Iran accuses Israel of setting up attacks on its own diplomats
After Israeli diplomats were targeted in India and Georgia yesterday, Iran blamed Israel for staging the attacks to heighten international opprobrium against Tehran.
After Israeli diplomats were targeted in India and Georgia yesterday, Iran blamed Israel for staging the attacks to heighten international opprobrium against Tehran.
鈥� A daily summary of global reports on security issues.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has unequivocally blamed Iran for bombing attacks on Israeli diplomatic targets in India and Georgia yesterday, intensifying an already contentious standoff between Israel and Iran over Iran鈥檚 nuclear program.
鈥淚ran is behind these attacks,鈥� Mr. Netanyahu said in an emailed statement, according to Bloomberg. 鈥淚srael will act methodically and take strong yet patient action against the international terrorism that originates in Iran.鈥�
Iranian officials have accused Israel of a false flag operation, executing the attacks itself in order to 鈥渟tir up sympathy from other countries,鈥� Iran鈥檚 PressTV reports.
Neither the deputy chairman nor PressTV enumerated any such attacks, however, mentioning only the recent assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist 鈥� one of at least four recent murders of nuclear scientists which Iran blames on Israel. However, the liberal Israeli newspaper Haaretz reports that Israel is not expected to react harshly to yesterday鈥檚 bombings.
India is in a difficult spot, with strong ties to both countries.
Indian security experts say that India鈥檚 鈥渓ess-than-stellar intelligence and surveillance capabilities鈥� make it an easier place to stage an attack, the Wall Street Journal reports on its 鈥淚ndia Real Time鈥� blog. 聽鈥淚t would be fairly difficult to mount [Monday鈥檚 attack] in better policed countries and countries with a better intelligence apparatus,鈥� Ajai Sahni, executive director of the New Delhi-based Institute for Conflict Management, told the Journal. 鈥淚ndia鈥檚 vulnerabilities to terrorism are very, very high.鈥�
India will likely be under substantial pressure now to weaken its ties to Iran, which it has assiduously maintained despite European and US sanctions, India鈥檚 Economic Times reports.
The president of the All India Rice Exporters鈥� Association will undermine willingness to deal with the 聽鈥渆laborate鈥� agreements necessary for the two countries to trade despite sanctions that have eliminated many channels of payment they used to use, Reuters reports.
India is Iran鈥檚 biggest oil buyer and supplier of rice and it is Iran鈥檚 second-largest arms supplier, according to Reuters. The Commerce Ministry is still planning to send a business delegation to Iran this month to look into ways to boost exports to Iran.
In Israel, the whole country has been placed on an increased state of alert, the Associated Press reports, and Israeli officials believe that yesterday鈥檚 bombings are the first in 鈥渁 wave of terror.鈥� This morning, Thailand's capital of Bangkok was rocked by a series of bombings, but there is little conclusive information available regarding those attacks, aside from an identity card found on one of the bombers indicating that he may be Iranian, according to a separate AP report.