live blog
Iran’s airports have resumed operations following the attack on Israel. US Secretary of State Blinken spoke to his counterparts from the region about the current developments. All developments in the live blog.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, complains about the shattered relationship between Israel and the United Nations since the Hamas terrorist attack in October. He told Spiegel that the Israeli government was not answering his letters. “I asked that I be able to travel to Israel. Also that I could send a team to document what happened there on October 7th and 8th. Unfortunately, I never got an answer.”
Israel’s government had already put relations with his office on hold “more than three years ago, long before I took office,” said the High Commissioner. He did meet former Israeli hostages from Hamas and relatives of people who are still being held in Gaza. But that is only possible outside Israel.
Türk rejected accusations from the Israeli government that the UN was one-sided in the Gaza war and warned against friend-enemy thinking: “In general, what worries me is that we are getting deeper and deeper into a binary world view,” said Türk. “If we get too caught up in this mentality, we will jeopardize the foundations of the world order that was built precisely after the experiences of the two world wars and the Holocaust.”
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron calls on Israel to refrain from retaliation following the Iranian attack. The Tehran leadership’s actions were an almost complete failure and the focus should continue to be on agreeing a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
Israel has every right to respond. Britain wants to avoid an escalation, Cameron told Sky News. “In many ways, this was a double defeat for Iran. The attack was an almost complete failure, and they showed the world that they are the malign influence in the region that is willing to do something like this. So we hope that there will be no retaliation.”
According to Cameron, Britain is also considering further sanctions against Iran after the attack at the weekend. 400 punitive measures have already been imposed and a new sanctions system was introduced at the end of last year, which is proving to be very effective. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard was also subject to sanctions. “We will continue to assess what further steps we can take,” says Cameron. This also includes a ban on the Revolutionary Guard in Great Britain.
The European Aviation Safety Agency, EASA, continues to advise caution in Israeli airspace and within around 100 nautical miles of the country. She also advises people to exercise caution in Iranian airspace. EASA explains that it is closely monitoring the situation in the Middle East, but adds that at no time was there a risk of overflight for civil aviation.
According to President Emmanuel Macron, France will work to ensure that there is no further escalation in the conflict between Iran and Israel. “We are all worried about a possible escalation,” he said in an interview with the TV station BFM and the radio station RMC.
After the attack on Israel, airports in Iran have resumed operations. As the Isna news agency announced, the closure of air traffic was lifted early in the morning. Accordingly, the two airports in the capital Tehran also returned to normal operations.
Numerous airports were out of service around Iran’s drone and missile attacks on Israel on the night from Saturday to Sunday. Flight bans were imposed, especially in the west of the country, where drone bases and missile silos are located.
France is increasing security around Jewish institutions nationwide following the Iranian attack on Israel. French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin called on authorities to deploy more police officers outside synagogues, Jewish schools and “particularly sensitive and symbolic” buildings, according to a statement from his ministry.
This is happening in particular with a view to the Jewish Passover festival at the end of April, when more visitors are expected at church services and other events. The move was justified by a “very high level of terrorist threat”, the “persistently high number of anti-Semitic acts” and “ongoing tensions at the international level, including Iran’s attack on Israel”.
After Iran’s attack, the Republican chairman of the US House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, who is under pressure within the party, wants to work for the release of further funds for Israel – and in the process also explore his party’s approval for further aid to Ukraine.
Republicans “understand the need to stand by Israel,” Johnson said on Fox News on Sunday. “We’ll try again this week.” The details of the aid package are currently being put together. “We are looking at the options for all these additional issues,” said Johnson, referring to the funds for Ukraine that his party has blocked for months.
The US military said it intercepted and destroyed more than 80 drones and at least six ballistic missiles aimed at Israel on Saturday and Sunday with the support of destroyers from the US European Command. The US Central Command (Centcom) said on X that the missiles were fired from Iran and Yemen.
“Centcom remains ready to support Israel’s defense against these dangerous actions by Iran. We will continue to work with all of our regional partners to enhance regional security.” The attack, involving more than 300 drones and missiles fired mostly from Iran, caused little damage. Most of the projectiles were intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome defense system and with the help of the USA, Great Britain, France and Jordan.
In a video on X, US President Biden thanked the American soldiers for their commitment:
After successfully repelling the Iranian attack, Israel is reopening schools in most parts of the country. After an assessment of the situation, it was decided to “resume educational activities throughout the country from Monday”, but with “restrictions” in the border area with Lebanon and in towns near the Gaza Strip, army spokesman Daniel Hagar said in the online service X.
In view of a feared Iranian attack, the Israeli army announced the temporary closure of schools in the country on Saturday. On Sunday, the first day of the week in Israel, “teaching activities, travel and excursions” at schools or other educational institutions were suspended
After the Iranian attack on Israel, the Federal Government’s Anti-Semitism Commissioner, Felix Klein, warned of an increase in anti-Semitic crimes. “The terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7th led to an unprecedented increase in anti-Semitic crimes in Europe,” he told the Germany editorial network. “Iran’s attack on Israel should not serve as another pretext for anti-Semitic actions in Germany.”
Klein also called for the “fatal mechanism between increased tensions in the Middle East and anti-Semitic incitement” to be broken. This would benefit the “political culture” in Germany.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the Iranian attack on Israel in separate phone calls with his Jordanian, Saudi Arabian, Egyptian and Turkish counterparts. Blinken reiterated that the US will not seek escalation and will continue to support Israel’s defense.
In his telephone conversation with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, he also discussed the need to expand humanitarian aid to Gaza. Furthermore, the Palestinian civilian population must be protected and an immediate ceasefire must be reached that ensures the release of all hostages, the US State Department said.
Foreign Minister Baerbock has called on everyone involved to de-escalate. The Hezbollah militia described the Iranian attack against Israel as a “brave and wise decision.” Sunday’s developments to read.