Israel Will Respond To Iran's Attack, President Raisi: Any Minor Action Will Be Firmly Responded To

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. (Wikimedia Commons/Student News Agency/Tayebeh Dalaei)

JAKARTA - President Ebrahim Raisi has warned that "the slightest action against Iran's interests" Tehran will respond to with a "hard, widespread and painful response".

In a phone call with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, President Raisi said Iran's attack on Israel this weekend was a "legitimate defense" act.

"As we have officially announced, the 'Honest Promise' operation has been successfully implemented with the aim of punishing the aggressor. Now we firmly state that the slightest action against Iran's interests will certainly be responded to with a strong, broad and painful response to all the perpetrators," President Raisi said, launching CNN April 16.

The 'Honest Promise' is a name given for an unprecedented Iranian attack, with hundreds of drones and missiles launched into Israel for five hours, although almost entirely intercepted by the Israeli military and its allies. Israel has vowed to respond and is considering options to do so.

In the phone call, Qatar "enforced the need to reduce all forms of escalation and avoid expanding the conflict in the region," according to a statement issued by state news agency Sheikh Tamim.

Earlier, Israel's Chief of Military Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said on Monday that Iran's attack on Israel, which was retaliatory after the April 1 bombing of the Iranian embassy complex in Damascus, required a response.

Meanwhile, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani told state TV on Monday evening Tehran's counter-attack after Israel's retaliation would be "in just seconds because Iran will not wait another 12 days to respond".