Iran says it does not want regional escalation but must 'punish' Israel

Iran is not looking to escalate regional tensions but believes it needs to punish Israel to prevent further instability, the foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday, following the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last week.

“Iran seeks to establish stability in the region, but this will only come with punishing the aggressor and creating deterrence against the adventurism of the Zionist regime (Israel),” Nasser Kanaani said, adding that action from Tehran was inevitable.

Kanaani called on the United States to stop supporting Israel, saying the international community had failed in its duty to safeguard stability in the region and should support the “punishment of the aggressor.”

Iran’s foreign ministry called in ambassadors and heads of missions residing in Tehran for a meeting with acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani on Monday to reiterate Iran’s will to respond to Israel.

An emergency meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation will be held on Wednesday at Iran’s request to discuss the killing of Haniyeh and Iran’s response, said Kanaani.

Tehran and Iran-aligned groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah have accused Israel of killing Haniyeh on July 31 in the Iranian capital. His death was one in a series of killings of senior Hamas figures as the war in Gaza between Hamas and Israel nears its 11th month.

Israeli officials have not claimed responsibility.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ top Commander Hossein Salami on Monday repeated the elite group’s threat that Israel “will receive punishment in due time”.