Gideon Sa'ar: The Iranian Government is a Threat to Israel and Ukraine

Gideon Sa'ar, the Israeli Foreign Minister, announced on Thursday, December 27, that he discussed current developments in the Middle East and Ukraine with his Ukrainian counterpart, Andriy Sybiha, on the 33rd anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. In a post on the social media platform 'X', the Israeli Foreign Minister emphasized that the Iranian government is 'a threat to both countries' and added, 'I stressed the importance of designating the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization in the Ukrainian parliament.' He wrote, 'I reiterated Israel's support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and my concerns regarding recent Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities.' Mr. Sa'ar also mentioned that he explained 'Israel's military and diplomatic actions against the Houthi aggressions' during his conversation with Mr. Sybiha. In another post, referring to Israel's airstrikes against 'Houthi terrorist organization targets in Yemen,' he stated that this action was taken after attacks by this Iran-backed group on Israel following October 7 of last year. Mr. Sa'ar's reference to October 7 marks the date of Hamas's attack, another group supported by the Iranian government, on Israel. The Israeli Foreign Minister pointed out that the attacks by 'the Houthis, a proxy group of the Iranian regime,' disrupt global stability by targeting international shipping routes, adding that Israel will not tolerate their terrorist aggression from a distance of two thousand kilometers and will take all necessary military and diplomatic actions to protect its security. Earlier, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, stated on Thursday, following the Israeli airstrikes on Houthi positions in Yemen, 'Our work with the Houthis has just begun.' In an interview with Channel 14 of Israeli television, Mr. Netanyahu referred to the beginning of attacks against the interests of the Iran-backed Houthis, stating, 'We have just begun. We will not allow them to attack us again. We will bring a bitter end for the Houthis so that they learn a lesson; just as we promised, Hamas, Hezbollah, and Assad's Syria learned their lesson.' The Iran-backed Houthis have repeatedly attacked commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden with drones and missiles over the past year, directly targeting Israel as well. The Houthis claim that their attacks are in support of the people of Gaza in the Israel-Hamas war. However, the U.S. and its allies argue that the actions of this group disrupt maritime transport and the global economy.