Author: Steven Sahiounie

An IRGC official has warned that if Israel takes action against Iran’s nuclear facilities, it will definitely face “tit-for-tat” retaliation against the regime’s nuclear centers with advanced weapons. “If the Zionist regime decides to take action against our nuclear facilities and centers, it will definitely face our reaction,” head of the Nuclear Protection and Security Corps Gen. Ahmad Haqtalab said on Thursday, adding “for a tit-for-tat retaliation, the regime’s nuclear facilities will be attacked with advanced weapons”. Haqtalab issued the stern warning after Israeli officials’ suggestions of a possible attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities following the Islamic Republic’s Operation True Promise to “punish”…

The Chinese and Indonesian foreign ministers have called for an immediate and lasting ceasefire in Gaza after a meeting in Jakarta. China’s Wang Yi renewed calls for a UNSC ceasefire resolution to be implemented, criticising the US for suggesting the resolution was nonbinding. “In the eyes of the United States, international law seems to be a tool that can be used whenever it finds useful and discarded if it does not want to use it,” Wang said. Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said she hoped China “would use its influence to prevent escalation”. Source: AlJazeera

US President Joe Biden told an interviewer that he’d warned the Israeli government against attacking itself, in what appears to be the aging leader’s latest gaffe, and one that has again raised concerns over his mental state. Speaking with Nexstar Media’s Reshad Hudson in an interview published on Wednesday, the 81-year-old president detailed his plans to win back pro-Palestinian voters amid his ongoing support for Israel in its conflict with Hamas. Biden claimed that, aside from meeting with pro-Palestinian activists, he had also “made it clear to the Israelis: don’t move on Haifa,” which actually is a port city in northern Israel. …

Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian landed in New York City and will later address the UN Security Council as tit-for-tat attacks with Israel raise fears of a wider war in the Middle East. He said the UNSC meeting will “focus on the Palestinian issue”, adding Israel’s war on Gaza has reached a boiling point. “The spillover of this situation is clearly visible in the region,” he told reporters. “It is an opportunity to explain Iran’s views in line with the necessity of establishing lasting peace and security in the region.” Source: AlJazeera

The head of the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) accused the international community of “containing” rather than resolving the more than 75-year-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Philippe Lazzarini said when a Palestinian state that can deliver education, healthcare and social support is established, UNRWA’s role will be finished. His comments came amid a concerted effort by Israel to disband UNRWA. “The agency exists because a political solution does not,” said Lazzarini. Israel got no support for getting rid of UNRWA at a UN Security Council meeting on Wednesday. All 15 council members – including the United States, Israel’s closest ally – voiced…

The Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps’ Quds Force Qaani said that the Hamas leader’s children and grandchildren have risen as martyrs on the path to al-Quds. The Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps’ Quds Force Ismail Qaani sent his condolences to the head of Hamas’ Political Bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, after “Israel” murdered his three sons and grandchildren in Gaza. Addressing Haniyeh, Qaani referenced the moment when Haniyeh received the news and highlighted the way Haniyeh received it firmly and affirmed that all martyrs in Gaza are his family and children are part of his faith. He added that his…

Iran’s Embassy in the Italian capital of Rome cautioned that counterproductive decisions toward the Islamic Republic and the West’s irresponsible alignment with Israeli actions could encourage Israel’s malice and adventurism, consequently increasing regional and global tensions. The statement was issued ahead of a meeting of the foreign ministers of Group 7 about the recent developments in the Middle East. The full text of the Embassy’s statement is as follows: Over the past years, the Israeli regime has, in various ways and through flagrant violations of the fundamental principles of international law and peremptory norms, inflicted damage on the interests of the…

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan received a phone call on Wednesday from European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, Saudi Press Agency reported.The officials discussed the latest developments in the Gaza Strip and its surrounding areas, and the international efforts being made to end the war.Earlier in February, Prince Faisal and Borrell held similar discussions on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. Source: Arab News

The Kiev regime continues to openly announce planned terrorist attacks on Russia, the country’s Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing. “The Kiev regime continues to openly announce planned terrorist attacks on Russian territory, the details of which, you won’t believe it, are thoroughly discussed in the Western press,” the diplomat said. In addition, Zakharova listed the Ukrainian attacks in which Russian civilians were injured. She also pointed to the fact that Ukraine’s special services do not give up attempts to “massacre their former compatriots.” “The enlightened, as they call themselves, capitals of the collective West still do…

Syria’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Qussai al-Dahhak, affirmed Syria’s categorical rejection of attempts to undermine the role and mandate of United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in the service of the Israeli occupation’s agenda aimed at liquidating the Palestinian Cause, including the right of return. In a statement during a briefing of the UN Security Council on the UNRWA work, al-Dahhak reiterated Syria’s call on the donor countries that suspended their funding to the agency to reverse their decision and continue providing support to the Palestinian people in their homeland and in the host countries, including…