Defending strikes, Sa’ar tells EU foreign czar Iran threatened Europe as well

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has held talks with his French and European Union counterparts about Israel’s strikes on Iran, his office says.

Sa’ar told EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas over the phone that the strikes on Iran were targeting both its nuclear program and its long-range missile project, saying Tehran is close to “becoming the number one missile manufacturer in the world,” and that this increases the threat of Iran’s “plan of elimination against Israel.”

He adds that the Islamic Republic’s missile capabilities “also endanger Europe,” as he says he understood from conversations with European leaders.

In a phone call with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, Sa’ar emphasizes that Israel’s military actions will continue with the goal of “removing the existential threats to Israel,” and thanks Barrot for affirming Israel’s right to defend itself in an earlier statement.

French President Emmanuel Macron convened his security council this morning to discuss the security situation in the Middle East.

Barrot says he also held talks with the Saudi foreign minister over Israel’s attack on Iran.