The crisis in West Asia worsened on October 26, 2024 as Israel pounded Iran with a series of airstrikes! The Zionist Regime claimed that it targeted the military sites of the Islamic Republic in retaliation for the barrage of ballistic missiles Iran had fired upon Israel on October 1, 2024. Tehran reportedly fired around 200 ballistic missiles at Israel in its second direct attack on the Jewish Nation in six months. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) stated that although their main target was the Iranian military bases, they also carried out multiple explosions in Iraq and Syria!

According to the IDF, the Israeli fighter jets bombarded twice in Tehran and adjacent areas at around 2:30am (local time) on October 26. The Guardian claimed that at least seven explosions were reported in the skies over Tehran and nearby Karaj, as well as the eastern city of Mashhad, just after 2.30am (local time), as Israeli jets struck military targets in the West Asian nation. In a statement, the IDF mentioned that it was in response to “months of continuous attacks from the regime in Iran against the State of Israel”, describing the attack as “precise strikes on military targets in Iran”.

Although Iran insisted that its air defence system successfully countered the Israeli attacks on military targets in Tehran, Khuzestan and Ilam, with “limited damage” to some locations; the Administration of President Masoud Pezeshkian announced that it was fully prepared to respond to the Israeli “aggression”! The semi-official Tasnim news agency quoted a top Iranian official as saying: “There is no doubt that Israel will face a proportional reaction for any action it takes.” On October 26, 10 Iranian Police officers were killed after an attack on their convoy by the Israeli war planes.

Defence analysts are of the opinion that the Three-Tier War in West Asia has no endgame as the US is openly backing Israel! A senior IDF official confirmed that “US President Joe Biden was updated throughout the day on October 25, 2024 by his National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, as the operation was carried out by the Israelis”. The White House hinted that the Israeli strikes on Iran should end direct exchange of fire between the two enemy countries, warning Tehran of “consequences” should it respond!

Although the US and the UK encouraged Israel to maintain targeted and proportional response, and also asked Iran not to respond to Israeli strikes, the Arab World has strongly condemned the Israeli move. Although Russia and China made no immediate comments on the latest development, analysts believe that Moscow and Beijing are in constant touch with Tehran. Both Russia and China shall back Iran, if Tehran decides to give a strong reply. In that case, the scenario shall get complicated as the Arab World may also join hands with Iran, Russia and China! Hezbollah reportedly fired around 80 projectiles targeting Israel, just hours after Tel Aviv launched air strikes targeting military facilities in Iran. The Jordanians, too, are “boiling with anger“, said Oraib Rantawi, head of the Amman-based Al Quds Centre for Political Studies.

‘Deeply Concerned’ India Calls For Restraint
As tensions escalate in West Asia, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan on October 22, 2024.

During their first meeting, the Indian Prime expressed serious concern over the current political scenario in West Asia, telling President Pezeshkian to end the conflict as soon as possible. Modi stressed that the conflict should not take a wider regional dimension and that all the outstanding issues should be addressed through dialogue and diplomacy. The Iranian President, too, emphasised the need for peace in the region, as well as the role that India could play in de-escalating the conflict given its cordial ties with all the parties. The two leaders further discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in key areas, including Chabahar Port and the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).

Later, Prime Minister Modi wrote on X (in both English and Persian): “Had a very good meeting with the President of Iran, Mr Masoud Pezeshkian. We reviewed the full range of relations between our countries. We also discussed ways to deepen ties in futuristic sectors.“

Iran, as a foe of the US, is closely allied with Russia on various regional and international issues. Reports suggest that Tehran and Moscow signed a strategic agreement during President Pezheshkian’s stay in Kazan. For India, it has become important to play a balancing act as the South Asian nation considers both Iran and Israel as friends. In recent times, India has repeatedly expressed concern in various forums that the armed conflict between Iran and Israel should not spread to the entire region. New Delhi is well aware of the fact that a regional conflict would have a serious impact on global crude prices, international trade and political stability in West Asia.

It may be noted that India condemned the terror attack on Israel by the Palestinian Hamas Movement on October 7, 2023. Since a full-scale war broke out between the two sides after the attack, India has repeatedly called for immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. At the same time, it has prescribed a peaceful solution to the Palestine issue. On the other hand, Iran directly backs Hamas and Hezbollah, a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and paramilitary group that is also waging a war against the Zionist Regime.

It may be noted that President Pezheshkian met his Russian counterpart Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin in Ashgabat, the capital city of Turkmenistan, on October 11 (2024) to discuss the Ukraine War and the current situation in West Asia.

Speaking at a post-meeting press conference in the presence of the Iranian President, Putin stressed that relations with Tehran were at the top of Moscow’s list of priorities as Russia and Iran shared similar positions on various global issues. For his part, President Pezheshkian said that Europe and the US wanted West Asia to remain unstable!

According to Foreign Policy experts, the meeting between President Putin and President Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the Summit of Central Asian countries in Turkmenistan earlier in October was a significant one in the current global geopolitical landscape. Incidentally, former Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi perished in a helicopter crash on May 19, 2024 after his helicopter crashed into the mountains of East Azerbaijan. Pezeshkian, popularly known as a reformist, became the ninth President of Iran on July 28, 2024 after winning the snap Presidential Elections. It is during his reign, Tehran sent a direct message (of war) to Israel by launching missile attacks on Jewish Nation on October 1, 2024.

Meanwhile, President Pezeshkian warned Israel of counter-retaliation in response to any attacks, emphasising that Israeli aggression would provoke a strong response from Iran. The Times of India reported that the Iranian President made these remarks during his meeting with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in Kazan on the sidelines of the 16th BRICS Summit.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das