Iran’s President Denounces Israeli Attacks on Tehran’s Regional Allies

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian looks on, on the sidelines of the 79th United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, US, September 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian looks on, on the sidelines of the 79th United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, US, September 24, 2024. (Reuters)
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Iran’s President Denounces Israeli Attacks on Tehran’s Regional Allies

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian looks on, on the sidelines of the 79th United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, US, September 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian looks on, on the sidelines of the 79th United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, US, September 24, 2024. (Reuters)

Israel should not be allowed to attack countries in the Iran-aligned "Axis of Resistance" one after the other, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday.

Israel said it had bombed Houthi targets in Yemen on Sunday, expanding its confrontation with Iran's allies in the region after killing the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Friday in an escalating conflict in Lebanon.

Pezeshkian, in comments carried by state media, said Lebanon should be supported.

"Lebanese fighters should not be left alone in this battle so that the Zionist regime (Israel) does not attack Axis of Resistance countries one after the other," he said.

An Iranian Revolutionary Guards deputy commander, Abbas Nilforoushan, was also killed in the attack that killed the Hezbollah leader in Beirut.

"We cannot accept such actions and they will not be left unanswered. A decisive reaction is necessary," Pezeshkian said.

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani condemned the Israeli strikes in Yemen, saying in a statement that they had targeted "civilian infrastructure" such as a power plant and fuel tanks.

"Iran once again warns about the consequences of the Zionist regime's (Israel) warmongering on regional and international peace and security," spokesperson Nasser Kanaani added.

In another Israeli attack on Yemen in July, fighter jets bombed "dual-use sites such as energy infrastructure" in Hodeidah, with Israel's military spokesperson saying the port was used by the Houthis to receive Iranian weapons shipments.



Harris Reiterates Support for Gaza Ceasefire as Conflict Escalates

Vice President Kamala Harris waves as she departs after speaking at the Tribal Nations Summit in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, Nov. 16, 2021, in Washington. (AP)
Vice President Kamala Harris waves as she departs after speaking at the Tribal Nations Summit in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, Nov. 16, 2021, in Washington. (AP)
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Harris Reiterates Support for Gaza Ceasefire as Conflict Escalates

Vice President Kamala Harris waves as she departs after speaking at the Tribal Nations Summit in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, Nov. 16, 2021, in Washington. (AP)
Vice President Kamala Harris waves as she departs after speaking at the Tribal Nations Summit in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, Nov. 16, 2021, in Washington. (AP)

Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris said Washington will continue to pressure Israel and other players in the Middle East to reach a ceasefire deal in Gaza even as advocates say that the United States has not thus far used its leverage over its ally.

In an interview with CBS news show "60 Minutes," Harris said that diplomatic work with Israel is "an ongoing pursuit," according to a clip released on Sunday.

Harris sidestepped a question in the interview on whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was a "real close ally."

"I think with all due respect the better question is do we have an important alliance between the American people and the Israeli people and the answer to that question is yes," Harris said, Reuters reported.

Harris reiterated Washington's position to support Israel's right to self defense against Iran and Iran-backed militant groups like Palestinian Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah.

"Now the work that we do diplomatically with the leadership of Israel is an ongoing pursuit around making clear our principles," Harris said.

"We're not going to stop in terms of putting that pressure on Israel and in the region including Arab leaders," Harris said.

Washington's occasional condemnation of Israel over the war's civilian death toll has mostly been verbal with no substantive change in policy.

Advocates say Washington has not put pressure on its ally by refusing to put an arms embargo that anti-war protesters around the United States and the world have demanded for months. Protests were also held over the weekend.

President Joe Biden laid out a three-phase ceasefire plan for Gaza on May 31 but a deal between Israel and Hamas has not been reached due to gaps in exchanges of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and Israel's demand that it maintain presence in a corridor on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip bordering Egypt.

The latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict was triggered on Oct. 7, 2023.

Israel has also been separately carrying out a military campaign in Lebanon which in recent days has killed hundreds, wounded thousands and displaced over a million.