Egypt has condemned Israel’s air attacks on targets inside Iran, blaming the Jewish state for provoking the latest escalation of hostilities in the Middle East.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the offensive was aimed at downgrading Iran’s weaponised nuclear capability.
Several heads of the Islamic republic’s military infrastructure including its army chief of staff were killed in airstrikes by Israeli jets on Friday, prompting retaliatory missile and drone strikes on Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
Two civilians in Tel Aviv have been killed during overnight trading of missiles between Israel and Iran with heavy damage reported on both sides.
As former military foes in the restive region Egypt and Israel have lived in peace since a treaty in the late 1970s, becoming important strategic partners.
However, reacting to the turn of events Egypt’s foreign minister Badr Abdelatty in a phone call on Friday with his Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi condemned what he called unprovoked Israeli aggression.
Abdelatty described the attacks as fueling an extremely dangerous regional escalation, a blatant violation of international law and the UN Charter, and a clear threat to regional and international security and stability.
The Iranian foreign minister, while appreciating Egypt’s stance in condemning Israel described the attack as a clear violation of Iran’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and a gross breach of the UN Charter.
Araghchi added, “The armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran, based on the right to self-defense, will deliver a decisive response to this aggression by the Zionist regime.”
WN/as/APA