Iran Vows to Deliver Appropriate Response to Israel’s Attack

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that his country does not seek war but will respond appropriately to Israel’s October 26 attack on Iran. 

“We do not seek war, but we will defend our nation and our country. We will deliver an appropriate response to the Zionist regime’s aggression,” Pezeshkian remarked during a cabinet meeting on October 27, as reported on the president’s official website.

Pezeshkian added that the U.S. had not fulfilled its promise to secure a ceasefire in Gaza in exchange for Tehran’s restraint, saying, “We are aware that America is fueling Israel’s encouragement of atrocities. They promised to end the conflict in response to our restraint, but they have not kept their word.”

He also criticized the actions of Israel’s supporters, particularly the U.S., who “profess to champion human rights and freedom, yet remain silent in the face of this ruthless regime’s slaughter of tens of thousands of women and children.”

Earlier, Pezeshkian expressed condolences on X for the deaths of soldiers and warned “enemies of Iran” that the country "will respond to any foolishness with tact and intelligence.”

In the early hours of October 26, Israeli forces launched “targeted” airstrikes on Iran in response to the Islamic Republic’s October 1 large-scale missile attack on Israel. These airstrikes targeted military sites in central Tehran, western Ilam, and southwestern Khuzestan provinces, resulting in the death of four air defense personnel from the Islamic Republic Army and injuries to several others.

According to Axios, Israeli sources stated that the strikes were conducted from Syrian and Iraqi airspace, hitting four S-300 air defense batteries positioned strategically to protect Tehran and critical nuclear and energy facilities. Additionally, 12 “planetary mixers” used in producing solid fuel for long-range ballistic missiles were targeted.

Following the Israeli strikes, two unnamed Iranian officials informed the New York Times that one of the targeted sites was an S-300 air defense system at Imam Khomeini International Airport near Tehran. However, Saeed Chalandari, managing director of Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Airport, denied this, stating that no anti-air defense systems have ever been installed at the airport and that no damage had occurred at or near the facility.

Iranian media reported that more fatalities might occur, as several of those injured were in critical condition.

Top Iranian officials condemned Israel’s attack, lauding the efforts of Iran’s air defenses in repelling the assault and emphasizing the country’s right to retaliation. On October 27, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei responded to the attack while meeting with families of “martyrs” from security forces in Tehran. He accused Israel of “exaggerating” its attack, calling it a “miscalculation” of Iran’s capabilities, which he said Tehran must “correct.” “They do not know Iran, do not know the Iranian youth, the Iranian nation; they have not yet correctly understood the power, capability, initiative, and will of the Iranian nation. We must make them understand,” he stated.

Khamenei reiterated his condemnation of Israeli “war crimes” in Gaza and Lebanon and criticized other countries and international organizations, including the UN, for their ”failure” to address these issues.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also condemned Israel’s “criminal attack,” describing it as a “violation of international law and the UN Charter.” Araghchi subsequently sent a letter requesting an emergency UN Security Council meeting to hold Israel accountable for the attack and reaffirmed Iran’s right to respond.

In a statement, Iran’s General Staff of the Armed Forces asserted that the country reserves the right to take “legitimate action” at an “appropriate time” in response to Israel’s attack. The statement mentioned that Iran’s air defense system had prevented enemy aircraft from entering Iranian airspace, claiming that Israeli forces “used airspace controlled by the terrorist American army in Iraq, a hundred kilometers from the Iranian border.” It further noted that while some damaged radar systems were immediately repaired, others are still undergoing repairs.

After a series of devastating Israeli operations against Iran’s primary proxy, Hezbollah, and the assassination of its leader Hassan Nasrallah, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, and Abbas Nilforoushan, operations chief of the IRGC’s Quds Force, Tehran launched a large missile barrage against Israel on October 1. This marked Iran’s second missile attack since April, though, like the previous one, it caused minimal damage.