A military official in the Iranian army command denied today, Monday, reports from Western media about Tehran's intention to launch a military attack on targets believed to be Israeli in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq. The source, who requested anonymity, stated that "the claims made by the British Telegraph last Friday, alleging that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard is pushing for a missile strike on Tel Aviv, along with the idea proposed by Iranian President Masoud Bezhakian to target centers linked to Israel in Azerbaijan or Iraqi Kurdistan while informing these countries before the attack, are all false information."
Additionally, the official mentioned that "the assassination of Hamas Political Bureau Chief Ismail Haniya occurred away from Iraq (Kurdistan) or the neighboring Republic of Azerbaijan." In a related context, Azerbaijani state media denied today (August 12, 2024) the presence of foreign troops in Azerbaijan. The "APA" agency in Azerbaijan published a statement in response to reports concerning the presence of elements of the Israeli military in this country and Georgia, affirming that "there is no truth to these reports and that there are no foreign military personnel in Azerbaijan."
The statement indicated: "Iran International network and the Telegraph newspaper, along with Kan news agency, attempted to distort information that does not align with international journalistic standards." Furthermore, the media institution of Azerbaijan stated: "There is no military force from any foreign state on the territory of Azerbaijan, and we strongly condemn the manipulation of information based on false claims in this regard, which has been published to mislead local and international public opinion."
The British Independent newspaper reported yesterday, Sunday, about significant "disagreements" between newly elected Iranian President Masoud Bezhakian and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard over the best way to respond to Israel's assassination of Hamas Political Bureau Chief Ismail Haniya in Tehran last week. According to the report translated by "Baghdad Today," "Revolutionary Guard leaders wish to carry out a broad and direct military strike against Israeli military bases and cities, while the new Iranian president prefers to target (secret bases) of the Israeli Mossad in the region, particularly in Iraq."
The report elaborated that the Iranian president, described as moderate, believes that a direct response to Israel would drag Iran into an open war that the Iranian government does not wish to engage in, making the targeting of its secret bases in the region a possible option for Iran to respond to Israel painlessly without dragging it into an open war. Conversely, Revolutionary Guard leaders reject this notion. The newspaper highlighted that "the Iranian Revolutionary Guard sees the assassination that occurred in Tehran targeting Haniya as an affront to Iranian sovereignty, necessitating a substantial and direct response to Israel."
It is worth noting that the Iranian government has vowed to respond directly and impactfully to the assassination of Haniya, an action that has raised concerns among regional leaders about the potential for an open war between Iran and Israel.
