Iran Warns of “Ground Invasion” Plot by US and Israel Under Guise of Diplomacy

Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf on Sunday accused the United States and Israel of planning a “ground invasion” under the guise of diplomacy, warning that Tehran will not yield to pressure, according to Iranian state media Press TV.

As quoted by Press TV, he said, "The enemy talks of negotiations but plans a ground invasion. The US seeks in a 15-point list what it couldn't win in war. Our forces are ready, and we will never be humiliated."

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that the United States and Israel may seek to widen the scope of the ongoing conflict by drawing in other countries or staging "false-flag operations", according to Press TV.

Araghchi made the remarks during a phone call with his Greek counterpart, Georgios Gerapetritis.

As quoted by Press TV, Araghchi cautioned that Washington and Tel Aviv could attempt to expand "unprovoked aggression" against Iran "by compelling other countries to participate in the aggression or conduct false-flag operations against third countries."

How close is the Israel Defense Forces to hitting Iran’s “top priority” targets?

According to Press TV, he also emphasised that countries have legal obligations under international law to prevent their territories or resources from being used to plan or support acts of "aggression".

The Israel Defense Forces is days away from hitting all the targets in Iran it classes as “top priority,” a spokesperson said, as quoted by CNN.

Targets are broken down into different groups, “it could be ballistic missiles, (weapons) production, nuclear, command and control centers, and so on,” said Nadav Shoshani, the IDF’s international spokesperson.

Within each group, there are different categories, “essential, important and additional,” Shoshani explained.

An Israeli strike on an ambulance belonging to the Hezbollah-affiliated Islamic Health Committee killed a paramedic and his patient on Sunday, the group’s spokesperson said.

Why does Israel accuse Hezbollah of using ambulances as operational cover?

The incident came a day after at least nine first aid workers were killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, with the Lebanese health ministry saying around 47 have been killed since the war began.

Israel has repeatedly accused Hezbollah of using ambulance personnel as cover for operations.

Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2, when Hezbollah fired rockets towards Israel in response to the US-Israeli killing of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Israel has since carried out large-scale strikes on Lebanon and launched a ground offensive in the south, with Lebanese authorities reporting at least 1,189 people killed since hostilities began.

"A paramedic and a wounded person who was with him were killed in an Israeli raid on an ambulance in the town of Bint Jbeil," Islamic Health Committee spokesperson Mahmoud Karaki told AFP.

(With inputs from ANI)