Israel’s ambassador to Ireland says she hopes that Ireland has no question “regarding the intentions of Iran” in the wake of Tuesday’s launching of missiles against Israel.
In a message posted on X late on Tuesday, Dana Erlich said: “After seeing the Iranian direct attack on Israel this evening, after seeing my family, my friends, my people, going to shelters because of this indiscriminate attack, I hope there is no question in Ireland regarding the intentions of Iran, the responsibility for the current situation, and no illusions regarding a possible engagement with this so-called new leadership in Iran.
She added: “All roads lead to Iran when it comes to sponsoring terror and instability and the international community needs to come together in order to make sure this regime is stopped.”
The action taken by Iran is a stepping up of hostilities in the Middle East following fighting between Israel and Hezbollah and Hamas.
Iran claimed it had launched the missile strike as a retaliatory move in response to the last week’s killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Ms Erlich’s statement on Tuesday night follows recent discontent by the Israeli Embassy in relation to the emergence of a letter written to the new Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, by President Michael D Higgins in July.
The President said his congratulatory letter was a standard diplomatic one, similar to others he has written to many heads of state.
The letter emerged two months after it was written when it was published in the Jewish Chronicle, a UK magazine, leading to criticism from a number of international security academics, and some Irish politicians.
Following its publication, President Higgins said he believed the letter had been circulated by the Israeli embassy.
However, the Israeli embassy rejected the assertion, saying in a statement: “Unfortunately in Ireland, since the October 7 invasion by Hamas and massacre in Israel, which triggered this awful war, Israel has been subjected to a high level of malicious statements and accusations that have often manifested as incitement to hatred.
“This baseless accusation is highly inflammatory and potentially slanderous, and the embassy rejects it completely. The fact remains that the letter was written and therefore it is the burden of the author to defend its content, which did not mention the threat Iran poses in the region.”
