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Iran President Warns of 'Massive' Response if Israel Launches 'Tiniest Invasion'

(FILES) A woman walks past a banner depicting launching missiles bearing the emblem of Iran in central Tehran on April 15, 2024. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)
(FILES) A woman walks past a banner depicting launching missiles bearing the emblem of Iran in central Tehran on April 15, 2024. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)
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Iran President Warns of 'Massive' Response if Israel Launches 'Tiniest Invasion'

(FILES) A woman walks past a banner depicting launching missiles bearing the emblem of Iran in central Tehran on April 15, 2024. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)
(FILES) A woman walks past a banner depicting launching missiles bearing the emblem of Iran in central Tehran on April 15, 2024. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi warned on Wednesday that the “tiniest invasion” by Israel would bring a “massive and harsh” response, as the region braces for potential Israeli retaliation after Iran’s attack over the weekend.

Raisi spoke at an annual army parade that was relocated to a barracks north of the capital, Tehran, from its usual venue on a highway in the city’s southern outskirts. Iranian authorities gave no explanation for its relocation, and state TV did not broadcast it live, as it has in previous years.

Iran launched hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel over the weekend in response to an Israeli strike on Iran’s embassy compound in Syria on April 1 that killed 12 people, including two Iranian generals.

Israel successfully intercepted nearly all the missiles and drones.

It has vowed to respond, without saying when or how, while its allies have urged all sides to avoid further escalation.

Raisi said Saturday’s attack was a limited one, and that if Iran had wanted to carry out a bigger attack, “nothing would remain from the Zionist regime.” His remarks were carried by the official IRNA news agency.

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China Sends Naval, Air Forces to Shadow US Plane over Taiwan Strait

A ship sails between wind turbines in the Taiwan strait off the coast of Pingtan Island, Fujian province, China, April 10, 2023. (Reuters)
A ship sails between wind turbines in the Taiwan strait off the coast of Pingtan Island, Fujian province, China, April 10, 2023. (Reuters)
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China Sends Naval, Air Forces to Shadow US Plane over Taiwan Strait

A ship sails between wind turbines in the Taiwan strait off the coast of Pingtan Island, Fujian province, China, April 10, 2023. (Reuters)
A ship sails between wind turbines in the Taiwan strait off the coast of Pingtan Island, Fujian province, China, April 10, 2023. (Reuters)

China's military said on Tuesday it deployed naval and air forces to monitor and warn a US Navy patrol aircraft that flew through the sensitive Taiwan Strait, denouncing the United States for trying to "mislead" the international community.

Around once a month, US military ships or aircraft pass through or above the waterway that separates democratically governed Taiwan from China - missions that always anger Beijing.

China claims sovereignty over Taiwan and says it has jurisdiction over the strait. Taiwan and the United States dispute that, saying the strait is an international waterway.

The US Navy's 7th fleet said a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft had flown through the strait "in international airspace", adding that the flight demonstrated the United States' commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.

"By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations," it said in a statement.

China's military criticized the flight as "public hype", adding that it monitored the US aircraft throughout its transit and "effectively" responded to the situation.

"The relevant remarks by the US distort legal principles, confuse public opinion and mislead international perceptions," the military's Eastern Theater Command said in a statement.

"We urge the US side to stop distorting and hyping up and jointly safeguard regional peace and stability."

In April, China's military said it sent fighter jets to monitor and warn a US Navy Poseidon in the Taiwan Strait, a mission that took place just hours after a call between the Chinese and US defense chiefs.