Iran has again threatened to destroy Israel, specifically promising that their next missile attack will obliterate major cities Tel Aviv and Haifa. And this time, Israel—and the United States—hit back with strong rhetoric of their own.
For the third time in a week, a senior Iranian military official warned of a third wave of Iranian missile attacks against Israel. The latest comments came from Major General Ebrahim Jabbari, a senior advisor in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC), who was quoted by IRNA in an article translated by Google saying: “Operation True Promise 3 will be carried out at the right time, to the extent and scope of destroying Israel and plowing up Tel Aviv and Haifa.”
In response to this threat, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar responded on X (formerly Twitter) by saying, “If the Jewish people have learned anything from history, it is this: if your enemy says his goal is to annihilate you—believe him. We are ready.”
Iran launched two massive missile attacks against Israel in 2024, with the multifaceted missile defense network of Israel, the Untied States, and regional allies significantly limiting the damage and casualties. Israel retaliated after both attacks but stopped short of destroying Iran’s nuclear program.
At least one American legislator thinks that program may be next. US Senator Lindsey Graham posted to X in response to reports of Iranian threats against Israel: “To the religious Nazi regime in Iran: Don’t get overly attached to your nuclear weapons program.”
The ongoing threat from Iran continues to loom in the background even as the US and Israel continue to emphasize that Tehran cannot be allowed to get nuclear weapons. When US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Israel last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told him in comments published by Israel: “Israel and America stand shoulder-to-shoulder in countering the threat of Iran. We agreed that the ayatollahs must not have nuclear weapons and we also agreed that Iran’s aggression in the region has to be rolled back.
“Over the last 16 months, Israel has dealt a mighty blow to Iran’s terror axis. Under the strong leadership of President [Donald] Trump, and with your unflinching support, I have no doubt that we can and will finish the job.”
Rubio has expressed similar views. On Thursday, in an interview on Catherine Herridge Reports that was republished on the State Department website, Rubio said that while he wasn’t going to get into the details around how the US could prevent a nuclear Iran, he said he wanted to “make it abundantly clear” that Iran “can never” have nuclear weapons.
When asked about US President Trump’s threat to destroy Iran should the American leader be assassinated by Iran, Rubio said, “We’re not going to get into tactics or options available to the United States. Suffice it to say that if the United States chose to do so, it could bring about the end of the Iranian regime. But the President is a peacemaker. He’d prefer to avoid that and avoid those circumstances.
“But I don’t think anyone should be confused here. Under Donal Trump there is not going to be a nuclear Iran.”
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.themideastupdate.com, February 23, 2025)