Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly says she's urging Israel to de-escalate rising conflicts in the Middle East and not bomb Iran in retaliation for Sunday's thwarted airstrikes. Joly speaks with reporters in the foyer of the House of Commons before question period, in Ottawa, Monday, April 15, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
OTTAWA – Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says she’s urging Israel to de-escalate rising conflicts in the Middle East and not bomb Iran in retaliation for Sunday’s thwarted airstrikes.
Joly says she told Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz to “take the win” of having stopped Iranian airstrikes and to not respond with a direct attack on Iran.
Israel and Iran have been in a proxy war for years, with Israel accusing Tehran of empowering groups like Hezbollah and Hamas to attack Israel.
Israel is widely believed to have been behind the April 1 airstrike on Iran’s embassy in Syria, which killed senior military officers.
The incident prompted Iran to launch its first-ever military assault on Israel on Sunday, with hundreds of drones and missiles Tehran says were aimed at military infrastructure.
Joly says she will be discussing more sanctions on Iran at this week’s meeting with her fellow foreign ministers in the G7 bloc of like-minded countries.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 15, 2024.
