The MV Helios Ray, a vehicle-carrier ship, was hit overnight by a blast above the water line that a US official said ripped holes in both sides of its hull. An Israeli official said limpet mines were used.
"This was indeed an operation by Iran. That is clear," Netanyahu told Kan radio.
Asked if Israel would retaliate, he repeated previous statements about his determination to prevent Iran from developing nuclear capacity and added: "We are striking at it (Iran) all over the region."Kan said the interview was recorded on Sunday night, before Syria accused Israel of carrying out missile strikes around southern Damascus. Israel did not confirm that, but has previously said it was launching frequent military actions against Iranian deployment or arms handovers within Syria.Yoav Galant, a minister in Netanyahu's security cabinet and a former navy admiral, said pictures of the Helios Ray showed each hole resulted from "a mine affixed to the exterior, apparently in a nighttime navy commando operation."The perpetrators would have known about the ship's Israeli ownership from open-source material, and the incident took place close to Iranian-controlled coastline, Galant told Ynet TV - adding that a formal investigation had confirmed his observations.