Iranian acting FM blames EU's silence for escalating regional tension

Iranian acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani has said that the EU’s lack of response to Israeli attacks in Lebanon and Yemen, along with the assassination of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, is encouraging further aggression from Israel.

Kani made these remarks during a phone call with High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, Caliber.Az reports citing the Russian media.

Moreover, Kani condemned the actions of certain European countries, which, in cooperation with the US, did not allow the UN Security Council to condemn Haniyeh's killing. He stressed that this decision, along with the silence on Israel's instigation of conflict in Yemen and Lebanon, emboldens the regime to continue aggressive actions, endangering regional peace and stability.

Hamas said its political leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in an Israeli strike in the Iranian capital of Tehran, a major development that throws the region into an unpredictable and dangerous new phase.

Haniyeh was the second figure of an Iran-backed group assassinated in the past day, following the killing by Israel of a senior Hezbollah commander in Lebanon.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed to avenge Haniyeh’s death.  “You killed our dear guest in our house and now have paved the way for your harsh punishment,” he said, referring to Israel. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US was “not aware of or involved in” the killing of Haniyeh.