“Eye For An Eye, A Tooth For A Tooth”: Only Hamas Wants Bigger War As Iran, Israel Signal Strikes ‘Done’

There has been no Iranian response against Israel for the overnight Israeli retaliation attack on the Islamic Republic. US officials have since confirmed that it was in fact an Israeli attack, yet all the while Iran’s leaders are trying desperately to downplay it, saying it inflicted no damage, and that several reported explosions were actually the result of Iran’s air defenses intercepting a few drones, particularly over the city of Isfahan, site of a key nuclear facility. 

Importantly, as we predicted, Tehran is saying it has no plans for further retaliation following the oddly toothless, performative response from Israel. Officially, Iran and its state media are even referring to the attack incident as having been done by “infiltrators” while not readily naming Israel, also declaring that the aggression ‘failed’. So far, it is looking like none of Iran’s nuclear facilities were actually hit.

Atomic energy production site in Bushehr, Iranian Presidency/ZUMA

Reuters has called Iran’s stance “a response that appeared gauged towards averting region-wide war.” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a fresh statement sought to emphasize that the United States was not involved in any offensive operations against Iran, nor did he confirm Israel was behind it during the remarks, and the West continues to urge restraint by both sides.

The Washington Post is also acknowledging Iranian media’s muted response in wake of overnight events:

Iranian state media was muted in its response to the attack, saying its air defense systems had intercepted “three small drones” in Isfahan province. There was no damage to Iran’s nuclear sites, including those in Isfahan, the International Atomic Energy Agency said Friday morning. Isfahan is the site of Iran’s largest nuclear research complex; the area is home to a military base.

Israeli national security officials were cited in the The Jerusalem Post on Friday as saying, “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Israel retaliated where they were attacked.”

However, JPost additionally noted some strange qualifiers, suggesting both sides are taking a ‘nothing to see here folks’ approach:

That said, officially, Israel will not accept responsibility for this attack for strategic reasons. Sources explain that the Iranians claim it was an “explosion at a factory” because they wish to avoid escalation. Israeli sources told the Post that it’s unclear why the Pentagon disclosed to the American media that Israel was involved; they could have remained silent, they say. They could have preserved Iran’s dignity and avoided escalating the situation on their own.

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— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 19, 2024

An earlier Bloomberg report disclosed that Israel had informed the White House on Thursday that a military strike on Iran was being planned in “the next 24-48 hours.”

Bloomberg is now reporting Friday morning that “an Iranian military official signaled Tehran doesn’t feel compelled to react to the blasts which US officials say were caused by Israeli strikes, with semi-official Mehr agency quoting Army Commander-in-Chief Abdolrahim Mousavi saying Tehran has already reacted to Israeli threats.”

Iran’s President Ebrahim Rais made a planned speech on Friday and did not mention the overnight attack on Iranian soil, only the last Saturday offensive operations against Israel: “Operation True Promise led to authority, unity and cohesion in the country,” Raisi said.

No Iranian nuclear sites were reported damaged…

Via Washington Post

“Today, all political groups and factions believe that this response was necessary and a big honour for the country,” the Iranian president added, saying nothing further about the Israeli attack just hours prior.

There’s only one group at this point that appears to be disappointed that it’s over: 

HAMAS OFFICIAL SAYS ISRAELI AGGRESSION ON IRAN IS AN ESCALATION AGAINST THE REGION
HAMAS OFFICIAL CALLS FOR EXPANDING ENGAGEMENT AGAINST ISRAEL OVER WAR OF GENOCIDE IN GAZA AND ESCALATION IN THE REGION.

Hamas leadership likely thought this is the start of the ‘big war’ in Gaza’s defense – which still possibly may come – but at this point of “cooler heads” prevailing is no longer looking likely.

Iran and Israel trying to forget all about it but Biden just messed it all up https://t.co/spZeb743c7

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) April 19, 2024

As a further sign of this rapid climb-down, Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization has lifted all prior airspace restrictions imposed the night before. However, German airline group Lufthansa has suspended all of its flights to Israel and Iraq amid the reports of Israel’s overnight retaliation. The airline says this will hold till early Saturday.