PM Netanyahu vows ‘severe consequences’ if Iran attacks Israel as Gantz calls to topple ayatollah regime

A day after publicly expressing his support for the ongoing anti-regime protests in Iran for the first time, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned the regime of “severe” consequences should it decide to attack Israel.

The prime minister addressed the Knesset plenum, which convened for the monthly “40 signatures” debate on Monday: “We identify with the struggle of the Iranian people and their aspiration for freedom and justice. It is quite possible that we are at a decisive moment – one in which the Iranian people will take their fate into their own hands. I made it clear regarding the military exercises Iran held a few days ago – prior to the visit [to the U.S. last week] – that if we are attacked, the consequences for Iran will be very severe.”

Responding to opposition leaders alleging a deterioration in the relations between them, Netanyahu stressed that he and U.S. President Donald Trump shared “a firm position” regarding the Iranian regime, “which pulls the strings of terror in the Middle East and beyond.”

“We will not allow them to rehabilitate their ballistic missile industry, and certainly will not permit them to renew the nuclear program that we severely damaged during Operation ‘Rising Lion.’ The shared position regarding Iran remains unchanged: zero enrichment capability, removal of all enriched uranium from Iran, and strict and continuous supervision of nuclear facilities,” he asserted.

Netanyahu acknowledged, “As happens even in a family, from time to time, there are differences of approach between us on certain points. They are not major, and we resolve them out of partnership.” 

He also reiterated, “Israel supports the U.S. move in Venezuela. This is a struggle of countries that support freedom and progress against violent states. In the Middle East, Israel is leading the fight against forces of barbarism and evil, and this is highly appreciated in the United States.”

During the same Knesset debate on Monday, Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz demanded that Netanyahu topple the Iranian regime, as the first high-ranking Israeli leader to do so.

“More than half a year after Operation ‘Rising Lion’ – and there is no agreement distancing Iran from nuclear weapons. On the contrary. Today we are facing a formative moment in Iran. We must not blink or hesitate – Israel must prepare for the possibility of another strike in the near future. Netanyahu, this is the time to stop tearing the house apart from within and focus on the enormous challenges, and also the opportunities, from outside. Re-enlist the United States and support the Iranian people against the ayatollahs’ regime – until it yields or collapses.”

Gantz emphasized that Israel “must not miss this opportunity,” telling Netanyahu, “If necessary – return to Washington now. You will have all the backing you need at home. We must not allow the dangerous regime in Tehran to defeat the Iranian people, the Middle East, and the world. It’s not certain that such an opportunity will come again.”

Meanwhile, in Iran, unnamed officials told Reuters that the regime is increasingly worried that Israel and the U.S. could use the protests to launch a strike.

Underlining these concerns, the U.S. State Department's Farsi-language account published a photo of President Trump on Sunday, along with the caption, “Don't play games with President Trump,” written in red text in Farsi.

Another image showed Trump alongside U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio, with the caption, “President Trump is a man of action. If you didn't know, now you know.”

One Iranian official told Reuters that, following the U.S. operations in Venezuela, some individuals within the regime fear that Iran could be “the next victim of Trump's aggressive foreign policy.”

Another official said there are growing concerns that “Trump or Israel might take military action against Iran, like what they did in June.”

Summing up his achievements in his Knesset speech, Netanyahu pointed to the war against Iran.

“The most important decision that the Israeli government under my leadership made was to strike Iran in order to prevent an existential threat. Without existence, all [the opposition’s] claims are worth nothing. In the War of Revival, we made courageous decisions that broke the axis of evil. It is still here, trying to lick its wounds, but it is much weaker.”