Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Thursday that Israel foiled some 50 Iranian attacks in recent years, as several of them were at the last moment. The minister is on an official visit to Azerbaijan and told reporters that Tehran had not abandoned its objective of entrenchment in Syria.
Read more:
"Some of the attacks were almost ready to be executed and were thwarted at the last moment due to close cooperation with many countries," Gallant said. "Iran stands at the center of the security agenda and the ministry allocated billions from the multi-year budget to prepare for any scenario in which Iran obtains military nuclear weapons."
During his visit, Gallant met with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev and discussed "regional developments and ways to strengthen strategic ties between the countries and engage in joint security challenges."
2 View gallery
Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant
(Photo: Defense Ministry)
He further stated that "the struggle is ongoing, as it carries Israel to something much more significant - preventing dangerous nuclear weapons from being in the hands of irresponsible Iran." Gallant then addressed the recent counterterrorism offensive in the West Bank city of Jenin. "We identified an increase in the quality and amount of weaponry, helped by Iran's funding, dissemination of knowledge, and training in combat methods. In our recent operation, we proved that we operate aggressively and proactively wherever there is terrorism," he said.
"In our operation in Jenin, we changed the mindset and concentrated our efforts on dealing with the terrorist infrastructure and available weaponry in the area. Now, the Palestinian Authority has an opportunity to do what is expected of it. However, wherever action is needed, we will not hesitate," he said.