In the latest example of how NATO member Turkey has become closer to Iran, the Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi threatened Israel from Turkey.
He said that Iran would have a proportional response ready for any Israeli attack on Iranian soil. This comes as Israel may retaliate for the October 1 Iranian attack on Israel.
Iran has believed it can wage a multi-front war against Israel and launch ballistic missiles at Israel twice in a year and not receive any pushback.
“We have identified all the targets in Israel, and it will receive a proportionate response to any attack against Iran,” Araghchi said during an interview with Turkish TV Channel NTV.
The Iranian diplomat is in Turkey as part of a regional tour where he is working to influence many countries, including those with peace with Israel, to turn against Israel. He was also in Jordan and Egypt. After he went to Jordan, there was a terror attack against Israel from Jordan on the border.
Iranian media said the Iranian diplomat “told the television network that any Israeli attack on Iran is considered a red line for the Islamic Republic.”
He went on to note, “For us, any attack against Iran means crossing a red line. We will not leave such an attack unanswered. A necessary response will be given to any attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities or any similar attack.”
Threats to the US
He also threatened the US, which is a member of NATO alongside Turkey, during his remarks in Turkey. “For us, the US is allied with the Zionists and if a large-scale war happens in the region, the US will be dragged into it as well, and we do not want this at all,” Araghchi said.
Turkey and Iran appear to be coordinating increasingly in terms of working with Hamas and also Hezbollah. Iran and Turkey back Hamas. Turkey hosts Hamas leaders and members. Iran backs Hezbollah.
With Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar dead, Turkey may increasingly seek to take the reins of Hamas and influence its leadership in terms of the wider war on Israel which Iran is leading in the region.
Turkey is also a close ally of Qatar where the rest of the Hamas leadership lives. Qatar is a major non-NATO ally of the US. Most of the remaining Hamas leaders now live in two countries that are US allies; Turkey and Qatar. Hamas massacred more than 1,000 people on October, the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
