- By Supratik Das
- Sat, 14 Jun 2025 11:10 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
Iran Attack Israel: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called PM Narendra Modi on Friday night to inform him of Israel's widescale airstrikes codenamed Operation Rising Lion on Iranian nuclear and missile facilities. The Israeli prime minister described the strikes as a "purely defensive necessity" meant to preempt what he referred to as an "existential threat" against the Jewish nation.
Speaking to PTI Videos on Saturday, Israel’s Ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, said New Delhi’s “avenues for dialogue with both sides” uniquely position it to help calm spiralling West Asian hostilities. "India has options for dialogue with each side. It is certainly able to play a role. We are pleased to have this genuine dialogue with India, which is a very good friend. We hear very carefully your concerns. I believe they are legitimate." "No country in the world wants this type of situation," Azar added. The comments were made as tensions are running high in West Asia, with Israel and Iran attacking each other. Azar maintained that Israel had "no option" but to respond against what he called a clandestine Iranian plan to develop 10,000 ballistic missiles in three years and 20,000 in six to "exterminate" Israel. "Those missiles would form a ring of fire around us," he warned. The ambassador emphasised that the current sorties aim to make it impossible for Tehran to enrich uranium for weapons either by diplomacy or "decisive military action."
Tit-For-Tat Strikes Shake The Region
In response to Israel's biggest-ever aerial assaults, Iran's Revolutionary Guards launched barrages of ballistic missiles and drones against major Israeli cities early on Saturday. According to emergency officials, one high‑rise building in Tel Aviv was seriously damaged and dozens were injured. Sirens wailed across the city in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem as interceptor missiles lit up the sky. Iranian media reported several explosions in Tehran, including at Mehrabad airport close to sensitive military installations, after Israel launched follow‑up strikes. Tehran stated 78 individuals, including top commanders, died in the Friday raids, while Israeli authorities report Iran's counterattack comprised "fewer than 100" projectiles, the majority of which were shot down or landed short.
Why India's role matters
India has the world's third-largest Jewish and Shia Muslim populations outside the Middle East, providing New Delhi with social capital in both camps. Its history of back-channel diplomacy, most recently in the 2022 Yemeni cease-fire, lends credence to demands for an Indian initiative, possibly together with Oman and the United Arab Emirates. India’s Ministry of External Affairs said it was “deeply concerned” by the dramatic escalation and urged “all parties to exercise maximum restraint and return to dialogue.” The statement underscored India’s readiness to support de‑escalation efforts, reflecting its delicate balance between strategic ties with Israel and energy and connectivity interests with Iran.
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Whereas Israel vows to attack and neutralise Iran's nuclear program, prolonged air war threatens to spread into a regional inferno that will interfere with world oil flows and scuttle delicate nuclear diplomacy. Whether India can harness its special connectivity with Jerusalem and Tehran into an effective peace conduit will depend on rapid backroom shuttle diplomacy over the next few days.