Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared on Friday that Israel’s recent strike on Iran marks a major turning point in the region’s history, comparing it to the pagers attack in Lebanon, in reference to Israel’s past operations against Hezbollah. Israel remotely detonated the battery packs of devices carried by Hezbollah members in several Lebanese regions, killing at least 42 people and injuring more than 3,500.
“We carried out a spectacular strike on Iran that could go down in history like the pagers strike against Hezbollah,” Netanyahu said during a press briefing. He claimed responsibility for the destruction of Iran’s main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz and vowed that confrontations with Tehran would continue “as needed.”
He also accused Iran of accelerating its nuclear weapons program following the assassination of former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, which he described as a strategic blow to the Iranian axis.
The prime minister revealed that the attack had originally been scheduled for the end of April but was postponed for unspecified reasons.
“If Iran acquires nuclear weapons, we will not remain in the region,” Netanyahu warned, adding that a retaliatory strike by Iran is expected. He said that Israel now also targets Iran’s missile capabilities.
“We understand the cost of action, but we also know the price of inaction,” Netanyahu emphasized. He concluded by saying that the next steps depend on the stance of US President Donald Trump.
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