Against the backdrop of heightened military friction and escalating economic strain gripping the Islamic Republic, Defense Minister Israel Katz issued an uncompromising and unprecedented warning to Tehran’s leadership on Thursday. In his address, the defense minister made clear that any attempt by the Iranian regime to strike sovereign Israeli interests—under any pretext and across any operational theater—will trigger an overwhelming, decisive retaliation. Katz underscored that an Israeli response of this magnitude would inflict catastrophic damage upon Iran’s core infrastructure on a scale never before sustained by the regime.
1+Detailing the focus of any retaliatory campaign, Katz emphasized that Israeli strikes would deliberately target Iran’s vital energy sector, which provides the primary financial resources powering the regime’s war machine and regional terror proxies. The defense minister said that, under directives from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and himself, Israeli defense forces remain on high alert, fully primed to execute the mission at a moment’s notice.moment’sded that a blow of this severity would throw Iran back decades, further unraveling the foundational stability of the ayatollahs’ regiayatollahs’ollapse the Iranian populace actively awaits.
1+Alongside the stern warning, the defense minister extended personal Rosh Hashanah greetings to the Jewish community residing within Iran, offering words of solidarity and highlighting their enduring place in Jewish history. Furthermore, Katz addressed the Iranian civilian population directly, voicing hope that by next year they will celebrate “in a Tehran liberated from oppression and tyranny.” Concluding his remarks, the defense minister wished the Jewish people in Israel and across the diaspora a secure and prosperous New Year, invoking a traditional Rosh Hashanah prayer: “May our enemies, adversaries, and all who seek our harm be banished.”