Iran–Israel relations

People visit the Si-o-Se Pol Bridge in Iran's central city of Isfahan on April 19, 2024. World leaders appealed for calm on April 19 after reported Israeli retaliation against Iran, added to months of tense spillover from the war in Gaza, with Iranian state media reporting explosions in the central province of Isfahan.

Amid escalating tensions between Israel and Iran, the Bulgarian government is closely monitoring the situation and stands prepared for the potential evacuation of Bulgarian citizens, announced the Council of Ministers.

Israel launched more deadly strikes on besieged Gaza on Thursday as world powers watched nervously whether the country would retaliate against a weekend attack by its arch enemy Iran.

The Israeli army said it had bombed dozens of targets in the Palestinian coastal territory of 2.4 million people, more than six months into the bloodiest ever Gaza war.

Israel and Iran traded threats after Tehran's first-ever direct attack on its arch-foe sharply heightened tensions in a region already on edge after six months of war in Gaza.

Israel's military cabinet convened to deliberate on a response following Iran's recent drone and missile onslaught, marking a historic escalation in tensions. While Israel remains tight-lipped on its decision, global allies implore caution in Benjamin Netanyahu's administration's next move.

Türkiye has told Iran that it does not want further escalation in the region following Tehran's attack against Israel late on April 13.

According to diplomatic sources, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian on the phone on April 14.

In Israel has successfully foiled an unprecedented direct attack by Iran, marking a significant escalation in tensions in the region. Sirens blared across Israel as explosions reverberated in key cities during the initial wave of Iran's drone strike, targeting locations including Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Dimona.

Israel's foreign minister, Israel Katz, issued a stark warning to Iran, asserting that Israel would retaliate with a direct military strike if attacked from Iranian territory. The threat comes amidst escalating tensions between the two nations following a recent airstrike on Iran's consulate in Syria, which claimed the lives of several high-ranking Iranian officials.

Israel was on alert Thursday after its arch-foe Iran threatened reprisals over a strike in Syria this month that killed two Iranian generals, and as the war against Hamas ground on in Gaza.

Israel's foreign minister threatened yesterday that its country's forces would strike Iran directly if the Islamic Republic launched an attack from its territory against Israel, as tensions between the rival powers flare following the killings of Iranian generals in a blast at the Iranian consulate in Syria.