Israel-Iran News Highlight: Israeli army chief vows ‘response' to Iran's attack

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday warned that the U.S. intends to hit Iran with new sanctions in coming days over its unprecedented attack on Israel, and these actions could seek to reduce Iran's capacity to export oil.

 "With respect to sanctions, I fully expect that we will take additional sanctions action against Iran in the coming days," Yellen said told a news conference on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank spring meetings in Washington. 

"We don't preview our sanctions tools. But in discussions I've had, all options to disrupt terrorist financing of Iran continue to be on the table," Yellen added.

Air India on Tuesday said some of its west-bound flights are planned along a safe alternative route on a day when some of its flights used the Iranian airspace. 

Flight tracking websites on Tuesday showed that at least three Air India flights used the Iranian airspace amid the Middle East crisis. 

Responding to a PTI query in this regard, an Air India spokesperson said, "as part of our continual operational risk assessment some of our west-bound flights are planned along a safe alternative route which is used by many other airlines". 

A source in the know said the flight path was a safe corridor in the Iranian airspace. 

"Air India will continue to monitor flight operations in the Middle East in close consultation with various safety and security organisations and regulatory bodies," the spokesperson said in a statement.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned Tuesday of potential global economic damage from rising tensions in the Middle East and pledged that the US and its allies won't hesitate to use their sanctions powers to address Iran's "malign and destabilizing activity” in the region. 

She made her remarks ahead of this week's spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, saying Iran's weekend missile attack on Israel “underscores the importance of Treasury's work to use our economic tools to counter Iran's malign activity.” 

She added: “From this weekend's attack to the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, Iran's actions threaten the region's stability and could cause economic spillovers.”

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on Tuesday called for an immediate cease-fire and uninterrupted delivery of humanitarian aid in Gaza. Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, on a visit to Islamabad, said that international efforts toward a cease-fire between Israel and the militant group Hamas have been "wholly insufficient.” “We are now actively discussing the potential for famine in Gaza, and it means people are starving to death because humanitarian assistance is not getting to them," he said. “This is an unacceptable situation."

The United Nations human rights office on Tuesday called on Israel to halt its support of attacks by settlers in the occupied West Bank, which has seen an uptick of raids by Israel since the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack. 

The call came a day after Israeli settlers shot dead two Palestinians in the West Bank on Monday, after Israeli forces killed a Palestinian teenager during a military raid.

"Israel, as the occupying power, must take all measures in its power to restore, and ensure, as far as possible, public order and safety in the occupied West Bank," said Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday urged all sides in the Middle East to refrain from action that would trigger a new confrontation which he warned would be fraught with catastrophic consequences for the region, the Kremlin said. 

Putin, who has forged much closer ties with the Islamic Republic since sending troops into Ukraine in 2022, spoke to Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi by phone about what the Kremlin called "retaliatory measures taken by Iran." 

Iran launched drones and missiles at Israel late on Saturday in retaliation for an Israeli strike on its Damascus consulate on April 1 that killed seven officers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, including two senior commanders.

Israel's army said on Tuesday that Iran will not get off "scot-free" after the Islamic republic launched an unprecedented wave of missiles and drones at Israel last weekend.

 "Iran will not get (off) scot-free with this aggression," military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told reporters at Julis military base while displaying the remains of an intercepted missile.

 "We will not allow this aggression in the region," Hagari said, speaking in English.

The recent oil price spike fueled by rising Middle East tensions has the potential to derail the IMF's "relatively good" outlook for the world economy, its chief economist told AFP. 

"We are projecting a global economy that is quite resilient for 2024," Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said in an interview ahead of the publication of the International Monetary Fund's World Economic Outlook (WEO) report on Tuesday. 

The IMF now expects the world economy to grow by 3.2 percent this year and next, and inflation to continue to ease from its post-pandemic high, hitting 5.9 percent this year, and 4.5 percent next year amid elevated interest rates in many countries. 

"The news is relatively good," Gourinchas said.

Iran’s unprecedented attack on Israel and the prospect of escalating hostilities has threatened to embroil Jordan, a key Western ally and a country regarded by Gulf states as pivotal to their own security. 

When the Islamic Republic fired a barrage of missiles and drones at Israel on Saturday night, Jordan helped shoot down some that flew over its capital Amman, with Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi saying the kingdom saw the projectiles as posing “a real danger” to its territory. 

While he was quick to say the country would do the same if Israel were to use Jordanian airspace to attack Iran, the move led to a torrent of online abuse in the Islamic Republic. State media reposted a missive on social-media site X calling Jordanian King Abdullah II “a traitor” and pro-Tehran accounts shared memes of the king dressed in an Israel Defense Forces uniform.

The Israeli military said that "two armed" drones entered from Lebanon and exploded near a town in northern Israel on Tuesday. 

"The incident is under review," the military said in a statement.

Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said on Tuesday the international community should stop Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from "stealing" attention away from Gaza by escalating his confrontation with Iran.

 In remarks during a press conference with his German counterpart in Berlin, Safadi said Iran had responded to the attack against its consulate and had announced that it did "did not want to escalate further". 

"We are against escalating. Netanyahu wants to draw attention away from Gaza and focus on his confrontation with Iran," Safadi added.

Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi, during a phone call with Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim ibn Hamad Al Thani, issued a stern warning, emphasising that any action against Iran's interests will be met with a severe and extensive response against all those involved, Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported. Raisi highlighted recent regional developments, emphasising the ongoing plight of Palestinians in Gaza. He underscored the urgent need for effective measures to halt the Israel's atrocities. He stressed the need to take deterrent measures against the continuation of the Israel's crimes in Gaza, especially by Islamic countries.

Germany's foreign minister called Tuesday for the European Union to impose fresh sanctions on Iranian drone technology after Tehran's weekend attack on Israel. 

"I campaigned in late autumn together with France and other partners within the European Union for this drone sanctions regime to be extended further... I hope that we can now finally take this step together," Annalena Baerbock told a press conference in Berlin, ahead of a visit to Israel later Tuesday.

Israel and Iran traded threats after Tehran's first ever direct attack on its arch foe sharply heightened Middle East tensions and as the Gaza war ground on with no truce in sight. 

Israel's military chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi on Monday vowed "a response" after Iran and its allies launched a barrage of over 300 missiles, drones and rockets at Israel at the weekend. 

Iran said its large-scale attack was an act of self-defence following a deadly Israeli air strike on its consulate in Syria, and that it would consider the matter "concluded" unless Israel retaliated. 

However, Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi also warned that "the slightest action against Iran's interests will definitely be met with a severe, extensive and painful response". 

US President Joe Biden stressed on Monday that "the United States is committed to Israel's security" but also that he wants to prevent the conflict from spreading.

Israel's war cabinet will meet on Tuesday to discuss the response to Iran's attack over the weekend, an Israeli official said.

No time was set for meeting, the official said.

It will be the third time that the decision-making cabinet convenes since Iran launched more than 300 missiles and drones against Israel on Saturday night.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is preparing fresh sanctions on Iran in response to Iran's attack on Israel, Axios reported on Tuesday, citing a copy of her remarks.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) confirmed that after a Palestinian suspect attacked a Jewish shepherd in the area of Gitit, a town in the Jordan Valley region, leading to a "violent confrontation" between Palestinians and Israeli citizens, two Palestinians were killed. 

IDF forces "jumped" to the spot and worked to disperse the confrontation. The IDF said that, from a preliminary investigation, "it appears" that the two were not killed by its forces. The IDF and the Israel Police are investigating the incident.

The UN voiced grave concern Tuesday over escalating violence in the West Bank, demanding that Israeli security forces "immediately end their active participation in and support for settler attacks" on Palestinians there. 

"Israeli authorities must instead prevent further attacks, including by bringing those responsible to account," Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the United Nations rights office, told reporters in Geneva.

Israelis awaited word on how Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would respond to Iran's first-ever direct attack as international pressure for restraint grew amid fears of an escalation of conflict in the Middle East. 

Netanyahu on Monday summoned his war cabinet for the second time in less than 24 hours to weigh a response to Iran's massive weekend missile and drone attack, a government source said. 

While the attack caused no deaths and little damage, thanks the air defences and countermeasures of Israel and its allies, it has increased concerns that violence rooted in the Gaza war is spreading, and fears of open war between the long-time foes.

The artist chosen to represent Israel at the prestigious Venice Biennale art fair said on Tuesday that she was refusing to open the national pavilion until there was a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza.

"I feel that the time for art is lost," Ruth Patir wrote in a statement on Instagram, explaining why she and the exhibits' two curators had decided to shutter the show. "And so if I am given such a remarkable stage, I want to make it count," she said. 

Almost 9,000 people, including artists and museum directors, signed an online appeal in February calling for Israel to be excluded from the Biennale art fair and accusing the country of genocide in Gaza during its war against Hamas.

Israel-Iran News Live: Israel launched a "diplomatic offensive" against Iran on Tuesday, calling on 32 countries to impose sanctions against the Revolutionary Guards and their missile programme.

Israel-Iran News Live: European stock markets plummeted at Tuesday's opening following Israel's pledge to retaliate against Iran's attack. 

• London's FTSE 100 dropped 1.4% to 7,857.23 points. 

• Paris's CAC 40 index sank 1.5% to 7,926.58 points. 

• Frankfurt's DAX shed 1.3% to 17,787.70.

Israel-Iran News Live: Israel's foreign minister urged nations on Tuesday to impose sanctions on Iran's missile programme and designate its Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation following Iran's unprecedented direct attack on Israel.

Israel-Iran News Live: - 

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators staged protests across several U.S. states on Monday, causing disruptions to travel routes and traffic flow. 

• Demonstrators in Chicago blocked lanes of Interstate 190 leading to O'Hare International Airport, citing participation in a global "economic blockade to free Palestine." 

• In the San Francisco Bay Area, traffic was severely impacted as protesters shut down all vehicle, pedestrian, and bike movement on the Golden Gate Bridge and obstructed Interstate 880 in Oakland. 

• Protesters in Brooklyn disrupted traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge, impeding vehicles heading towards Manhattan. 

• In Eugene, Oregon, demonstrators blocked Interstate 5, a major highway, for approximately 45 minutes.

Israel-Iran News Live: US national security advisor Jake Sullivan has delayed his planned visit to India this week due to the unfolding situation in West Asia amid heightened tensions between Israel and Iran.