Israel announced this Friday, June 13 that he had made strikes at night against military and nuclear sites in Iran. Tehran reacted and began throwing drones in response to this operation called “Lion erect.” Gulf countries fear a climb of tensions in the region. If Israeli attacks had already been carried out in 2024, the attacks allow fear this time a greater conflagration of tensions in the Middle East.
The Israeli Cabinet Chief is talking this Friday about a “historical” and “unprecedented” military campaign launched against Iran.
“This is a decisive moment in the history of the State of Israel and in the history of the Jewish people,” said Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz in a statement.
Military and nuclear objectives attacked
The attack launched by Israel was aimed at a hundred objectives. General Jérôme Pellistrandi, defense consultant for BFMTV, launches “three different types”. “First, nuclear sites where uranium is enriched (…), military sites associated with the nuclear program and, finally, military personalities, such as the leader of the revolution, or scientists directly linked to the program,” they develop the general.
“Our pilots have attacked and continuing by attacking military objectives and objectives related to the nuclear program in several regions of Iran,” confirmed the army spokesman, the Brigade General, Effie Defrin, in a television message, clearly claiming these objectives.
Among the killed figures, there are several Iranian ranges, including leaders of the Islamic Revolution, General Hossein Salami and at least six scientists of the Iranian nuclear program.
With respect to nuclear objectives, many sites have been attacked, distributed through Iran, including the Natanz Uranium enrichment factory, located in the center of the country.
Israel talks about a “preventive strike” against Iran
Israel affirms this attack by stating that it is a “preventive strike” against Iran, through its Minister of Defense. “Israel launched (…) a specific military operation aimed at repelling the Iranian threat for Israel’s survival,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
This “threat” mentioned by Israel refers to the nuclear program directed by Iran. Specifically, Israel says that they were afraid that they will soon be the owner of the atomic bomb and attacked Tehran to prevent his goal from carrying out.
A realistic threat? If the country is a signatory to the Nuclear Non -Proliferation Treaty, the latest report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAA) clearly indicates that Tehran had in mid -May of a total uranium stock enriched in 9247.6 kg, 45 times the authorized limit. And on Thursday, the OIEA adopted a resolution condemning Tehran for the “breach” of its obligations in nuclear matters.
“The last report of the IEA was overwhelming for the Iranians in terms of lack of transparency and acceleration of the program,” said the associate researcher of the Institute of International and Strategic Relations (IRIS) and specialist in the Middle East, David Rigoulet-Rze, in BFMTV.
It is not enough to justify such an attack regarding international law. “We are not allowed to attack another country, even preventively. There are civil victims,” recalls BFMTV Thierry Coville, Iris researcher, specialist in Iran.
Iranian nuclear conversations in progress
Israeli attacks occur while conversations are currently in progress between Iran and the United States and that a sixth cycle of negotiations must be carried out on Sunday, June 15 with the aim of supervising the Iranian nuclear program in exchange for the elevation of the sanctions imposed on Iran. Washington demands that Iran will give it completely, what Tehran refuses, seeing it as a “non -negotiable” right.
“I would (Iran) an ultimatum of 60 days and today is day 61,” Donald Trump said Friday Friday during a phone call, which could also explain the date of these strikes.
The president of the United States said in a message posted on his social network of truth, having given Iran “the opportunity after the opportunity to conclude an agreement.”
“I told them, in the strongest terms: ‘Do it.’ But it doesn’t matter how much they try, no matter how close they were, they simply managed to do it,” the White House tenant deplored.
An attack against a weakened Iran
The choice of Israel to attack now also occurs in a context in which it is easier for the Hebrew State to attack Tehran, while Israel had already reached this same country in April, then in October 2024, already reaching military facilities.
“It is clear that Iran has weakened largely during a certain number of months and according to a very methodical process by Israel,” said Sébastien Bussois, a doctor of political science and specialist in the Middle East, an researcher associated with ULB (Belgium) and UQAM (Canada), BFMTV, who offered an opportunity for Isereel to attack.
This time, by hitting the senior officers directly, “the message is to tell everyone that no one is safe, not even the” Iranian supreme guide, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a high advisor of which she was injured, according to Iranian state media, Pierre Razoux, academic director of the Mediterranean Strategic Foundation (FMS).
Strikes that were feared
An Israeli attack was feared against the Iranian soil in the short term, when the United States announced Thursday to reduce its diplomatic personnel in the region preventively and Donald Trump evoked the risk of a “mass conflict” in the Middle East.
“Months have passed that the Israelis are preparing, that Americans bring their bombers to the region, so it is something completely expected,” said Iran’s sociologist and political scientist, Mahnaz Shirali, in BFMTV.
For the latter, Israeli attacks are also carried out in relation to the attack of October 7, 2023 by Hamas on their ground. “It has been a long time, since October 7, that we knew that the Israelis have been taking the Islamic Republic responsible for the events because they knew very well that Hamas could never have done what he did without having the support of another country,” said the researcher.
A “large -scale response” of Iran?
After these attacks, Iran clearly denounced what he considers a “declaration of war” and began to retaliate sending a hundred drones to the Israeli territory.
“It seems to be a ‘total’ campaign, whose consequences will be deep for the future of Iran and the stability of the region. This is only the beginning,” says Danny Citrinowicz, of the National Institute of Security Studies in Tel Aviv (INSS), with AFP.
“There will be a large-scale response,” abounds David Rigoulet -rez, with BFMTV, the attack is “perceived as a humiliation” by Tehran.
Do Iran have ways to do it? “Iran is not in a position to confront conventional armies as we know them today, simply because there is a team deficit, both in aerial, spare parts and even an army of the earth,” he judges the researcher, even if “on the other hand, the army compensated this weakness for the spectacular development of the ballistic sector.”
“The question that will be asked is: will the Rubicón cross when leaving the Non-Propagation Treaty as he threatened and becoming a power gifted (from nuclear)? From the point of view of the Iranians, there would be no other solution to Santuarizar the country,” says David Rigoulet-Rze.
At the local level, the residents of Iran and Israel are in any case worried. Friday, several gulf oil rich countries condemned Israeli attacks this Friday, for fear of a escalation that can threaten their financial interests. The head of the Saudi diplomacy, Fayçal Ben Farhane, especially called his Iranian counterpart, pleading “the resolution of conflicts by dialogue.”
Source: BFM TV
