Israel must respond much more harshly against Iran’s massive ballistic missile strike on Tuesday than it did to a similar strike in April, former National Security Council chief Yaakov Amidror has told The Jerusalem Post.
In April, Israel responded to 120 ballistic missiles, 170 drones, and dozens of cruise missiles by destroying the Islamic Republic’s prized Russian-made S-300 anti-aircraft missile system for defending its Natanz nuclear facility, but without hitting the facility itself.
“They didn’t leave us a choice,” Amidror said. “They are acting now as if they can do whatever they want.”
He added that Jerusalem “must do more than in April. That was the right kind of attack at the time, but it didn’t stop them [this time], so now it must be more serious.”
However, he was more circumspect about the timing of the response.
The Lebanon invasion
“What to do exactly is very complex. We exposed the Iranians. They tried to attack us with proxies, and after serious harm to their proxies in Gaza, and also in Lebanon, they were pushed to hit directly. They always tried to avoid this. But we are still busy in Lebanon. So we need to weigh: Do we want to do something while we are in Lebanon?” the former NSC head asked.
Continuing, he countered, “Or should we first deal with Lebanon, take apart” Hezbollah’s attack materials on the border “and then deal with the Iranians?”
“There is no rush. They won’t disappear,” Amidror said. “The weaker Hezbollah is, the weaker Iran is.”
In terms of what to strike in Iran, he said the choice would not be easy. “It is very hard to hit their ballistic missiles. They are not all in one place and you need to fly 1,500 kilometers and refuel twice.”
Pressed that Israel had done this twice against the Houthis, he countered that “Yemen is easier – there is no enemy to fly over.”