Israel’s Gantz Calls for International Military Action Against Iran

 

The Israelis named Iranian commanders they claim were responsible for an attack on an Israeli-linked ship, but Iran denies responsibility

by Dave DeCamp 

Posted onAugust 4, 2021CategoriesNewsTagsIran, Israel

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Wednesday urged representatives of UN Security Council members that the international community should take military action against Iran over last week’s drone attack on an Israeli-linked ship.

“Now is the time for deeds — words are not enough. It is time for diplomatic, economic, and even military deeds — otherwise the attacks will continue,” Gantz said during the meeting, which was held in Jerusalem.

Israeli officials have been threatening Iran all week over the deadly drone attack on the Japanese-owned tanker Mercer Street, which is operated by a company owned by an Israeli billionaire. Iran has dismissed the allegations that it was responsible as “baseless,” but the US has accepted the Israeli narrative and is also threatening action against the Islamic Republic.

The attack killed a British security guard on the vessel and a Romanian crew member, and the UK has also blamed Iran for the incident. British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said Wednesday that the UK had written a letter to the UN Security Council calling for the body to take action against Iran.

During the meeting in Jerusalem, Gantz and Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid named Iranian commanders they claim were behind the drone attack. Lapid also called for collective action against Iran. “The world should act now,” he said.

On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said Israel was working to “enlist the whole world” against Iran but warned Israel was also ready to “act alone.” Israel has a long history of attacking Iran covertly, but it is usually done covertly, and Israeli officials rarely publicly acknowledge such attacks.

https://news.antiwar.com/2021/08/04/israels-gantz-calls-for-international-military-action-against-iran/