President Masoud Pezeshkian stated on Wednesday that Iran is not seeking war, but made it clear that if Israel responds to Iran’s missile strike, the response from Iran would be even more forceful.
“If Israel chooses to retaliate, our response will be stronger. This is a commitment from the Islamic Republic,” Pezeshkian said during a press conference in Doha with Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani. He emphasized, “We are not instigating war; Israel is pushing us to react.”
This statement followed Iran’s launch of around 200 missiles, including advanced hypersonic ones, towards Israel. While Israel successfully intercepted most of the missiles, two civilians were reported to have sustained minor injuries from shrapnel, and one missile damaged a school building.
On Wednesday, Israel confirmed that several Iranian missiles had landed near air force bases but reported no damage.
Pezeshkian accused Israel of fueling insecurity and chaos in the region, adding, “The goal of the Zionist regime is to spread crisis. We urge the U.S. and European nations to pressure the entity they’ve placed in the region to stop the bloodshed.”
Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim, also voiced concern, warning that Israel’s ongoing actions against Hezbollah in Lebanon were pushing the region towards disaster. He condemned Israeli attacks on Gaza and expressed Qatar’s continued efforts to mediate a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, following the conflict sparked by Hamas’ attacks on October 7.
