Government: Israel’s escalation in the Middle East ‘in no one’s interest’

The government said it is monitoring the unfolding situation in the Middle East “closely” after Israel launched a series of airstrikes targeting military sites in Iran.

The attacks did not target nuclear or oil facilities, two Israeli officials confirmed to the Associated Press.

A government spokesman said on Saturday morning: “We are monitoring this situation closely.”

The No10 spokesman added the government supports “Israel’s right to self-defence and to protect itself in line”, so long as it adheres to “international humanitarian law.”

“Further escalation is in no one’s interest,” the statement said.

Israel confirmed it has completed its wave of airstrikes which said its aircraft “struck missile manufacturing facilities used to produce the missiles that Iran fired at the state of Israel over the last year”.

Iran said the airstrikes targeted military bases in Ilam, Khuzestan and Tehran provinces.

The statement added that the airstrikes caused “limited damage”.

In Syria, the state news agency SANA citing an unnamed military official, reported “barrages of missiles from the direction of the occupied Syrian Golan and Lebanese territories targeted some military sites in the southern and central regions” early on Saturday.

It said that Syria’s air defences had shot some of the missiles down.

In a pre-recorded video statement shared on social media early on Saturday morning, Israeli military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said: “The regime in Iran and its proxies in the region have been relentlessly attacking Israel since October 7 … including direct attacks from Iranian soil,”

“Like every other sovereign country in the world, the State of Israel has the right and the duty to respond.”

Two US officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed to the Associated Press that there was no US involvement in Israel’s operation against Iran.

Israel had vowed to hit Iran hard following a massive Iranian missile barrage on October 1.

The US said in a statement that Israel’s latest attack on Iran should now “complete” the exchange of fire between the two enemy states.

US secretary of defence Lloyd J Austin III spoke with Israel’s minister of defence Yoav Gallant to discuss the Israeli attack on Iran, reaffirming America’s commitment to Israel’s security and right to self-defence.

According to a statement from the US Department of Defence, Mr Austin reiterated its “ironclad” stance to defend US personnel, Israel and its partners across the Middle East “in the face of threats from Iran and Iran-backed terrorist organisations” and America’s “determination to prevent any actor from exploiting tensions or expanding the conflict in the region”.

Press Association – Rachel Vickers-Price