of the families of diplomatic agents from Tehran” as well as the ban on missions of French civil servants in these countries.
The day before, Thursday, the United States had announced that it was restricting the movements in Israel of members of its diplomatic staff and their families. A US general in charge of the Middle East, Michael Erik Kurilla, is in Israel to discuss with the country’s military leaders “security threats in the region”said Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder.
According to him, this visit, planned before the Iranian threats, was brought forward “due to recent developments”. The German airline Lufthansa also announced that it was extending the suspension of its flights to and from Tehran, “probably until Saturday (inclusive)”due to these tensions.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, assured in a speech broadcast live on the occasion of Eid-el-Fitr that “the evil regime [c’est ainsi qu’il nomme Israël] had made a mistake, [qu’il devait] be punished and will[it] punished »reacting to the strikes attributed to the Israeli air force which destroyed the Iranian consulate in Damascus.
These left sixteen dead, including seven members of the Revolutionary Guard Corps, the ideological army of the Islamic Republic, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. After telephone conversations with his German, Australian and British counterparts, the head of Iranian diplomacy, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, discussed the ” need “ for Tehran to respond to these strikes, while seeking to “avoid tension”.
Joe Biden’s “unwavering” support for Israel
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz responded on his X account, declaring: “If Iran carries out an attack from its territory, Israel will respond and attack Iran. » “We are in the middle of a war in Gaza, which continues at full speed (…)but we are also preparing to face challenges in other theaters” operations, warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday.
The White House said Thursday that it had ” warned “ Iran, while Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke by telephone with his Chinese, Turkish and Saudi counterparts, calling on them to pressure Tehran against any attacks targeting Israel, according to the State Department. “As I told Prime Minister Netanyahu, our commitment to Israel’s security in the face of these threats from Iran and its allies is unwaveringalso said the American President, Joe Biden, before insisting: I repeat: unwavering. We will do everything we can to protect Israel’s security. » Russia and Germany, for their part, called for ” detention “in order to avoid an escalation in the Middle East.
This potential response from Iran to Israeli strikes against its consulate comes as diplomatic discussions around a truce between Israel and Hamas have so far failed to reach a compromise. On Thursday, Israel accused Hamas of ” to turn your back “ to one “very reasonable offer”.
The latest proposal put forward by Qatar, the United States and Egypt initially provides for a six-week truce as well as the release of 42 hostages held in Gaza in exchange for 800 to 900 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel and the return home. they are residents of the north of the territory displaced by the war, according to a Hamas source from Agence France-Presse (AFP).
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Before any agreement, Hamas demands a definitive ceasefire, the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, a significant increase in humanitarian aid, a return of the displaced and an agreement ” serious “ exchange of Palestinian hostages and prisoners. The leader of the Islamist movement, Ismaïl Haniyeh, maintains that the death earlier this week of three of his sons in an Israeli strike in Gaza was not likely to weaken his position in the negotiations.