“There have been over 50 attempts in recent years, the majority of which already were on the verge of being executed before they were thwarted at the last minute,” said Israel’s defense minister.
By United with Israel Staff
Israel thwarted dozens of Iranian terror attacks targeting Jews around the world in recent years, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced on Thursday at the end of an official visit to Azerbaijan.
“Iran has led an unprecedented worldwide campaign of terror, targeting Israelis and other Jews across the globe. There have been over 50 attempts in recent years, the majority of which already were on the verge of being executed before they were thwarted at the last minute,” he said.
“Under the direction of the Supreme Leader, Iran has been leading a worldwide terror campaign, with an unprecedented scope, targeting Israelis and Jews around the world.”
However, “thanks to our defense establishment, thanks to close cooperation with many countries, and thanks to the understanding that Iran is a global threat, we prevented these attempts and saved human lives,” he added.
According to the defense minister, Jenin’s advanced terrorist infrastructure, which the IDF destroyed in a recent counterterrorism mission, was the “result of Iran’s funding, military know-how, and methods of warfare.”
The Islamic Republic also funds Hamas, Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other terrorist organizations.
Gallant stressed that Iran must not be allowed to develop nuclear weapons.
Only recently, the Mossad, Israel’s world-renowned national intelligence agency, revealed details of an operation that thwarted an Iranian terrorist cell earlier that week that was aimed at Israeli tourists in Cyprus.
In a counterterrorist operation on Iranian soil, the Mossad abducted Yusef Shahabazi Abbasalilu, head of the cell, who gave his investigators a detailed confession.
“We are working without respite against the attempts of Iran and its proxies to open terrorist fronts against us – in Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and in Judea and Samaria,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said regarding that operation.
“We are also working against Iran’s efforts to develop terrorist cells and capabilities in neighboring countries, which are not countries in conflict with us.
“We will not allow Iran to establish itself on our borders. We will not allow it to build precision weapons factories in Lebanon and Syria. And, of course, we will not accept Iran’s intentions to develop a nuclear arsenal,” the prime minister stated.
Gallant traveled to Azerbaijan to bolster strategic ties in “diplomacy, security and technology,” according to a Defense Ministry statement issued on Wednesday.