Israel Warns Iran of 'Stone Age' Response if Attacked
Israel's Defense Minister warned Iran that any attack would unleash a response with no limits, crippling its military and civilian infrastructure.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has issued a stark warning to Tehran, stating that any Iranian attack on Israel would free the Israeli military from all operational constraints and trigger a devastating retaliatory response.
Speaking at a Jewish New Year toast at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv on Thursday, Katz said Israel would "cripple all of Iran's national military and civilian infrastructure, including energy infrastructure," and would send Iran "back to the Stone Age and darkness."
Katz noted that Iran's leadership is aware of the consequences, pointing to what he described as two previous forceful Israeli strikes that destroyed Iran's nuclear program and eliminated its late Supreme Leader. He suggested that severe economic pressure and fears of domestic unrest could push Tehran toward "desperate measures."
"Israel is well prepared in defense and attack for any possibility - and the IDF is ready to carry out the mission," Katz added.
The warning comes amid heightened regional tensions. Iran's currency hit a record low on Wednesday, and Iranian forces fired at Kuwait on Thursday in retaliation for U.S. bombardments earlier in the week. Kuwaiti air defenses intercepted the projectiles, which they described as "blatant Iranian aggression."
U.S. allies Bahrain and Jordan also reported intercepting Iranian aerial attacks on Wednesday. The escalation follows a U.S. strike on Sunday against Iranian rocket launchers on an island in the Strait of Hormuz, which Washington said were positioned to shoot mines into the vital waterway.