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Israel Ex-Army chief Ashkenazi to Serve as FM

In this file photo taken on February 21, 2019, former Israeli military chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi delivers a statement in the coastal city of Tel Aviv, ahead of the April 9 general election. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)
In this file photo taken on February 21, 2019, former Israeli military chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi delivers a statement in the coastal city of Tel Aviv, ahead of the April 9 general election. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)
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Israel Ex-Army chief Ashkenazi to Serve as FM

In this file photo taken on February 21, 2019, former Israeli military chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi delivers a statement in the coastal city of Tel Aviv, ahead of the April 9 general election. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)
In this file photo taken on February 21, 2019, former Israeli military chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi delivers a statement in the coastal city of Tel Aviv, ahead of the April 9 general election. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)

Former Israeli army chief Gabi Ashkenazi will be nominated as Israel's next foreign minister, his Blue and White alliance has said.

Ashkenazi held talks with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Jerusalem ahead of his "appointment as minister of foreign affairs this coming Thursday," said Blue and White, which is led by the incoming alternate prime minister, Benny Gantz.

A unity government agreed between Gantz and veteran right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due to be sworn in on Thursday evening, ending more than a year of political deadlock.

Foreign affairs was a key profile secured by Blue and White in coalition talks with Netanyahu's Likud party, along with the defense ministry which will be led by Gantz.

Ashkenazi joined Israel's army in 1972 and fought in the Yom Kippur war a year later.

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Iran Says it Will 'Use All Available Tools' to Respond to Israel's Attack

A screengrab shows an Israeli Air Force plane, which the Israeli army says is departing to carry out strikes on Iran, from a handout video released on October 26, 2024. Israel Army/Handout via REUTERS
A screengrab shows an Israeli Air Force plane, which the Israeli army says is departing to carry out strikes on Iran, from a handout video released on October 26, 2024. Israel Army/Handout via REUTERS
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Iran Says it Will 'Use All Available Tools' to Respond to Israel's Attack

A screengrab shows an Israeli Air Force plane, which the Israeli army says is departing to carry out strikes on Iran, from a handout video released on October 26, 2024. Israel Army/Handout via REUTERS
A screengrab shows an Israeli Air Force plane, which the Israeli army says is departing to carry out strikes on Iran, from a handout video released on October 26, 2024. Israel Army/Handout via REUTERS

Tehran will "use all available tools" to respond to Israel's weekend attack on military targets in Iran, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday.
Iran previously played down Israel's air attack on Saturday, saying it caused only limited damage, while US President Joe Biden called for a halt to escalation that has raised fears of an all-out conflagration in the Middle East.
Speaking at a weekly televised news conference, Baghaei said: "(Iran) will use all available tools to deliver a definite and effective response to the Zionist regime (Israel)".
The nature of Iran's response depends on the nature of the Israeli attack, Baghaei added, without elaborating.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said on Sunday that Iranian officials should determine how best to demonstrate Iran's power to Israel, adding that the Israeli attack should "neither be downplayed nor exaggerated".
Scores of Israeli jets completed three waves of strikes before dawn on Saturday against missile factories and other sites near Tehran and in western Iran, Israel's military said.
The heavily armed arch-enemies have engaged in a cycle of retaliatory moves against each other for months, with Saturday's strike coming after an Iranian missile barrage on Oct. 1, much of which Israel said was downed by its air defenses.
Iran backs Hezbollah, which is engaged in heavy fighting with Israeli forces in Lebanon, and also the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which is battling Israel in the Gaza Strip.