Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said late on Thursday that Israel would respond immediately and forcefully to any attack by Iran, insisting that “no one can tell us what to do.”
“If Iran attacks us, we will act immediately and respond with force. No one can tell us what to do, and we have proven that,” Katz said in an interview with Channel 14.
He added that Israel possessed the necessary capabilities to respond at any time. “All the capabilities exist and are being built,” he said, adding that Israel could “respond immediately or act later.”
Katz also stressed that Israel had not asked the United States to fight alongside it against Hezbollah in Lebanon, jihadist groups in Syria or Hamas in Gaza.
“We do that alone,” he said. “We expected, and still expect, that the US will back our right and give us a diplomatic umbrella, not a military one, to act against all these enemies.”
Reaffirming Israel’s regional security policy, Katz said, “In Lebanon, in Syria and in Gaza, we will not move from the security zones. Not in Syria, not in Gaza and not in Lebanon, we will not leave there under any circumstances.”